Riverside County Department of Animal Services

Riverside County Animal Services covers a huge territory — the unincorporated county plus many cities from the Inland Empire to the Coachella Valley, operating shelters in Jurupa Valley, San Jacinto, and Thousand Palms. A few cities contract elsewhere; if yours does, the process looks the same and we'll route your request correctly.

How dog bite reports work here

Report a bite to the Department directly or through your city's non-emergency line; doctors who treat bite wounds must report them to the health officer, so treated bites usually generate a report automatically. An officer identifies the dog and owner, checks license and rabies vaccination records, and documents the incident.

The quarantine process

California's 10-day rabies observation applies: the dog is quarantined at the owner's property or a county shelter and its health is verified at the end. Riverside County's records of that quarantine also document ownership — critical when the owner is a stranger or won't share information.

How to request your records

Bite reports, quarantine outcomes, and prior-incident history are requestable through the county's public records process. Riverside University Health System – Public Health holds the countywide rabies-control records. Our tool prepares you to request both.

Service areas change as cities update their animal control contracts — we confirm the right agency for your specific bite as part of helping you. This site provides general information about California processes. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.