Approximately 6.5 million companion animals enter U.S. animal shelters nationwide every year. Of those, approximately 3.3 million are dogs and 3.2 million are cats.  Each year, approximately 1.5 million shelter animals are euthanized (670,000 dogs and 860,000 cats).

Animals are unnecessarily euthanized every second throughout the United States. In addition, there are millions who die, are subjected to ridiculous cruelty, and who are sick on the streets. This is all completely avoidable and results from human negligence and failure to address the root causes of the issues and enact laws that cure these ills and prevent such barbaric cruelty. 

Unlike the “adopt some and kill the rest” form of animal sheltering that has dominated in the United States for the past 100 years and is responsible for the needless deaths of millions of healthy and treatable animals every year, No Kill shelters are saving as high as 99% of all animals entrusted to their care.

The No Kill Equation decreases a shelter’s impounds and increases a shelter’s reclaims while vastly expanding adoptions. When implemented comprehensively and with integrity, these programs are transformative.