At-Risk Animals

Thank you for your interest in adopting from Animal Care Centers of NYC. Our At-Risk List is posted three times a week, on the evenings of Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday at 6:00PM and remains viewable for 42 hours.

Schedule overview:
Animals posted at 6:00PM on Sunday evening will be viewable until Tuesday at 12:00PM noon.
Animals posted at 6:00PM on Tuesday evening will be viewable until Thursday at 12:00PM noon.
Animals posted at 6:00PM on Thursday evening will be viewable until Saturday at 12:00PM noon.

To find out the status of at-risk animals, please visit the At-Risk Outcomes page.

If this is your first time visiting this site, please read the below information carefully.

For anyone who wishes to adopt, there is a mandatory deposit fee of $200 plus a transaction fee per animal to place an adoption reservation. The $200 covers $50 toward the adoption fee and $150 for the spay/neuter deposit. If the animal has already been spayed or neutered or is permanently waived by one of our veterinarians, the $150 deposit will be refunded at the time of the adoption. If the animal does need to leave without being spayed or neutered due to his/her medical condition, the $150 deposit will be refunded at the time they are brought back for the spay/neuter surgery or when proof of sterilization being done elsewhere is provided to ACC. If you do not follow through with the adoption, the entire $200 deposit will be considered a charitable donation to ACC's Special Treatment and Recovery Fund (STAR). Also, if the adoption fee for an animal is less than $50, the difference will be considered a charitable donation to the STAR Fund. Similarly, in-shelter pricing promotions do not apply to at-risk animals.

To complete an adoption, please click reserve on the animal of your choice. That animal will be loaded in your cart and you will have 15 minutes to complete the adoption process. In order to complete your reservation, you need to check out (top right corner). At this point, you will enter in your credit card information and a receipt will be emailed to you as confirmation of your reservation. If you have any issues, please email adopt@nycacc.org for help navigating the website.

If you are interested in fostering/adopting through one of our New Hope partners, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/ozHex3uqvNkQt2dq9

