Animal Defense League of Texas
We take them in. You take them home.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
The Animal Defense League of Texas is a true no-kill shelter for abandoned, abused, or neglected dogs and cats. Our mission is to enhance the quality of life for these animals by providing needed medical care, including spaying and neutering. Food, shelter, and safety are also provided – along with compassion and attention. While maintaining a healthy and loving facility, ADL consistently works to find the best possible home for each resident animal.
The San Antonio community is estimated to have more than 150,000 strays, and Bexar county (wherein lies San Antonio) is estimated to have more than 860,000 stray animals. In San Antonio and the surrounding area the stray animal population is a major issue. Animal Defense League of Texas is on a mission to help fix this problem and educate the public about proper pet care through spay and neuter programs, low-cost wellness and vaccination programs, and more.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Volunteer Program
ADL is very grateful for its legion of volunteers! The shelter could not operate as efficiently without them.
Potential volunteers attend an orientation meeting, where policies are explained and an overview of the shelter is given. The resident trainer teaches a short class in appropriate techniques of dog walking. Volunteers are given myriad opportunities that includes all areas of the shelter, from mobile adoption events to pet therapy and dog walking.
The $30 orientation fee covers the cost of handouts and an ADL volunteer tee shirt, along with any incidental expenses incurred by the program.
Foster Program
Our foster program is key to the success of saving as many furry lives as we can. Moving animals into foster homes not only makes their lives better, it also saves the lives of those who take their place.
Humane Education
We're committed to educating the community about being responsible pet owners and proper pet care. We encourage any school to schedule a humane education program with the Animal Defense League of Texas.
Free Pet Vaccination & Microchip Events
The Animal Defense League of Texas and San Antonio Animal Care Services host a pet vaccination and microchip event twice a month. All services are free for San Antonio residents with proof of residency. These events are hosted in targeted neighborhoods that have historically been under-sourced for veterinary services as we aim to ensure the pets in our communities are receiving the essential care for a happy, healthy life.
Seniors for Seniors
The Seniors for Seniors program places senior cats and dogs (typically over 7 years of age) with senior citizens who are 60 years of age or older, allowing participants to discover the joys of having a cat or dog in their lives.
Where we work
Awards
External reviews
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of animal adoptions
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Ethnic and racial groups, Social and economic status, Domestic workers, Military personnel, Retired people
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of new donors
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Children and youth
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This number reflects the number of first-time donors in that year. ADL saw huge growth in new donors in large part due to the response to Hurricane Harvey.
Number of overall donors
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Ethnic and racial groups, Family relationships, Social and economic status, Work status and occupations
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This number reflects the amount of total donors who gave greater than $0 that year. This growth in overall donors is due in large part to the response to Hurricane Harvey.
Average number of days of shelter stay for animals
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Children and youth
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of animals rescued
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Children and youth
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Total intake for the year.
Number of animals spayed and neutered
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Children and youth
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
1. ADL's goal is to be the most effective, creative and impactful shelter in San Antonio, fully contributing to a sustainable future as a no-kill city.
2. Embrace the importance of the pet/human bond offering alternatives to pet surrender through accessible training support and veterinary services.
3. Eliminate the cycle of pet overpopulation through education on all levels.
4. Develop unique partnerships to increase our effectiveness as a shelter.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
1. In 2018 ADL's goal is rescue and find homes for 5,900 homeless, abandoned and abused cats and dogs in our community. Nearly 5,000 of those pets will be rescued directly from the City of San Antonio's Animal Care Services and placed in our Community Shelter Kennels and Puppy Building, built specifically to rescue and house more dogs from ACS' euthanasia lists.
2. ADL will offer low-cost Wellness Clinics to provide low-cost vaccinations and basic pet care to the public to increase pet retention and decrease pet abandonment.
3. ADL will continue to develop key partnerships to increase adoptions in 2018 to 5,900.
4. ADL will continue to run a second permanent adoption location in 2018 - the Paul Jolly Center for Pet Adoptions - to increase adoptions and public access to our pets.
5. ADL will continue to strengthen our relationships with the staff at Animal Care Services to maintain our designation as one of the largest high-volume pet partners. This will be achieved through increased communication about specific pet needs, increased pick-up visits and by maintaining experienced Animal Defense League staff who are connected and informed about the rescue process and needs at Animal Care Services.
6. ADL will continue to support our trainer and the training programs for both our shelter residents and owned pets. The training provided for shelter pets increases their adoptability and provides the best shelter environment possible, based on each pet's individual needs. Access to a professional trainer for pet owners, both ADL adopters and the public, provides low-cost or free assistance to help increase pet retention, assist with problem/resolution and provides the owner an alternative to pet surrender or abandonment.
7. ADL will develop creative volunteer and foster programs that allow our volunteers to have more impact on our rescued pets and their adoptability.
8. Participate in humane education partnerships and programs both on and off campus.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
ADL has a dedicated, focused team that continually strategizes on resource use, partnerships, community impact and sustainability, that includes our Board of Directors, staff, and volunteers.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
We have made significant strides to increase adoptions and rescue more homeless pets in 2018 by increasing key partnerships. We will continue to develop resources and creative partnering to make an even larger imprint on community impact and sustain San Antonio's future as a "no-kill" city.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Animal Defense League of Texas
Board of directorsas of 02/28/2024
Mr. Alan Hepp
James D. Odell
James D. Odell CPA
Alan Hepp
Valero Energy Corp
Amber Ramsey
Ramsey Law
Bodo Knochenauer
Wells Fargo
Gretchen Garceau-Kragh
Cece Given
Pamela McCray
Victoria Beavers
Linda Mora
Martha Mitchell
Mari Baker
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Not applicable
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 02/02/2023GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.