Animal Shelter, Inc.

Important Event!!! The Whisker Walk - The shelter is sponsoring a HUGE dog walk... for more info please see http://www.sterlingshelter.org/news/whisker-walk08.html

We're YOUR Local Animal Shelter... There's a place in your community where the hungry are fed, the homeless are sheltered, and the abandoned are given care. Its your local animal shelter, right here in Sterling, MA. Where we provide comfort and care for our community's unwanted animals. We offer many other services too, for pets and their people. To do all this, we rely on the support of people like you. Here are a few ways you can help animals, especially those in our care...Give a little bit... Donate food or towels or old blankets and other needed supplies to us. Lend a hand and become a volunteer. Find that special someone here waiting for a home - ADOPT! Help spread the word about our program. Be a responsible pet owner.
The Animal Shelter, Inc. of Sterling, Massachusetts is a nonprofit, no-kill shelter with no time, age or breed limitations. The shelter exists to provide loving, temporary shelter and care for stray, unwanted, abused and neglected animals; to find loving, lifelong homes for orphaned pets. Right now, as you read this, there are beautiful animals waiting for you at our shelter. They are not "mutts" or "pound dogs" or "feral barn cats", but friendly, family pets that happen to be in between owners. They are here waiting to be loved...

Here are some of the programs, events and services we offer:

Early Spay/Neuter Program - Effective February 15th, 1999 - the Animal Shelter spays and neuters all animals before they leave the shelter. We maintain a 100% compliance rate.

Save A Sato Program - On May 14, 1999 The Animal Shelter Inc. of Sterling, MA started a joint venture with the animal rescue volunteers of Puerto Rico to save hundreds of homeless, starved, poisoned and tortured animals.

Seniors 4 Seniors - Created October, 2000 The staff realizes that companion animals are essential to keeping people healthy, vibrant and to reducing blood pressure and stress. Because the staff recognizes that pets can be expensive if one is on disability, Social Security or limited income, we have created the Seniors for Seniors program. The shelter will waive the adoption fee of any animal at our shelter 5 years or older for an adopter 55 years or older.

Spay Your Mama – Effective January 2001 – our shelter can and does provide free or low cost spaying for cats/dogs that have recently surrendered their puppies or kittens. Those pets who enter this program must meet specific criteria for our services. It is our goal to accept the babies into our shelter (where they will be spayed or neutered before adoption), spay the mother dog/cat so they do not become repeat offenders of continual litters reproducing in our community. We have saved MILLIONS of lives by instituting this program based on national pet overpopulation statistics. (One cat and her offspring in only 7 years can create 420,000 more kittens!)

Homebound Hounds Program - July 2001 - A Death Row Puppy Rescue Mission -Rescuing and re-homing puppies from the South destined to die in the gas chambers. Puppies that have been abandoned or left by their owners at the Southside SPCA (in Meherrin, VA) or one of their associate shelters/animal control facilities/pounds or kill shelters.

Veterinary Student / Veterinary Technician Training Externships – effective 2003 the shelter accepts 4th year veterinary students for two-week extern programs and vet tech students for their mandatory 200 hours of clinic experience. Recognized by Tufts University as a full extern program, 4th year students are graded by our veterinarians on staff in their surgical rotation, hands on skills and patient care.

Worldwide Outreach Program – Effective September 2003 – The staff, vets and volunteers of the shelter have partnered with rescue organizations in the Caribbean islands to spay/neuter the animals of their community at NO COST. Our shelter staff and vets have traveled to Saint Lucia , Puerto Rico, and the Galapagos Islands.

Merit “Bone Badge” Program –The "Bone Badge" Girl Scout Pet Care patch, initiated in September 2003 has proven successful. The girls have a minimum number of lessons in kindness to perform in order to earn their patch.

Disaster Rescue Assistance – Established August 2004 – trained shelter staff and veterinarians travel to natural and man made disasters to assist animals in need. Rescue, recovery and rehabilitation are the main focus. 100% of the trip/s are funded through our shelter. Our shelter is proud to have assisted after Hurricane Charley and Hurricane Katrina.

Tennessee Rescue – Established Spring 2007 – Another Puppy/Dog Rescue Mission -Rescuing and re-homing puppies from TN destined to die in the gas chambers

Information provided by the owner