• Animal Control is an integral part of public health; specifically veterinary public health
• Works to improve the health and quality of life of the public and their pets
• Reduces overpopulation of animals, and, thus, the unnecessary spread of disease
• Aims for the the three P's of public health: Promote, Protect and Prevent

• The Animal Control Article of the McHenry County Public Health Ordinance is posted on the Health Department website.
• Local municipal subdivisions may also have their own city, village, or township animal control regulations.

• Animal Control Officers of the McHenry County Department of Health's Veterinary Division do the foot and field work for the organization, including:
  • Responding to calls of animal cruelty, dangerous animals, animals running at large, and noise complaints; officers even respond to late-night and weekend calls.
  • Support building staff: officers also do paperwork, office work, and help at the kennel when needed.

• Any cat or dog four months of age or older must be registered with the county, usually through your veterinarian. 
• Owners must pay an annual registration fee and cats and dogs must be rabies vaccinated to obtain a registration tag. 
• Registration tags must be worn at all times as a means of identification.

• Call MCAC to report the animal missing. We will file a lost report on your pet and check the report against incoming phone calls and stray animals brought to the shelter.
• Strays brought to the shelter have their pictures taken and published on 24Petconnect.

• Stray animals are held for seven business days. After that, the animal becomes the legal property of McHenry County.
• Unclaimed animals are evaluated for health and behavior, and processed for adoption or transfer to another facility if they pass.

• Sixty-seven percent of stray dogs are reunited with their owners (national average is 40 percent).
• Eleven percent of stray cats are reunited with their owners (national average is two percent).
• Microchips greatly increase the chance that an animal will be reunited with the owner.

• You must be a McHenry County resident to use this service.
• Call first to see if space is available to accept your animal.
• The animal owner needs to fill out the relinquish paperwork, not a friend or family member. An owner’s agent can be designated in writing by the animal owner for owners who are in the hospital or incarcerated.
• A relinquish fee applies.

• Yes, we do have an Adoption Center! View adoptable animals.
• Adoptions are by appointment only at this time. You much fill out an application on our website to set up an appointment.

• $150.00 is our adoption fee for dogs under 6 months old, older dogs are $125.00, cats under 6 months old are $100.00 and older cats are $80.00. The adoption fee includes surgical sterilization, microchip, flea and tick control treatment, age appropriate vaccinations including rabies, deworming, heartworm testing for dogs and FeLV/FIV testing for cats. Cats that have been here a long time have reduced adoption fees.
• Occasionally other species are available (guinea pigs, rabbits, reptiles, birds) for a donation.

What should I know about animal bites?

• Seek medical attention for the bite. Animal bites frequently cause infections.
• Report the bite to MCAC. We will follow up on the bite to be sure the animal undergoes a ten day rabies quarantine, and check on the vaccination status of the pet.
• MCAC does not take biting animals into our custody. Owners must complete the 10 day quarantine through a veterinarian's office. 
• If the animal is lost to follow-up or was a wild animal, contact the MCDH Communicable Diseases Program at (815) 334-4500 for assistance. MCAC cannot give out human medical advice.
• If you or your pet were attacked and injured by a dog, you can call MCAC and inquire about a dangerous dog investigation.

• If you suspect animal cruelty, report the case to MCAC. Article 6 of McHenry County's ordinances defines animal cruelty.  
• You can file an online Complaint Form or call our office at (815) 459-6222 to make a report. 
• After reporting: Per the Illinois Animal Control Act and Article 6 of McHenry County's ordinances, Animal Control must investigate any report of suspected and/or real animal cruelty. When a violation of Article 6 in relation to animal cruelty has been committed, an Animal Control Officer will furnish the violator, if known, with a notice of violation and state what action is necessary to come into compliance with this ordinance. A maximum of 48 hours may be granted in which to take corrective action. 

• Leave it alone. Its mother is likely nearby. Handling orphaned wildlife is beyond the scope of MCAC’s business. If you've already handled the animal and it appears healthy, put it back where you found it. A mother will take back its young even after a human has touched it. 
• If you've found a baby bird on the ground, it it not necessarily injured, it may be a "fledgling" bird. Fledglings can have shorter tails, downy feathers, and are still taken care of by their parents while they learn how to fly. 
• If you've found a baby deer (which can be recognized by its spots) in your yard and it appears uninjured, leave it alone. A mother deer will come back for her baby every 10 to 12 hours. Deer have found that backyards are safer than the woods for their babies. 
• If you are concerned for the baby's health, visit our "wildlife" tab for information on what to do if you find an injured or orphaned wild animal.
• For more information about wildlife, go to    
  • https://www.wildlifeillinois.org/
  • https://dnrhistoric.illinois.gov/ or
  • http://www.flintcreekwildlife.org/

• Make sure your family and pets are secured inside your home and if you believe the dog poses a threat, notify any of your neighbors,
• Contact MCAC at (815) 459-6222.
  • Provide your name, address and contact number so an officer can reach you if unable to locate the dog, 
  • A description of the dog,
  • Location the dog was last seen,
  • Advise Animal Control if the dog is posing an immediate threat to people, pets or livestock,
  • Provide the name and address of the owner(s) of the dog if known so that we can speak to the owners about the issue of allowing their dog to run at large,
  • If you have contained the dog please tell us so can pick up the animal and attempt to locate the owner(s),
    • Please Note: If the dog appears to be dangerous or aggressive, DO NOT attempt to restrain the dog unless safe to do so.
  • Please let the department know if you would like to be notified if and when the dog has been contained,
  • Advise the department if the dog has bitten or injured any person or other animal.

