- Veterinary Care in Animal Shelters: Who Can Legally Do What?
Disclaimer
We'll be using the state of California and its legal requirements for these programs as examples. You'll want to speak to your own legal counsel to make sure your area (state, county, city, or other locality) doesn't have different regulations in place.
CE Credit
These self-paced courses have been approved for Certified Animal Welfare Administrator (CAWA) continuing education credits by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement and by the National Animal Care and Control Association as well as RACE credit in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval. Please review the individual course descriptions for more information.
Upon completing the course and passing the quiz, upload your certificate to https://CEBroker.com. This is the broker used by the AAVSB to track your continuing education credits.
MMPC Learniverse
With the Maddie's®️ Million Pet Challenge, the Five Key Initiatives of the Million Cat Challenge have expanded to include other species at risk in shelters and evolved into the Four Rights.
Within the Four Rights, every element works in concert to support one another: animals and people are treated as individuals, empowering shelter staff to make the best decisions for everyone; community safety net services are in place and flourishing; and humane care within the shelter is provided, with appropriate outcomes for the animals that do come in, allowing shelters to deliver the Right Care, in the Right Place, at the Right Time, and to the Right Outcome.
This course focuses on how Finder Foster programs support the Right Place, Right Care, and Right Outcome components of the Four Rights.
Thanks to groundbreaking veterinary telemedicine and vaccine legislation, your California shelter can now operate with fewer restrictions around who can provide essential care and how, freeing up your team to more easily meet medical needs in the shelter and community.
Webinar Overview
We’ve got amazing news about access to care in animal shelters for 2024. Thanks to groundbreaking veterinary telemedicine and vaccine legislation, your California shelter can ring in the new year with fewer restrictions around who can provide essential care and how, freeing up your team to more easily meet medical needs in the shelter or community.
Discover how your shelter can:
Empower RVTs to take charge of vaccine clinics (even if your vet is elsewhere)
Provide increased access to wellness care for pets in your community
Use telemedicine to expand the veterinary care your shelter can provide, whether an animal is in foster or in the field, working with staff or contract veterinarians
Increase access to care for underserved pets and their people and decrease unnecessary intake
Use telemedicine to increase veterinary care for animals in the shelter
Disclaimer
California law is discussed in this course. However, most of the basic concepts and discussion points will apply to all states. If you're not in California, let this information guide you in what laws to research in your own state, and be sure to consult with an attorney in your state.
Continuing Education Credits
This webinar has been approved for 1.5 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator (CAWA) continuing education credit by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement (AAWA) and by National Animal Care and Control Association (NACA).
This course has been approved for 1.5 hours of RACE continuing education credit until 2/13/2026 in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval. Upon completing the course and passing the quiz, upload your certificate to https://CEBroker.com. This is the broker used by the AAVSB to track your continuing education credits.
With the Maddie’s®️ Million Pet Challenge, the Five Key Initiatives of the Million Cat Challenge have expanded to include other species at risk in shelters and evolved into the Four Rights.
Within the Four Rights, every element works in concert to support one another: animals and people are treated as individuals, empowering shelter staff to make the best decisions for everyone; community safety net services are in place and flourishing; and humane care within the shelter is provided, with appropriate outcomes for the animals that do come in, allowing shelters to deliver the Right Care, in the Right Place, at the Right Time, and to the Right Outcome
You can also join the discussion about these concepts over on Maddie's Pet Forum in the Telemedicine and Vaccine Clinics in California discussion thread.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab).
Cindi Delany
Director of Online Learning
Maddie’s® Million Pet Challenge , UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program
With an undergraduate degree in Business/Economics from UCLA and a DVM from UC Davis, Dr. Cindi Delany has practiced emergency medicine, animal shelter medicine and shelter outreach for more than 20 years. Her focus with the Koret Shelter Medicine Program’s animal shelter outreach and industry speaking activities is on programs targeted to improve animal outcomes, provide environmental enrichment for shelter animals, explore shelter animal behavior and training, improve shelter data collection and analysis, and maximize operational efficiencies in a limited resource environment. Dr. Delany is now taking her passion and expertise for sharing information and learnings about maximizing animal shelter success to the next level as the Maddie’s® Million Pet Challenge Director of Online Learning at the UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program.
