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Montgomery County Animal Services receives prestigious award from national leader in no-kill movement

By: Mark Wysocki
| Published 08/31/2020

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CONROE, TX -- Montgomery County Animal Services (“MCAS”) has been recognized with the Touchstone award from Best Friends Animal Society, a national animal welfare organization dedicated to ending the killing of dogs and cats in America's shelters.

MCAS is a member of the Best Friends Network , which comprises thousands of animal shelters, spay/neuter organizations, and other 501(c)(3) public charity rescue groups across all 50 states working to save the lives of dogs and cats in their communities.

Together, Best Friends and its network partners are working to achieve no-kill for dogs and cats nationwide by 2025. Reaching this goal will mean that every shelter in our country is getting the community support it needs to save every dog and cat who can be saved. It means healing the animals who can be healed, treating behaviors that can be treated, and prioritizing public health, safety, and a high quality of life for both pets and people in our communities. When a shelter is saving at least 90% of the dogs and cats it’s admitting, that shelter is designated as no-kill. A no-kill community is a city or town in which every brick-and-mortar shelter serving or located within that community has reached a 90% save rate or higher and adheres to the no-kill philosophy.

MCAS was selected for the Touchstone award based on national shelter data and work from calendar year 2019 (compared to 2018). National, state, and shelter level data can be found on the pet lifesaving dashboard published by Best Friends.

'It's incredible to see so many shelters around the nation taking dramatic steps to increase lifesaving,” said Brent Toellner, senior director, national programs for Best Friends Animal Society. “Whether it be through new programming, progressive leadership or better collaborative partnerships, these groups are showing that lifesaving success is possible regardless of a shelter’s size or location.”

“We are honored to be given this award,” said Aaron Johnson, Director of Montgomery County Animal Services. “For the past several years we have been on a transformational journey at MCAS. This award recognizes all of the hard work put in by our staff, fosters, animal rescue groups and non-profits, and volunteers – including our daily dog walkers and offsite social media team. We would not be where we are today without the help we have received from all. I am proud to be leading such an amazing organization.”

Toellner added: ' It's going to take embracing all models of lifesaving, as well as maximizing collaboration with and support of each other to reach our goal of ending the killing of pets in shelters by 2025. But with so much progress being made, getting our nation to a point where it has finally put a stop to the unnecessary deaths of animals in shelters not only seems possible, but inevitable.”

About Montgomery County Animal Services (“MCAS”)

Montgomery County Animal Services is an open admission shelter. As such, MCAS accepts animals that come through its doors regardless if an owner surrender, stray pickup, or rescue, and with no consideration paid to breed, temperament, or health condition. We encounter many challenges in dealing with animals as we cover over 1,000 square miles with suburban and rural areas.

We are dedicated to engaging the hearts, hands, and minds of the community to help animals in Montgomery County. In addition to sheltering and providing veterinary care to all animals brought into the shelter, we work diligently to place these animals in new homes. We collaborate and coordinate with our pet rescue groups and through social media networks to obtain the widest possible chances for live release.

For more information about Montgomery County Animal Services, visit www.mcaspets.org

About Best Friends Animal Society Best Friends Animal Society is a leading national animal welfare organization dedicated to ending the killing of dogs and cats in America's shelters. In addition to running lifesaving programs in partnership with more than 3,100 animal welfare groups across the country, Best Friends has lifesaving centers in New York City, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Salt Lake City, and operates the nation's largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals. Founded in 1984, Best Friends is a pioneer in the no-kill movement and has helped reduce the number of animals killed in shelters nationwide from an estimated 17 million per year to around 625,000. That means there are still more than 1,700 dogs and cats killed every day in shelters, just because they don’t have safe places to call home. We are determined to bring the country to no-kill by the year 2025. Working collaboratively with shelters, rescue groups, other organizations and you, we will end the killing and Save Them All. To check out our pet lifesaving dashboard and for more information, visit bestfriends.org.

Join the conversation on Facebook.com/bestfriendsanimalsociety, Twitter (@BestFriends) and Instagram (@BestFriendsAnimalSociety).

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