Total Funding: $775,000 since 2015
Shelter Animals Count (SAC) is the only independent 501c3 organization dedicated to collecting, sharing and stewarding a national database of animal shelter statistics, resulting in a greater understanding of the state of animal welfare.
As one of the original funders of this project, this funding demonstrates our belief in the importance of gathering data nationwide from animal shelters and rescue organizations. Transparency and sharing of data play an important role in decision making that affects policies, procedures and programming. In October 2018, eight national animal welfare leaders and funders issued a joint position statement to provide a better understanding of accountability expectations for organizations that take stray and homeless pets into their care. Intended to help guide shelter protocols and inform the future of the industry, the statement reads:
"As a national animal welfare leader and funder of animal welfare in North America, Maddie’s Fund® believes that organizations should be transparent about the number of animals that come under their care, and the outcome for all of those animals. That is why we support the public availability of key data (the basic data matrix as defined by Shelter Animals Count), from all animal welfare agencies and nonprofits, both publicly and privately funded and whether or not they provide government animal control services or humane law enforcement.”
Our investment in Shelter Animals Count supports their day-to-day operations so they can help communities at the local level understand the trends, opportunities and challenges they face, and to put into context how those translate on the regional and national levels. Maddie’s Fund has sponsored several data drives to help inspire and encourage shelter data collection. As of March 2024, 7,026 organizations participated in Shelter Animals Count by submitting their animal statics on a monthly basis. These statistics now include the Community Service Database to include tracking numbers of animals helped in the community (without entering a shelter or rescue).