Bruce Wagman
Lead Counsel
San Francisco SPCA - Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS)
For almost three decades, Bruce Wagman has been using his legal education and well-honed skills to help animals in all sectors of society, and benefit both society and the animals themselves. He is the only lawyer running an exclusive animal law practice in a major United States firm. He litigates, drafts animal-friendly legislation, oversees rescue operations, and consults clients who care for and protect animals. He has published two major works, the leading casebook for law schools nationwide—Animal Law: Cases and Materials—and a global survey of animal laws, A Worldview of Animal Law, the only global survey of animal law. Bruce also founded Project Chimps, a chimpanzee sanctuary that is home to chimpanzees retired from a research laboratory. Bruce’s clients include numerous animal protection organizations as well as private individuals. He has worked on behalf of many species, including alpacas, bears, birds, cats, chickens, chinchillas, chimpanzees, cows, deer, dogs, dolphins, ducks, elephants, elk, ferrets, geese, goats, gorillas, horses (domestic and wild), lions, mice, monkeys, pigs, rabbits, sharks, turkeys, whales, and wolves. In addition to his role as Lead Counsel of Shelter PALS, Bruce currently serves as Of Counsel at Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP.
A fun, interactive journey to demystify California's legal landscape and discover how California laws and regulations can work in harmony with shelter policy to reduce unnecessary intakes and shorten shelter stays.
Course Overview
The webinar you’ve been asking for! Join us in this two-part series as we embark on a fun, interactive journey to demystify California's legal landscape and discover how California laws and regulations can work in harmony with shelter policy to reduce unnecessary intakes and shorten shelter stays. In this series, we will cut through the legalese, distill key takeaways, and provide you with practical, "what does this mean for me and my work?" guidance. If your shelter squad only ever attends one webinar series about how legal guidelines can be used to your advantage let this be the one.
At the end of this series, you’ll understand how California laws and regulations should impact and inform best practices in how your shelter approaches critical areas including:
Part 1
Community Cat Programs to Decrease Unnecessary Shelter Intakes
Options for Getting Lost Animals Home Fast
Working with Finders and Owners to Get Animals Back Home Without a Shelter Stay
Part 2
Intake Management to Focus on Animals Who Most Need You
Knowing Your Holding Periods to Avoid Unnecessarily Long Shelter Stays
Key Practices to Minimize in Shelter Length of Stay After the Legal Hold
Improving Animal Flow Through to Appropriate Outcomes
Providing Needed Care with Limited Resources
Powered by partnership. This webinar is brought to you by the Maddie’s Million Pet Challenge Learniverse at the UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program, San Francisco SPCA’s Shelter PALS program, and CalAnimals. By sharing our diverse expertise and working together to find the intersections where California law impacts animal shelters, we’ve formulating hollistic shelter practices that allow you to better leverage the law.
California law is discussed in this course. However, most of the basic concepts and discussion points will apply to all states. If you're not in California, let this information guide you in what laws to research in your own state, and be sure to consult with an attorney in your state.
Continuing Education Credits
These webinars have each been approved for 1.5 hours (3 total hours) of Certified Animal Welfare Administrator (CAWA) continuing education credit by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement (AAWA) and by National Animal Care and Control Association (NACA).
These webinars have each been approved for 1.5 hours (3 total hours) of RACE continuing education credit until 11/20/2023 in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval. Upon completing the course and passing the quiz, upload your certificate to https://CEBroker.com. This is the broker used by the AAVSB to track your continuing education credits.
With the Maddie’s®️ Million Pet Challenge, the Five Key Initiatives of the Million Cat Challenge have expanded to include other species at risk in shelters and evolved into the Four Rights.
Within the Four Rights, every element works in concert to support one another: animals and people are treated as individuals, empowering shelter staff to make the best decisions for everyone; community safety net services are in place and flourishing; and humane care within the shelter is provided, with appropriate outcomes for the animals that do come in, allowing shelters to deliver the Right Care, in the Right Place, at the Right Time, and to the Right Outcome
This course focuses on understanding intake requirements and holding periods that can help your shelter make sure animals are in the Right Place for the Right Time.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab).
