Presented at the American Pets Alive No-Kill Conference 2014.

1. Title

2. A Little History
• Prior to January 10th
, 2011
• Operated by Code Enforcement
• 1 Animal Control Officer, 1 Part Time
Shelter Attendant
• Euthanizing up to 70 animals per month

3. A Little History
• April 2010 Chief Pat Stallings tells me
Police Department will take over Shelter
Operations
• Chief tells me he wants me to oversee
Operations
• My conditions:
– Must be No Kill
– Build a new shelter

4. A Little History
• Research
– Shelter Operations and Management
– The No Kill Movement
– Local Humane Organizations (SPCA of Texas)
– Local Rescue Organizations
– Grant Opportunities
– Shelter Management Software

5. A Little History
• December 2010, I was informed we
would take over operations on January
10th
, 2011
• Officer Brenda Stevens assigned as
Shelter Manager
• I am sent to Animal Control Officer
School

6. January 10th
, 2011

7. Our First Day
• The gas chamber was shut down for
good and used for food storage
• Took inventory and made a needs list
• Organized
• Rearranged
• Began work on new procedures
• Operating Budget - $27, 900

8. Shelter-Led Reformation
• Steps to becoming a No Kill shelter
– City Administration MUST be on board
• Explain what being No Kill means
• Introduce them to the No Kill Movement
• Make sure they know what to expect
• Tell them this is a “one-way street”

10. Shelter-Led Reformation
• Get your shelter management and staff
on board
– Let them know what to expect
• Larger populations
• Organizing with Rescues and Fosters
• Working with volunteers
• Strain on resources
• Importance of new procedures

11. Networking
• Find local rescue organizations
– Breed specific
– Non-Breed Specific
– Special Needs
• Find local humane organizations
– SPCA
– Humane Society
• Establish social networking
– Facebook page
– Website (with Petfinder integration)
– Twitter, Pinterest, etc.

12. Donations
• Make sure your city has a donation
account set up just for the shelter
• Publish a needs list on your city website
and through your local newspaper
• Create an Amazon.com wishlist for
needed items
• Contact local businesses that carry things
you may need for donations

13. Veterinarians and Vendors
• Find a veterinarian who is willing to work with a
shelter, that can provide discounts on services, and
has the capacity to handle shelter emergencies.
• Find a Pharmaceutical Company that has the ability to
provide wholesale pricing/discounts for shelters on
vaccines and medications.
• Software
– Intake database (like PetPoint) that allows you the
ability to track intakes/outcomes, etc.
• Microchips (very important)
– Microchips are the best solution for owner returns

14. Volunteer Program
Volunteers are a must for any
shelter
•Organize a non-profit 501(c)(3)
•Start with a small, core group of volunteers
•Every volunteer has a unique talent that can
be utilized in the shelter environment
•Use your volunteers:
– At the shelter (cleaning/walking/animal
interaction)
– To host adoption events (off-site and at the
shelter)
– To host fundraisers throughout the year
– For recruiting other volunteers

16. Foster Program
Fosters … a great asset to a shelter
•Create a Foster Application and Guidelines
•Conduct background checks and home visits on
all potential fosters
•Explain the Foster Philosophy
•Keep track of your fostered animals
•Make sure your fostered animals are getting
exposure to potential adopters by having them
attend off-site adoption events.

17. Adoption Events
Adoption Events are critical to keeping
your daily population numbers down
•Host weekly events at several locations
– Onsite
• Open the shelter on weekends
– Off-site
• Petco, Petsmart, Walgreens, Tractor Supply
• High traffic areas
• Non-traditional locations
– Grocery stores
– Dog friendly stores and parks

18. Off-site Adoption Locations

19. Advertise
• Newspapers
• Television (news stories)
• Local businesses
• Businesses near your off-site locations
• City website
• Volunteer website
• Social Media (Facebook/Twitter)

21. Facebook
• How we use Facebook
– Post photos and videos of adoptable animals
– Post pleas for donations
– Advertise Adoption Events
– Happy Tails
– Urgent needs animals
– Update shelter populations
– Post photos of new forever families
– Post photos from forever homes
Flyer of Adoptable
Animal Event Flyer Urgent Need Forever home

22. Facebook
• What Facebook does for us:
– Over 6000 “Likes”
– Connects us with Rescues, Animal Welfare,
Vendors, Crossposters, Transporters and
especially the public
– Recruits new volunteers and fosters
– Brings in more donations
– Brings in people with helpful talents
– Brings more adopters
– Spreads the word, any word, and it’s FREE!

23. CELEBRATE YOUR
SUCCESS!
no matter how large or small

24. Celebrating Successes
• Adoptions, Resuces
• Donations
• Monthly and Annual Statistics
• Completed Projects

25. Raise Money for Injured/Sick Animals
• Post photos of the injury
• Tell the story of how you came to have
the animal
• Put a donation link on your FB page
• See if your veterinarian will allow donors
to donate directly to the clinic
• Post photos of the recovery progress
• Post before and after photos

26. Penny’s Story
Penny was thrown from
a moving vehicle in
front of a school bus
that was unloading
children in a
neighborhood.
When I picked her up
she could not put
weight on the back left
leg. She did not whine,
nip or appear to be in
pain.

27. Trip to the Veterinarian
Penny was taken to the
Veterinarian
This X-Ray shows the
twist break on her left
femur. It was broken
into 3 pieces with a lot
of bone debris

28. Surgery
She was taken to
surgery to repair the
leg. She never
complained, never
showed any
aggression from the
time I picked her up
through the entire
ordeal

29. Post Surgery and Recovery
We sent Penny to
Seagoville High
School Veterinary
Assistant Program
where they fostered
her until she fully
recovered

30. Penny’s Adoption Flier

32. Other Projects
• Partner with your local High School
– Seagoville H.S. Veterinary Assistant Program
– High School kids need community service credit to
graduate
• TNR program
• Low Cost Spay/Neuter/Vaccination Clinics
• Solicit Sponsors for Spay/Neuter
• IGive.com
• Amazon.com Partnerships

33. Seagoville High School
Veterinary Assistant Students

34. Make your animals more Adoptable
• Vaccinate your animals on intake
• Fully Vetted Animals
• Reduce Adoption Fees
• Photograph the animals outside of
kennels and cages
• Dress up your animals at adoption
events
• Partner with local obedience trainers

35. Photographs Say So Much …

36. Photographs Say So Much …

38. Adoption Flyers

39. Happy Tail Photos

40. Adoption Event Photos

41. Adoption Update Photos
(pets in their new homes)

42. The Awwwww Factor

43. The Little Shelter That Could
Our First Year - 2011
• 568 Intakes
• 327 Adoptions
• 192 Rescues
• 47 Owner Reclaims
• 12 Animals Euthanized (Injury, Illness or
Aggression)
• 97.5% Live Release Rate

44. The Little Shelter That DID!
Our Second Year – 2012
• Intakes - 792 (39% increase)
• Adoptions - 549 (67% increase)
• Rescues - 140 (27% decrease)
• Owner Reclaims - 76 (42% increase)
• Animals Euthanized (Injury, Illness or
Aggression) 13
• 98.5% Live Release Rate

45. CELEBRATING 3 YEARS
OF NO KILL!
Through Adoptions, Rescues,
Owner Returns and the TNR
Program
Over 2000 lives have been saved!

46. Make the impossible POSSIBLE

47. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING
THE NO-KILL MOVEMENT