License Renewals

There is a lot that goes into renewing your PACFA license and we are here to assist you.

All 2019/20 PACFA licenses will expire March 1, 2020.

A few changes to be aware of during renewal:

Tips to Help Animal Shelters and Rescues Comply with the New Spay-Neuter Law

During last years legislative session, an amendment was promoted by the Colorado Federation of Animal Welfare Agencies (CFAWA) to 35-80-106.4, C.R.S., in Senate Bill 19-158, the PACFA Sunset Bill. The amendment was adopted and requires all animal shelters and animal rescues to spay or neuter dogs and cats prior to release to a prospective owner. The new provision in the Act became effective on August 2, 2019.

The provisions in 35-80-106.4, C.R.S., provide two exemptions from the requirement as follows:

Animal shelters and rescues do not have to request an exemption from the Commissioner if a veterinarian determines that the sterilization procedure could jeopardize the life or health of a dog or cat prior to release to the prospective owner. Animal shelters and rescues are required to have a letter from a Colorado licensed veterinarian for each specific animal that is unfit for sterilization prior to release and must maintain that letter with the treatment records that are kept for that specific animal.

Animal shelters and rescues may not use a blanket exemption letter signed by a veterinarian, the rules and regulations that govern veterinarians under the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) require veterinarians to establish a veterinary client patient relationship (VCPR) for each animal they determine is unfit for sterilization.

Any shelter or rescue that has further questions regarding compliance with 35-80-106.4, C.R.S., should contact your inspector or use the Contact Us button at the bottom of this newsletter.

For more information on the American Veterinary Medical Association's (AVMA) position on pediatric sterilization click on the button below.

PACFA Advisory Committee

The PACFA Advisory Committee was created under section 35-80-115, C.R.S., of the Pet Animal Care Facilities Act, to assist the commissioner in promulgating rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of PACFA. The committee consists of seventeen members representing: animal rescue, animal shelters, small-scale dog breeders, large-scale dog breeders, cat breeders, bird breeders, small animal breeders, boarding kennels, dog daycare industry, pet grooming, pet animal retailers, pet animal wholesalers, and three members of the general public. All members of the advisory committee must be residents of the State of Colorado.

PACFA Advisory Committee News

Four outgoing PACFA Advisory Committee Members were celebrated at the November 14, 2019 meeting. Martha Smith (Animal Rescue, pictured left), Steve Waugh (Wholesale Facilities, pictured center), and Doug Johnson (Boarding/Training, pictured right) received certificates of appreciation from PACFA Program Manager, Nick Fisher and CDA Deputy Commissioner, Steve Silverman. Jens Larsen (Retail Facilities, not pictured) could not be at the meeting.

Advisory Committee Vacancies

There are five (5) vacant seats on the PACFA Advisory Committee that we are looking to fill. The seats are for Animal Rescue, Boarding/Training, Cat Breeder, Retail Facilities and Small Mammal Breeder. A preferred qualification for the Animal Rescue position this year is that the representative also hold a Pet Transporter license.

Applications may be submitted through this link or on our web page at the PACFA Advisory Committee page. Prospective applicants must be licensed as a pet animal facility for the category they want to apply for. Advisory Committee appointments are volunteer positions with three year appointments. The Advisory Committee usually meets two times per year in the Spring and Fall. 

New PACFA Program Initiatives

For the last year, PACFA program staff have been working hard to implement a two-year strategic plan that includes a number of specific initiatives. This strategic plan is the cornerstone on which the program intends to develop more balance that will focus not only improving inspection processes, but will allow us to expand into new efforts to do more education and industry outreach. We are happy to report that the PACFA program is on pace to fully implement these initiatives.  

Thanks to new resources provided through the 2019 Sunset review, PACFA has established a new Inspection and Investigation Work Unit, our new manager Janee Boswell will be solely dedicated to the management of the inspection and investigation team. This, in turn, will allow us to develop a second work unit that will focus on licensing, education and outreach initiatives. Once we are able to secure additional resources for the Licensing and Educational Work Unit, we will begin to execute new projects that we have identified, including:

We intend to begin these initiatives in 2020 with the establishment of small working groups to help develop the necessary framework. As we continue to implement our plan, we will provide regular updates in future newsletters. Click on the button below to view the entire strategic plan.