Bruce Wagman
Lead Counsel
San Francisco SPCA - Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS)
For almost three decades, Bruce Wagman has been using his legal education and well-honed skills to help animals in all sectors of society, and benefit both society and the animals themselves. He is the only lawyer running an exclusive animal law practice in a major United States firm. He litigates, drafts animal-friendly legislation, oversees rescue operations, and consults clients who care for and protect animals. He has published two major works, the leading casebook for law schools nationwide—Animal Law: Cases and Materials—and a global survey of animal laws, A Worldview of Animal Law, the only global survey of animal law. Bruce also founded Project Chimps, a chimpanzee sanctuary that is home to chimpanzees retired from a research laboratory. Bruce’s clients include numerous animal protection organizations as well as private individuals. He has worked on behalf of many species, including alpacas, bears, birds, cats, chickens, chinchillas, chimpanzees, cows, deer, dogs, dolphins, ducks, elephants, elk, ferrets, geese, goats, gorillas, horses (domestic and wild), lions, mice, monkeys, pigs, rabbits, sharks, turkeys, whales, and wolves. In addition to his role as Lead Counsel of Shelter PALS, Bruce currently serves as Of Counsel at Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP.
Maddie’s® Million Pet Challenge , UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program
With an undergraduate degree in Business/Economics from UCLA and a DVM from UC Davis, Dr. Cindi Delany has practiced emergency medicine, animal shelter medicine and shelter outreach for more than 20 years. Her focus with the Koret Shelter Medicine Program’s animal shelter outreach and industry speaking activities is on programs targeted to improve animal outcomes, provide environmental enrichment for shelter animals, explore shelter animal behavior and training, improve shelter data collection and analysis, and maximize operational efficiencies in a limited resource environment. Dr. Delany is now taking her passion and expertise for sharing information and learnings about maximizing animal shelter success to the next level as the Maddie’s® Million Pet Challenge Director of Online Learning at the UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program.
Your exclusive gateway to unlocking crucial insights, empowering you to address challenges and navigate the intricate landscape of drug and premises permit regulations.
Course Overview
The goal of this course is to simplify, distill, and deliver the essential knowledge you need to address challenges and navigate the intricate landscape of drug and premises permit regulations.
We'll cover:
•Understanding Legal Dynamics: Gain valuable access to the inner workings of the legal landscape governing medical and euthanasia services in shelters. Discover the transformative impact of understanding the agencies that impact the type and quality of care you provide.
•Decoding Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) & Veterinary Medical Board (VMB) Roles: Untangle regulations around controlled substances, enhance your understanding of premises permits, and gain insight into the role of premises permit holders, with a focus on compliance.
•Strengthen Your Team: Gain insights into the diverse roles of licensed and unlicensed staff in delivering top-tier medical care within shelters. Equip your team with knowledge that will directly amplify care quality.
•Facilitate Access to Medical Care in Shelters: Explore actionable solutions! Master the art of collaboration with regulatory agencies, opening pathways for advanced medical care for animals in your shelter and in your community.
California law is discussed in this course. However, most of the basic concepts and discussion points will apply to all states. If you're not in California, let this information guide you in what laws to research in your own state, and be sure to consult with an attorney in your state.
Continuing Education Credits
This short course has been approved for 1.5 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator (CAWA) continuing education credit by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement (AAWA) and by National Animal Care and Control Association (NACA).
This course has been approved for 1.5 hours of RACE continuing education credit until 9/25/2025 in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval. Upon completing the course and passing the quiz, upload your certificate to https://CEBroker.com. This is the broker used by the AAVSB to track your continuing education credits.
With the Maddie’s®️ Million Pet Challenge, the Five Key Initiatives of the Million Cat Challenge have expanded to include other species at risk in shelters and evolved into the Four Rights.
