Person hugging dog while sitting in a grassy area

Thank you for joining us

In 2023, 33,292 pets were killed in North Carolina shelters, making it the state with the third highest number of dogs and cats killed in shelters. But we’re working to change that, and we can't do it without your help. We make the most change when we work together.

You have a place in that lifesaving picture, and finding it has never been easier. Each week, we'll email you ways you can help save the lives of homeless pets in your community.

From fostering tiny kittens to supporting your local shelter to giving a loving home to a pet in need, there are so many ways you can start saving lives today.

With your help, we can make sure that every pet who enters a shelter in North Carolina has a path to leave that shelter alive.

No-kill: Ending the killing of pets in shelters

Only 76% of pets who enter North Carolina shelters make it out alive. We need to get to 90% for North Carolina to be considered no-kill.

Even with the best of care, there will always be pets who come into a shelter with health or other issues that make it inhumane to prolong their suffering, but for most shelters that makes up 10% or less of the pets taken in. The remaining percentage is how Best Friends arrived at the no-kill benchmark of 90%, and we are committed to helping every North Carolina shelter reach no-kill.

31% of pets killed in North Carolina shelters come from five shelters: Johnston, Wilkes, Robeson, Forsythe, and Randolph — making up 10,478 of the 33,292 dogs and cats killed in 2023. But no-kill is within reach for these shelters by taking steps toward lifesaving.

Want to help? Click below to see our data and find out how your local shelter is doing. If your shelter isn’t at a 90% save rate, you can check to see what they’re doing to protect North Carolina pets, contact them, and sign our pledge to get involved.

See How Your Shelter Is Doing
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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:
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Recent tales from North Carolina

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

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Volunteer Toni Dorsey and another person unloading pet food from a truck

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Turbo the dog in a vehicle kissing the face of his adopter

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What you can do to save the lives of pets

We save more lives together, and everybody can do something.

You can spay and neuter your pets, provide a foster home for a homeless pet, volunteer with other people making a difference, and join campaigns to make your community understand the need to save the lives of all pets.

Smiling person sitting on a couch with a cat next to them

Fostering a pet saves lives

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
Two smiling people on a lawn next to a dog they're petting

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
Kitten outside in the grass

Help cats in your community

Community cats (you might think of them as stray or free-roaming cats) are felines who call the outdoors home, and they’re among the most at-risk animals when they end up in shelters.
Find adoptable cats and dogs near you
Smiling person sitting with a dog on some steps leading into a home

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?
Smiling person sitting outside on some steps with a small dog

Help provide lifesaving assistance

Lifesaving assistance is available to the pets and their families who need it most, thanks to the generous support of the community.
Making a lifesaving gift

Helping pets stay with families

From securing pet-friendly housing to purchasing items or supplies for pets in need, you can help pets stay in their homes right here in North Carolina.

Cat outdoors on a fence

Help cats in your community

Community cats (you might think of them as stray or free-roaming cats) are felines who call the outdoors their home, and they’re among the most at-risk animals when they end up in shelters.
Helping cats in your community
Smiling person sitting with a dog outside on some steps

Promoting pet-friendly housing

Ensure the availability of more pet-inclusive housing to keep pets with their families.
Promoting pet-friendly housing
Person using a stethoscope to listen to the chest of a husky dog

Keep your pet healthy

Spaying and neutering are routine medical procedures that not only help prevent unintended litters, but they may also prevent medical and behavioral problems.
Learn about spay/neuter
Two people interacting with a large white dog

Reunite lost pets with their people

Before taking a stray pet to your local shelter, try visiting a veterinarian’s office to see whether the pet has a microchip. Then try to reunite the pet with their family via social media and talking to your neighbors.
Reuniting pets with people

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. 

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. 

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Show your support

Do you believe every animal deserves a safe place to call home?
I Agree
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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 around 400,000 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.