Our Mission
WCHS values the human/animal bond, provides stewardship for homeless pets, and promotes compassionate treatment of all companion animals.
Vision Statement
Out of deep respect for companion animals, WCHS provides
- A modern, humane sheltering facility for homeless pets
- Affordable spay/neuter program
- Adoption services for homeless animals
- Community education and opportunities for community service
History
The idea for a new independent animal shelter in Whitman County came about after an article was published in the Daily News detailing how impending budget cuts due to I-695 could severely impact the operations of the Pullman Animal Shelter.
A small group of concerned citizens from Pullman and surrounding areas formed a task force to discuss the plight of the former Pullman Animal Shelter, the tragic loss of life at the shelter, and the sad irony of having an inadequate and inhumane animal shelter in a town renowned for its veterinary teaching hospital. This group first met on February 16, 2000 around the kitchen table in Ray and Cathy Schulhauser’s home. They approached the City of Pullman to offer a solution to the animal care situation when budget cutbacks made it impossible for the city to adequately staff and maintain its animal shelter facility. The task force formally organized into the Whitman County Humane Society, Inc. and subsequently entered into negotiations to contract with the City of Pullman to provide management services for the existing pet shelter.
The Society has been operating the facility since July 1, 2000.
Under WCHS’ management, several policies were initiated that more closely supported the organization’s mission statement. Under city management, overcrowding was addressed with a high euthanasia rate with very short time limitations on the lives of the animals. Because the Society and the community at large did not feel that this was an acceptable or humane management of the pet overpopulation problem, the Board of Directors committed to run a no-kill organization. No adoptable animals have ever been euthanized because of lack of space. Service was improved by fully staffing the existing shelter with trained animal care professionals.
The founding board members included Ray and Cathy Schulhauser, Carmel Travis, Robin Germain, Steve Barr-Jorgensen, Lauri Sue Torkelson, former shelter manager Bill Clark, veterinarian of record Dr. Chris Stone, attorney Jean Campbell, and advisory board co-chairs Mike and Susie Hardy Gormsen. Thanks to the Gardner House and Lauren McCluskey Foundation, we have been able to expand our facility and we have several more kennels to take care of the hundreds of cats we care for annually.
We offer spay neuter vouchers to help offset the cost of surgery, conduct TNR when possible, and help educate the public about good companion pet practices. We operate in Ritzville, Lind, Washtucan and Sprague Wa.
SpokAnimal C.A.R.E. is passionately dedicated to the placement, protection and health of animals through legislation, education and programs for pets and their people.
We have been given the unique privilege to assist our placement partners to address the critical issues surrounding the pets in their care, whether that be overpopulation, illness, or special needs animals. We help each of them day after day, animal by animal. Shelters and rescue groups work tirelessly to protect and save lives. With the support and encouragement of SpokAnimal, the animals in their care are given a second chance. This is not just an idea, this is reality.
Please visit our write-up and video on the Animal Rescue Site by following this link.
We are the regional provider of animal protection services to Spokane County and operate the County’s only open-admission animal shelter. On an annual basis, we respond to tens of thousands of requests for service and care for 9,000 – 11,000 domestic animals.
Pet Savers is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Established in 1996 as a cat foster and adoption group, the members of Pet Savers soon realized that adoption alone was not going to end the staggering pet overpopulation in Spokane County. Pet Savers opened the high-quality, low-cost spay and neuter clinic in 2005 to address the issue of pet overpopulation at its source. We have performed over 100,000 surgeries leading to a direct impact on the number of animals entering our local shelters. In 2022, Pet Savers moved into a new facility in order to better fulfill our mission of saving lives through prevention.
The Spokane Humane Society is a non-profit 501c3 public charity dedicated to the welfare of companion animals. We are funded by service fees and donations from the community and corporate partnerships. Community donations provide life-saving options for animals and directly impact the number of animals we can care for in our shelter. We place over 3,000 animals annually through our adoption programs. We reach out to the tens of thousands of individuals promoting the importance of animals in our lives and the need to reduce animal over-population through our low cost spay and neuter programs.
Our mission is “working together to enrich the lives of companion animals through support, education, advocacy and love.
The Northeast Washington Spay Neuter Alliance is a regional mobile veterinary services project that was created by members of our community to fill a need. To provide high-quality, affordable, honest services to those that need it the most. Our primary focus is Spay/Neuter and Vaccines, though we also provide affordable dentals and end-of-life care.
Blue Mountain Humane Society was founded in 1967 by a group of local residents committed to creating positive outcomes for animals in the Walla Walla Valley. Over the years, the Society has grown and evolved to include a humane, state-of-the-art no-kill shelter facility designed to serve companion animals.
Our mission is to prevent cruelty, promote kindness and to foster the human-animal bond.
We work to educate, inform and equip our community with the tools required to accomplish our ultimate vision: to end pet overpopulation and homelessness and to inspire a compassionate community.
To that end, in addition to sheltering pets, we provide subsidized spay, neuter and vaccine services for pets belonging to income-qualified families. We also provide humane education programming and volunteer opportunities for supporters of all ages. As the contracted provider for animal control services in rural Walla Walla County, we provide cruelty and neglect investigations to ensure that animals have homes with responsible, committed caregivers.
Little Lives Small Animal Rescue started out as an idea a few years ago when we started noticing how many small animals in our community were ending up homeless, abandoned or neglected. In June of 2016 we decided to pursue the idea of a small animal rescue. With the support of our community we raised funds necessary to apply to become an official 501c3 non-profit. Our dream came true on July 10th and on October 19, we became exempt from federal taxes (501c3).
Since our inception, we have served close to 250 animals ranging from birds to rodents, rodent like, reptiles, fish and even wildlife, several having significant health care needs, resulting in expensive veterinary care and medications/treatments. The majority of our funding has been out of our own pockets or through support of our friends, family members and community members who our mission resonates with. Our passion for animals is what drives everything we do and we want to be able to continue to do that for many years to come.
With a goal to reduce neglect, abandonment and homelessness one of our key focus areas includes providing community education on proper animal care, the importance of spay and neuter (in appropriate animals) as well as understanding other key factors to consider before purchasing an animal i.e. average lifespan, special equipment, cost of food, supplies and vet care as well as opportunities to adopt.
Pet Over Population Prevention’s (POPP) primary purpose is to promote responsible pet care through educating the public on the importance of spaying and neutering their cats and dogs, as well as providing spay and neuter assistance.