BEST FRIENDS ANIMAL SOCIETY
Annual Report for 2003

Best Friends’ Mission. Through the work of the sanctuary and its education, adoption, and spay/neuter programs, the mission of Best Friends Animal Society is to help bring about a time when no homeless unwanted animals are being destroyed in shelters and when every dog or cat ever born can be guaranteed a good life in a good home.

Statement of Program Service Accomplishments

Introduction:

Best Friends is working with our members, with other humane groups, and with the general public to help bring about a time when no homeless, unwanted animals are being destroyed in shelters, and when every companion animal can be guaranteed a good life in a loving home.

The work of Best Friends Animal Society focuses in three main areas: the sanctuary; our model, statewide, five-year No More Homeless Pets in Utah program; and the national No More Homeless Pets campaign.

1. The Sanctuary: The sanctuary is the nation’s largest no-kill refuge for abused and abandoned animals, and works closely with shelters and rescue groups around the country to offer special care to animals who need care and rehabilitation that cannot be provided locally. Approximately 20,000 people a year spend time at the sanctuary, either as part of their vacation to the national parks of the Southwest or to participate in our intensive workshops.

2. Model Programs: Our regional No More Homeless Pets in Utah program is a comprehensive, spay/neuter and adoption campaign that includes every city and county government shelter and animal control department, all the humane societies, and most of the smaller private rescue groups, spay/neuter programs, etc. in the State of Utah. We are now in the fourth year of this five-year campaign to bring an end altogether to the killing of healthy, homeless pets in shelters.

Other model programs operate in select cities, including, for example, the Best Friends Brigade and Catnippers feral cat care program in Los Angeles.

3. National No More Homeless Pets Outreach: The Best Friends Network includes 14,000 grassroots volunteers across the country who respond to local needs, and is managed by 11 staff members. Three regional representatives provide additional free consulting services and support to local humane groups and individuals launching local programs to help animals. Best Friends presents two No More Homeless Pets conferences each year in different locations around the country, and offers continuing support, resources, and education through the website at www.bestfriends.org, helping people set up successful spay/neuter, shelter, foster, and adoption programs in their own geographical regions.

Best Friends magazine is the nation’s largest general-interest magazine for people who care about companion animals, wildlife, and the earth, and also plays a major role in our No More Homeless Pets outreach. And the Best Friends Education program works with young people of all ages in schools and colleges, hosts visits to the sanctuary, and manages intern programs.

Overall, and in an increasingly uncertain world, Best Friends is helping people everywhere to understand that kindness to animals leads to respect for each other and for all living beings, making a better world for us all.

For the purposes of our annual Financial Statements and of this IRS Form 990, we have organized these areas of focus into three Programs. The results achieved in these Programs during 2003 were as follows:

Program 1. SANCTUARY. Expenses: $7,385,606 (includes donated goods of $327,748). Best Friends operates the nation’s largest sanctuary for abused and abandoned companion and domestic animals, with approximately 1,500 animals at the sanctuary on any given day, and a state and federally licensed wildlife rehabilitation program.

  1. Animal Arrivals, Care and Adoptions. As outlined in the Outreach Programs section below, the primary focus of the Best Friends Network staff is to help people place animals in good homes in their own communities, rather than bringing them to the sanctuary. This enables the sanctuary to focus on rescuing and caring for animals with special needs. In recent years, thanks to the success of our promotion of special-needs animals as wonderful pets, the number of these special-needs animals being adopted from the sanctuary has increased remarkably. (Those who are truly unadoptable find a permanent home and haven here.) In 2003, Best Friends Dogtown took in 537 dogs and placed 459 (an 85% adoption rate). Best Friends Cat World took in 455 cats and placed 335 (74%). The Bunny House took in 23 domestic rabbits and placed 17. The Horse Haven took in 6 horses and placed 4, 12 pigs and placed 10, 5 burros and mules and placed all 5; took in 6 goats and placed 5. In addition to the animals that are adopted directly from the sanctuary, we also assist in the placement of hundreds of other dogs and cats into foster homes and permanent homes through the nationwide Best Friends Network. (The adoption figures in this paragraph are all in addition to other adoption figures mentioned below in the Outreach section.)
  2. Clinic. The Best Friends Clinic, located at the sanctuary, is large and well equipped, and employs two full-time veterinarians and several veterinary technicians. In addition to caring for the medical needs of our resident animals at the sanctuary, our veterinary staff performed 1,871 spays and neuters during 2003 for animals belonging to the general public, at little (or sometimes no) charge.
  3. Feral Cat Outreach. In 2003, the sanctuary trapped, and spayed or neutered 704 feral and stray cats here in Southern Utah. Staff members also vaccinated them, and often cleaned ears, patched abscesses, or hydrated them with subcutaneous fluids. 664 of these were adults that were returned to their colonies, and 40 were kittens that were socialized and placed in good homes through the sanctuary. We trap cats in a radius of about 90 miles from the sanctuary. (Additionally, Best Friends facilitates hundreds of trap/neuter/return programs throughout the country through the Best Friends Network, working with local organizations and volunteers, and in some cases providing funding for spay/neuter for local T/N/R [Trap/Neuter/Return] programs.)
  4. Wild and Feathered Friends. During 2003, the Best Friends licensed wildlife rehabilitation program cared for 87 wild birds, 44 of which were released back into the wild. Staff also cared for 31 wild mammals and 3 reptiles, of which 3 mammals were released back to the wild. 11 wild birds, primarily birds of prey, are resident, licensed educational birds. We cared for 226 domestic birds, placed 16 in new homes, and released 67 pigeons (which are considered domestic birds) into the wild. The wildlife and domestic bird education program, including live presentations, bird tours, slide shows, television and other media presentations, reached approximately 14 million people. Staff members also gave advice and referrals, related to wildlife and domestic birds, by e-mail and telephone, to 1,955 people.
  5. Volunteer program. During 2003, 4,054 people spent 11,341 volunteer-days at the sanctuary, volunteering their help in the care of the animals.
  6. Facilities. This year’s additions to the animal facilities include the completion of three new Octagon kennel buildings at Old Dogtown, construction of two new Super Octagon kennel buildings at Dogtown Heights, completion of 12 Dog Lodges (small buildings with connected large runs housing four groups of unsocial dogs living in ones or twos), completion of a large fenced Dog Park, the initial phases of a remodeling of our Welcome Center, and completion of a new Administration Building. We made major additions to our new database and fiber-optic (LAN) campus network. During 2003, $1,590,982 was spent on these, plus some smaller projects.

