3.4% fewer animals were killed in shelters so far in 2024

At Best Friends Animal Society, our goal is to get dogs and cats out of shelters and into homes and make every animal shelter in America no-kill in 2025. Right now, we’re in the last mile, with 2 out of 3 shelters already no-kill and hundreds within close reach of that goal. And seeing as we’re just over a month away from 2025, let’s take a moment to pause and cautiously celebrate, as Best Friends’ newest data insights paint an encouraging picture for the rest of the year and into 2025.

Based on a sample dataset collected through three quarters of 2024, shelters across the country are poised to reduce the number of healthy or treatable animals killed since the pandemic began — our data shows a 3.4% decrease compared to the same period in 2023. If this continues, it represents the first positive national trend in lifesaving since 2020.

The years since the pandemic have been tough for animal organizations. We’ve experienced lagging adoptions, staffing shortages, increased intake, and more. But the determination and hard work from staff and volunteers have translated into lifesaving momentum.

Because of this, thousands more animals have found loving homes this year than the last. Adoptions are up 4% nationally so far in 2024, with dog adoptions increasing by 4.4% and cats 3.6%. And that is something to celebrate — celebrate cautiously, but celebrate nonetheless.

Interestingly, when we look further into the adoption rates, we find that there are differences based on organization type, most notably with dogs. Dog adoptions in:

• Municipal shelters are up by nearly 11%.
• Private organizations with government contracts are up by 2.4%.
• Private organizations without government contracts are down by 5.7%.

(Note: Definitions of these different organizations can be found at the end.)

As far as intake goes, unfortunately, dog intake remains slightly higher thus far in 2024 than in 2023, with municipal shelters seeing most of that increase at 3.1%. That means that even with such great improvements in dog adoption numbers, municipal shelters are still struggling to save dogs.

So what does all of this data tell us? The calls to adopt and foster are working as we see adoptions increasing, but those messages remain as urgent as ever. Shelters still need community help. And with the still-rising dog intake and differences in dog adoption rates based on organization type, municipal shelters will need to continue to increase outcome avenues — not just adoptions but transfers and foster homes — as well as prevent animals from unnecessarily entering the shelter to begin with.

Here’s the rub, though. Municipal shelters often rely on private groups to take in dogs from their care, but transfers into those private organizations have decreased by nearly 30%. This dynamic has created a challenging bottleneck in our collective path to lifesaving. Because private organizations without government contracts are experiencing a decline in dog adoptions, that translates into longer lengths of stay for dogs in their care, and therefore a lessened ability to take in as many dogs from municipal shelters as would be ideal.

What drives these lagging adoptions? Based on data from surveys of Best Friends Network Partners, this trend within non-contract private groups is likely due in large part to operational practices, as these groups are the least likely to engage in open adoptions (using a conversation-based adoption process without unnecessary barriers). By broadening or enhancing existing adoption programs through open adoption practices, these groups can improve their adoption rates and help to further unfurl the bottleneck.

Let’s also be clear: This is sample data from a national level, and outliers exist. For example, one of the largest municipal shelter systems in the country, Los Angeles Animal Services, has experienced a massive increase in euthanasia rates from January to September 2024 — the Los Angeles Times reporting a 72% increase in euthanasia of dogs and 17% for cats. Best Friends conducted a thorough assessment of LAAS earlier this year, noting the exact changes needed to increase lifesaving and rebuild trust with the L.A. community, and offered millions of dollars in support to LAAS to do just that. The offer was left unanswered before we ultimately rescinded it. Still, Best Friends remains steadfast in our commitment to lifesaving in L.A., as we are across the country. Support the pets of Los Angeles and urge staffing changes at LAAS by signing this petition.

For a community to achieve no-kill and save as many lives as possible, all animal organizations must collaborate and share in the collective onus of lifesaving. We’re all in this together working on behalf of the animals. My colleague Brent Toellner said it best recently: “Animal welfare is a team sport, and we all rely on each other to do well so we can work collaboratively in saving animals’ lives.”

Still, let’s celebrate the positive momentum in lifesaving nationwide. With 3.4% fewer animals killed and 4% more animals adopted, 2024 is appearing to push the needle forward once again for the cats and dogs we all love so much. It will take all of us to keep this momentum going and get every shelter and every community no-kill in 2025.

Dive in further and read our full January to September 2024 data report here.

This momentum is ours to harness. Let’s do this.

-Julie

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