Program areas at Dane County Humane Society
Animal services include open-admission local animal intake, lifesaving transfers from other communities, customer service, daily care and behavioral support of animals, spay/neuter and other surgical services, Humane euthanasia and participation in the sheltering animals of abuse victims program. In addition, dchs worked with madison and Dane County animal services to ensure it properly fulfills the services outlined in its contracts with these municipalities. In 2023, medical staff and volunteer veterinarians performed 3,603 surgeries.
Wildlife center is a specialized rehabilitation program that provides care for ill, injured, and orphaned wild animals found in southern Wisconsin. In 2023, dchs staff and volunteers helped 2,088 wild animals of 132 different species, including songbirds, mammals, raptors, waterfowl and reptiles.
Adoption & reception services include customer service and animal adoptions at dchs's main location and dchs's thrift store. The main adoption center also offers pet supplies and various dchs branded merchandise for sale to individuals adopting animals as well as to other patrons. In 2023, 3,263 animals were adopted. Dchs's 2023 animal save rate was 91%.
Education and outreach services include youth and adult education programs such as camp pawprint, scout badge workshops, school field trips, shelter tours, educational presentations and public speaking engagements, and dog training classes. Outreach programs include pets for life, community cat days and community dog days, and a pet food pantry program, focused on closing the service gaps for pets in underserved neighborhoods and keeping existing human-animal bonds intact.
Volunteer program includes recruitment, training, supervision and retention of dchs's volunteers. In 2023, 1,111 volunteers provided approximately 94,830 hours of volunteer service to dchs.