About Us

About Us

For Every Life Saved, There is a Story

Every day we save lives at our no-kill shelter. Meet four pets whose lives have changed and how our staff, volunteers and donors make it happen. (video runs 3:50 minutes)

Thank you to John Couture, with help from Val Anderson, for creating this video.

Our History

Founded in 1912, we are the oldest existing humane society in metropolitan Kansas City. We were originally called The Humane Society of Wyandotte County. Sarah Jacobs is credited with our founding, along with her sister Henrietta Jacobs and assistance from the Council of Clubs. In 1970, we changed our name to The Humane Society of Greater Kansas City and continue to this day to serve the entire metropolitan area.

Read more about our history>>

Our Facility
The year 2000 brought big changes to The Humane Society of Greater Kansas City

In October of 2000, after more than 40 years at 316 Minnesota Avenue, we relocated to a new facility at 5445 Parallel Parkway. Our new and larger facility is 10,000 square feet and located on ten acres. The added space allowed us to expand all of the services we provide including adoption, education, low cost spay/neutering and preventive care for animals.

Adoptions
Your best friend is waiting for you!

Dogs and cats available for adoption at the HSGKC are owner-released pets or animals who have been found by someone and the owner cannot be located. Most animals who end up in shelters are there at no fault of their own-- too many people in our society consider pets to be disposable.

In 1994 we became the first no-kill shelter in Kansas City. We find homes for over 97% of the pets in our care. Only pets with severe medical or behavioral problems are euthanized, and we have no set time limits for how long a pet may stay. Pets are examined by one of our staff veterinarians upon arrival and treated for any medical problems they may have while at our shelter.

Our shelter is always at full capacity with dogs and cats. If you adopt a pet from us you'll not only be giving that pet a good home, but also opening up a space in our shelter so that we can take in another pet and give it a safe place to stay.

In designing our facility, great detail was given to the needs of the animals and their quality of life. Multiple skylights and windows let in sunlight throughout the entire building. Most of our cats do not live in a cage but are free to roam the cat rooms which are spacious and sunny, with cat furniture and toys.

Click here to view a slide show of our cat rooms>>

In the kennel area for our dogs, each kennel has an attached outside run, giving each dog the choice of being inside or out on a nice day. Large fenced areas allow our staff and volunteers to exercise the dogs in a safe environment. Nearly all of our dogs are paired up in their kennels so they have a buddy to play with and curl up with at night.

Ray of Hope
Saving lives at KCK Animal Control

In January of 2009, we began the Ray of Hope program, working directly with the KCK Animal Control shelter to reduce euthanasia in the city shelter. We utilize a network of rescue groups and other no kill shelters, and we organize adoption events every weekend with our staff and volunteers. Our clinic spay/neuters, vaccinates and provides other veterinary care.

It's been a huge undertaking but the results have been amazing. We've reduced the euthanasia rate in the KCK Animal Control shelter from over 70% in 2007 to under 4% in 2009. Over 2,400 dogs and cats have been saved in 2009!

Veterinary & Spay/Neuter Services

The Humane Society of Greater Kansas City provides low-cost spay/neuter services and preventive veterinary care. We employ three veterinarians and support staff for our clinic, which is located in our facility. The mission of our clinic is to help people on a limited budget to care for their pets and to provide education about proper pet care. Another area of focus is the spaying and neutering of stray and feral cats. We highly encourage anyone feeding these cats to get them spayed or neutered and we work with them to make it affordable.

In 2008, we spayed or neutered over 6,000 pets and our veterinarians also saw over 20,000 pets in our clinic. We are able to offer these services because our costs are subsidized by private donations and memberships.

Spaying and neutering is necessary to stop the overpopulation of pets. Every year in this country, over 4 million dogs and cats are euthanized in shelters because there are not nearly enough people to adopt them. In the Kansas City area alone, over 20,000 animals are killed in shelters. By having your pet spayed or neutered, you are not only helping your pet to live a longer and healthier life but also saving the lives of other animals.

Education

Our staff and volunteers believe education is the key to ending cruelty toward animals and
creating a more compassionate community. Through school-based presentations, on-site
tours, and sessions for adult animal offenders, we teach the importance of compassion toward animals, responsible pet care, and how to approach unfamiliar pets. Presenters are accompanied by a pet to demonstrate these important lessons that will last you a lifetime and could even save your life.

To schedule a Humane Education program at your school, church, or civic/community center, please call 913.596.1000, ext. 122.

Come see us!

We invite you to come out for a tour, meet our furry friends, and learn more about what we do! We're always looking for people who believe in our mission and who want to help out by becoming volunteers, financial supporters, or adopting one (or more!) of our wonderful dogs and cats.

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