40 Years: Our History & Highlights

Origin of the Center

In its early days as a city, Irvine rented an old horse stable in Laguna Beach to serve as its animal shelter. Volunteers helped convert the empty stalls into dog kennels and rooms for cat cages. The shelter Director and his wife lived onsite. One of our founding volunteers remembers a special room was made to replicate the surrounding nature. That was where volunteers cared for Edith, an injured raccoon mama, and her babies. They did everything they could to minimize contact and keep the raccoons wild. After her injury healed, Edith and her babies were successfully returned to the outdoors. Success!

In 1982, Mayor Art Anthony and his wife Elaine spearheaded the effort to build Irvine its own facility. A local animal welfare group, Irvine P.A.W.s, worked with the City Council to fund the move. The Irvine Company donated the land, and the Irvine Animal Care Center was born.  

Asparagus fields surrounded the center and the nearest building was the U.S. Post Office a mile away. Sand Canyon was only one lane each way. During the rainy season, the fields would flood and staff and volunteers had to make their way through the mud to get to the center. 

Week one after inaugurating the new facility, the center was put to the test. Animal Services were called out to an RV that was emitting strange sounds and smells. It turned out the owner had fled a situation with the police in Indiana. She was living out of her RV, spending nights in Irvine parking lots, and had more than 100 live cats and dogs inside as well as some that had perished. Staff and volunteers, including Dr. Cole D.V.M, an early and stalwart supporter, took immediate action to rescue the survivors. The center did not have an onsite clinic or staff veterinarian like we do now. The worst cases were sent to Irvine Pet Hospital, Irvine Vet Services (now VCA Irvine University Park), and Camino Pet Hospital, groups we continue strong relationships with today. Volunteers supported staff to bathe, groom, and care for the others. Weeks of specialized care paid off in forever homes for those pets. 

Highlights

Another amazing, but true, story from the center’s early days is when an alligator lived onsite. Found wandering stray on the Rancho San Joaquin golf course, Animal Services brought him in. He was malnourished and small—only 6’ long! Staff nursed him back to health and was able to send him to a sanctuary in Texas. 

Irvine’s agricultural beginnings meant many families had farmyard pets. If a resident could no longer care for these animals, they were able to surrender them to the center. On days when the center was closed, the farm animals were let out into the main grass yard for enrichment. Our motion-activated front door meant you might find a chicken pecking at your shoelaces if you worked in the front office. You might catch a glimpse of Abigail, the Pygmy goat, running in to snatch a paper flier from the rack. You would have to watch out for Dakota, the goat who’d snatch stuffed cat toys from the alcove to enjoy as a snack. And, you might see a volunteer sneaking Big Macs to the pigs Albert and Elliot when the veterinarian wasn’t looking.