After guiding Brownsville Animal Regulation and Care Center through two-plus years of profound improvements, BARCC Deputy Director Dr. Antonio Caldwell is moving on.
He’s accepted a position with San Antonio Animal Care Services as assistant director overseeing shelter operations there. The San Antonio shelter, which takes in about 30,000 animals a year, is the second largest such facility in the country, with 245 staff members, Caldwell said. He said it’ll be a tough job but that he’s “excited about the challenge.”
Caldwell is used to challenges. When he first joined BARCC as deputy director of animal services (now health, wellness and animal services) in March 2023, the facility had a reputation as “really just a kill shelter,” he said.
While the shelter is still forced to put animals down due to lack of space, the kill rate has fallen dramatically during Caldwell’s tenure.
“When I first got here the save rate was only 26%, so only 26% of the animals that came into our shelter were leaving alive, which is very hard to see,” he said. “Then the following year, we increased the save rate to 53%.”
BARCC closed out 2024 with a 73% save rate, Caldwell said, noting that “going from that to this has been incredible.”
“It was very challenging to start winning back the trust of the community, but I think that we’ve definitely made a big impact,” he said.
Last year, the Best Friends Animal Society recognized BARCC for the best year-to-year improvement in save rate among shelters nationwide. In addition, the National Animal Care & Control Association bestowed upon BARCC its 2025 Agency of the Year Award.
None of it would have been possible without help, Caldwell explained.
“We were lucky enough to partner up with a lot of great organizations that wanted to see us successful,” he said. “We partnered with organizations like Best Friends, Wings of Rescue, Petco Love (and) PetSmart Charities.
“All of these helped us with grant funding, with resources to potentially fly animals out, with equipment to better take care of the animals. It was an entire village that really came together to help us turn this shelter around. It definitely wasn’t just me.”
Of course, cities like Brownsville wouldn’t have so many strays if more residents spayed and neutered their dogs and cats, though the cost is prohibitive for many residents, Caldwell said, adding that he once called various animal clinics around town to get an idea of what vets were charging.
“I got quotes up to $700 to do a spay and neuter,” he said. “Absolutely our average citizen cannot afford that.”
It led Caldwell to create FixBTX.com earlier this year. Residents can register on the website to get on a waiting list for low-cost (sometimes no-cost) spay/neuter opportunities. The most anyone will pay is $35, he said.
“You can imagine, when we first launched the site we had upwards of 1,000 people register right away, and we’re still chipping away at that wait list,” Caldwell said. “But we encourage everyone to get online and register, and we’ll reach out as surgery dates become available.”
BARCC is also seeking grant money for a mobile spay/neuter clinic to go into neighborhoods, for residents who aren’t able to transport their animals to a clinic or the shelter, he said.
“We’ll try to go to them,” Caldwell said. “That’s something that’s in the pipeline.”
Despite the substantial progress, BARCC still struggles to keep up with the calls it gets on a daily basis, Caldwell noted.
“Right now we have about 500-plus calls pending for animal care services,” he said. “That’s insane. That just shows you the sheer volume of calls that are coming in, and we only have six animal control officers trying to handle all of the city of Brownsville.”
City leaders are keenly aware of the gravity of the situation and know that more needs to be done, Caldwell said, describing the city as a “wonderful partner.”
“Animal services traditionally has a very small slice of the pie when it comes to budget,” he said. “I will say that it has increased more this past year. … Everything comes down to budget and funding.”
With the demand for animal services only growing, BARCC feels a “sense of urgency when it comes to finding these solutions and providing better funding for the animal care dept,” Caldwell said.
“It’s definitely a priority for city leadership,” he said. “It’s a priority for me even as I’m leaving in only two weeks. I’m fighting really hard for some of these improvements.”
For example, the animals BARCC euthanizes currently are disposed of in the city landfill. Caldwell said he’s been pushing hard to find funding for an incinerator, so the shelter can have a “proper crematorium” — sooner rather than later.
He said he’s loved his time with BARCC, even if he’s never worked harder in his life, and praised the volunteers who help sustain the shelter.
“We’ve been very blessed with so many people in our community with big hearts that have come to volunteer on a regular basis,” Caldwell said. “If it had not been for these volunteers our animals would not get as much enrichment. Our animals wouldn’t have gotten adopted as much as they have.”
He expressed gratitude to those in the community who stepped up “when they were needed the most and coming to the rescue.”
Caldwell said the shelter still “gets a lot of flack” because of the large number of strays there, though it’s hardly the shelter’s fault. It comes down to not enough residents spaying and neutering their animals — either because they can’t afford to, or can afford it but don’t take it seriously, he said.
Caldwell urged everyone to do their part, noting that “it takes all of us.”
“We’re trying to help with the solution, but we cannot do it alone,” he said. “We need the community to stand with us and help us, so we can get out of this hole.”
Caldwell says he’s going to miss the Rio Grande Valley.
“I’m very humbled and thrilled at the (San Antonio) opportunity, but it was such a hard decision to leave this beautiful South Texas community that I’ve fallen in love with. I’ve been here for almost 20 years. It’s tough to leave all this behind.”
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