 | |
| Formation | 1997 |
|---|---|
| Type | Non-profit |
| Legal status | 501(c)(3) |
CEO | Annette Laico |
Main organ | Board of Directors |
Revenue (2016) | $16,427,736 |
| Website | pawschicago |
PAWS Chicago (Pets Are Worth Saving) is a non-profit animal shelter organization based in Chicago, Illinois. [1] The organization was co-founded in 1997 by Paula Fasseas and her daughter Alexis Fasseas. The duo aspired to create an organization that focused on discovering solutions to end the euthanasia of homeless pets. [2]
In 1998, Fasseas launched PAWS Chicago with an adoption event titled "Angels with Tails" aiming to save the lives of stray or homeless animals. The event facilitated animal adoptions, and was intended to raise awareness around the issue of pet overpopulation and the euthanasia of homeless animals. [3] The event was held on Michigan Ave in Chicago, where the organization partnered with local businesses and boutiques who agreed to showcase animals in their storefronts. [4]
In 2000, PAWS opened the Lurie Spay and Neuter Clinic. The clinic offers free and low cost services in the Chicago area, performing over 17,000 spray and neuter surgeries each year. [5]
On September 7, 2007, PAWS opened its Lincoln Park adoption center located at 1997 N. Clybourn Ave. The new adoption center cost $9 million and is 13,000 square feet. It was the first cage-free shelter in the Midwest. [6]
PAWS works with shelters across the U.S., particularly in times of crisis and natural disaster. During Hurricane Katrina in 2005, PAWS volunteers drove from Chicago to Louisiana to rescue 200 pets caught in the floods. PAWS also assisted in rescuing animals in the 2008 flooding in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Quincy, Illinois, as well as the 2013 floods in Oklahoma. In August 2016, PAWS assisted in rescuing animals from floodings in Louisiana. [7] PAWS also assisted in rescue efforts for Hurricane Irma in Florida, Hurricane Harvey in Texas in 2017, as well as Hurricane Michael in Florida in 2018. [8]
On December 1, 2013, Merrick Pet Care and PAWS teamed up to provide meals for the cats and dogs of PAWS. [1] Merrick Pet Care provides food for all of PAWS pets as well as giving each pet that is newly adopted and their owner a supply of food. [1]
Since its inception, PAWS Chicago has reduced the number of animals euthanized in the city by 80 percent, becoming an active participant in the No Kill Movement. [9]
In 2018, PAWS Chicago received a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator for the 16th consecutive year. Charity Navigator assesses non-profit organizations by rating their performances based on Financial Health and their Accountability and Transparency. [10] The assessment found that charity’s total revenue sums up to $16,427,736 while 89.4 percent of the organizations total expenses are spent on the programs and services it delivers. [2]
In November 2012, Chicago magazine named PAWS Chicago as one of their "gold standard charities" under their Guide to Charitable Giving in Chicago. The guide is a means of navigating which charities readers should donate to when considering charitable gifting during the holiday season. The charities were ranked by a group philanthropic consultants, professors, and Charity Navigator, a non-profit website that rates the practicality of non-profit organizations on a four-scale rating. [11]
In January 2007, Paula Fasseas was labeled a "Transformer" by Chicago magazine and honored as Chicago Magazine’s Chicagoan of the Year. [12] The award is set out to honor a handful of people that have changed Chicago for the better. [13]
In 2003, PAWS Chicago won the Chicago Innovation Award by the Chicago Sun-Times . [14] The award goes out to ten businesses in Chicago that have presented successful business developments and innovative marketing techniques.
