Best Friends Animal Society Mid-Year Data Shows Shelters are Saving More Lives with the Help of Community Support

Media Contact
Alina Hauptman : alinah@bestfriends.org

For the first time, Best Friends Animal Society, a leading national animal welfare organization working to end the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters and take the country no-kill*, has unveiled mid-year data** on the state of animal welfare in the U.S. Collected from January to June 2025 from 864 shelters across the country, this data shows U.S. residents saved 19% more pets in shelters in the first half of 2025 compared to the same time period last year. While this demonstrates promising momentum for the no-kill movement, many shelters continue to face overcapacity issues and lack of community support.  

“This data shows tremendous progress for dogs and cats on a national scale, but we know that many shelters continue to struggle to meet the needs of homeless pets in their communities,” says Julie Castle, CEO, Best Friends Animal Society. “There is still much work to be done, and shelters and rescue groups cannot shoulder this burden alone. We need community members to step up and adopt, foster, volunteer, donate, and advocate for pets. Even an act as seemingly small as sharing adoptable dogs and cats on social media can save lives.”

Best Friends’ data shows that one of the most effective ways people can save healthy and treatable pets and get their communities to no-kill is by choosing the adoption option. According to Best Friends, about 7 million households will add a pet to their family over the next year, and if just 6 percent more of them chose to adopt from a shelter rather than purchase their pets, the entire country could be no-kill.  

Best Friends’ mid-year data shows that nationwide, things are looking up for dogs. Dogs saw a 20% improvement in lifesaving, the first uptick in lifesaving for the species since before the pandemic. Insights gained from this data show that reducing the number of pets entering shelters through programs that help keep pets with their families, get lost pets back home, and rehome pets without bringing them to the shelter in the first place was the primary driver for the improvement in dog lifesaving in the first half of 2025.  

But the good news isn’t just going to the dogs – cat lifesaving is continuing to look up, too. Following a great year for cats in 2024, felines are on track for another record-breaking year in 2025, with lifesaving improving nearly 18% from the same time period last year. Best Friends credits this positive trend to support for community cat and trap-neuter-vaccinate-return (TNVR) programs.

The progress for dogs and cats comes thanks to the hard work and dedication of animal welfare staff, volunteers, advocates, and community members who have helped save homeless pets in ways both big and small.

"Any person in any community can join this collective movement to help end the killing of dogs and cats in shelters,” says Castle. “There is strength in numbers, and with more support from people around the country, not only can we take America no-kill – we will.”  

To learn more about how to help save pets in your community by adopting, fostering, and advocating, please visit bestfriends.org.  

*Analysis based on a sample of 864 shelters that reported monthly data in January-June 2024 and 2025 (with 41% being municipal run, 30% with a municipal contract, and 29% private non-profits w/o contract).

**No-kill is defined by a 90% save rate for animals entering a shelter and is a meaningful and common-sense benchmark for measuring lifesaving progress. Typically, the number of pets who are suffering from irreparable medical or behavioral issues that compromise their quality of life and prevent them from being rehomed is not more than 10% of all dogs and cats entering shelters. For any community to be no-kill, all stakeholders in that community must work together to achieve and sustain that common goal while prioritizing community safety and good quality of life for pets as guiding no-kill principles. This means cooperation among animal shelters, animal rescue groups, government agencies, community members and other stakeholders, all committed to best practices and protocols.  

About Best Friends Animal Society

Best Friends Animal Society is a leading animal welfare organization dedicated to saving the lives of dogs and cats in America's shelters and making the entire country no-kill. Founded in 1984, Best Friends runs lifesaving facilities and programs nationwide in partnership with more than 5,500 shelters and rescue organizations. From our headquarters in Kanab, Utah, we also operate the nation's largest no-kill animal sanctuary — a destination that brings our mission to life for thousands of visitors each year. We maintain the most comprehensive animal sheltering data in the country and make it accessible to the public — empowering communities with critical insights into the needs of their local shelters and how they can help. We believe every dog and cat deserves a home. And we believe that, by working together, we can Save Them All®.