Program 2. MAGAZINE, BROCHURES, & INTERNET SERVICES. Expenses: $1,600,123.

  1. Six issues of the bi-monthly Best Friends magazine were published. Circulation is now 200,000. The magazine includes in-depth articles that provide information on successful model programs to rescue and care for animals around the country, furthering the No More Homeless Pets movement nationwide. It also provides practical advice for people with pets, encourages grassroots involvement and fosters a deeper understanding of people’s relationship to animals and nature.
  2. Thousands of educational brochures and pamphlets were issued to individuals, animal welfare organizations, schools, and libraries around the country.
  3. The Best Friends website at www.bestfriends.org provides extensive animal welfare resources, geared both for individuals and organizations. Resources include in-depth information on spay/neuter, adoption, non-profit management, program development, grassroots fundraising, and animal behavior. The website is in the format of manuals, news stories, feature articles, and interactive forums. During 2003 we completed a major remodeling of this website.

Program 3. OUTREACH PROGRAMS. Expenses: $3,621,935 (includes donated goods of $524,599). Working with animal lovers and organizations across the nation, Best Friends has set the goal of bringing about a time when there are No More Homeless Pets.

  1. The Best Friends Network consists of a team of 11 staff members at the sanctuary and in regional offices, a broad variety of resources (constantly updated), and approximately 14,000 grassroots volunteers who have signed up to be part of this program. The Network brings together individuals and other animal welfare organizations nationwide to help animals locally, develop community spay/neuter programs, find homes for homeless animals, respond to regional emergencies, and bring an end to the killing of homeless animals at local shelters. It also coordinates the intake of animals into the sanctuary and the transportation of animals to and from the sanctuary. Staff coordinators provide counseling, referrals, and advice for animal behavior problems, and assistance in placing animals. During 2003, 12,000 animal help cases were managed through a computer-based system. In addition, hundreds of requests for information were handled each month by the Network staff.
  2. In 2003, Best Friends hosted two national No More Homeless Pets Conferences, one in Costa Mesa in April, and one in Philadelphia in October. Over 800 people from 46 states attended these conferences. Best Friends also helped organize local meetings for community programs, and Best Friends representatives were guest speakers at conferences/meetings in 13 states and the Asia for Animals Conference in Hong Kong. Best Friends sponsored adoption or spay/neuter events in five states. We provided thousands of manuals and brochures free of charge on a variety of topics, to assist individuals and organizations in helping animals in their communities and made professionally produced TV PSAs promoting pet adoptions available at low-cost to grassroots groups. Over 1,500 animal welfare advocates participate in the weekly online No More Homeless Pets expert forum. And Best Friends staffers provided, both at the sanctuary and in two field offices, consulting services to over 400 grassroots humane organizations and coalitions from across the country at no cost to these groups.
  3. Several years ago in our home state of Utah, Best Friends initiated Utah’s Week for the Animals. This was the first statewide week devoted to humane education and care of animals. This year, Utah’s Week included a full color poster of Utah’s animals with activity suggestions and free classroom materials, distributing these posters and materials to over 500 teachers and provided 30 classrooms with subscriptions to KIND News for their 328 students.
  4. Other Special Events in Utah included the 8th Annual Strut Your Mutt in May, Salt Lake City’s premiere dog walk/run; and The Utah Awards for Distinguished Service to Animals in November.
  5. In the Los Angeles area, the Best Friends Brigade coordinates teams of volunteers to local animal rescue groups to undertake special projects such as repair, maintenance, and deep cleaning of their facilities, as well as animal care. The Best Friends Help Line provides telephone access to information regarding animal related questions and problems; calls are returned 7 days a week. Best Friends Pet Adoption Fairs and Super Adoption Days organized and promoted by Best Friends, generate adoptions from as many as 60 Los Angeles and other City shelters and humane organizations on a given day or weekend. These events found homes for over 600 LA-area animals in 2003. Best Friends runs an adoption spot twice a week on the Fox TV Good Day LA morning news show, which is now going out to 30 other cities nationwide. This spot promotes local animals in need of new homes. Our Catnippers program conducts high-volume spay/neuter clinics for feral cats in Los Angeles. During 2003, Catnippers conducted 11 clinics averaging 75 cats per clinic. Catnippers also funds sponsored spay/neuter surgeries through participating veterinarians. Total procedures for 2003 exceeded 1300 feral cats.
  6. Best Friends continued to lead The Utah Coalition for Animals, (No More Homeless Pets in Utah), a campaign to bring an end to the killing of adoptable animals in shelters throughout our home state. The Coalition includes all the major animal care charities in Utah, and the municipal animal services agencies of all of Utah’s counties. The program is funded by Maddie’s Fund and Best Friends Animal Society.

