Texas town celebrates animal shelter’s no-kill milestone

Best Friends staff member Sophia Proler was preparing for a visit to the Bedford Animal Shelter. Her happy task? To deliver a plaque marking their first time reaching the no-kill benchmark.

She stopped by the store for a package of celebratory cookies and Capri Sun drinks. “Because it’s not a party without Capri Suns,” Sophia says. She figured it would be plenty to go around for the shelter’s small staff.

2024 was a turning point for Bedford Animal Shelter when they saved 95% of the animals who came through their doors. For this small shelter in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, it was proof that a supportive community and a determined staff can make no-kill a reality.

Best Friends Animal Society recognizes shelters that have achieved no-kill with plaques, and in some cases a Best Friends team member visits the shelter in person to deliver the plaque and congratulate the staff.

[The communities rewriting what’s possible for pets in shelters]

That’s what Sophia was doing as she tucked the cookies and Capri Suns safely away for the drive. However, she soon realized this wasn’t going to be an ordinary presentation.

“On the way there, I got a notification that the event was being moved to the City Hall Community Center due to crowd size,” she says. “I walked in with the plaque expecting maybe a dozen people, and there were 45. The whole dang town showed up!”

The city manager, PR team, advisory board, and chief of police were all there, along with the entire police department, standing proudly in the back of the room. “It was the greatest thing,” Sophia says. “I had to get a group photo with everyone because I did not expect that many people.”

For a shelter with just seven staff members (including animal services officers who work out in the community), every single life saved is significant. In 2024, Bedford saved 661 cats and dogs, and they’ve kept that lifesaving momentum going in 2025.

[Texas shelter redefining what it means to help pets]

Bedford’s journey to no-kill was also boosted when, in late 2023, the shelter joined Best Friends’ Prince and Paws Shelter Collaborative Program, which pairs no-kill shelters with shelters working to achieve that goal. Bedford was paired with the Humane Society of North Texas, whose team provided mentorship and resources to help refine Bedford’s operations and expand lifesaving.

Now, Bedford Animal Shelter stands as an example for the region. “I told them in my speech, ‘You are a beacon in Dallas-Fort Worth,’” Sophia says. “For such a small shelter to take this enormous step is huge.”

City Manager Andrea Roy echoed that commitment: “This is exactly where I want to be. We want to remain no-kill. There’s no going back. We are going to be that beacon.”

With a plaque on the wall, Capri Suns and cookies on the table, and a community united behind them, Bedford Animal Shelter has shown what’s possible when everyone works together for the animals.

Our goal at Best Friends is to support all animal shelters in the U.S. in reaching no-kill. No-kill means saving every dog and cat in a shelter who can be saved, accounting for community safety and good quality of life for pets. 

Shelter staff can’t do it alone. Saving animals in shelters is everyone’s responsibility, and it takes support and participation from the community. No-kill is possible when we work together thoughtfully, honestly, and collaboratively.