History Series / AnimalPlanetHeroes

* TheTag:
** Some of the animals featured in the episode being shown with their adoptive families, foster carers, or having been reunited with their owners if they were lost.
** Stray dogs are ''always'' checked for microchips, though it rarely works.

* CrazyCatLady: The investigators deal with lots of cases of animal hoarding, which is not limited to cats, or women.

** [[invoked]] [[InUniverse Brings this into the spotlight]] for breeds like Staffies and other "Pit Bull" dogs, generally seen on the show solely as fighting dogs. As anyone familiar with dogs can attest to, pits are generally kind, sweet, and devoted unless specifically bred and raised to fight. The officers and shelter workers also work very hard to rehabilitate them for adoption for that exact reason.

** One such instance of it happening at the end was a cop called because a woman supposedly had a ton of dogs with skin conditions whose fur was falling out. They turned out to be Chinese Crested dogs, who are supposed to look like that.
** Another instance was when they responded to a call about a skinny horse; it turned out that the owner had only had him for a relatively short amount of time and was, in fact, in better shape than when the owner recently adopted him from the ASPCA (His previous owners were the reason why he was so skinny. Which the investigator later verified).

** Another instance was when they responded to a call about a skinny horse; it turned out that the owner had only had him for a relatively short amount of time and was, in fact, in better shape than when the owner recently adopted him from the ASPCA (His previous owners were the reason why he was so skinny. Which the investigator later verified.
* AndKnowingIsHalfTheBattle: The shows kindly points out that ''The (name of organization seen in episode) is a non-profit organization funded by donations from the public'' (or something similar), usually during a major seizure or a heartbreaking rescue.

* BeastlyBloodsports: Animal cruelty investigators deal a lot with dogfighting rings and the poor animals involved in them. The worst cases involve "bait dogs," dogs used as bait and "practice" for fighting dogs.
** They go into a lot of detail of what dog-fighting paraphernalia looks like and how it's used as evidence, as well as what the items are used for. Cockfighting also comes up from time to time.
* BlatantLies: From abusive owners, frequently. They took their pets to the vet, honest.

* BodyHorror: Embedded collars, untreated tumors, emaciation, mangy and/or filth-matted coats, and festering wounds. Squick doesn't ''begin'' to describe it...

* TheChewToy: Literally, and some of the worst cruelty cases involve "bait dogs," dogs used as bait and "practice" for fighting dogs.

* TheCobblersChildrenHaveNoShoes: Sometimes the investigators are stumped when they discover that the person abusing or neglecting an animal are themselves employed in a field that works with animals. See the farrier who somehow allowed one of his own horse's feet to grow until they were making the horse lame in the Philadelphia series.

* CutenessProximity: The investigators often coo and fuss over the animals they are rescuing. And even the hardened officers pet and talk to baby animals.

* JurisdictionFriction: Mostly averted, since local law enforcement works closely with the SPCA's officers in many cases.

* KindheartedCatLover: Many of the officers.

* NeverLiveItDown: [[invoked]] [[InUniverse Brings this into the spotlight]] for breeds like Staffies and other "Pit Bull" dogs, generally seen on the show solely as fighting dogs. As anyone familiar with dogs can attest to, pits are generally kind, sweet, and devoted unless specifically bred and raised to fight. The officers and shelter workers also work very hard to rehabilitate them for adoption for that exact reason.

* ObliviouslyEvil: Many of the hoarders--though it's more "Obliviously Guilty of Neglect" than actual evil, and a lot of more recent episodes of all the shows acknowledge that hoarding is often a sign of psychological or mental issues. A lot of hoarders actually think they're ''rescuing'' the animals, and some are even convinced that they're the only ones that ''can'' care for those animals.
** This also applies to unqualified "rescuers" of unwanted or stray animals.
*** Averted for some unqualified "rescuers" - the occasional undercover videos has the main suspect(s) seen treating the "rescued" animals with very little care or just plain cruelly. The Episode "500 Cats" actually involved multiple undercover workers at one such a "shelter" helping bring it down.
* OpeningNarration: "Eight million people. Five million pets. Twenty animal cruelty agents with full police powers. This is the Animal Precinct." (The Animal Precinct opening narration)

* TheTag: Some of the animals featured in the episode being shown with their adoptive families, foster carers, or having been reunited with their owners if they were lost.

* WhatMeasureIsANonCute: Averted. All animals are treated fairly though the series does focus on horses, cats, and dogs.

