Helen Woodward Animal Center

The Helen Woodward Animal Center Rescue Team is now ready to respond to emergencies! Following the unveiling of our 37-foot Emergency RV back in February, our nine-person rescue team went through an animal-related emergency response training last week with Code 3 Associates. This training covered water and boat operating safety, animal handling and behavior, fire awareness, search and rescue and more. While the Center has helped assist shelters in various disaster relief effo...rts - including Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Hurricane Sandy in 2012 and Hurricane Harvey in 2017 - we are now equipped with the skills to deploy a team equipped with veterinary medications and supplies which will support others whenever and wherever disaster strikes. Here is a behind-the-scenes look at the rigorous preparation our team encountered during their training. See more

Nothing makes us smile more than seeing pets find their forever homes! We are happy to share these moments with you all, and we want to thank our partners at Frank Subaru for inspiring our new adoption photo signage. Each month we will be adding new memories to this album as we continue to grow our network of Helen Woodward Animal Center alumni!

2021 is already looking brighter #HappyNewYear from Cinnamon and the Spice Pups! https://animalcenter.org/litters/cinnamon-the-spice-pups Our Adoptions facility is closed for the weekend, but we will reopen on January 6 to give orphan pets fresh starts with forever families.

2021 may have just begun, but our February Critter Camp is right around the corner! We invite #SanDiegoKids to spend their #PresidentsDay break (February 8- 12 & February 1519) with our animal ambassadors at the Center in a safe and fun environment. Campers will meet a new group of Critters every day to learn how they communicate, how they adapt to the chilly weather and how they deal with conflict! Children in Pre-K through 6th Grade are eligible to join. Also, if you are still looking for camp options for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on January 18 - we still have a few spots left at Critter Camp!

Ringo, you’re about to be a star! This 2-month-old #Lab #Terrier blend is expected to become available for adoption later this week.

Ready for a PAWesome adoption story from the Midwest? Sweet Stella was recently adopted from Refurbished Pets of Southern Michigan by a couple living in isolation due to COVID-19. While the couple is missing out on time with their kids and grandchildren, Stella brought a sense of joy to her new family by helping them stay busy and encouraging them to go outside. Stella is just one of the 1,000,000+ orphan pets who found a home this holiday season from a Blue Buffalo Home 4 Th...e Holidays participating organization! Stella's parents shared their story as part of our #IChoseToRescue contest, where recent pet adopters submit their stories for a chance to win big for themselves and animal rescue organizations! As one of the contest winners, Stella's family will be receiving a year's supply of Blue Buffalo food, and they awarded lifesaving funds to the rescue where they adopted their sweet gal!

Orphan pets like Mama Nina could use YOUR HELP with wiggly hungry pups! Will you step up and help foster some orphan pets waiting to find their forever homes? We are currently welcoming new foster applicants & we need YOUR help to save more lives this holiday season! Apply to become a foster volunteer today at https://animalcenter.org/get-involved/volunteer/foster

LIVE: Blind dog Louis has been an inspiration to all of us, and we can’t wait for you to meet him. Join us for a cuddle sesh with this sweet boy!

With Halloween less than a week away, get into the spooky spirit with four of our favorite black cats: Binx, Felix, Salem and Sylvester! We are currently tracking their every milestone in our Follow The Litter series. After being found all alone on a construction site, a worker brought the fragile kittens to our Center, where they’ve spent the last 5 weeks being bottlefed by our dedicated fosters. Orphaned kittens require special supplies, including kitten formula, bottles, nipples and more. If you’d like to help us save more newborns like these, consider sending much-needed items from our Fosters Amazon Wish List >> https://amzn.to/3jqktuE

If anyone deserves a brighter 2021, it’s Louis. When this 3-year-old sweetheart developed an eye infection, his owners didn’t seek treatment until it was too late and both eyes had to be removed. Soon after, the now-blind dog was struck by a car and broke his leg. Once again, Louis didn’t receive the care he needed, and his leg healed improperly. Unwilling to care for a blind and injured dog, his owners surrendered Louis to a Calexico area shelter, where he luckily received u...rgent surgery to repair his leg. Shelter staff knew Louis deserved the perfect forever home and turned to Helen Woodward Animal Center to help find it. Louis was shy and exhausted when he arrived at our Center. However, after just a day in foster care, his tail was wagging! His foster mom tells us that Louis loves attention, sunbathing and other dogs. He has also learned how to navigate his foster home with ease, despite his lack of sight. Thanks to supporters like you, Louis will never be failed by people again. Your gifts are providing him with vaccinations, medical care, dental work and more. Donate before midnight and your donation will be DOUBLED to save twice the pets like Louis

