BARC Houston Joins BISSELL Pet Foundation’s Empty the Shelters Adoption Event July 5-26
BISSELL Pet Foundation, a national animal welfare organization dedicated to ending pet homelessness, is bringing back its signature Empty the Shelters® adoption event from July 5–26, 2026.
BARC, the City of Houston’s Animal Shelter and Adoption Center, is proud to participate in this nationwide effort, joining animal welfare organizations across the country to help more pets find loving homes. During the event, BISSELL Pet Foundation will sponsor reduced adoption fees for cats and dogs, making it more affordable to welcome a new pet into the family. All pets are spayed or neutered, vaccinated, and microchipped.
Summer is one of the most challenging times of year for animal shelters, as kitten and puppy season brings an influx of litters while adoptions struggle to keep pace. At the same time, shelters often see increased owner surrenders and fewer available volunteer hours, creating significant capacity and resource challenges. Empty the Shelters helps provide critical relief by encouraging adoption and creating much-needed space for pets awaiting homes.
At BARC, located at 3300 Carr St., adoption fees during Empty the Shelters will be reduced to:
$55 for puppies four months or younger
$30 for dogs five months and older
$10 for all cats and kittens
Adoption fees include spay/neuter surgery, dewormer, age-appropriate vaccinations, rabies vaccination, flea prevention, a pet microchip, and a one-year pet registration with the City of Houston. Learn more: https://www.houstontx.gov/barc/adopt_a_pet.html
To give more families the chance to adopt, BARC will also extend adoption hours by opening on Mondays during the Empty the Shelters event—traditionally a day the shelter is closed. Adoption hours will be 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. daily from July 5-26.
“Every summer, shelters face the greatest pressure of pet overpopulation,” said Cathy Bissell, Founder of BISSELL Pet Foundation. “We are deeply committed to addressing the root causes of overcrowding through spay and neuter — but until prevention can meet the scale of the crisis, our adoption events are a lifeline for shelters and the pets in their care. We hope you’ll open your heart and your home to a shelter pet this summer.”
“Summer is one of the busiest times of year for our shelter, making community support more important than ever,” said Jarrad Mears, BARC Shelter Director. “We’re grateful to partner with BISSELL Pet Foundation to make adoption more accessible through reduced fees and expanded adoption hours. Every pet adopted during Empty the Shelters creates space for another animal in need and helps us continue serving both Houston’s pets and the people who care about them.”
Empty the Shelters is the nation’s largest funded adoption event and has helped more than 400,000 pets find homes across the U.S. and Canada since its inception in 2016. Sponsored by BISSELL Pet Foundation, the program works with hundreds of animal welfare organizations to reduce adoption fees and make pet adoption accessible to more families. All pets available through participating shelters are spayed/neutered, vaccinated, and microchipped. Each shelter determines its own adoption process—prospective adopters are encouraged to contact shelters directly for details.
About BISSELL Pet Foundation:
BISSELL Pet Foundation is a charitable 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a mission to help reduce the number of animals in shelters through pet adoption, spay/neuter, vaccinations, microchipping and emergency support. Founded in 2011 by Cathy Bissell, BPF is an extension of her long-standing love for animals and commitment to their welfare. BPF has since partnered with more than 6,025 shelters and rescues across the U.S. and Canada to help pets find loving homes. The foundation is supported by generous donors and BISSELL Inc. where every purchase saves pets. To learn more, visit www.bissellpetfoundation.org.
About BARC
BARC, the City of Houston’s Animal Shelter and Adoption Center, takes in more than 20,000 animals annually regardless of behavior, breed, or medical condition. BARC works each day to improve Houstonians and their pets’ health and safety by pioneering programs such as low-cost and no-cost spay/neuter services, mobile adoptions, transfer/rescue partnerships, and pet registration and microchipping. BARC is also committed to public safety through animal enforcement, which answers calls for service from the community and investigates cases of animal cruelty.
Visit www.houstonbarc.com for more information.