When I began working in the world of saving the lives of pets in need in the early 2000s, the path to success was pretty straightforward.
An animal entered the shelter. We took care of them. We found them a home.
And look, it is still a huge part of what we do, as there is nothing more moving than witnessing a dog or cat leave the shelter with a loving family of their own.
But over the years, I have come to look at what determines success, and what that looks like, a little differently.
Today, the question I ask is: is the best outcome for the animal to never set foot inside an animal shelter at all?
I agree that may sound odd coming from someone who runs an animal shelter, but I believe it is where animal welfare has to continue heading.
Sometimes people just need a little help
Not all pet owners wake up one day and decide to surrender their pet to a rescue organization or animal shelter.
For most, it becomes a decision rooted in things like affording pet food or even veterinary care, like annual vaccinations. Some pet owners just need help getting their pet spayed or neutered. Other times, life simply throws pet owners something they weren’t expecting.
For years, the traditional answer in animal sheltering was pretty simple: bring us your pet.
But wait. Think about that for a minute.
If someone loves their dog, the dog loves them, and a bag of pet food is the difference between that dog staying home or entering a shelter, what’s the better outcome?
To me, the answer is easy.
Help provide them with pet food.
That’s why these programs matter
At The Haven, programs like our Luke’s Day Pet Food Pantry and Project PAWS (Pet Alteration & Wellness Services) are not separate from our lifesaving work. They are lifesaving work.
The same is true when we are helping community cats.
If we spay or neuter a cat and prevent litter after litter of kittens from being born, we are addressing the problem before those kittens ever need a shelter kennel, foster home, or adopter.
And every animal we can safely keep out of the shelter creates more room and resources for the animals who truly have nowhere else to go.
That is important because shelter capacity isn’t just about how many kennels or cages you have.
Every animal that enters needs people.
They need to be fed. Kennels need to be cleaned. Dogs need to be walked. Cats need attention. Some need medication. Some need veterinary treatment. Some need weeks of behavioral work before they are ready for a home.
There are only so many hours in a day and only so many resources to go around.
Keeping a pet home isn’t always possible
There are many times when surrender is necessary.
Circumstances change. People become seriously ill. Families lose housing. An owner dies. Sometimes an animal simply cannot remain where they are.
That’s why shelters like The Haven are here.
But when the problem can be solved — and the animal is already in a safe, loving home — I do not believe separating that pet from their family should be our first solution.
It should be our last.
Animal sheltering has changed
The animal welfare and sheltering industry has certainly changed over the years since I began this work.
We have become so much better at saving animals once they enter the shelter. We have improved adoption programs, veterinary care, foster programs, behavior work, and partnerships between shelters, government agencies, and rescue organizations.
Now we have to continue getting better at preventing animals from needing us in the first place.
To me, that’s the next step.
Because our mission is not to fill our shelter with homeless pets and then prove how many animals we can save.
It is to create a community where fewer animals need a shelter at all.
And sometimes the best lifesaving story we can tell is the one that never started inside our doors.