A new statewide survey, California’s Hidden Animal Welfare Challenge, takes a closer look at one of the biggest pressure points in animal welfare today: access to veterinary care.
Building on momentum from the 2023 Access to Veterinary Care Survey, this latest effort expands the conversation by bringing new data and more insight into how to solve the veterinary care crisis.
Key takeaways
In October 2025, the San Francisco SPCA, the California Animal Welfare Association (CalAnimals), and the Veterinary Care Accessibility Project (VCAP) surveyed 103 California animal shelters to understand the veterinary staffing challenges affecting shelter medicine.
1. Rural communities are facing the greatest gaps
Not a single rural or small-town shelter reported having high veterinary staffing levels. In fact, no rural shelter in this survey directly employs a veterinarian—most rely entirely on external partnerships or support from traveling vets. Small towns face similar constraints, with only 50% able to provide consistent spay/neuter services, compared to 80-88% in more resourced areas.
2. Veterinary access directly impacts how long animals wait for homes
For shelters with veterinarians, the average length of stay for animals was 21.9 days. However, for shelters without veterinarians, the average length of stay increased 125% to 49.4 days. That’s 27.5 extra days that animals spend waiting for adoption.
3. Spay/neuter is the system’s biggest bottleneck
Half of small-town shelters lack consistent access to spay/neuter services. That creates downstream effects, including:
- Delays in adoption readiness
- Increases in unplanned litters
- Limited ability to support trap-neuter-return (TNR) programs for community cats
- Reduced public access to veterinary services outside of spay/neuter
4. This isn’t a recruitment problem—it’s a pay gap problem
Many shelters have budgeted veterinary positions that remain unfilled despite ongoing recruitment efforts. A review of California veterinary job postings from November 2025 highlights why: private practices consistently offer significantly higher compensation packages. With private practice salaries exceeding shelter roles by $50,000-$100,000+, shelters are simply being outbid for talent. For new graduates often carrying student debt, a 20-40% salary gap is difficult to overcome.
Why access to care matters
Veterinary care is the catalyst behind every successful adoption. Without it, animals wait longer, shelters fill up faster, and communities lose access to critical services. This survey reinforces that access to care is one of today’s defining animal welfare challenges.
Solving it will require coordinated investment, innovation, and advocacy. The findings in this survey point to actionable solutions, including:
- Investing in people: Larger signing bonuses, veterinary school loan forgiveness, and salary support.
- Expanding capacity: Modernizing facilities and increasing vet school training in shelter medicine.
- Strengthening teams: Expanding the role of registered veterinary technicians (RVTs) so more veterinary professionals can provide care.
- Mobilizing support: Philanthropy and public funding to close critical gaps in sheltering.
At the SF SPCA, this work is part of a broader commitment to building a more connected, equitable system of care across San Francisco, the Central Valley, and throughout California. The results of this survey confirm our current challenges while identifying ways to better support animals and the people who care for them. You can explore the full findings here: https://calanimalssurvey2025.org.