At-Risk Animals

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Yuro
Yuro is at-risk list due to behavioral concerns. In the Care Centers, Yuro has displayed concerning resource-guarding behaviors. During his first stay, he grabbed the Assess-a-Hand multiple times, and during his current stay he has been observed gripping, tensing, and grumbling. Yuro was also observed biting his leash in the kennel and only responding to high-value treats. More recently, he was noted to engage in kennel fighting while exiting the room. Outside of the kennel environment, Yuro is social with staff. Medically, Yuro is apparently healthy.
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Slips
Slips is on the at-risk list due to behavior. He is not thriving in the care center and continues to display distance-increasing behavior when approached for interactions. He has not warmed up despite staff using treats to build a positive association. Due to his stress levels, it is in his best interest to move out of the kennel environment and into a stable home as quickly as possible. He would do best in a home with adopters who are willing to give him plenty of time and space to adjust, and who have experience with helping a fearful cat adjust to strangers.
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Yosemite
Yosemite is on the at-risk list due to behavior. She is not thriving in the care center and continues to display distance-increasing behavior when approached for interactions. She has not warmed up despite staff using treats to build a positive association. Due to her stress levels, it is in her best interest to move out of the kennel environment and into a stable home as quickly as possible. She would do best in a home with adopters who are willing to give her plenty of time and space to adjust, and who have experience with helping a fearful cat adjust to strangers.
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Squirrel
Squirrel is on the at-risk list due to behavior. He is not thriving in the care center and continues to display distance-increasing behavior when approached for interactions. He has not warmed up despite staff using treats to build a positive association. Due to his stress levels, it is in his best interest to move out of the kennel environment and into a stable home as quickly as possible. He would do best in a home with adopters who are willing to give him plenty of time and space to adjust, and who have experience with helping a fearful cat adjust to strangers.
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Shadowpaw
Shadowpaw is at risk due to ongoing, distance increasing behaviors displayed in care. He is an under socialized cat who may not have had many interactions with humans from an early age. He is currently quick to lunge, hiss, and swat with nails extended during interactions. These behaviors have made cleaning tasks more difficult for staff to complete as he is much quicker to escalate. Due to these behaviors, Shadowpaw had to be moved into a lower traffic room. Staff have reported that in this room, he still continues to escalate. He would benefit from being placed into a stable home where he can be given the appropriate space to decompress. Medically, he has stage III dental disease.
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Snow White
Snow White is on the at-risk list due to behavior concerns. She is not thriving in the care center and continues to display challenging, distance increasing behaviors. During cleaning hours, she is quick to lunge, hiss, and swat out at staff. These behaviors make successful interactions difficult. Upon arriving at the care center, she tolerated minimal pets and currently does not tolerate any form of handling. It is in her best interest to move out of the kennel environment and into a stable home as quickly as possible. Snow White would benefit from a low traffic home with an experienced adopter. Medically, she is overweight and has mild dental disease.
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Riccola
Riccola is on the At Risk list due to behavior. She is not thriving in the care center and continues to display challenging behavior during interactions. She is extremely intelligent and high energy, and needs to expend energy constructively with interactive play sessions 3-4X/day. In addition to playtime, this cat would also benefit from mental exercise from activities such as puzzle toys/games, lick mats, or clicker training. Without providing activity for her mind and body, the cat may react with rough play, potentially resulting in bite/scratch incidents. It is in her best interest to move out of the kennel environment and into a stable home as quickly as possible. She would do best in a home with adopters who are willing to give her plenty of time and space to adjust, and who have experience with feline body language, overstimulation, rough play, and who have the time to invest in managing these behaviors on a consistent basis to avoid (further) bite/scratch incidents.
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Eloise
Eloise is on the at-risk list for medical concerns. He has very painful gum disease, and he gets agitated if you go near his mouth. He is eating some canned food, but he is underweight and unthrifty. He may need full-mouth, teeth extractions and anti-inflammatory medications. He needs care and attention that we cannot provide.
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Nala
Nala is on the at-risk list due to medical concerns. Nala is a sweet old cat with a chronic wound (owner's report they've been struggling with it for 4 years). She also has severe dental disease. Nala will need veterinary follow up to ensure her wound is healing appropriately as well as a dental procedure. Behaviorally, she has been soliciting attention and allows handling. However, depending on her healing process and how the stress-induced likely compulsive behavior (that resulted in her wound) does or does not continue to manifest - Nala will require continued behavioral and veterinary intervention to manage her condition to maintain a suitable quality of life.
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Big Bubba
Big Bubba is at risk due to behavioral concerns. Big Bubba has been social with handlers in care after warming up, enjoys splashing in the pool, and playing with toys. Despite this, he has been displaying high levels of kennel stress, despite best efforts to keep him comfortable. He screeches and barks at other dogs when they pass his kennel, persistently jumping to the top of his kennel, causing him to hit his head, and crashing into his water bowl. Attempts to reduce visual stressors by covering his kennel have been attempted, but he tears them down. Medically, Big Bubba has alopecia.
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Foxy
Foxy is at risk due to behavioral reasons. While in foster Foxy was observed to bark and lunge towards other dogs. Recently her previous adopter stated that Foxy would growl, hard bark, and lunge towards strangers as well as other stimuli, such as strollers. It was stated that Foxy will bark, growl, whine, and pull hard towards them. While in care, Foxy has shown dog reactivity with difficulty being redirected. In other instances, Foxy remains engaged with the handler while on walks. When interacting with handlers, Foxy is exuberant and will lean into contact. Medically, Foxy is apparently healthy.
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Sirios
Sirios is on the at-risk list due to behavior concerns. In the care center, Sirios displays signs of kennel-related stress, including prolonged digging under his kennel door to the point of causing abrasions to his front legs. He has also shown reluctance to return to his kennel, including planting himself, refusing to walk, and attempting to push back out after entering. Sirios is social with handlers, and loves to be around staff, but is struggling to acclimate. Medically, Sirios is apparently healthy.
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Baxter
Baxter is on the at-risk list due to behavior concerns. In the care center, Baxter displays fearful behavior during handling, including startling easily, seeking distance from people, backing away during leash handling, head whipping when approached to unclip the leash, and being reported to snap during leashing attempts. Despite his fearfulness, Baxter is able to be leashed with patient, low-stress handling and has shown increasing comfort approaching handlers and participating in training games but is still struggling. Medically, Baxter is apparently healthy.
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Seal
Seal is at risk due to behavioral concerns. In the Care Centers, Seal has displayed high reactivity toward other dogs and has been reported to nip at staff members’ hands and ankles while redirecting his frustration onto staff.He is also noted to display kennel stress heavy panting in front of his kennel door. During walks, he pulls toward other dogs and can at times be difficult to redirect and refocus. Seal has responded well to treats and is social with staff when not in the presence of other dogs. Medically, Seal is apparently healthy.
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Nala
Nala is at risk due to behavioral reasons. Nala arrived at MACC following an incident in the home. It was reported that Nala jumped up and scratched a member of the household once and drew blood. While in care, Nala has been observed to balk on leash and requires verbal coaxing to continue walking. Recently, Nala was reported to jump up and mouth the handler's clothing. This behavior was not able to be redirected, and additional help was required. While out with handlers, Nala is observed to accept contact. Medically, Nala is currently healthy.
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Kowalski The Smartest

