L to R: Roxy Burson and Danielle King, animal relocation drivers for the ASPCA, with Brownie and others on a Felines and Canines transport. 

When Henry Bergh founded the ASPCA in 1866, he drew attention to the plight of animals, pushing for laws to protect them in an age when many people didn’t believe animals were sentient beings.

As progressive as he was, Bergh, born on this day more than 200 years ago, probably never imagined that the future of animal welfare would include relocating animals from crowded shelters to other areas in the country where pets are in high demand. But there’s no doubt he would have embraced the idea.

In 2019, Chicago-based Felines and Canines received the ASPCA’s prestigious Henry Bergh Award for rescuing nearly 3,000 animals in one year from Alabama shelters, with the ASPCA transporting them to Felines and Canines’ Chicago facility. Today, the organization has reached a new milestone, with 20,000 adoptable cats and dogs transported since 2018.

The ASPCA Relocation team, which has transported nearly 270,000 animals nationwide since its inception in 2014, provides animal transport services for Felines and Canines — an ASPCA shelter partner since 2018 — two to three times a week.

In July 2018, Felines and Canines opened their Hunter Stephenson Rescue Center in Owens Cross Roads, Alabama. It provides medical care, housing and other support to vulnerable cats and dogs who come from crowded shelters across eight Northern Alabama counties. The 8,000-square-foot facility can house 180 dogs and cats.

“Felines and Canines targeted an area where there were under-resourced communities and focused their efforts to create maximum impact at the source,” says Karen Walsh, ASPCA Senior Director of Animal Relocation. “They were so committed they built their own rescue center, creating a unique model of moving animals from that facility to their Chicago shelter.”

Felines and Canines’ Malia Washington with Twinkle, a recent transport to Chicago.

“Our Rescue Center is the first stop for unwanted adoptable animals from areas of high pet population,” says Abby Smith, Felines and Canines’ Executive Director. “It was critical to develop both a program and housing that could provide immediate refuge and ongoing support to the animals and communities who need us most before relocating them.”

The Rescue Center takes in more than 300 animals each month, including those with heartworm disease and medical needs as well as cats with feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and senior pets.

Local animal control facilities, like Florence-Lauderdale Animal Services (FLAS), are flooded with hundreds of unwanted animals every week.

The ASPCA provides transport services up to three times a week from Felines and Canines’ Hunter Stephenson Rescue Center in Alabama to their Chicago facility.

“It’s a struggle,” says Cheryl Jones, Director of FLAS. “If Felines and Canines wasn’t helping us, we couldn’t keep up. We’d otherwise have to euthanize for space.”

“Shelters like FLAS were the catalyst for our operation,” says Abby.

Kelly Thompson, director of development at Felines and Canines says, “​In the counties we serve, the urgency and despair are palpable, and the lack of resources is jaw-dropping.”

Butterfly was transported by the ASPCA to Felines and Canines from Athens Limestone Animal Services in Athens, Alabama on June 20.

Butterfly at Felines and Canines’ Hunter Stephenson Rescue Center.

“She had birdshot wounds on her face, jaw and neck,” says Abby. “Despite being in pain, she showed nothing but gratitude and loved being around people and other animals.”

The day Butterfly arrived in Chicago, Jackie T. spotted a photo of her on Felines and Canines’ social media page.

“She looked like our dog, Beulah, a 9-year-old Bluetick Coonhound, and she had a similar backstory, coming from the south, with birdshot wounds to her face and jaw,” said Jackie. “My husband and I always wanted a second dog and knew we had to meet her.”

On July 3, Jackie and her husband Brian drove from their home in Mount Greenwood to Felines and Canines’ Edgewater facility. They adopted Butterfly that day and renamed her Athena.

L to R: Jackie and Brian with Beulah and Butterfly; Butterfly, now Athena, at home.

“She was a little apprehensive, but as soon as we got home, both dogs curled up on the couch together,” says Jackie. “They enjoy howling together. Athena is a mini-Beulah and is so fast that she runs circles around Beulah. It’s nice seeing Beulah be youthful again. They’re always together. We’re grateful for these two sweet hounds.”

It’s safe to say Henry Bergh would also be grateful – to people like Jackie and Brian who adopt rescued animals, to organizations like Felines and Canines that work tirelessly to save animals from crowded shelters, and to Bergh’s innovation, the ASPCA, for transporting companion animals like Athena to destinations where second chances are possible.