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Chicago Animal Care and Control director works to make adoption, pet ownership easier as drop-offs remain high

By
Sara Tenenbaum
Sara Tenenbaum
Senior Web Producer, CBS Chicago
Sara Tenenbaum is the Senior Digital Producer for CBS News Chicago, overseeing editorial operations and social media, and covering breaking, local and community news.
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Sara Tenenbaum

/ CBS Chicago

The new permanent director of Chicago Animal Care and Control is working to make pet ownership and adoption easier as the drop-off levels at city shelters remains high.

In May 2025, CACC posted pictures to its social media pages showing lines of people turning in stray animals or surrendering their pets to city shelters. In some cases, up to 56 animals were being dropped off each day. As a result, shelter space was scarce.

Thursday on CBS New Chicago, newly appointed CACC director Susan Capello, who up until last month served as the acting director of CACC since 2023, spoke about how intake looks now.

"You know, it's pretty much the same. In March we were processing about 40 animals intake every day, seven days a week," she said. "That's a lot of dogs, cats and other animals through our doors."

Capello said adoption numbers and transfers to shelters have helped. They are also helping keep pets with their owners by giving assistance with medical needs and food.

She is also working to make improvements to the CACC ordinance, including upping the $65 adoption fee, which she said is the lowest in the nation. She also just announced six full-time job openings.

Capello brought along Gordy, a two-year-old dog up for adoption through CACC. He's great on the leash and was super sweet to everyone in our newsroom. If you're interested in adopting him, visit CACC's website. 

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