Moving no-kill forward: A Houston highlight
If the unfortunate thing happened and your dog got out, what would you want to happen next?
Would you want a neighbor to go knocking on doors to find your dog's home? Would you prefer they call animal services, who might take your dog to the local shelter? Or would you hope that everyone — neighbors, shelters, and community members — work together to bring your best friend home safely?
When we zoom in on the no-kill movement –– down to the one dog who slipped out the gate –– we see it for what it really is: a community effort, not a cookie-cutter program. It’s neighbors helping neighbors. It’s the family who posts a flyer, the person who stops their car to help, and the shelter team who stays late to make sure a lost pet gets home. It’s how you or I would want our dog to be treated. And the support needed to make that happen looks different in every community.
Considering support at this level makes me think of Houston. I think about how it’s the fourth most populated city in the country, how it is one of the most ethnically diverse metropolises, and how three years ago the Astros won the World Series –– clinched by Alvarez’s 450-foot homer. I love Houston.
I also think about how it was only eight years ago that Hurricane Harvey made landfall. Out of horrible destruction came something much stronger: the proof in the power of community. Houston showed the world what it means to be Texas tough.
The same strength and heart that got Houston through Harvey is now fueling lifesaving work across the state. Today, 2 out of 3 U.S. shelters are already no-kill –– and hundreds more are within reach. But Texas continues to rank first in the nation for pets killed in shelters. That said, Texans aren’t brushing this off — not when they've been working so hard to build up community-led change.
Shelters in and around the Houston metropolitan area are stepping up and working together to change the Lone Star State statistics. Just this summer, three Texas cities — Galveston, Katy, and Humble — all reached the 90% benchmark of no-kill, changing the lifesaving tides in Texas one city at a time.
I’ve heard naysayers say, “Only in small towns is no-kill possible. Big cities can’t do it.” Well, take this! The Houston area is proving them wrong. In 2024, 24 of the 49 shelters in the area were no-kill. And 14 of the remaining had fewer than 100 animals to save –– making more than three quarters of the animal shelters in the Houston area either no-kill or close to it.
The steady improvement in their statistics is a result of implementing programs that prioritize the individual. Texas communities aren’t obsessing over numbers; they’re looking at real, concrete ways to get the resources needed to save their animals –– whether that’s one dog who jumped the fence or the thousands already in the shelter. They’re proving that every animal in their community deserves to be treated as an individual.
Best Friends has built strong roots in Houston starting almost 10 years ago with Dr. Michael White at Harris County Animal Shelter and continuing on to today with Corey Steele. With this collaboration, we have been able to make lifesaving changes in Texas –– together. And that's the strongest part.
This past August, we helped host the Petco Love Mega Adoption Event –– and by mega, I do mean mega. For one weekend, the NRG Arena became home to more than 1,000 adoptable pets from across Texas. Every single one was ready to go home that day –– spayed or neutered, vaccinated, and waiting to meet their match. The Best Friends Houston team did an incredible job supporting all partner shelters involved –– even providing vet care and spay/neuter surgery for over 260 animals leading up to the event. And the wins didn’t stop there.
An astounding 969 pets were adopted. In just two days. Talk about going big in Texas.
And lifesaving at this scale extends beyond Houston. Later in the summer, when central Texas faced devastating flooding, Best Friends and other partners were able to act fast because of the foundation we’d already built together. We moved animals to safety, provided veterinary care, reunited families, and saved lives — because trust and teamwork were already in place.
The ethos and the philosophy of no-kill is quite simple: When we focus on one animal, we change everything. And Houston is showing us that one act of compassion –– one dog getting home, one cat staying with their family –– creates ripple effects of social change. Even if it seems like a drop in the bucket, this community effort builds back trust.
I’m grateful to Texans for showing what’s possible when heart meets hard work. You can do it –– you're already showing us how.
-Julie
