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All About Best Friends Animal Society

Why was Best Friends Animal Shelter created?

While the creation of Best Friends Animal Sanctuary grew out of a desire to address the senseless killing of animals in shelters, the group was ultimately motivated by a desire to live a life of kindness, compassion, integrity, and a connection to something greater than themselves.


Background Info

In 1984, a group of people in Southern Utah created Best Friends Animal Society, the largest no-kill animal sanctuary in the world, to address the issue of the 17 million dogs and cats dying in shelters annually. The sanctuary was the result of their rescue and advocacy work, and the founders aimed to do the right thing for animals who could not speak or act on their own behalf. In 2022, the number of animals killed in shelters was down to around 378,000 per year, but the movement to Save Them All, rooted in right versus wrong, kindness over killing, and individual value over faceless numbers, has taken hold in all corners of the country. Today, a third of all communities with sheltering services are now no-kill.


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