A Profound Culture Change at the
Santa Barbara County ‘Pound’
Director Sarah Aguilar Replaces
‘Burnout with Belonging,
and Blame with Curiosity’
By Lee Heller | June 5, 2025
Read more from Pets & Animals 2025 here.
It’s an outdated term, but people still use it to describe where lost pets end up: “the pound.” The term conjures up images of dogs, cats, and rabbits sitting forlornly in steel cages on cold concrete, waiting for an adopter or for the death needle of euthanasia.
Fortunately, it’s been a long time since Santa Barbara County’s three municipal animal shelters fit this description, even though they admit more than 6,000 animals a year and help support thousands more. By all reports, things have gotten markedly better since the arrival of Sarah Aguilar, the current Santa Barbara County Animal Services (SBCAS) director, in 2022. The difference? A long-awaited culture change.
During a May 13 presentation to the Board of Supervisors, Aguilar talked about replacing “burnout with belonging, and blame with curiosity,” transparency and outreach that builds trust, and cultivating a “whole giant village” to do the work of animal welfare.
In the old days, euthanasia decisions were made behind closed doors, leaving volunteers angry and frustrated to learn of the death of a beloved shelter resident. In the new culture, all volunteers are invited to participate in the process because, as Aguilar put it, “People are the solutions that we need for our problems.”
A recent example: Freddy, an adorable young pit bull who did fine out in the world but was becoming increasingly agitated and reactive after months in the shelter. Aguilar put out the call that he was on the “urgent list,” word went out widely, a volunteer stepped up to foster, and Freddy found a home.
Dedicated Animal Welfare Specialists also work after hours to get certified in animal behavior so they can help make the pets in their care more adoptable. Members of the public can do “day fostering,” where they simply show up and check out a dog (think library book, but with paws and a tail). This innovative program gives dogs a chance to get out of their kennels and offers staff the opportunity to learn how the dog behaves out in the world. (Aguilar encouraged people to come early, because sometimes all the suitable dogs are “checked out” by noon.)
A vibrant foster program is a must for such a facility, and Animal Services’ is all that, with more than 500 kittens in foster annually and hundreds of dogs cycling into temporary homes and then to a permanent placement. That’s where the “whole giant village” is really apparent, since otherwise the dogs, cats, and rabbits living with families would overload the county’s three shelters. As minimally staffed as her program is, Aguilar noted that it would be impossible to care for all the animals that arrive if the village weren’t there to make the difference.
As for helping people keep their pets and face the challenges of high costs in a very expensive county, Aguilar spoke of “meeting people where they are, removing barriers, and keeping people with the pets they love.” That has meant an expanded safety net program, with everything from collaborating on food pantries with CARE4Paws to a Pawsitive Solutions Coordinator who works with human service agencies to ensure that a pet doesn’t become a barrier to receiving services for those with disabilities, medical needs, or housing challenges.
CARE4Paws Cofounder and Executive Director Isabelle Gullö is enthusiastic about their collaboration with Animal Services. “CARE4Paws works directly in the community, providing critical resources that ensure pets stay happy and healthy and with the people who love them,” she said. “Since Ms. Aguilar’s arrival in 2022, CARE4Paws’ partnership with Animal Services is stronger than ever, as we collaborate on vaccine and spay/neuter clinics, pet food pantries, and other safety-net services that help families through difficult economic times and temporary life transitions.”
The story of these changes and their success becomes even clearer in 2024’s numbers:
10 percent increase in adoptions (3,102 total, the highest ever recorded for a single year)
6,568 animals entering the shelters
6,471 foster placements
795 transfers to other shelters and rescues
70,000 lbs of pet food distributed in collaboration with CARE4Paws
Perhaps most telling was what Aguilar called “22,000 hours of donated kindness” in the form of dedicated volunteers. In an open, welcoming, creative environment, volunteers are eager to be part of the project — an eagerness that was apparent as speaker after speaker praised Aguilar and her staff for their efforts.
Aguilar herself spoke about the prioritization of mental and emotional well-being, and of teamwork that promotes core values like appreciating others. So, if you visit one of the shelters, you might see a wall of notes from staff to volunteers and back, telling an individual, “You’re Pawsome!” A little cheesy? Maybe. Kind and caring? Definitely.
Victoria Feld works full-time and has two young children, and she still manages to volunteer as an equally full-time Foster Coordinator for the dogs at Animal Services. She responds at all hours to people interested in fostering, and often oversees adoptions. On top of that, she regularly cares for foster a dog as part of her home pack. “I love being the dog foster coordinator for SBCAS because it gives me the chance to connect with compassionate people like Sarah Aguilar and her team,” she said. “They are dedicated, kind, and always ready to go the extra mile. Their passion for this work makes it easy to stay inspired and keep doing the work we all care so deeply about.”
Supervisor Joan Hartmann, herself a longtime animal lover, summed it up: “Despite tight budgets and tough recruitment challenges, Sarah Aguilar has transformed County Animal Services into a compassionate, volunteer-friendly, and innovation-driven force. She’s built a culture that puts animals first and strengthens the web of community partnerships that make a real difference.”
To join the “whole giant village” of volunteers, visit countyofsb.org/1549/Volunteers.
For foster information, see countyofsb.org/1416/Foster.
And to check out the adoptable animals available through Animal Services, visit 24petconnect.com/SNBRA
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