A message from Julie Castle

The past few years have been tough. At animal shelters, staffing shortages continued as more pets entered shelters and adoptions slowed. 

Our Best Friends family experienced deep loss with the passing of four co-founders: Claire Ives, Faith Maloney, Celeste Fripp, and Charity Rennie. In the early days, these pioneering and change-making women built and ran every aspect of Best Friends. Their incredible legacy and love for animals continues today and into the future through caring people like you. 

Despite our collective challenges and losses, we still have many reasons to celebrate — and we have you to thank for every one of them. 

• Through a new program, Best Friends’ medical director and other skilled veterinarians are training their colleagues in high-quality and high-volume spay/neuter procedures to help address the veterinary shortage affecting shelters. 
• Best Friends Animal Sanctuary is participating in clinical trials with UC Davis to combat feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), an incurable and fatal disease. Recent research has shown promise in treating FIP using antiviral drugs, a major breakthrough in ending the suffering and heartbreak caused by FIP. 
• Best Friends was named one of Fast Company magazine’s 2022 Brands That Matter. We were also recognized as a Top Workplace by Energage based on feedback from our dedicated staff. Like you, our staff is an invaluable asset and their engagement — like yours — is critical as we work together to Save Them All. 

Thank you for everything you are doing to save homeless pets and to reach our shared goal of no-kill nationwide by 2025. Together, we have the power to create a brighter future for homeless pets by giving them the love, care, and second chances they deserve. 

Together, we will Save Them All.

Julie Castle 
CEO, Best Friends Animal Society