MISSION AND HISTORY.

WHO WE ARE

Friends of the Palm Springs Animal Shelter is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, which operates the city’s animal shelter and the Desert Wildlife Center. The Palm Springs Animal Shelter is an open admissions municipal shelter serving the city of Palm Springs and providing programs for animals, pets and pet owners across the Coachella Valley. The Desert Wildlife Center, located in Indio, CA, will open in Fall, 2024 and will serve as a safe refuge for sick, injured, and orphaned wildlife needing medical treatment and rehabilitation.

FUNDAMENTAL BELIEF

We believe every animal deserves a loving, safe, healthy environment in which they can thrive.

VISION

We envision a world where all animals are treated with kindness, compassion, and respect.

OUR MISSION

We transform lives through extraordinary animal care and advocacy. We inspire compassion and positive relationships between the community and animals through direct action and humane education.

CORE VALUES

We will have the courage and tenacity to:

  • fight for the humane treatment of animals
  • promote our no-kill philosophy
  • operate with transparency and integrity
  • foster teamwork and collaboration
  • demonstrate respect and kindness

HISTORY

Since 1996, Friends of the Palm Springs Animal Shelter has been actively raising funds to help the Palm Springs Animal Shelter with operational needs. The original shelter was built in 1961, and was woefully inadequate in meeting the needs of the current animal population of Palm Springs. In 2009, the City of Palm Springs allocated $5 million in a capital improvement bond and the process of designing a shelter that would stand as a model for Southern California began.

When the bids came in, we learned that building costs would be closer to $7 million, so The Friends of the Palm Springs Animal Shelter got busy raising funds for the new state-of-the art animal shelter. With the help of generous animal loving benefactors, ground was broken on the new shelter on July 7th, 2010.

On November 1, 2012, the City of Palm Springs and Friends of the Palm Springs Animal Shelter entered into an agreement allowing Friends of the Palm Springs Animal Shelter to assume operation of the shelter.

This partnership paved the way for a new model of sheltering in the City of Palm Springs, and as a result, the Palm Springs Animal Shelter is the only public shelter operating under a no-kill philosophy in the Coachella Valley.

Committed to being a humane and compassionate animal care and adoption center, the shelter does not euthanize for space, or for length of stay. As a public, open admissions shelter we provide a safe haven for ALL animals; adoptable, those who require rehabilitation and training and those requiring minor to critical medical treatment.

Friends of the Palm Springs Animal Shelter is committed to the welfare of all animals and has adopted an animal-friendly menu policy for our events. This means that we will provide vegan meals at all of the events we produce.

To meet the challenge of compassionately operating a public shelter, Friends of the Palm Springs Animal Shelter relies on donations, volunteers, community support and of course, ADOPTIONS!

NON-PROFIT INFORMATION

LEGAL NAME: Friends of the Palm Springs Animal Shelter
LEGAL ADDRESS: 4575 E Mesquite AVE, Palm Springs, CA 92264
FEDERAL TAX ID: 33-0731853
ORGANIZATION STATUS: 501(c)(3) non-profit

View our most recent IRS form 990 form here