Dog on a lawn with a person in Northwest Arkansas
Photo courtesy of Russell Bloodworth

How you can help homeless pets

Everyone deserves a home — and that includes pets in shelters. You can make a lifesaving difference for animals waiting for homes of their own.

When animals don’t have a home, they’re at risk of being killed. In fact, a dog or cat is killed in America’s shelters every 90 seconds just because they don’t have a safe place to call home. But there are so many ways you can help change that.

 

Walmart has named Best Friends their collaborator in celebration of National Pet Month this May — we're teaming up to bring happy home for homeless pets around the country! 

Dog Cat

No-kill is within reach, thanks to you

You can save the lives of dogs and cats in shelters in your community when you adopt, give, and use your voice to protect homeless pets.

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Adopt

When you adopt a pet from a rescue group or animal shelter instead of buying from a breeder or puppy mill, you’re providing a lifesaving second chance.
Adopt a Pet
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Give

You can donate to honor someone for their birthday, sponsor an animal, and more. Your gift is going to work right away to help homeless pets needing a second chance at life.
Make a Gift
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Win

The animals are so grateful for your support, and we are, too! That's why we're teaming up with Blue Buffalo to give away a year's supply of pet food to show our appreciation.
Enter to Win
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Bring happy home: Our new collaboration with Walmart

This May, pets get the spotlight in Walmart stores across the U.S., including stores in communities like yours.

Best Friends has been named Walmart’s collaborator for their celebration of National Pet Month, happening the entire month of May. This means when you visit a Walmart store or shop online, you’ll be helping to save lives when you make a purchase for your pet from participating brands.  

And you can help bring happy home for even more pets when you visit a Best Friends Lifesaving Center where adoption fees are covered, thanks to Blue Buffalo and Walmart, throughout the entire month of May.

Bring Happy Home This May
Smiling person sitting outside with a dog next to a bag with the Walmart logo on it
Photo courtesy of Russell Bloodworth
Best Friends has been named Walmart’s collaborator for their celebration of National Pet Month.
Two people outside with a dog with the Walmart logo visible in the background
Photo courtesy of Russell Bloodworth

See how your community is doing

With your help we can save every at-risk pet in a shelter this year and secure a better future for our best friends.
Right now, nearly 2 out of 3 U.S. shelters are already no-kill, and hundreds more are within reach of that goal. Working together, we can save the lives of homeless pets in communities like yours — and nationwide — ensuring that the places we call home are better for everyone, pets included.
Is Your Community No-Kill?
Smiling person sitting in front of Best Friends Pet Adoption Center in Salt Lake City with a dog

Salt Lake City: Let’s save our dogs and cats

You can help dogs and cats in Salt Lake City by volunteering, adopting, or fostering today.
Help Salt Lake City Animals
Smiling person outside with a dog in Houston, Texas
Photo courtesy of Erica Danger

Houston: Let’s save our dogs and cats

You can help dogs and cats in Houston by volunteering, adopting, or fostering today.
Help Houston Animals
People attending a pet adoption event in Bentonville, Arkansas
Photo courtesy of Russell Bloodworth

Northwest Arkansas: Let’s save our dogs and cats

You can help dogs and cats in Northwest Arkansas by volunteering, adopting, or fostering today.
Help Northwest Arkansas Animals
Smiling person holding a dog outside of the Best Friends Pet Adoption Center in Los Angeles

Los Angeles: Let’s save our dogs and cats

You can help dogs and cats in Los Angeles by volunteering, adopting, or fostering today.
Help Los Angeles Animals
Smiling person sitting in a park in New York City with a dog

New York City: Let’s save our dogs and cats

You can help dogs and cats in New York City by volunteering, adopting, or fostering today.
Help New York City Animals

 

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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More ways to bring happy home today 

Every action you take for homeless pets helps to save their lives and gets the country closer to no-kill; we’ll show you how.

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Volunteer near you
Wherever you live, whatever your experience or interests, there are countless ways to volunteer your time for pets in need. Volunteer near you »
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Foster a pet
Welcoming a furry houseguest into your home, even for just a few nights, helps those pets while freeing up space in the shelter to save more lives. The fun of fostering »
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Advocate for animals
You can help create the kind of community you want to live in by teaming up with fellow community members to support pet programs and policies. Advocate for animals »
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Learn with Best Friends
If you’re always learning and eager to create positive change in the world, pursuing a professional certificate or degree in animal services could be your perfect fit. Start learning today »
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Join the Best Friends team
Whether you’re into accounting or animal care, strategy or social media, technology or training, there’s a career waiting for you at Best Friends. Start your career »
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Shop to save lives
Check out our online store where you’ll find clothes, accessories, pet supplies, gift ideas, and more for you and your best friend. All proceeds go straight back to the animals. Shop to save lives »

Pets who found their way home

Check out these pets and their stories of hope, love, and resilience.

Smokey the gray cat lying on a couch

Shy no more: One cat’s beautiful breakthrough

Thanks to time, patience, and chin scratches in his foster homes, today 10-year-old Smokey is exactly where he belongs.
New home, new beginning
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Black, white and tan dog with his tongue out, outside on grass

Pet adoptions skyrocket at Indiana shelter

Jeffersonville Animal Shelter celebrates the first no-kill month in its history.
Helping animals get home faster
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Volunteers Rich and Linda Yates with a dog beside some crates

Volunteers hit the road to help animals in need

Rich and Linda Yates combine road trips with rescue work, lending their hands — and sometimes their backseat — to help the animals.
Now they're steady and spirited fixtures in the Best Friends family
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Dog gets some love at the Humane Society of South Coastal Georgia

No-kill animal shelters: The new normal in America

From a large shelter in Las Vegas to a smaller one in rural Georgia, U.S. animal shelters are steadily moving toward no-kill.
Steady progress saves more lives
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Indy the cat playing with a colorful wand toy

Faces of No-Kill: Mighty kitten's miraculous recovery

Indy fell into a coma when she was just a tiny kitten, but swift action saved her life.
She continues to make steady progress
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Rio and Mike the dogs outside on some steps

A road trip detour that changed a dog’s life

A cross-country trip and spontaneous visit to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary led to a life-changing moment for a very good dog named Rio.
Now Rio has blossomed
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Let's be friends!

Connect with us on social media to stay in the loop about the lifesaving progress we’re making together. And we'll send you all the ways you can help save homeless pets when you give us your email address. 

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Best Friends Animal Society logo mark

About Best Friends Animal Society

Best Friends is working to end the killing of dogs and cats in U.S. shelters in part by getting more pets out of shelters and into loving homes.

We’ve come a long way since the first known city reached no-kill in 1994, and now we’re closer than ever to making the entire country no-kill. Today, roughly 2,500 shelters are no-kill throughout the U.S. — and 700 more are just 100 pets or fewer away from reaching that milestone.

Best Friends is committed to working with passionate people like you to save homeless pets through adoption, volunteering, fostering, and advocacy. In addition to our lifesaving centers around the U.S, we also founded and run the nation's largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals.

Working together, we can save homeless pets in our communities and secure a better future for our best friends. Together, we will bring the whole country to no-kill. 

We'd love to see your pet living their best life! When you share your favorite video or photo of your pet at home, we’ll use it to inspire others to bring their best friend home.