MURCHISON, Texas—Five years ago, Humane Society International rescued over 200 wild exotic animals from decrepit, barren and disturbing conditions at St. Edouard Zoo, an unaccredited facility in Canada. The animals were taken to sanctuaries and qualified facilities throughout North America...

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek signed bills to stop the sale of puppy mill puppies and kittens in pet stores (HB 2915) and to end the sale of animal-tested cosmetics (HB 3213). Kotek also recently signed a package of housing bills that included funding for domestic violence and homeless shelters to better...

Corey Roscoe was in college when the tortoiseshell started hanging around her apartment building’s trash and crying loudly. “These loud cries across the parking lot were like the beacon for my inner cat person,” says Roscoe, director of humane policy volunteer state engagement at the Humane Society...

Toby is underweight, with scarred ears and a choppy haircut where severe matts have been cut out. Still, he looks healthier than he did when our Animal Rescue Team first saw him, says Katie DeMent as she sits on the floor petting him at our Maryland care and rehabilitation center in February. On Jan...

Millions of people are at home now in the midst of a pandemic, disinfecting and cleaning, taking cold and flu medications—with the potential they might unwittingly poison their pets. The cleaning products consumers have carried home from stores, stripping shelves bare, can kill the virus that causes...

Black Beauty Ranch offers a fresh start to the domestic and exotic animals who roam its 1,400 acres. Whether they were rescued from roadside zoos, research laboratories or the exotic pet trade, some struggle to acclimate to life as wild animals. While providing the necessities that support their...

The stories reach Amanda Arrington via text message these days: The immunocompromised hospital worker in Milwaukee who brought her spunky dog, Rusty, onto her porch to give a socially distant thanks when a Pets for Life team member dropped off dog food. The veteran with four dogs—including a...

INDIANAPOLIS—Indiana’s law prohibiting direct public contact with big cats and bears goes into effect on July 1. Implementation of this law brings much needed protection for some of the animals who have been subjected to public handling and forced to live in abysmal facilities in the state...

The Humane Society of the United States presents Indianapolis City-County Council Vice President Zach Adamson and Councillor John Barth with the Humane Council Award for their efforts to help animals in Indianapolis by authoring a humane pet store ordinance to end the sale of dogs and cats in pet...

In one sense, it was a “routine” grooming appointment. In November, a big poodle mix named Freeda got her curly black hair shampooed, cut and blow-dried to perfection. She went in looking good and came out looking better, ready to show off her new ’do to mom Janis at their Northern Idaho home....

Editor’s note: In late December of 2020, Congress approved a stimulus deal that extended the federal evictions moratorium until Jan. 31 and provided $25 billion in rental assistance. On Jan. 20, the new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended the moratorium until at least...

WASHINGTON—This month, the Humane Society of the United States’ Pets for Life program reached a major milestone, providing its 1,000,000th service to animals. The recipient was a poodle mix named Freeda, who was helped through the program’s partner Better Together Animal Alliance in Ponderay, Idaho...

Yesterday, the Humane Society of the United States assisted the Virginia Attorney General’s Office and Chesterfield County Animal Services in the rescue of 110 cats and kittens from a large-scale alleged cruelty situation at a commercial breeding operation in Chesterfield County, Virginia. Local...

Loree O’Hagan’s new home in Great Cacapon, West Virginia, came with four bedrooms, a wrap-around deck, a view of the mountains—and a family of feral cats. That last detail wasn’t mentioned in the seller’s disclosure report, but O’Hagan and her husband got an inkling on moving day, when they spotted...

Goblin might not have lasted much longer at Tim’s Reptiles and Exotics in Pulaski County, Kentucky. The sulcata tortoise was one of about 150 animals rescued in September from nightmarish conditions at the pet store when local police arrested the store operator on 19 counts of animal cruelty...

A bright, loud fireworks display flashing across the night sky is often considered a fun hallmark of seasonal pastimes like baseball games and barbecues. Yet these blasts of sound and flashing color can easily frighten and even harm animals—and not just our pets. Humans jump at unexpected loud...

In September 2020, Rick Haaland, the Pets for Life community outreach manager for the Leech Lake Tribal Police in northern Minnesota, answered a call about a large dog named Winston. The dog had gotten into an altercation with a porcupine and was covered in quills. When Haaland saw Winston at the...

The young Belgian Malinois was only supposed to stay with Lisa Kauffman for a month. Kauffman, HSUS wildlife protection public policy program manager, welcomed Emmie into her home last October after she was found as an underweight stray and brought to a California shelter. Kauffman planned to care...