Celebrating new homes
Mystique was brought to Cache Humane Society in Logan, Utah, in rough shape. She is a beautiful calico Persian cat, but her matted fur and horrible skin condition obscured her beauty at first. She was also starving and afraid of the people who were trying to care for her. Mystique needed ongoing medical attention and the Logan organization was up to the task of seeing her through to a full recovery. With lots of TLC, the staff and volunteers watched her blossom into a healthy and happy companion.
Cache Humane Society could meet all her physical and emotional needs but needed a bit more assistance in finding Mystique a perfect forever home. Fortunately, the groundwork to find her a home was already in motion. Best Friends’ Celebrate Freedom, an adoption event aimed at getting large numbers of animals into homes, was about to launch. The month long promotion not only secured Mystique a family of her own, but also found loving homes for more than 3,000 animals across the country.
NKUT for good
Cache Humane Society was eligible to participate in Celebrate Freedom because the organization is a member of the NKUT Coalition, an initiative led by Best Friends Animal Society that brings together passionate individuals, city shelters, and other animal welfare organizations to end the killing of dogs and cats in Utah shelters by the year 2019.
Roland Bringhurst, executive director of Cache Humane Society, sees the coalition as invaluable to reaching achieving further successes. “Being part of NKUT is much more than just joining together with a group of people with the same interests. It is an opportunity to say to your peers that we care for the animals,” says Roland. “For many years Cache Humane Society was a part of the coalition and said we are striving to become no-kill. The excuses of there are just too many cats, or when you have municipal contracts to take strays it is impossible to be no-kill, just did not pass the test anymore.”
Promising promotions
Celebrate Freedom helped 27 pets find homes for Cache Humane Society, aided by a $25 reduced adoption fee that was part of the strategy. “We love participating in all the monthly adoption promotions,” says Roland. “We are taking advantage of every resource we can put our hands on. There are wonderful resources for us to use on our social media, website, print media and others.”
Cache Humane Society also maximized success by working with local media. Two radio stations donated airtime each month to spread the word about upcoming events, and Celebrate Freedom offered a secondary opportunity — to encourage folks to microchip their animals. The society also uses social media to generate even more buzz on the promotion and the pets.
“Each month the public seems to look forward to what our adoption promotion will be,” says Roland. The organization chose to feature animals who had been in the shelter the longest, as well as some staff favorites, including Mystique.
As it turned out, Mystique’s adorable face caught the eye of a Seattle woman who immediately fell in love and adopted her. The adopter recently reported what a good girl Mystique is and how much the calico girl is loved.
“We are in a very small market. Cache County has a population of just over 120,000, so being part of the NKUT Coalition and the no-kill movement across the nation is exciting,” says Roland.
Tracy Kelley, NKUT Coalition manager, praised Cache Humane Society’s dedication to saving each animal. “The Best Friends adoption promotions offered to our coalition are only as effective as the organizations promoting them,” says Tracy. “Cache Humane Society is a shining example of a partner that capitalizes on every coalition opportunity. Thanks to its commitment to Saving Them All, Cache Humane Society had the highest number of animals go home in Utah during the Celebrate Freedom promotion. For a cat like Mystique, it means she’s in a home quicker, and more resources can be used to save another precious life.”
All the teamwork has had quite a positive impact on Cache Humane Society. “With the help of Best Friends Animal Society and the NKUT members, we are proud that we can now say, ‘we are no-kill,’” says Roland.
Get involved
Learn more about NKUT.