We’ve got big news ahead! As the public health landscape continues to change, our policies and procedures will evolve with the CDC’s and local government’s best practices. Policies may change frequently; we’re thankful to you for remaining patient and flexible as we continuously evaluate and adjust as necessary for everyone’s safety over the next several months.

Please note that we are not open to the public without a previous adoption appointment. We are still not open for visitors who wish to stop by “just to look” at the available animals. In order to make an adoption appointment, see the instructions in the tab below.

Below, you’ll find information on how we are currently operating in King County’s Phase 3.

Each year, we look forward to sharing our past successes with you, our amazing, supportive community. Inside this year’s annual Impact Report, you’ll read the story of Amber, an older cat who required intensive care when she suddenly stopped eating. (Don’t worry, it has a happy ending!) You’ll also see snapshots of each program and its growth. In 2019, we saw record-breaking adoption numbers. We trained more pets in one year than ever before, and we continue to grow the Homeward Pet Food Bank.

We hope you’ll join us in celebrating all that we accomplished together last year.

View the 2019 Impact Report.

Sam is still searching for a foster family! She’s receiving great care at the shelter, but she’s starting to experience some shelter stress. I think she’s trying to tell us that she’d much rather spend this time in a home. We’ve reached out to a lot of potential foster families, even through other organizations, but she hasn’t found the right foster fit. Have you been thinking about fostering Sam but haven’t reached out yet?

Sam is a 1-year-old shepherd who is super sweet, but to be honest, she can be a pretty challenging dog to have around. Her previous foster dad always said the cuddles were worth the trouble, but we want to make sure her next foster home agrees! She’s extremely smart, so she has a lot of fun tricks to show off, but that also means she needs a job 24/7. If she doesn’t have an appropriate outlet for her energy, she’ll find something herself (and you may not love what she finds)! She’s also extremely playful with other dogs, so she’ll likely be too much for most. Ideally we’re looking for a home where she can be the only pet (definitely no cats for Sam!), but we may be able to make exceptions if your dog is very playful, social, and tolerant.

A few other things you need to know about Sam:

• She’s on a daily medication to help with her behavior, but she’s really easy to medicate!
• You do not have to have a backyard to foster Sam, but be prepared for lots of very LONG walks.
• Sam can get very mouthy when she’s excited, potentially ripping your clothing and/or causing bruises to your arms/legs. This is manageable, but ideally we want you to have experience with this behavior before volunteering to foster Sam. Because of this, Sam will need an adult-only foster home.
• Jenny, our Animal Behavior Manager, is on call to help you! She knows Sam really well and can give you lots of tips and tricks to make her foster stay a bit easier for you.
• She is looking for an adult-only foster home with no children or visiting children and no cats.

Overall, if you’re still busy working from home, Sam definitely isn’t the dog to help with your productivity. But, Sam may be the dog for you if you’re dog-experienced (especially with herding breeds!), have too much time on your hands, and don’t feel like wearing any nice clothes while quarantined to your house.

To find out more about Sam and foster, please email our Foster Coordinator, Ashley, at .