Within the Four Rights, every element works in concert to support one another: animals and people are treated as individuals, empowering shelter staff to make the best decisions for everyone; community safety net services are in place and flourishing; and humane care within the shelter is provided, with appropriate outcomes for the animals that do come in, allowing shelters to deliver the Right Care, in the Right Place, at the Right Time, and to the Right Outcome
This course focuses on understanding intake requirements and holding periods that can help your shelter make sure animals are in the Right Place for the Right Time.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab).
We have a dedicated discussion group on Maddie's Pet Forum to discuss the Shelter PALS Legal Series. Bring your questions, comments, thoughts, and suggestions, or just see what others are thinking about these ideas.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab)
Bruce Wagman
Lead Counsel
San Francisco SPCA - Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS)
For almost three decades, Bruce Wagman has been using his legal education and well-honed skills to help animals in all sectors of society, and benefit both society and the animals themselves. He is the only lawyer running an exclusive animal law practice in a major United States firm. He litigates, drafts animal-friendly legislation, oversees rescue operations, and consults clients who care for and protect animals. He has published two major works, the leading casebook for law schools nationwide—Animal Law: Cases and Materials—and a global survey of animal laws, A Worldview of Animal Law, the only global survey of animal law. Bruce also founded Project Chimps, a chimpanzee sanctuary that is home to chimpanzees retired from a research laboratory. Bruce’s clients include numerous animal protection organizations as well as private individuals. He has worked on behalf of many species, including alpacas, bears, birds, cats, chickens, chinchillas, chimpanzees, cows, deer, dogs, dolphins, ducks, elephants, elk, ferrets, geese, goats, gorillas, horses (domestic and wild), lions, mice, monkeys, pigs, rabbits, sharks, turkeys, whales, and wolves. In addition to his role as Lead Counsel of Shelter PALS, Bruce currently serves as Of Counsel at Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP.
Maddie’s® Million Pet Challenge , UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program
With an undergraduate degree in Business/Economics from UCLA and a DVM from UC Davis, Dr. Cindi Delany has practiced emergency medicine, animal shelter medicine and shelter outreach for more than 20 years. Her focus with the Koret Shelter Medicine Program’s animal shelter outreach and industry speaking activities is on programs targeted to improve animal outcomes, provide environmental enrichment for shelter animals, explore shelter animal behavior and training, improve shelter data collection and analysis, and maximize operational efficiencies in a limited resource environment. Dr. Delany is now taking her passion and expertise for sharing information and learnings about maximizing animal shelter success to the next level as the Maddie’s® Million Pet Challenge Director of Online Learning at the UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program.
Learn which tasks each of your shelter team members can legally perform, from intake-related care and running diagnostics to providing treatment, surgery, euthanasia, public veterinary services and emergency care
Course Overview
In this short course, you’ll learn how to fully leverage the veterinary care capabilities of your entire team - not just your designated "medical" staff - including front office staff, field officers, kennel attendants, volunteers, and fosters. Bruce Wagman, Lead Counsel for San Francisco SPCA's Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS), will review which shelter tasks team members can perform, from intake-related care and running diagnostics to providing treatment, surgery, euthanasia, public veterinary services, and emergency care. After this course, you’ll be ready to maximize your shelter’s options for providing veterinary care while adhering to the law and Practice Act requirements.
This short course has been approved for 1.0 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator (CAWA) continuing education credit by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement (AAWA) and by National Animal Care and Control Association (NACA).
This course has been approved for 1 hour of RACE continuing education credit until 8/2/2025 in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval. Upon completing the course and passing the quiz, upload your certificate to https://CEBroker.com. This is the broker used by the AAVSB to track your continuing education credits.
Animal care laws, legal, laws, ordinances, medical, RVT, veterinarian, assistants
Maddie’s®️ Million Pet Challenge
With the Maddie’s®️ Million Pet Challenge, the Five Key Initiatives of the Million Cat Challenge have expanded to include other species at risk in shelters and evolved into the Four Rights.
Within the Four Rights, every element works in concert to support one another: animals and people are treated as individuals, empowering shelter staff to make the best decisions for everyone; community safety net services are in place and flourishing; and humane care within the shelter is provided, with appropriate outcomes for the animals that do come in, allowing shelters to deliver the Right Care, in the Right Place, at the Right Time, and to the Right Outcome
This course focuses on understanding intake requirements and holding periods that can help your shelter make sure animals are in the Right Place for the Right Time.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab).