In 2008, Oprah Winfrey visited PAWS Chicago during the filming of a three-part series she was producing on puppy mills. [15] The feature showcased good living environments and lifesaving work, which aided in putting PAWS name on the map across the country. Winfrey featured her self-funded suite for PAWS in loving memory of her cocker spaniel, Sophie, whom is featured on the 2009 cover of O, The Oprah Magazine . [16] After the issue was released, there has been about a 50 percent decrease in the number of pets being euthanized in Chicago per year. [16]
The annual 'PAWS Beach Party' is organized to raise money for the organization. PAWS' 16th annual Beach Party in 2018 attracted over 500 guests and 125 dogs, raising over $300,000 for the organization. The money raised went towards funding PAWS' lifesaving program for homeless cats and dogs in addition to a renovation and an expansion of the medical center. [17]
The Fur Ball is an annual fundraising gala that showcases rescue cats and dogs for adoption. The gala includes a number of activities for the pets to participate in, such as buffets and paw-dicures while the humans engage in live auctions and raffles. In 2017, 800 people and 200 dogs attended the ball, collectively raising $1.3 million for the organization. [18] In 2013, Smashing Pumpkins co-founder William Corgan and Michelin Guide-awarded star-chef, Curtis Duffy, made appearances at the Fur Ball, curating an event of their own to be auctioned off during the gala. [19]
Northwestern College in Bridgeview, IL hosted a 5K Run/Walk in September 2018 to benefit PAWS Chicago. Dubbed "PAWS for a Cause", the family-friendly event is open to the public and is designed to bring students, alumni, staff, and the Bridgeview/Burbank/Bedford Park communities together to raise funds for helpless animals in need. [20]
PAWS Chicago's 5K Walk/Run was named one of Chicago's Top 100 Events in 2016 and 2017, and Top 10 Athletic Events in 2017 by BizBash. In this event, owners and their pets are allowed to participate in a 5K. In addition to the race, there is also food and games for the participants. [21]
The Holiday Adopt-A-Thon is a two-day adoption marathon intended to help homeless pets find a home in time for the holidays. [22] The event takes place during the holiday season to reduce the risk of the euthanasia of homeless pets in animal shelters during a time of the year when the shelters are short-staffed. [23]
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing animal cruelty. Based in New York City since its inception in 1866, the organization's mission is "to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the United States."
Pet adoption is the process of transferring responsibility for a pet that was previously owned by another party such as a person, shelter, or rescue organization. Common sources for adoptable pets are animal shelters and rescue groups. Some organizations give adopters ownership of the pet, while others use a guardianship model wherein the organization retains some control over the animal's future use or care.
An animal rescue group or animal rescue organization is a group dedicated to pet adoption. These groups take unwanted, abandoned, abused, or stray pets and attempt to find suitable homes for them. Many rescue groups are created by and run by volunteers, who take animals into their homes and care for them — including training, playing, handling medical issues, and solving behaviour problems — until a suitable permanent home can be found.
A backyard breeder is an amateur animal breeder whose breeding is considered substandard, with little or misguided effort towards ethical, selective breeding. Unlike puppy mills and other animal mill operations, backyard breeders breed on a small scale, usually at home with their own pets, and may be motivated by things such as monetary profit, curiosity, to gain new pets and/or working animals, or to show children "the miracle of birth".
In some countries there is an overpopulation of pets such as cats, dogs, and exotic animals. In the United States, six to eight million animals are brought to shelters each year, of which an estimated three to four million are subsequently euthanized, including 2.7 million considered healthy and adoptable. Euthanasia numbers have declined since the 1970s, when U.S. shelters euthanized an estimated 12 to 20 million animals. Most humane societies, animal shelters and rescue groups urge animal caregivers to have their animals spayed or neutered to prevent the births of unwanted and accidental litters that could contribute to this dynamic.
Operation Kindness is a no kill animal shelter for cats and dogs located in Carrollton, Texas. It is a non-profit organization and is funded through donations, receiving no government funding.
A no-kill shelter is an animal shelter that does not kill healthy or treatable animals even when the shelter is full, reserving euthanasia for terminally ill animals or those considered dangerous to public safety. A no-kill shelter uses many strategies to promote shelter animals; to expanding its resources using volunteers, housing and medical protocols; and to work actively to lower the number of homeless animals entering the shelter system. Up to ten percent of animals could be killed in a no-kill shelter and still be considered a no-kill shelter.
North Shore Animal League America, headquartered in Port Washington, New York, is the largest no-kill animal rescue and adoption organization in the world. Marianne H. Sanders founded the League in 1944, and the League's mission has been saving the lives of pets through adoption, rescue, spay/neuter and advocacy initiatives. Each year, the League rescues, nurtures and adopts nearly 20,000 pets nationwide, and to date, has placed nearly one million puppies, kittens, cats and dogs into screened homes. One of the first animal rescue agencies on the ground in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the League rescued more than 1,400 pets from the region.
Best Friends Animal Society, (BFAS) founded in its present form in 1993, is an American nonprofit 501(c)(3) animal welfare organization. BFAS does outreach nationwide with shelters, rescue groups and members to promote pet adoption, no-kill animal rescue, and spay-and-neuter practices. Best Friends has a 3-star 'Give With Confidence' rating from Charity Navigator.
Wendy E. Diamond is an American philanthropist, social entrepreneur, impact investor, animal welfare advocate, best-selling author, and television personality. She is the founder and CEO of LDP Ventures, an investment company focused on socially responsible ventures. Diamond is also the founder of Women's Entrepreneurship Day Organization, a global movement to economically empower women to alleviate poverty. In addition, Diamond is the creator of Animal Fair Media Inc., the world’s premiere pet lifestyle media platform, bridging celebrity/pop culture with animal rescue/welfare when she learned 12 million animals were euthanized a year.