Progress for a program with major funding from Maddies Fund is generally measured by comparing current statistics with those of the year before the program began. Latest reports from this program indicate the following:

    1. In Utah, 20,500 more animal sterilizations were performed in 2003 than in 1999. Of these spay/neuter numbers, the Big Fix on Tour mobile spay/neuter clinic (a specially equipped bus on loan from Best Friends) performed 8,000 low-cost alterations on Utah dogs and cats during the year.
    2. In 2003, adoptions by Utah’s rescue groups were up 250% over 1999, and those of municipal shelters were up 14%. Total number adopted was 28,000.

      Of the above adoption numbers:

      • Furburbia, a storefront adoption center in Salt Lake City’s Cottonwood Mall found homes for 1,200 dogs and cats in 2003. A second Furburbia was opened near Park City towards the end of 2003.
      • The Home for the Holidays statewide adoption campaign (from November 19, 2003 through January 7, 2004), found homes for 3,890 Utah shelter cats and dogs.
    3. 21% fewer animals were euthanized statewide in 2003 than in 1999, bringing the total to an all-time low of 36,338.
  1. The Best Friends humane education staff develops educational programs at the sanctuary for groups of students and offers internship programs for individuals, as well as making classroom presentations and school visits.
      1. School visits: The Humane Education team organized 11 school visits in Utah and Arizona, reaching a total of 500 students.
      2. Student sanctuary trips and internship programs: The sanctuary welcomed 37 adult interns, including veterinary students, vet techs, and other interested individuals, for intensive hands-on care programs at the sanctuary (8,580 hours of service and more than 120 surgeries). Twenty groups with 500 students visited and completed 13 service projects (5,000 hours of service). Visiting groups include the Genesis Project, and other programs for at-risk youth. These projects included daily animal care and feeding of the animals, making dog-walking trails, and various other practical and educational projects.
      3. 130 people attended our humane education workshop/seminars in 2003. Topics included; How to Start Your Own Animal Sanctuary, “The Power of Words”, “Chrysalis – Wild Wisdom for Times of Change”, and “Three Day Body Balancing” (Animal Communication).
      4. The Humane Education department staffed booths at community events locally and across the state, held a teen summer camp at the sanctuary and three summer programs in Kanab for local children.

GOVERNING BODY. There are eight Directors, all of whom work full-time for the Society. Chairman: Gabriel de Peyer. President: Michael Mountain. Sanctuary Director: Faith Maloney. Rescue Outreach: Francis Battista. Regional Programs: Gregory Castle. Secretary and Human Resources: Celeste Fripp. Architect and Buildings: Paul Eckhoff. Treasurer: John Fripp.

FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND FINANCIAL POSITION. (Copies of our Audited Financial Statements and of our IRS Form 990 are available upon request).

Revenues for 2003:
Direct public support $ 19,597,846
Donated goods and services 286,244
Miscellaneous income 164,508
Total Revenues 20,048,598

Expenses for 2003:
Program Services 12,607,664
Management and General 552,655
Miscellaneous 144,094
Fundraising 3,419,524
Total Expenses 16,723,937

Surplus for 2003: 3,324,661

Net Assets:
January 1, 2003 – 20,091,173
Surplus for 2003 – see above 3,324,661
December 31, 2003 – 23,415,834

Address: Best Friends Animal Society
5001 Angel Canyon Road
Kanab, UT 84741

Telephone: (435) 644-2001
E-mail: info@bestfriends.org
Web site address: www.bestfriends.org