• You will be provided a complaint number at the time of the call,
• An Animal Control Officer (ACO) will be assigned to the complaint,
• Once the ACO is assigned, you will be given the Officers name and contact information,
• An ACO will be assigned to the case and make a site visit to assess the situation and attempt to locate and restrain the dog(s),
• Every attempt will be made to capture the dog(s),
• Not all dogs are easily restrained, as such, the Department may deploy other resources to assist on this complaint,
• If the dog(s) elude capture, MCAC will deploy resources based on the situation and continue to work to insure the safety of the public,
• If there has been an injury to a person, pet or livestock, please file a complaint with your local police department,
• Any financial impact that is a direct result of this complaint is a civil matter and not the responsibility of MCAC.

• Be advised that if you live within a city/municipality, we encourage the public to contact their local police department as McHenry County Animal Control only addresses barking issues in unincorporated McHenry County. Barking dog complaints are difficult to follow-up on, as the dog(s) are usually quiet when the officer arrives. The officer must hear and document the barking; the officer may issue a notice of public complaint to the dog owner.

• Animal Control will pick up a stray cat IF you have it contained. We do not place traps for cats. Live traps can be rented or purchased at local stores. However, we do not encourage trapping for cats as it is too easy to trap raccoons, opossums, or skunks by mistake. A permit from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources is required for trapping nuisance wildlife.
• If the cat has the tip of its left ear gone, it is part of a managed feral cat colony. It has no owner, and technically cannot be a stray.
• If you have been feeding and/or sheltering the cat for longer than seven days, legally you are the owner of the cat.

• No, because we handle biting animals and animals that have killed other animals that, in the interests of public health and safety, cannot be safely re-homed.
• We are a low-kill facility. Every adoptable animal is placed in a new home. We do not euthanize for time or space.

• YES! MCAC is always looking for talented, energetic volunteers. You must be at least 18 years of age to volunteer.
• Volunteers help with socializing animals, adoption counseling, cage and kennel cleaning, and office work.
• Thanks to our volunteers, more pets have the opportunity to find new homes and live happier lives.

• YES! MCAC offers informational presentations for local businesses, schools, community organizations and other groups.
• Program topics include bite prevention and responsible pet ownership. Call (815) 334-4948 to schedule a speaker.

• Deceased dogs and cats are retrieved by MCAC, checked against the lost reports, and scanned for a microchip in an effort to locate the owner. We will also retrieve deceased wildlife for testing if it potentially exposed a human or domestic pet to rabies.
• Exposure includes, but is not limited to: a human improperly attempting to dispose of or move a deceased wild animal, a domestic pet coming into contact with a deceased wild animal, or a domestic pet getting into a scuffle with a wild animal and killing. 
• If a deceased wild animal is in the street near your home and there is no risk of exposure to humans or domestic pets, please contact the city or township that maintains your roadways to remove the animal. 
• If a deceased wild animal is in your yard and there is no risk of exposure to humans or domestic pets, the animal can be removed by a wildlife removal service. 
• If the dead animal is a bird and you are concerned about West Nile Virus, contact the Environmental Health Division at (815) 334-4585 for assistance.

• Kennels and Shelters are licensed and regulated by the Illinois Department of Agriculture. To learn more, or to file a complaint, please contact the Bureau of Animal Welfare at (217) 782-6657.

McHenry County Animal Control (MCAC) is committed to reuniting lost animals with their families. To support these effort, we've launched a Found Animal Sign Program.

When a stray animal is brought to MCAC, a "Found Animal" sign will be placed at or near the intersection closest to where the animal was found. Each sign includes:

• The date the animal was found
• The type and brief description of the animal
• Contact information for MCAC

All stray animals are held for a 7-business day hold to give owners time to reclaim their pets. Stray livestock are housed at an off-site farm but are still posted online during the hold period.

Once an animal is reunited with its family or the stray hold ends, an Animal Control Officer will remove the sign as soon as possible.

If a sign was left near your property and you'd like to be of assistance, please call MCAC before removing it and leave it in an accessible area for an Animal Control Officer to retrieve. If the owner was found or the stray hold has ended and you're coming to the Crystal Lake area, you may return the sign to our office—just give us a quick call first to confirm.

While MCAC does everything possible to contact owners, some may not know where to look or who to call when their pet goes missing. That's where friends and neighbors like you can make a difference.

How You Can Help

• Leave "Found Animal" signs in place so others can see them.
• Take a picture of the sign and share it on your neighborhood or community social media groups; be sure to include the date and location where you saw the sign.
• If you recognize the animal or know who the owner might be be, reach out to them to let them know that their animal is safe at MCAC, or contact our office so we can follow up.
  
  

What if I find a sign that's damaged or weather?
Contact our office so our staff can pick up the sign or replace it with a new one.

What if I see a sign placed near a dangerous intersection or near a busy area? Should I move the sign or ask for it to be relocated?
Reunification is key, so signs are placed as close as possible to where the animal was found. We do our best to avoid high-traffic or unsafe areas. If you believe a sign poses a safety issue, please contact our office, and we'll take care of moving or removing it.

How do I know if a "Found Animal" sign is legitimate?
All animals brought to MCAC can be found online at 24petconnect.com. If you're unsure about the legitimacy of a sign, please contact our office to confirm whether it was placed by us.

Can someone use this sign to steal animals or claim lost pets as their own?
No. MCAC requires proof of ownership before releasing any animal. We take this responsibility seriously to ensure animals returned only to their rightful owners.

Will anyone from MCAC ever call me and ask for money to release an animal to me?
If your animal has been impounded at MCAC, there is a redemption fee to have the animal picked up. This fee covers the cost of caring for that animal, a microchip if the animal's not already microchipped, or veterinary costs if the animal was medically evaluated.
 

The faster we can spread the word, the better the chances of reuniting lost pets with their families.