News and Investigations

The Polk County Sheriff's Office Animal Control division is searching for the owners of 44 dogs and 32 cats found during Hurricane Milton last week. Our Animal Control team is fully focused on returning pets to their rightful owners, but we need the community’s help to reunite owners and fur babies.
 
“Only two of the over 76 animals found wandering during the hurricane have microchips. We would like to encourage all pet owners to please microchip your pets. This helps our amazing Animal Control staff quickly and easily identify owners of lost pets, so we can promptly return your pets to you if they are lost.” – Grady Judd, Sheriff
 
If your pet was lost during Hurricane Milton and you are still searching for them, we have pictures of all animals found during the hurricane in the front office of our Animal Control Shelter. Please stop by between 8 AM and 8 PM Monday through Friday this week, and 9 AM to 4 PM on Saturday if you are searching for your pet, and you can check our records to see if we have your pet in our shelter. The address is 7115 de Castro Road, Winter Haven, Florida 33880. We want to help return your pets home where they belong.
 
We would like to thank our amazing community partners at the Polk County Bully Project, Rescue Pets of Florida, and the Florida Little Dog Rescue for helping us care for our shelter animals always, but especially during Hurricane Milton. Polk County Bully Project took over 44 dogs for us before the storm. Florida Little Dogs took over 18 dogs the day before the hurricane. Rescue Pets of Florida took several foster kittens into their care as well. They were instrumental in helping us make sure our furry friends were safe and sound during the storm. If you are interested in donating to their causes, their websites are:
• https://www.polkcountybullyproject.org/how-you-can-help/
• https://www.rescuecatsofflorida.org/donate 
• https://www.floridalittledogrescue.com/ 
 
We currently have 56 adoptable dogs and 84 cats that are ready to go home with you today. These animals are not part of the group of strays found during Hurricane Milton. Adoptions are a significant way to assist Polk County Animal Control by making room for the animals that continue to come in during the recovery period. If you are interested in adopting one of our furry friends, please visit our website at: https://www.polksheriff.org/animal-services/adoptable-pets. Our facility is open for adoptions from 10 AM - 4 PM Monday through Friday, and from 9 AM - 4 PM on Saturdays. 
 
We are also appreciative of any donations to our shelter. Donations can be made via our Amazon wish list: https://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/I4E3W42F863T or directly on our website: https://www.polksheriff.org/donate---animal-control.