About Us
More than a shelter
About Seattle Humane
Seattle Humane is more than a shelter—we are a pet resource center for the region, providing adoption services, a pet food bank and support for pet owners, low-cost spay/neuter surgeries and veterinary care, dog training, youth programs and more. Together with the support of our generous community, we save lives, complete families and keep pets with the people who love them.
Approximately half of the pets in our shelter come to us through our shelter transfer program. Through transfers, pets get a second chance to be connected with a loving family, and we support other shelters in Washington and across the country that lack space or resources to care for them.
Through our outreach, advocacy and services we strive to ensure that animal companionship is accessible to all.
Seattle Humane has served our community, saving lives and completing families for almost 130 years. Learn more about our rich past and present and our vision for the future.
Seattle Humane's Mission
Creating a kinder world for pets and their people through impactful programs and support services.
Our Values
Collaboration
We work across teams, disciplines and partners to achieve shared outcomes for pets and their people. We value open communication, shared ownership and collective problem‑solving, knowing that our strongest results come from working together.
Compassion
Compassion guides how we show up—for animals, for community members and for each other. We approach our work with empathy, care and understanding, especially in moments of stress, change or challenge. Compassion is both a value and an expectation for how we lead and collaborate.
Accessibility
We are committed to reducing barriers and meeting pets and their people where they are. Internally, this means creating a workplace where people feel a sense of belonging and can contribute fully; externally, it means designing programs and services that are inclusive, welcoming and responsive to community needs.
Respect
We treat every person and every role with dignity, integrity and professionalism. Respect shows up in how we communicate, how we make decisions, how we honor diverse perspectives and how we hold ourselves accountable to one another.
Adaptability
Animal welfare and community needs are constantly evolving, and so are we. We embrace learning, feedback and change, recognizing that adaptability allows us to grow our impact and continuously improve how we serve pets, people and each other.
What we believe
Our Commitment
We believe everyone deserves a chance to experience the love of a pet and the lifelong benefits of the human-animal bond. With this lens, we will continue to expand our programs and services to impact as many lives as possible.
Throughout history, the human-animal bond has played a pivotal role in creating our communities and culture. There is a direct link between human welfare and animal welfare—all life has value.
Systemic issues of inequality and inequity create the pipeline of pets that come to Seattle Humane in need of care and shelter. Animals often end up in shelters due to housing inequities, lack of access to quality veterinary care, and people having to make tough decisions like choosing between an overdue bill and a beloved pet. These societal issues are created and sustained without equal access to quality education, community resources, good job opportunities, and the ability to build generational wealth.
Understanding that it’s all connected, we are committed to doing our part to break this cycle and build a culture of equity and inclusion in our organization and in animal welfare.
Seattle Humane is, and always will be, a safe place for people from all backgrounds and experiences to unite around a common goal of helping pets in need. We believe in creating a community of support, showing empathy, understanding, respect, and kindness in our daily lives and in our work at the shelter. We are working to be a greater ally in this wonderful and diverse community we serve.
Our Philosophy
Is Seattle Humane a No-Kill Shelter?
Seattle Humane is a managed-intake shelter that cares for pets with treatable medical or behavioral issues. There are no limits placed on the pets in our care for space or time. Pets receive the medical care and behavior support they need to thrive in new homes.
Seattle Humane has maintained an average save rate of more than 97% each year for the last decade, which means that 97% of pets who enter the shelter have a positive outcome. To qualify as a No-Kill shelter, the live save rate must be 90% or higher. This term is confusing, and while Seattle Humane fits this description, we do not describe ourselves as No Kill. We acknowledge that in cases of animal suffering, humane euthanasia is the most compassionate outcome. When a pet demonstrates behavioral concerns that pose a threat to people or other animals, or when they face significant quality-of-life concerns, euthanasia may be considered.
Euthanasia Philosophy
Seattle Humane takes into account individual animals and people, as well as our community as a whole, in every aspect of the work we do and will not knowingly place animals who are a danger to themselves, people or other animals back into our community. Because of this commitment, Seattle Humane does euthanize animals when mental and/or medical suffering is too advanced to overcome or when an animal’s behavior poses a risk to people or other animals.
Seattle Humane is committed to providing care based on the framework set by the Association of Shelter Veterinarians for all animals through our admissions, animal care, behavior and veterinary services. There are no limits placed on pets in our care for space or time. We have established policies used by staff for both medical and behavioral euthanasia decisions. We believe no healthy, behaviorally sound animal should be euthanized.
Five Domains
Animal welfare science tells us that the welfare of an animal includes both their physical and mental state. At Seattle Humane we follow the Five Domains, an internationally accepted framework for considering the lived experience of animals in humans’ care. The Five Domains framework is a way of thinking about animal welfare–going beyond just eliminating or minimizing negative experiences to achieve a neutral state of animal welfare. Instead, we encourage positive experiences in four functional domains, which affect the fifth domain, the animal’s mental state. To determine an animal’s well-being the following should be considered.
Find Out More
Our Leadership Team
At Seattle Humane, our leadership team reflects the values we embrace. We are dedicated to providing quality compassionate service to animals and our community.
Financials & Statistics
Seattle Humane is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Our funding comes from the generosity of individuals and local businesses, and your donations are tax deductible.
Careers
We are always looking for great people to join our team!
Contact Us
Visit our Contact Us page for general inquiries as well as contact information for various departments.
Location & Hours
Visit our Location & Hours page for our address and hours for our Adoption Center, Schuler Family Medical Center, Admissions, Donor Services and Pet Resource Center.
Press Kit
Find information about Seattle Humane, plus photos and logos here.
Media Contact
Lisa Gabriel
Communications & Marketing Manager
LisaG@seattlehumane.org
(425) 274-1501
Our Past, Present & Future
Our story started in 1897, when we were devoted to animal issues involving stockyards and slaughterhouses. In 1972, the City of Seattle and King County established their own animal control divisions, and we moved to Bellevue. Since then, we’ve been a private nonprofit dedicated to saving and serving pets in need. Learn more here.
Image: Sunita Martini / Seattle Refined
