ANIMAL ADOPTION CENTER
OUR MISSION
Saving the lives of homeless animals through rescue, adoption, education and spay/neuter.
ABOUT US
The AAC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit animal rescue organization founded in 2004. Our location in downtown Jackson Hole, just two blocks from the historical Town Square antler arches, enables us to engage with our community regularly through volunteer opportunities, meet and greets for potential adopters and seasonal events.
Since its birth, the AAC has rescued thousands of animals and thoughtfully placed them in loving forever homes as well as facilitated tens of thousands of spay/neuters in the state of Wyoming to alleviate the problem of animal shelter overpopulation at the source. The AAC strives to rewrite the negative stereotypes about abandoned animals by educating the community about each animal’s unique story. The AAC requires a foster period for dogs which means the dogs stay with their potential new family before adoption. Because cats take longer to adjust to a new environment, adopters have a two-week trial period after which they are welcome to bring the cat back if it is not a good fit. To prevent animals ending up back in the shelter system, all animals adopted from the AAC are welcome back at any time should the adoptive family’s circumstances change. By engaging with our community and providing the necessary resources to set both the owner and the animal up for success, we hope to realize a future where there are no more homeless pets. Learn more about our facility here.
RESCUE, ADOPTION & EDUCATION
The AAC rescues animals from overcrowded shelters with high euthanasia rates and relieves congested regional shelters so they can continue to be a community resource and take in animals suffering from abandonment, neglect or hoarding.
First and foremost, the AAC’s priority is to support regional shelters. Many shelters in Wyoming are stressed at max capacity; therefore, the AAC does not accept owner surrenders unless the animal was adopted from the AAC previously. When a regional shelter calls the AAC for support, we provide every animal possible with necessary veterinary care, spay/neuter, microchipping, vaccinations, decompression, and socialization. The AAC facility and the foster homes are warm, cheerful and calming. There is no rush for the homeless animal to find their forever home because we recognize the importance of placing the animal into the right home to prevent future surrenders. This ‘foster first, adopt second’ style has proven successful and the Animal Adoption is known for having an exceptionally low return rate. Visit the ‘Adoptable Animals’ webpage to see who is currently available for adoption.
SPAY/NEUTER WYOMING PROGRAM
The AAC believes that to save the 1.5 million adoptable dogs and cats that are euthanized in overcrowded shelters each year in America, we must attack the problem at the source: spay/neuter.
The AAC believes the most efficient and productive way to fix the homeless animal overpopulation problem in America is to spay/neuter as many dogs and cats as possible.
In 2009, the AAC launched its Spay/Neuter Wyoming Program: a low-cost, mobile, spay and neuter effort led by previous AAC board member Dr. Heather Carleton. Spay/Neuter Wyoming travels across the state twice a year to make pet sterilization services available to those who could otherwise not afford to fix their animals. There are two important parts of Spay/Neuter Wyoming. First is the clinics held at Fort Washakie School or Arapahoe School where the AAC and volunteer team aim to spay/neuter 200 to 300 animals over the course of a weekend. Second is the neighborhood clinics which target high risk neighborhoods in the Wind River Indian Reservation and provides transportation of the animals to and from the spay/neuter clinic. The AAC and Spay/Neuter Wyoming team continuously work to improve access to pet sterilization services. Since 2009, Spay/Neuter Wyoming has fixed more than 22,000 animals.
The AAC also offers vouchers for Wyoming residents for low-cost spay/neuter from participating veterinarians across the state.
In 2014, the AAC launched the Wyoming Shelter Project: an initiative to provide animal shelters with the resources needed to spay/neuter every animal that goes through their program. What started with the Rock Springs Animal Shelter has grown to ten shelters participating in the Wyoming Shelter Project because of how quickly there was a significant reduction in the number of animals entering the shelters.
EDUCATION
The AAC strives to keep animals in their homes to prevent animals entering the shelter system; therefore, in 2023, the AAC added a professional Dog Trainer in collaboration with Aska’s Animals to the staff two days a week.
The AAC believes education about animal welfare is a critical step in our effort to realize an America with no homeless animals. By teaching youth and school groups about animal welfare, the AAC encourages a love of animals from a young age, discourages negative stereotypes about homeless animals and promotes the importance of spay/neuter and adoption.
There are several ways youth of our commumity can interact with the AAC from volunteering once a week, working as an intern over summer vacation to the Teton County School District’s CREST program. Teen Power, GAP Girls, C-V, Summit High School, Journey School and other mentor and scholastic programs are a few of the groups that have visited the AAC recently. If you are interested in collaborating with the AAC to educate your youth group, please call 307.739.1881.
All families who adopt a puppy will also receive one complimentary training session and all families who adopt an adult dog can call the Dog Trainer with questions and/or to set up an owner-funded training session as needed. The AAC adopts out over one hundred puppies a year and because puppies require extra patience and training, we started Puppy Play: a safe and fun opportunity for newly adopted puppies to socialize with other dogs once a week until they are twenty weeks old. Puppy Play is supervised by AAC staff and the in-house Dog Trainer who are there to facilitate healthy play, educate adopters on their puppy’s personality and play style, and answer puppy training questions. Often, Puppy Play is a place for puppies to play with their siblings who were also recently adopted. In 2020, the AAC added a full time Cat Care Specialist to the team. The Cat Care Specialist takes care of the adoptable cats, establishing strong relationships with each one to learn their personality and prioritize any training necessary. Once a cat is adopted, the Cat Care Specialist is available to assist in integrating the cat into their new home with training tips and lifestyle suggestions.
In 2014, the AAC launched the Wyoming Shelter Project: an initiative to provide animal shelters with the resources needed to spay/neuter every animal that goes through their program. What started with the Rock Springs Animal Shelter has grown to ten shelters participating in the Wyoming Shelter Project because of how quickly there was a significant reduction in the number of animals entering the shelters.