We have a dedicated discussion group on Maddie's Pet Forum to discuss the Shelter PALS Legal Series. Bring your questions, comments, thoughts, and suggestions, or just see what others are thinking about these ideas.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab)
Bruce Wagman
Lead Counsel
San Francisco SPCA - Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS)
For almost three decades, Bruce Wagman has been using his legal education and well-honed skills to help animals in all sectors of society, and benefit both society and the animals themselves. He is the only lawyer running an exclusive animal law practice in a major United States firm. He litigates, drafts animal-friendly legislation, oversees rescue operations, and consults clients who care for and protect animals. He has published two major works, the leading casebook for law schools nationwide—Animal Law: Cases and Materials—and a global survey of animal laws, A Worldview of Animal Law, the only global survey of animal law. Bruce also founded Project Chimps, a chimpanzee sanctuary that is home to chimpanzees retired from a research laboratory. Bruce’s clients include numerous animal protection organizations as well as private individuals. He has worked on behalf of many species, including alpacas, bears, birds, cats, chickens, chinchillas, chimpanzees, cows, deer, dogs, dolphins, ducks, elephants, elk, ferrets, geese, goats, gorillas, horses (domestic and wild), lions, mice, monkeys, pigs, rabbits, sharks, turkeys, whales, and wolves. In addition to his role as Lead Counsel of Shelter PALS, Bruce currently serves as Of Counsel at Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP.
Explore what community cat programs (CCPs) are, why CCPs are needed and how effective CCPs operate in compliance with state and local laws
This course will explore what community cat programs (CCPs) are, explain why CCPs are needed, and describe how effective CCPs operate in compliance with state and local laws. You'll learn how your shelter can address cat overpopulation and help cats thrive where they are by implementing humane, life-saving, evidence-based community cat programs.
As part of the Maddie's® Million Pet Challenge Learniverse program, Bruce Wagman, Lead Counsel for San Francisco SPCA's Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS) program, covers community cat programs in the state of California. The country’s first and only legal aid organization dedicated exclusively to the needs of animal shelters, Shelter PALS leverages the expertise of the best minds in animal welfare and channels significant legal aid to animal shelters.
This short, self-paced course has been approved for 1.0 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator (CAWA) continuing education credit by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement and by National Animal Care and Control Association.
This course has been approved for 1 hour of continuing education credit until September 18th, 2026 in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval. Upon completing the course and passing the quiz, upload your certificate to https://CEBroker.com. This is the broker used by the AAVSB to track your continuing education credits.
With the Maddie’s®️ Million Pet Challenge, the Five Key Initiatives of the Million Cat Challenge have expanded to include other species at risk in shelters and evolved into the Four Rights.
Within the Four Rights, every element works in concert to support one another: animals and people are treated as individuals, empowering shelter staff to make the best decisions for everyone; community safety net services are in place and flourishing; and humane care within the shelter is provided, with appropriate outcomes for the animals that do come in, allowing shelters to deliver the Right Care, in the Right Place, at the Right Time, and to the Right Outcome.
This course focuses on community cat programs to help make sure cats get the Right Care, in the Right Place, and get to the Right Outcome.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab).
We have a dedicated discussion group on Maddie's Pet Forum to discuss the Shelter PALS Legal Series. Bring your questions, comments, thoughts, and suggestions, or just see what others are thinking about these ideas.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab)
Bruce Wagman
Lead Counsel
San Francisco SPCA - Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS)
For almost three decades, Bruce Wagman has been using his legal education and well-honed skills to help animals in all sectors of society, and benefit both society and the animals themselves. He is the only lawyer running an exclusive animal law practice in a major United States firm. He litigates, drafts animal-friendly legislation, oversees rescue operations, and consults clients who care for and protect animals. He has published two major works, the leading casebook for law schools nationwide—Animal Law: Cases and Materials—and a global survey of animal laws, A Worldview of Animal Law, the only global survey of animal law. Bruce also founded Project Chimps, a chimpanzee sanctuary that is home to chimpanzees retired from a research laboratory. Bruce’s clients include numerous animal protection organizations as well as private individuals. He has worked on behalf of many species, including alpacas, bears, birds, cats, chickens, chinchillas, chimpanzees, cows, deer, dogs, dolphins, ducks, elephants, elk, ferrets, geese, goats, gorillas, horses (domestic and wild), lions, mice, monkeys, pigs, rabbits, sharks, turkeys, whales, and wolves. In addition to his role as Lead Counsel of Shelter PALS, Bruce currently serves as Of Counsel at Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP.
