Who is San Antonio Pets Alive!
San Antonio Pets Alive! (SAPA!), established in 2012, is a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to stopping the killing of San Antonio’s adoptable dogs and cats.
Today, we are a grassroots group of volunteers, led by founder, Dr. Ellen Jefferson, who want to see the end of the killing of the homeless pets in San Antonio. SAPA! is leading the charge towards No Kill in San Antonio by energizing the public and breaking down myths about sheltered pets. SAPA! believes that actions speak louder than words and is backing up the No Kill rhetoric with lifesaving programs designed to save the animals most likely to die at kill shelters.
What are we doing?
San Antonio Pets Alive! (SAPA!) is a nonprofit organization run almost exclusively by dedicated volunteers.
In partnership with San Antonio’s Animal Care Services, we are implementing innovative and progressive programs to rescue as many animals as possible off of the daily “euthanasia list” and help owners who are having problems so great that they need to surrender their pet(s) to a shelter.
Which pets do you save?
In order to not duplicate the work of any other groups, SAPA! focuses solely on the healthy and treatable pets who have no other options and will be killed the next day. We wait until shelters and other rescue groups pull who they can for their adoption programs, then we pull from the rest at their last hour.
We also build programs to save the demographics of pets that are constantly on the lists of shelters to be euthanized and usually take more work to make ready for adoption: puppies with parvo (we have an 88% save rate for puppies we treat), underage kittens, cats with ringworm and dogs with behavior issues. We will continue building new programs until we can save all of the healthy and treatable pets.
Has any other city achieved No Kill status?
Yes! Other cities than San Antonio have met this goal, which proves it’s possible. Most notably, Austin Texas, accredited to the great work of Austin Pets Alive! (which SAPA! is modeled after.) However, we believe that San Antonio will soon be the largest no-kill city in the US. Check out Ithaca, NY, Richmond, VA, Reno, and Calgary.
Where will all the pets that are saved go?
The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) has published statistics that illustrate that there are more homes seeking out new pets each year than we previously believed. In San Antonio, the number of new homes opening up for pets is about 100,000. If we convince just 20% of those homes, through marketing, awareness, and adoption events to adopt a shelter pet instead of purchasing a pet, enough animals will be saved to make San Antonio a No Kill City.
What do we need?
We need donations to secure equipment, vehicles, and assist in the medical workup of each animal. We need supplies like food, water, toys, and towels. We need volunteers and fosters to implement this ambitious vision, and we need the community to be aware of what we are doing.
How can you help?
Write a check. Tell your friends about SAPA! Adopt a pet. Volunteer with us. We need your help. This is a grassroots, community-driven endeavor.
What programs does SAPA! offer?
SAPA!’s core programs are:
- Rescue – We take the animals directly from the euthanasia list from the municipal shelters in San Antonio and put as many as we can in foster homes until we can place them.
- PASS (Positive Alternatives to Shelter Surrender) – an effort to intervene at the point of animal surrender. We counsel people on their decision to surrender their pets and try to work with them to find better life-focused solutions.
Is every animal spayed/neutered before adoption?
Yes! SAPA! provides a complete medical workup including spay/neuter on every animal before adoption. This lessens the financial burden on the adopter, and ensures that placed animals do not contribute to more pets in our community.
What are SAPA!’s funding sources?
We work partly from fees for service (adoptions), public support from citizens of San Antonio and through local government funding as part of our contract and committment to San Antonio’s Animal Care Services to save 4,000 animals a year. We are growing our capacity to fundraise using grants as well as through partnerships with the shelters we serve.
Are donations tax-exempt?
Yes, we are a 501(c) (3) recognized charity by the IRS.
