The primary mission of Cal-CARTs is to serve as an umbrella organization for CARTs operating in the state of California.  Local CARTs provide community education, emergency sheltering, evacuation, animal health care, and reunification of animals affected by disasters and are integrated with county emergency operations plans.   

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The primary objectives and purposes of Cal CARTs shall be to share best practices, develop standardized training programs, enhance state integration of CART responders, and augment funding available for CART sustainability and interoperability.  

 

These objectives will be accomplished by:

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• Hosting quarterly meetings of existing CARTs, and an annual Summit of all participating state agencies to update and

      share best practices and lessons learned.

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• Working with existing state agencies to incorporate the animal component of response into the various Emergency Support Functions in California.

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• Developing training resources and exercises with the goal of standardizing training and role definitions of CART volunteers to facilitate mutual aid.
   

• Developing standardized animal tracking and reunification software specific to CART operational roles including hotline, evacuation, sheltering, dispatching response teams, and reunifying animals with their owners.
   

• Developing funding streams and tools to promote CART formation and maintenance in the state of California through outreach and education about the role of CARTs in the local response.