The Help the Animals Fund
The Seattle Animal Shelter takes in approximately 8,000 stray and owner-surrendered animals each year. Many of these animals arrive sick and injured from living on the streets; others are seized from abusive or neglectful owners. To provide veterinary care for these sick, injured and abused animals, the Seattle Animal Shelter created the Help the Animals Fund (HTAF) in 1977.
As the Seattle Animal Shelter’s veterinary needs expanded, volunteers started the Furry 5K in 1999 to fundraise and promote awareness for the Help the Animals Fund. All proceeds from the Furry 5K directly support the Help the Animals Fund. In 2009, the Furry 5K netted approximately $85,000. Veterinary care needs continue to expand, however, and last year alone the Help the Animals Fund paid for over $91,000 worth of veterinary bills with the difference made up from private donations and other fundraisers.
How YOU Can Help
Please donate an additional amount to the Help the Animals Fund when you register for the Furry 5K this year! Choose from a selction of pledge gifts according to the amount of your donation.
Encourage friends and family who may not be able to attend the race, to donate to this exceptionally worthy cause!
Ask if your company has a matching gift program!
On the day of race, bring your pledges (if possible convert cash donations to one check) to the registration booth or mail donations directly to the Seattle Animal Shelter. Please make checks payable to Help the Animals Fund/Furry 5K. Donations can be mailed to:
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The Help the Animals Fund c/o The Seattle Animal Shelter 2061 15th Ave
West Seattle, WA 98119
Every dollar counts and all donations are tax deductible (Seattle Animal Shelter’s Tax I.D. number is 91-6001275). * *To receive a receipt, donors must provide a mailing address.
On behalf of the Seattle Animal Shelter and the animals in need at our facility, we thank you. To see stories about animals helped by the Seattle Animal Shelter’s Help the Animals Fund, click here.
Help the Animals Fund Alumni
Lexi
Lexi is a 2 year-old pointer mix. She is a high-energy, high intelligence
dog requiring consistent exercise and mental challenge. The shelter environment
was too stressful for Lexi, and she was quickly placed in foster care where
she would receive the exercise and attention she needed to thrive. Soon
after foster placement however, Lexi became lethargic and unresponsive.
She was rushed to the emergency vet where she underwent tests to determine
the cause of her illness. The tests proved inconclusive, and Lexi continued
to deteriorate. The next day the vet diagnosed a spontaneously collapsed
lung. Lexi was kept on a ventilator while her condition continued to be
monitored. After five days of ventilated breathing, Lexi’s lung had repaired
itself enough that she was taken off the ventilator and was able to begin
a slow recovery to her old energetic self. Today, Lexi continues to recuperate
in her foster home and is again available for adoption. Lexi and her foster
family thank the Help the Animals Fund for providing the veterinary care
she desperately needed to survive.
Satin and Shadow
Rescued from the Fire
On February 28, 2010 Seattle Animal Shelter received a call from Seattle
Fire Department requesting assistance. SFD had responded to a fire in a
camper parked along a Seattle street.
Two cats had been spotted in the berth
of the camper. Humane Animal Law Enforcement responded and found the cats
scared and burned. Satin and Shadow, a bonded pair of female cats were rushed
to emergency veterinary care and were treated for smoke inhalation and burns.
After three days of treatment, the cats were able to move into the recovery
ward at the Seattle Animal Shelter. Satin faced the most challenges. Her
nose, whiskers, ears and feet were all burned making it painful to move.
She would only eat when in the comforting presence of her buddy Shadow.
The quick actions by the Seattle Animal Shelter and the Seattle Fire Department
saved Satin and Shadow’s lives and the Help the Animals Fund paid for the
veterinary care and treatment they desperately needed. Satin and Shadow
are healing from their wounds and when ready will be adopted together to
a safe home where they can continue to recuperate and thrive.
Harriett
Abandoned and Afraid
Harriet is a young rat that was found abandoned in an apartment building.
It was obvious she had been someone’s pet. She arrived at the Seattle Animal
Shelter frightened and thin with a large tumor under her front left leg.
Harriet was immediately taken to the vet where it was determined the tumor
was benign. Thanks to the Help the Animals Fund, Harriet’s tumor was surgically
removed and she is recovering in foster care. Harriet’s foster mother raves,
“I am so glad that Harriet is going to have a chance to be adopted; she
is wonderfully people-oriented, curious and full of energy. I have so much
fun spending time with her…she makes me laugh every day with her antics.
She will make her adoptive parents very happy.”
