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Waco animal shelter reaches 'no kill' status

Posted at 10:49 PM, Oct 03, 2016
and last updated 2018-06-19 15:00:54-04

The Humane Society of Central Texas in Waco reached a milestone Monday.

The shelter reached "no kill" status for the first time. The executive director Don Bland said a shelter gets that distinction when it reaches a 90 percent live exit rate. That number includes adoptions and reclaims.

Bland said since Waco partnered with the Humane Society of Central Texas four years ago, they’ve increased the live exit rate from 36 percent to 91 percent and decreased intake from about 11,000 to about 5,500.

"For our community to step up and partner with us and show up and still figure out a way to get in among the construction and everything that speaks volumes for our city,” Bland said.

Bland doesn’t just credit the success to increased adoptions and community involvement. He said the spay and neuter and knock and talk programs the city put in place have helped reduce the animal population, and inspire other cities to follow suit.

"Those are the kinds of proactive programs that our city has put in place that makes all this possible,” Bland said.

The city of Waco also helped build a new facility for the Humane Society of Central Texas. Bland said the grand opening will be Oct. 20 at 10:30 a.m.

If you can't adopt, there are several other ways you can help the Humane Society of Central Texas. You can sponsor, foster and volunteer. For more information, click here.

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