Join Maddie’s® Million Pet Challenge in making 2024 the year we amplify What Found Feels Like and celebrate animals going home in the shelter and community. It’s the year we shine a light on the bright spots and Return-to-Home solutions you’re advancing, starting with the Back Where They Belong summit February 21 and 28. Every dog and cat returned home counts—and for the people who’ve been missing them, the impact is immeasurable!
Dogs reunited with their families from a block away or more than a thousand miles. Cats returning to the porches, neighborhood hangouts, caregivers and communities they know and love. For animals and their people, the Right Place feels right. Going home again is something to celebrate, and so are the people who help make it happen at the shelter and in the community.
But right now, more than half of animals are entering shelters as “stray,” and only one of them will go home. Together—from frontline staff and volunteers to shelter leaders and community members—we can change that stat.
By getting just 20% more stray dogs back home, we have the power to end unnecessary shelter euthanasia and find homes for every dog who really needs one.
And we’re on our way. By making changes big and small, shelters like Pima Animal Care Center and Riverside County Animal Services are getting more animals back where they belong. Nearly 90% of community members said they would consider caring for a lost pet if asked by the shelter to do so and offered resources, and 75% have already done so.