Learn how to determine the intake requirements and holding periods for animals in your shelter community.
When it comes to daily shelter activities, the most common questions, and greatest confusion, revolve around intake (if, when, who) of animals, and the applicable holding periods once intake occurs.
This course will discuss the laws that shape intake and holding periods for animals in shelters in the state of California (but the basic concepts and discussion points will apply to all states). You’ll learn the California-specific state mandates and requirements surrounding intake, exceptions surrounding holding periods, and how to determine holding periods in various situations. If you're not in California let this information guide you in what to research in your own state.
Knowing which animals should enter the shelter and how long they must stay is crucial to prioritizing intake of the animals who truly need to be at your shelter and minimizing length of stay in shelters for those animals.
As part of the Maddie's® Million Pet Challenge Learniverse program, Bruce Wagman, Lead Counsel for San Francisco SPCA's Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS) program, covers intake and holding periods for animal shelters in the state of California. The country’s first and only legal aid organization dedicated exclusively to the needs of animal shelters, Shelter PALS leverages the expertise of the best minds in animal welfare and channels significant legal aid to animal shelters.
This short, self-paced course has been approved for 1.0 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator (CAWA) continuing education credits by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement and by National Animal Care and Control Association.
This course has been approved for 1 hour of continuing education credit until November 8, 2026 in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval. Upon completing the course and passing the quiz, upload your certificate to https://CEBroker.com. This is the broker used by the AAVSB to track your continuing education credits.
With the Maddie’s®️ Million Pet Challenge, the Five Key Initiatives of the Million Cat Challenge have expanded to include other species at risk in shelters and evolved into the Four Rights.
Within the Four Rights, every element works in concert to support one another: animals and people are treated as individuals, empowering shelter staff to make the best decisions for everyone; community safety net services are in place and flourishing; and humane care within the shelter is provided, with appropriate outcomes for the animals that do come in, allowing shelters to deliver the Right Care, in the Right Place, at the Right Time, and to the Right Outcome
This course focuses on understanding intake requirements and holding periods that can help your shelter make sure animals are in the Right Place for the Right Time.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab).
We have a dedicated discussion group on Maddie's Pet Forum to discuss the Shelter PALS Legal Series. Bring your questions, comments, thoughts, and suggestions, or just see what others are thinking about these ideas.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab)
Bruce Wagman
Lead Counsel
San Francisco SPCA - Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS)
For almost three decades, Bruce Wagman has been using his legal education and well-honed skills to help animals in all sectors of society, and benefit both society and the animals themselves. He is the only lawyer running an exclusive animal law practice in a major United States firm. He litigates, drafts animal-friendly legislation, oversees rescue operations, and consults clients who care for and protect animals. He has published two major works, the leading casebook for law schools nationwide—Animal Law: Cases and Materials—and a global survey of animal laws, A Worldview of Animal Law, the only global survey of animal law. Bruce also founded Project Chimps, a chimpanzee sanctuary that is home to chimpanzees retired from a research laboratory. Bruce’s clients include numerous animal protection organizations as well as private individuals. He has worked on behalf of many species, including alpacas, bears, birds, cats, chickens, chinchillas, chimpanzees, cows, deer, dogs, dolphins, ducks, elephants, elk, ferrets, geese, goats, gorillas, horses (domestic and wild), lions, mice, monkeys, pigs, rabbits, sharks, turkeys, whales, and wolves. In addition to his role as Lead Counsel of Shelter PALS, Bruce currently serves as Of Counsel at Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP.
