Yet since arriving at the East Side shelter, the 15 Chihuahuas  Jeb, Orlando, Bella, Colette, the aforementioned Malibu, Annie, Bebop, C. J., Nala, Sherlock, Hancock, Honey, Tina, Holly and Maximus  have been adjusting to life in the big city. Some of them are living in fourth-floor condos (that’s what the A.S.P.C.A. calls its deluxe, glass-walled rooms), listening to classical music that is piped in and enjoying three walks outside and two feedings a day.

California, it turns out, has too many Chihuahuas. New York City does not have enough. So animal welfare officials in San Francisco and Manhattan arranged for what a Virgin America press release dubbed a “Chihuahua airlift”  15 homeless dogs from the Bay Area were flown to Kennedy by the airline so they could be adopted by New Yorkers. It has been no small feat. The A.S.P.C.A. estimated that it would spend $100 to $2,000 per dog for spaying and neutering, shots, food, housing, veterinary care and other costs. At least one dog will undergo orthopedic surgery.

Virgin America donated roughly $12,000 in travel costs for the dogs and their human companions. None of the 15 Chihuahuas were at risk of being euthanized (no adoptable cats or dogs are put to death in San Francisco, only those with severe behavioral or health issues).

The Chihuahuas will be given behavioral as well as medical assessments, and a number of them will be available for public viewing and adoption on Wednesday at noon. “We expect them to take a little bit of time to adjust to the New York sights and sounds,” said Arthur Hazlewood, senior director of the Adoption Center.

Image Bebop and Eric Lee at the A.S.P.C.A. center on East 92nd Street. Credit... Suzanne DeChillo/The New York Times

Though this has long been a small-dog city (because it is a small-apartment city), the Chihuahua has never quite symbolized New York. “Beverly Hills Chihuahua,” the 2008 movie, has a certain ring to it that, say, “Brooklyn Chihuahua” lacks. Yet the breed has quietly earned a reputation as one of the most popular in the city.