The ASPCA and Best Friends Animal Society, in collaboration with Los Angeles Animal Services (LAAS), have announced a joint $14 million initiative to enhance operations and outcomes at LA’s animal shelters.
This significant investment, revealed on Monday, marks the largest combined effort by the two organizations in a municipal shelter system.
The multi-year initiative aims to reduce shelter intake, improve in-shelter care, and increase adoptions, fostering, and reunifications. The ASPCA and Best Friends will work with LAAS leadership to implement strategic improvements, focusing on three core priorities. The initiative will provide $7 million in grant funding to support over 20 critical staffing roles, including adoption and foster teams and specialists for community cat programs.
Mayor Karen Bass expressed gratitude for the grants, stating, “This historic investment will enable LA Animal Services staff to place an even greater emphasis on positive outcomes.” The ASPCA President & CEO, Matt Bershadker, highlighted the broader impact, saying, “We won’t just be helping transform one city, we’ll be showing communities across the country what’s possible.”
Julie Castle, CEO of Best Friends Animal Society, emphasized the collaborative effort, stating, “Through collaboration, we can create permanent, systemic change in Los Angeles.” The initiative will also introduce enhanced intake strategies, expand foster care capacity, and strengthen return-to-owner efforts, including field-based reunifications.
LAAS, one of the largest municipal shelters in the country, serves approximately 50,000 animals annually and responds to over 20,000 emergency calls. The department has been working to reduce overcrowding and improve adoption rates, achieving a placement rate of 90% or greater for dogs since 2017.
This initiative marks the first time the ASPCA and Best Friends have combined resources at this scale to support a single shelter system, although both organizations have been actively involved in Los Angeles’s animal welfare efforts for decades. The ASPCA has provided over $16 million in grant funding since 2014, while Best Friends has invested more than $80 million since 1992.
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