The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) is a volunteer-based, non-government organization whose goal is to prevent animal cruelty through education, animal sheltering and advocacy, based in Quezon City, Philippines. It was founded in 1954 by Muriel Jay. PAWS believes that the creation of a more peaceful society starts with the widening of mankind's circle of compassion which includes animals, thereby envisions a nation that respects animals, practices responsible pet ownership and protects wildlife. The volunteer-based organization rehabilitates these animals in the hope of finding them new homes and a second chance at a good life. PAWS does not take in pets of other people, but only victims of cruelty or neglect where the animal offenders are charged with violation of the Animal Welfare Act in court.
Compassion and Responsibility for Animals (CARA) is a registered non-profit, non-government animal welfare organization in the Philippines. It was founded in 2000 by a group of animal lovers determined to help the plight of animals in the Philippines. The current president of CARA is Nancy Cu-Unjieng.
Helen Woodward Animal Center is an animal center located in Rancho Santa Fe, California. Located on 12 acres, the Center provides a variety of services that benefit the community through educational and therapeutic programs for people, and humane care and adoption for animals.
PAWS (Pakistan Animal Welfare Society) is a non profit organization registered as a company limited founded in 2004. It is run by volunteers, without having a specific shelter, business venue or paid staff located in Karachi, Pakistan. All funds raised go directly towards rescuing and treating animals as well as awareness raising and advocacy work. PAWS accounts are audited annually by chartered accountants Salman Masud and Co.
Adopt-a-Pet.com is North America's largest non-profit pet-adoption web service that advocates pet adoption, gathering information from over 12,000 pet shelters in the U.S. and Canada, and presenting adoptable pet data in a searchable data base to facilitate pet adoption. Adopt-a-pet.com is registered in Redondo Beach, California, as Humane America Animal Foundation. The web site allows people to sign up to receive an email when a pet that satisfies their criteria appears in a local shelter. Adopt-a-Pet.com also contains information on pet care for first-time pet owners and publishes a newsletter. The web site also lists volunteer opportunities and promotes spaying and neutering of the pets.
PetSmart Charities and PetSmart Charities of Canada are non-profit organizations dedicated to saving the lives of homeless pets. In the United States, PetSmart Charities is the largest financial supporter of animal welfare and among the 400 largest philanthropic organizations working on any issue. PetSmart Charities was formed in 1994 by PetSmart founders Jim and Janice Dougherty, who chose never to sell dogs and cats within their stores. Their primary goal is to save the lives of homeless pets through programs such as their In-Store Adoption Centers in many PetSmart locations, Rescue Waggin' disaster relief program, grant program for animal welfare agencies across North America, and community adoption events. Another focus of the organization is increasing spay/neuter services to help communities solve the problem of pet overpopulation.
The Richmond SPCA is an idependent non-profit animal shelter in Richmond, Virginia founded in 1891.
The British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a non-profit animal welfare organization which advocates for animal protection legislation, operates animal shelters, and runs educational workshops and public awareness programs throughout British Columbia, Canada. Founded in 1896, it is a registered charitable organization and one of the largest such animal welfare organizations in North America. As of 2017, BC SPCA had 36 branches, over 500 staff members, nearly 5500 volunteers, operated 5 veterinary hospitals/clinics and a wildlife rehabilitation centre, and sheltered more than 22000 animals. It is also one of the few animal welfare organizations to monitor animals in film.
One Tail at a Time (OTAT) is a Chicago non-profit organization that rescues and shelters homeless dogs from overpopulated shelters and provides resources and future adoption opportunities for the rescued animals. The shelter’s purpose is to treat sick and injured animals from local city shelters before entering an adoption program. OTAT uses a progressive dog adoption program that supports under-resourced animal shelters and pet families. The original adoption center, located in Bucktown, houses homeless dogs available for adoption. OTAT has a second location in Logan Square that serves as an isolation center that treats highly emotionally damaged dogs that need extra care and attention. OTAT’s mission is to end pet homelessness and make pet ownership a pleasurable and accessible experience.
The Sato Project is an animal rescue and protection organization founded in 2011 by British-born Christina Beckles. It works to rescue abused and abandoned dogs in Puerto Rico, educating the public, and advocating for abused and abandoned dogs. "Sato" is the Spanish word used in Puerto Rico and Cuba for referring to stray dogs or cats. Many of the project's missions have involved airlifting dogs before and after natural disasters, including Hurricane Maria in 2017 and the earthquakes that struck Puerto Rico in 2019 and 2020. "Spayathon" is a spaying and neutering program, attended by Sato Project and other animal rights organizations in Puerto Rico, which has had an impact on the stray dog population.
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