Those ears! Those eyes! That nose! Every part of Peyton is perfect, including his sweet, friendly personality. Don’t miss this 3-month-old Beagle-Terrier blend live on KUSI News around 8:20 this morning

After they’re adopted, our pets go on to fill big roles in their new families. Remember Thumper, the kitten found alone in a garden when he was just days old? After growing up strong in foster care, Thumper met and formed an instant bond with Xavier. Xavier is an awesome 18-year-old guy who was recently diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. Between the chemo and radiation, Thumper now has the important job of bringing smiles and comfort to a family who definitely deserves it. Leave some for Xavier and Thumper in the comments!! Blue Buffalo

Scotia's pups are just days away from their big adoption day and MY how they have grown since we first met them! These five eight-week-old chihuahua blends are destined to find PAWfect homes soon and we were lucky enough to capture some of their last moments together as a group! If you are interested in adopting from us, be sure to request an adoption appointment to get the process started at https://www.cognitoforms.com/Hel/AdoptionAppointmentRequest

Today is National Make a Dog's Day, a day to make all dogs feel special & a day to help rescue dogs find loving homes! To honor the occasion, we want to shine a light on Chocolate, our 8-year-old adoptable Labrador Retriever blend! While Chocolate is older than most of our adoptables, she still has those puppy-like zoomies & loves her toys like no other! If you want to help Make A Dog's Day, we could use some more toy donations for Chocolate and her adoptable friends! We will accept donations at our Adoptions center if you are in the area or you can donate dog toys via our Adoptions Amazon Wish List at https://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/2H6WSAI62K3JD/

Orphaned Objects Resale Shop has kept more than 27,000 items out of landfills so far this year, all thanks to customers who support the Center’s pets and programs. Let’s make that number grow by shopping our Sustainable Fashion Sale October 24 & 25! Half price tagged clothing Half price shoes ($20 & up) Half price jewelry ($20 & up, not including sterling silver or 14-18K gold)... PLUS: 50% off housewares ($20 and up) 50% select furniture and art More deep discounts storewide More details here >> https://www.facebook.com/events/1733859436763420

Last month, we introduced you to Delilah, a darling kitten whose eyes had ruptured due to infection. To give Delilah the best quality of life, our medical team made the tough decision to remove her eyes. She underwent surgery on October 12, and everything went perfectly. Now back in foster care, Delilah is healing well, adjusting fine to her new normal, and feeling much more comfortable. Our staff will monitor her for a few more weeks. Then, after 3 months in our care, Delilah will be ready to find her forever family! Thanks for all the good vibes you've been sending her way

Interested in adopting from the Center? Helen Woodward Animal Center and Blue Buffalo recently launched a new adoption program called Shelter Stars! Every family that adopts from us will receive a BLUE adoption kit, instant savings, and access to additional savings. More details available at www.blueshelterstars.com

Little Debbie and her delicious lil' pups, Jellyroll and Twinkie, will be sweet additions to any family! Little Debbie is one of the four moms and ten puppies in our care that have been rescued from a terrible hoarding case in Imperial County. This Chihuahua Terrier blend family has been looked after by foster volunteers for the last few weeks and we expect them to find their furever homes before this week's end! This week we bring you a new Momma Match Monday Quiz to test your skills in matching puppies with their respective moms. Try your luck with our quiz at https://woobox.com/44whwp If you want to help Make Momma's Day, you can donate today at https://my.animalcenter.org/give/301796/#!/donation/checkout

Oh Mr. Sunny, Sunny, Little golden puppy, Please go home with me! Tune into KUSI News around 8:20 a.m. and Sunny (an affectionate 2-month-old Chihuahua blend) will certainly brighten your morning!

We are LIVE with our first-ever virtual Fling Gala! Tonight’s event includes several performances, a speed painting performance, a stand-up routine and special guest appearances. Remember to bid in the auctions & donate to our fund-a-needs at https://fling2020.ggo.bid/

With the holiday season around the corner, our Adoptions team has never been busier with rescue intakes. We have taken in 770 more pets than last year through a total of 325 intakes with partners in 2020. This has put some strain on some of our most vital supplies, pet carriers. Thankfully, we received an incredibly generous donation of over 50 pet carriers from Petco and MidWest Homes for Pets to help us continue our mission of saving more orphan pet lives. Here we have some of our Adoptions team members checking out the new carriers, which we will be putting to use right away!