* [[ArtisticLicenseAnimalCare You Fail Animal Care Forever]]: InvokedTrope. All too often, either through ignorance or indifference.
** One major instance was a poor woman who'd taken in a lot of cats. When the cops arrived, the cats were thin as rails, but her dog was a bit pudgy. It turned out she'd tried to stretch the cat food by adding rice, ''which cats can't digest'' [[note]]Cats are obligate carnivores, meaning they physically ''cannot'' digest plant matter[[/note]], so the dog would eat it all instead. [[note]]Dogs are omnivores, and can adapt to having a non-meat diet.[[/note]]

* NeverLiveItDown: [[InUniverse Brings this into the spotlight]] for breeds like Staffies and other "Pit Bull" dogs, generally seen on the show solely as fighting dogs. As anyone familiar with dogs can attest to, pits are generally kind, sweet, and devoted unless specifically bred and raised to fight. The officers and shelter workers also work very hard to rehabilitate them for adoption for that exact reason.

** One such instance of it happening at the end was a cop called because a woman supposedly had a ton of dogs with skin conditions who fur was falling out. They turned out to be Chinese Crested dogs, who are supposed to look like that.
** Another instance was when they responded to a call about a skinny horse it turned out that the owner had only had him for a relitivly short amount of time and was in fact in better shape then when the owner recently adopted him from the ASPCA (His previous owners where the reason why he was so skinny. Which the investigator later verified.

* HowWeGotHere: For the animals that were adopted, their segments often start once they're fully settled in their new home, usually three months or so later, with the owners explaining how the animal has gotten more social/less skittish/etc. during their stay. Also sometimes with animals in foster homes hat still have some work to do before becoming adoptable.

* AbuseMistake: Occasionally the animal cops are called in on an animal which looks to be in deplorable condition/starved/what-have-you, but the animal is actually suffering from some sort of chronic illness and is under veterinary management. (Hyperthyroid cats are prime suspects for this; their overactive metabolisms mean that they are rail-thin and look as though they're not being fed, when in fact they are.) Unsurprisingly, though, most of these instances don't appear onscreen due to lack of drama potential, usually only showing up as a breather from particularly depressing cases just so viewers have ''something'' to feel better about at the end of the episode.

* Another instance was when they responded to a call about a skinny horse it turned out that the owner had only had him for a relitivly short amount of time and was in fact in better shape then when the owner recently adopted him from the ASPCA (His previous owners where the reason why he was so skinny. Which the investigator later verified.

* FairCop: Anne-Marie Lucas (''Animal Precinct'') and Kathy Labrada (''Miami Animal Police'') are two of the most prominent examples.

* ''Animal Planet Heroes: Phoenix'' (later known as ''Animal Cops: Phoenix'') (2006-07, 2009-10)* ''Animal Cops: Philadelphia'' (2008-09)

* ''Animal Cops: Philadelphia'' (2008-09)
* ''Animal Planet Heroes: Phoenix'' (2006-07, 2009-10) (later known as ''Animal Cops: Phoenix'')

* ''Miami Animal Police'' (2004-2010). Replaced by ''Animal Cops: Miami'' (2010-).
* ''Animal Cops: San Francisco'' (2005-)
* ''Animal Cops: Philadelphia'' (2008-)
* ''Animal Planet Heroes: Phoenix'' (also known as ''Animal Cops: Phoenix'', 2008)

* NeverLiveItDown: [[{{In-universe}} Brings this into the spotlight]] for breeds like Staffies and other "Pit Bull" dogs, generally seen on the show solely as fighting dogs. As anyone familiar with dogs can attest to, pits are generally kind, sweet, and devoted unless specifically bred and raised to fight. The officers and shelter workers also work very hard to rehabilitate them for adoption for that exact reason.

* UnstoppableRage: Not only can some stories be [[TearJerker tearjerkers]] for people who love animals a lot, the people who do such horrid things to their pets can often inspire this, as well. Many people cannot watch any of these shows for more than ten or fifteen minutes without wanting to find these animal abusers and demonstrate the proper use of a crowbar, a la [[VideoGame/{{Half-Life2}} Gordon Freeman]]

* KeepCirculatingTheTapes: These shows have never been released to DVD.

** One such instance of it happening at the end was a cop called because a woman supposedly had a ton of dogs with skin conditions who fur was falling out. They turned out to be Chinese Credted dogs, who are supposed to look like that.

