Smiling person sitting outside with a dog in a park

Saving pets in Greater Houston

Last year, around 425,000 dogs and cats were killed in our nation’s shelters just because they didn’t have safe places to call home. More than 86,000 of those deaths were in Texas alone.

Help pets stay with families

From reuniting lost pets with their people to microchipping your pet, you can help pets stay in their homes right here in Houston.

70% of loose dogs are found within 1 mile of their homes, so trying to reunite lost dogs or cats with their families before taking them to your local shelter is essential in saving their lives. In fact, recent research indicates that keeping lost pets near the location where they were found, rather than moving them to an area shelter, led to reunification with their families 51% of the time.

When you find a pet you think is a stray, try visiting a veterinarian’s office to see whether the pet has a microchip. If they don't have a microchip, try to reunite the pet with their family via social media and talking to your neighbors.

By providing caring community members who find lost pets with the tools and resources to reunite them with their people in their own neighborhoods, shelter staff can free up shelter space and keep pets and people together. And reuniting pets with their people is undoubtedly the best outcome for them.

Do you believe more animals should be saved in Greater Houston's shelters?

Here at Best Friends, we believe that every pet deserves a second chance.

I Agree

Ending the killing of pets in shelters

Together, we can save the lives of pets in shelters who are often killed due to a lack of space.

Right now, 76% of the pets entering Texas shelters are making it out alive. The goal is to get that number to 90% or more because, even with the best of care, there will always be pets with health or other issues who make it inhumane to prolong their suffering.

In 2024 alone, our efforts were already making a big impact and saving the lives of homeless pets in Houston:

Creating lifesaving programs

870 at-risk dogs and cats in shelters were placed into our local adoption program.
We gave lifesaving lifts to an additional 1,283 dogs and cats to northern communities in the country where they would have a greater chance of being adopted.
We collaborated with the city of Houston to revitalize its foster and volunteer programs at BARC.

Partnering with shelters

Best Friends provided 1,938 free spay/neuter surgeries to shelter and rescue groups.
The Best Friends Mobile Adoption Vehicle reached new communities with adoptable pets, linking under-resourced shelters to adopters.
We facilitated more than 3,600 adoptions and rescue transfers for Greater Houston shelters.
Best Friends helped one shelter achieve no-kill status for the first time in 2024, and two others collectively save 100 more pets than in 2023, increasing their save rates to over 85%!

Supporting the community

Best Friends granted more than $110,000 to local animal welfare organizations that created innovative pet retention programs and established new avenues for lifesaving.
We developed new leaders with the Gulf Coast Animal Welfare Alliance, a Houston-based coalition committed to lifesaving.
Sponsored Petco Love’s annual Mega Adoption event resulting in more than 1,100 adoptions in just one weekend!

See How Your Shelter Is Doing

Microchip your pet to keep them safe

A veterinarian or shelter staff member will scan for a microchip when stray pets are brought to them. This safe and effective technology can help get your pet back to you quickly if they’re ever lost.

What you can do to save the lives of pets

You can spay or neuter your pets, foster a homeless pet, volunteer with your local animal shelter or rescue group, or join campaigns to show elected officials how important it is to save more lives in your community.

No matter what you do for homeless pets, you'll be helping to save lives. When we work together, we save more lives.

Smiling person wearing a Best Friends sweatshirt sitting with a dog outside

Volunteer in the Greater Houston area

Whatever your experience or interests, there are countless ways to volunteer your time for pets in need here in Greater Houston.

Getting started as a volunteer

Foster a pet

Welcoming a furry houseguest into your home, even for just a few nights, helps that pet while freeing up space in the shelter to save more lives.

The fun of fostering

Person cradling a brown and white tabby cat in her arms

Adopt a pet

When you adopt a cat or dog from a rescue group or animal shelter near you (instead of buying one from a puppy mill or breeder), you’re making a lifesaving difference for a loving and grateful animal.

Find adoptable cats and dogs near you

Smiling person sitting with dog outside next to a gray wall

See where your community stands

Animal shelters, local leaders, lifesaving groups, and individual community members are working together to save at-risk pets right where they live.

Is your community no-kill?

Black and white dog looking at a person's hands holding a Best Friends bowl containing dog food

Help provide lifesaving assistance

Lifesaving assistance is available to the pets and their families who need it most in Greater Houston, thanks to the generous support of the community.

Making a lifesaving gift

Recent tales from Greater Houston

Looking for a little inspiration? Check out these pets and their stories of hope, love, and resilience.

Help your local animal shelter or rescue group

At Best Friends, our goal is to get more dogs and cats out of shelters and into homes and make every shelter in America no-kill. Each and every one of these shelters needs caring people like you to adopt, foster, donate, volunteer, and advocate to help save the lives of pets in your community.

Find an animal shelter or rescue group near you today:

Join a local team of advocates

We make the most change for animals when we work together, which is why we formed the Best Friends Action Team. Once you sign up for the Action Team, you'll receive emails with more ways you can help save homeless pets.

Make your voice heard

If you can’t adopt or foster, you can spread the word about the importance of stepping up to save the lives of cats and dogs.

Let your family, friends, and neighbors know that together we can make a difference in the lives of pets.

Let your city leaders know that saving the lives of pets in shelters is important to you.

Dog relaxing with a person on a soft rug

Show your support

Do you believe that the killing in shelters needs to end?

I Agree

About Best Friends

Best Friends Animal Society is working to save the lives of cats and dogs all across the country, giving pets second chances and happy homes.

As recently as 2016, 2 million cats and dogs were killed in shelters in this country simply because shelters didn't have the community support or the resources to save their lives. That number is now 425,000 per year, but there’s still work to do to ensure a bright future for every dog and cat in America.

Best Friends operates the nation's largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals and is committed to saving the lives of homeless pets by working with shelters and passionate people like you. We’re sharing our resources and what we know to help shelters around the country achieve no-kill in their communities.

Together, we will bring the whole country to no-kill.

Working together, we can change that. We know that ending the killing in shelters is possible in Greater Houston, but we can’t do it without you. That’s why we’re focusing on collaborating with area shelters and animal welfare organizations, community members, businesses, and caring people like you.

To save the lives of cats and dogs in Greater Houston, we’re creating programs to get pets adopted, connecting shelters with one another, providing training and mentoring to shelter staff, engaging with the community, hosting adoption events, providing veterinary services for shelters and rescue groups, and creating programs to save community cats (aka cats who live outdoors).