Homeward Trails seeks to find permanent adoptive homes in the Mid-Atlantic Region for dogs and cats from high-kill shelters or whose owners can no longer care for them. In so doing, we seek to reduce the rate of euthanasia of adoptable animals through the rescue and placement of homeless animals; to support proactive spay/neuter practices; to promote positive and ongoing behavioral training; and to educate the public about how to care for their animals in a humane way. Homeward Trails not only facilitates adoptions from local shelters, but also supports a large network of foster care providers who take homeless dogs and cats into their homes, care for them, rehabilitate them when needed, and prepare them for their permanent adoptive homes.

Sadly, without our help, all of these adoptable animals would face almost certain euthanasia - usually within days or hours of our rescuing them. Each year we take in hundreds of wonderful animals who were left at shelters by no fault of their own.

Many are puppies and kittens – innocent victims of irresponsible pet owners who don’t practice spay/neuter. Many are abandoned hunting dogs who served their owners well and were dumped in woods or left at shelters when they were no longer wanted. Many are house pets whose owners simply grew tired of caring for them or moved and did not take them along. And even more are animals that have been injured, abused and neglected. Whatever the reasons, these animals all deserve better. And once with Homeward Trails, they get better!

Our Principles:

1. To always operate in the best interest of the animals we take into our program and to advocate for the proper care of those in shelters and in private homes;

2. To provide quality care for the animals we take in for as long as they are in our program and to provide ongoing support to our adopters;

3. To always maintain a manageable number of animals in our system whereby we can ensure proper medical care, behavioral training and housing for the animals;

4. To rescue the widest array of dogs and cats by avoiding general discrimination based on breed, age, and health;

5. To provide our shelter partners and their communities with resources that will result in the highest level of care for their animals, an increase in spay/neuter surgeries and a decrease in the abuse, neglect and abandonment of dogs and cats;

6. To treat our volunteers, adopters and partners with understanding, patience and support