Learn how Finder Foster programs can help you reunite more animals with their families and promote animal well-being
What is a "Finder Foster" program - how does it work, how long do finders need to hold an animal and what are other important legal aspects of these programs?
In this course you’ll learn how Finder Foster programs can help you reunite more animals with their families, promote animal well-being and minimize stress by reducing time spent in the shelter, and reserve resources for animals who really do need to come in—all by engaging people who are already helping animals in your community.
We've asked a legal expert to help us understand these important details. We'll be using the state of California and its legal requirements for these programs as an example. You'll want to speak to your own legal counsel to make sure your area (state, county, city or other locality) doesn't have different regulations in place.
As part of Maddie's® Million Pet Challenge Learniverse program, Bruce Wagman, Lead Counsel for the Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS) program of the San Francisco SPCA, covers the concepts, legal specifics, and requirements of finder-foster programs for animal shelters in the state of California. The country’s first and only legal aid organization dedicated exclusively to the needs of animal shelters, Shelter PALS leverages the expertise of the best legal minds in animal welfare, and channels significant legal aid to animal shelters. Although the specific information in this course is applicable to and derived from California state law, many of the principles will be similar in other states.
This short, self-paced course has been approved for 1.0 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator (CAWA) continuing education credits by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement and by National Animal Care and Control Association.
This course has been approved for 1 hour of continuing education credit until July 25, 2026 in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval. Upon completing the course and passing the quiz, upload your certificate to https://CEBroker.com. This is the broker used by the AAVSB to track your continuing education credits.
Keywords: Animal Care Laws, Finder Foster, Lifesaving.
With the Maddie’s®️ Million Pet Challenge, the Five Key Initiatives of the Million Cat Challenge have expanded to include other species at risk in shelters and evolved into the Four Rights.
Within the Four Rights, every element works in concert to support one another: animals and people are treated as individuals, empowering shelter staff to make the best decisions for everyone; community safety net services are in place and flourishing; and humane care within the shelter is provided, with appropriate outcomes for the animals that do come in, allowing shelters to deliver the Right Care, in the Right Place, at the Right Time, and to the Right Outcome.
This course focuses on how Finder Foster programs support the Right Place, Right Care, and Right Outcome components of the Four Rights.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab).
We have a dedicated discussion group on Maddie's Pet Forum to discuss the Shelter PALS Legal Series. Bring your questions, comments, thoughts, and suggestions, or just see what others are thinking about these ideas.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab)
Bruce Wagman
Lead Counsel
San Francisco SPCA - Shelter Policy and Legal Services (Shelter PALS)
For almost three decades, Bruce Wagman has been using his legal education and well-honed skills to help animals in all sectors of society, and benefit both society and the animals themselves. He is the only lawyer running an exclusive animal law practice in a major United States firm. He litigates, drafts animal-friendly legislation, oversees rescue operations, and consults clients who care for and protect animals. He has published two major works, the leading casebook for law schools nationwide—Animal Law: Cases and Materials—and a global survey of animal laws, A Worldview of Animal Law, the only global survey of animal law. Bruce also founded Project Chimps, a chimpanzee sanctuary that is home to chimpanzees retired from a research laboratory. Bruce’s clients include numerous animal protection organizations as well as private individuals. He has worked on behalf of many species, including alpacas, bears, birds, cats, chickens, chinchillas, chimpanzees, cows, deer, dogs, dolphins, ducks, elephants, elk, ferrets, geese, goats, gorillas, horses (domestic and wild), lions, mice, monkeys, pigs, rabbits, sharks, turkeys, whales, and wolves. In addition to his role as Lead Counsel of Shelter PALS, Bruce currently serves as Of Counsel at Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP.
We have a dedicated discussion group on Maddie's Pet Forum to discuss the Shelter PALS Legal Series. Bring your questions, comments, thoughts, and suggestions, or just see what others are thinking about these ideas.
Click to visit the Discussion Group (will open in a new window/tab)
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Contains 6 Component(s), Includes Credits
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Contains 6 Component(s), Includes Credits
Contains 6 Component(s), Includes Credits
Contains 6 Component(s), Includes Credits