* NeverLiveItDown: [[{{In-universe}} Brings this into the spotlight]] for breeds like the pit bull, generally seen on the show solely as fighting dogs. As anyone familiar with dogs can attest to, pits are generally kind, sweet, and devoted unless specifically bred and raised to fight. The officers and shelter workers also work very hard to rehabilitate them for adoption for that exact reason.

* UnstoppableRage: Not only can some stories be [[TearJerker tearjerkers]] for people who love animals a lot, the people who do such horrid things to their pets can often inspire this, as well. Many people cannot watch any of these shows for more than ten or fifteen minutes without wanting to find these animal abusers and demonstrate the proper use of a crowbar, a la [[VideoGame/{{Half-Life2}} Gordon Freeman]].

* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: One abuser said, "Wait, I'm being arrested for a dog?" The dog had been abandoned and was starving to death before rescued.

''Animal Planet Heroes'' is a set of so called "Wheel Series" airing on AnimalPlanet. In other words several different (but in this case, very similar) shows rotate in the same time slot. This works because it is a non-fiction series focusing on animal rescue and, to some extent, TrueCrime when cruelty prosecutions are involved.

** A woman's dog had an imbedded collar, which she claimed the neighbor put on the dog yesterday. The cop and the vet pointed out that imbedded collars like that take months to get under the skin.
* BodyHorror: Embedded collars, untreated tumors, mangy and/or filth-matted coats, and festering wounds. Squick doesn't ''begin'' to describe it...

** notes on animal care, particularly for dogs and cats, are common in most episodes.

* CuteKitten[=/=]PreciousPuppies: Par for the course.

* HowWeGotHere: For the animals that were adopted, their segments often start once they're fully settled in their new home, usually three months or so later, with the owners explaining how the animal has gotten more social/less skittish/etc. during their stay. Also somtimes with animals in foster homes hat still have some work to do before becoming adoptable.

* JurisdictionFriction: Mostly averted, since local law enforcement works closely with the ASPCA's officers in many cases.
** Several segments note that the ASPCA officers don't have power of arrest or the ability to issue search warrants, so the cooperation is very much necessary to save animals. Averted with the NY ASPCA as they have full police powers and partially averted with the Miami Animal Cops, as two of the officers have full police powers whereas the other officers don't have such powers.

** One major instance was a poor woman who'd taken in a lot of cats. When the cops arrived, the cats were thin as rails, but her dog was a bit pudgy. It turned out she'd tried to stretch the cat food by adding rice, ''which cats can't digest''[[note]]cats are obligate carnivores, meaning they physically cannot digest plant matter[[/note]], so the dog would eat it all instead.

* KindlyVet: Anyone working at the ASPCA hospitals is ''incredibly'' dedicated to their job, as they do their jobs for even less money than their private practice counterparts.

** For the Miama officers it's even more pronounced, as Pits are not allowed in Miami-Dade county due to widespread dogfighting.

* SomewhereAnEquestrianIsCrying: The Houston series in particular tends to feature a lot of horses in deplorable conditions, and since it's Texas, where horses are SeriousBusiness, the investigators there are ''very'' unamused whenever they see horses that are too skinny or whose feet are not being properly taken care of. One particular case of a horse with overgrown hooves managed to piss off even the otherwise unflappable Philadelphia officers because the owner ''was a farrier!'' [[note]]i.e. Someone whose ''job'' is to trim horse hooves.[[/note]]

* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: One abuser said "wait, I'm being arrested for a dog?". The dog had been abandoned and was starving to death before rescued.

** One major instance was a poor woman who'd taken in a lot of cats. When the cops arrived, the cats were thin as rails, but her dog was a bit pudgy. It turned out she'd tried to stretch the cat food by adding rice, ''which cats don't eat'', so the dog would eat it all instead.

* HowWeGotHere: For the animals that were adopted, their segments often start once they're fully settled in their new home, usually three months or so later, with the owners explaining how the animal has gotten more social/less skittish/etc. during their stay.

* ObliviouslyEvil: Many of the hoarders--though it's more "Obviously Guilty of Neglect" than actual evil, and a lot of more recent episodes of all the shows acknowledge that hoarding is often a sign of psychological or mental issues. A lot of hoarders actually think they're ''rescuing'' the animals, and some are even convinced that they're the only ones that ''can'' care for those animals.

** Averted for some unqualified "rescuers" - the occasional undercover videos has the main suspect(s) seen treating the "rescued" animals with very little care or just plain cruelly.