California dog owners may want to pay attention to “Oreo’s Law” — a measure aimed at preventing one of the most common fire‑season nightmares: being separated from a pet behind an evacuation line.
The FOUND Act, AB 478 — short for Friends of Oreo Uniting During Disasters — is a new California law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in October 2025. It changes how cities and counties plan for pets in evacuations and how animals rescued from evacuation zones are handled.
The law takes effect Jan. 1, 2026.
The dog behind the law
The measure is named for Oreo, a Pomeranian from Pacific Palisades.
During the January 2025 Palisades fire, Oreo’s owner, Casey Colvin, was away when an evacuation order was issued. Road closures and a hard closure of the neighborhood left Oreo trapped inside the home. Days later, rescuers found him alive in the burned debris.
Video of the reunion — Colvin in the rubble, crying, Oreo wagging — went viral and sparked debate about how animals are treated during disasters.
Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur said he watched the clip, heard from residents who had been blocked from returning for their pets and concluded that the ad‑hoc approach to animal rescue in disasters was not enough. He authored AB 478 in response.
What the FOUND Act does
On paper, the bill’s title is dry: “Accessibility to emergency information and services: evacuations: pets.” In practice, it makes three major changes.
1. Requires pet‑rescue planning in local emergency plans
The next time they update their emergency plans, cities and counties must spell out how people can get help rescuing pets from areas under an evacuation order. That includes:
- Residents of the evacuated area
- A designated representative, such as a friend or neighbor
- Approved animal‑rescue groups with disaster experience
Those procedures must explain when and how rescues can occur “as safely as possible.” The intent is to replace informal “back‑gate” arrangements with a defined process.
2. Creates a clear contact for pet help
Cities and counties must designate a person or agency residents can contact if:
- They need help evacuating with their pets, or
- They left an animal behind and need assistance getting the animal out
That contact information, along with resources for reuniting owners with animals rescued from an evacuation zone, must be posted on the city or county website. The site also must list animals pulled from the evacuated area.
3. Extends how long disaster pets are held
Under AB 478, any pet rescued from — or originating in — an area under an evacuation order cannot be:
- Put up for adoption
- Euthanized, or
- Transferred out of the local animal control agency
for at least 90 days, unless the animal is irredeemably suffering.
After the 90‑day period, shelters still cannot move the animal out without first notifying local rescue and foster partners and giving them a chance to take custody.
In practical terms, owners have months — not a few days — to locate a pet picked up in an evacuation zone.
Why 90 days matters
In normal, non‑disaster situations, many California shelters are allowed to adopt out or euthanize a stray after as little as 72 hours. During large fires, when residents are displaced, phones may not work and communication is chaotic, that timeline can run out before an owner learns which shelter has their animal.
The FOUND Act creates a special category for disaster‑affected pets. It recognizes that evacuation zones, roadblocks and temporary homelessness slow down reunification — and slows down the system that might otherwise dispose of those animals.
Addressing risky “I’ll just sneak back in” rescues
Lawmakers also aimed to reduce dangerous attempts to reenter evacuation zones.
During recent Southern California fires, volunteers and informal rescue groups have climbed fences or tried to talk their way past roadblocks to reach stranded animals, in part because there was no coordinated process for animal rescue.
The bill’s findings note that many people view their animals as family and will take risks to save them. AB 478 attempts to give owners a legal route to request help while making clear that any reentry remains subject to incident command and conditions on the ground. It does not create an absolute right to return to a fire zone.
How it fits into existing law
Oreo’s Law builds on:
- The federal PETS Act, which requires emergency plans to account for pets and service animals
- Existing California laws that require kennel evacuation plans and at least one pet‑friendly shelter in local emergency plans
The FOUND Act goes further by specifying how animal rescue and reunification should work: how animals are removed from evacuation zones, how information reaches owners and how long those animals are protected in shelters.
Bottom line
The law will not prevent every loss during fire season. But it marks a shift away from treating pets as an afterthought and toward a system in which individual evacuation plans, local emergency plans and shelter policies are aligned.
Its core premise mirrors the public reaction to Oreo’s rescue: for many people, the animal behind the roadblock is not just property. It is family — and the law should recognize that.