Kowalski is on the at-risk list due to behavior concerns. In the care center, Kowalski displays fearful and defensive behavior during leash handling, including growling, baring teeth, snapping at the leash, and avoiding leash placement. He is also struggling in kennel, including persistent screaming and jumping against the kennel door during cleaning, and pulls hard on leash at times. Kowalski is able to be leashed with patient handling, and is slowly warming up, but is struggling in the care center. Medically, Kowalski has an uncomplicated corneal ulceration that is healing well.
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Merlot
Merlot is on the at-risk list due to behavior concerns in the care center and in his previous home. In the prior home, Merlot was reported to display resource guarding and attempted to bite by lunging and snapping during one incident, though no contact with skin was made. In the care center, Merlot displays high arousal, including hard pulling, frantic movement in new environments, and significant reluctance to return to his kennel, often pancaking and requiring multiple handlers, treat trails, or coaxing to complete kennel re-entry. Merlot is social with handlers, enjoys training, learns new cues readily, and engages well with toys and food reinforcement. Medically, Merlot is apparently healthy.
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Cottage
Cottage is on the at-risk list due to behavior concerns. In the care center, Cottage displays high arousal and on-leash reactivity, including persistent hard pulling, barking at dogs and people, fixating on handlers, kennel fighting, and becoming difficult to return to her kennel. She has also been reported to grab at a handler's pants during kennel re-entry. Cottage is highly food motivated, enjoys enrichment, readily engages with pools and with staff. Medically, Cottage recently recovered from CIRDC.
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Victoria
Victoria is at risk for behavior reasons. Victoria has been showing conflicting behavior during socialization. She can become quickly aroused, jumping up at staff with tense body, ears back. She has behaved well on walks. Medically, she has some dental disease, signs of chronic otitis and a dermal mass.
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Ms Chili Peppa
Ms. Chili Peppa is on the at-risk list due to behavior concerns. In the care center, Ms. Chili Peppa displays fearful and conflicted behavior during leash handling, including growling, lunging toward handlers' hands, barking, retreating from the leash, whale eye, and vigilance during kennel removal. She also displays high arousal once out of the kennel, including hard pulling and jumping toward handlers and the leash. Ms. Chili Peppa is social once comfortable, seeks out affection, leans into petting, and is able to be safely handled and returned to her kennel with appropriate management but intermittently has issues with being removed from kennel from select staff. Medically, Ms. Chili Peppa has CIRDC.
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Astrid
Astrid is on the At Risk list due to behavior. She is not thriving in the care center and continues to display challenging behavior during interactions. She is extremely intelligent, highly social, and needs to expend energy constructively with interactive play sessions 3-4X/day. She displays a very short threshold for touch, although soliciting the attention and can escalate to high levels of overstimulation and reactivity. It is in her best interest to move out of the kennel environment and into a stable home as quickly as possible. She would do best in a home with adopters who are willing to give her plenty of time and space to adjust, and who have experience with feline body language, overstimulation, rough play, and who have the time to invest in managing these behaviors on a consistent basis to avoid (further) bite/scratch incidents.
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Pucci
Pucci needs at risk placement for medical reasons. He is a sweet cat with severe inflammation of his eyelids and conjunctiva that is not responding to supportive care in shelter. He needs placement in a veterinary clinic and then a peaceful home to recover.
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Kingston
Kingston is at risk due to behavioral concerns. Kingston has been highly social with staff and handlers in care, leaning into petting, engaging with toys, snuffle mats, and enrichment games in calmer settings. But he recently has begun to leash bite when being removed from the kennel and is kennel fighting with other dogs as he is walked out of the room, which has made taking him for walks challenging. On one occasion, Kingston did redirect onto a staff member's leg, nipping them. Due to this, he was returned to his kennel, and his walk was not completed due to his behavior. Medically, Kingston has an ear infection.
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Rosemary
Rosemary is on the at risk list for medical reasons. Rosemary is a sweet, underweight, old cat with some severe bloodwork changes that are suggestive of cancer. She is clinically doing well in shelter (bright, interactive, great appetite), and her bloodwork values and weight have improved, but her long term prognosis remains guarded to poor. Behaviorally, Rosemary is amenable to handling and petting.
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Miu Miu
Miu Miu is on the At Risk list due to behavior. She is not thriving in the care center and continues to display challenging behavior during interactions. She is extremely intelligent and high energy, and needs to expend energy constructively with interactive play sessions 3-4X/day. In addition to playtime, this cat would also benefit from mental exercise from activities such as puzzle toys/games, lick mats, or clicker training. Without providing activity for her mind and body, the cat may react with rough play, potentially resulting in bite/scratch incidents. It is in his/her best interest to move out of the kennel environment and into a stable home as quickly as possible. She would do best in a home with adopters who are willing to give her plenty of time and space to adjust, and who have experience with feline body language, overstimulation, rough play, and who have the time to invest in managing these behaviors on a consistent basis to avoid further bite/scratch incidents.
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