By the Numbers

As Philadelphia’s largest rescue partner, PAWS saves at-risk animals, primarily from the city’s animal control shelter, provides all the veterinary care they need, and finds them loving homes. We focus on populations least likely to survive: adult dogs, cats with treatable illnesses, fragile kittens too young for adoption, and animals with injuries or other special medical needs.
Note: Chart totals also include small animals, which we began rescuing in 2022.

PAWS’ two clinics keep families together and prevent pet homelessness by providing a crucial safety net: affordable veterinary care to those who cannot otherwise access it. With nearly 1 in 4 of Philadelphia’s 1.5 million residents living below the poverty line and hundreds of thousands more struggling to make ends meet, PAWS helps pet owners keep and care for their beloved pets rather than face having to surrender them to a shelter. 

By providing affordable spay/neuter for owned pets, community cats, and animals in the care of other rescue organizations, PAWS curbs the birth of unwanted litters, prevents health conditions that lead to shelter surrender, humanely manages outdoor cat populations, and reduces the number of pets needing to be rescued.