Dear Friends,
As 2025 moves into our rearview mirror and we look ahead to a new year filled with both promise and uncertainty, I want to pause and offer my deepest gratitude to you—our community, our partners, and our champions for animals.
Because of you—our dedicated staff, volunteers, foster families, rescue partners, donors, and supporters—Halifax Humane Society continued to show up for animals and the people who love them, even in a year marked by significant change and challenge. Your belief in our mission and your willingness to stand alongside us made an extraordinary difference.
Together, This Year We Accomplished:
- 10,945 animals received direct care through our programs
- 8,150 dogs or cats spayed or neutered by our expert veterinarians
- 3,936 pets adopted into loving homes or transferred to rescue partners
- 12-day average length of stay for dogs, decreasing from 23 days last year
- 90% overall live release rate, reflecting our shared commitment to lifesaving
- 14,968 volunteer hours donated by community members
- 1,127 traditional foster placements, including emergency and short-term support
Impact You Helped Create
10,945 Animals Cared For
8,150 Spay and Neuter Surgeries
3,936 Pets Adopted or Transferred
12-Day Average Dog Stay
90% Live Release Rate
14,968 Volunteer Hours Donated
1,127 Foster Placements Provided
Behind every number is a living story—an animal who found safety, a family who stayed together during a difficult time, a volunteer who stepped forward, or a staff member who went above and beyond. These outcomes did not happen by chance. They are the result of collaboration, innovation, problem-solving, and a shared commitment to serving both animals and the people who care for them.
As we move into 2026, Halifax Humane Society—like many social service organizations—is entering a more precarious environment. We anticipate a year shaped by financial pressure and operational strain, even as the need for our work continues to grow.
Specifically, we anticipate:
- An increase in animals entering the system of care as human services and other safety-net programs face reductions or elimination
- Greater demand for Pet Safe resources, including pet food assistance, crisis housing response, and access to veterinary care
- Ongoing workforce challenges to hire, train, and retain the best and brightest people to champion animal lifesaving
- Rising operational costs related to salaries, supplies, utilities, and contracted services
- An uncertain economic climate that challenges even our strongest fundraising efforts
These realities are sobering—but they do not deter us.
For Halifax Humane Society, every challenge is filtered through a single, unwavering lens: how to help and heal the most animals possible while achieving the best outcomes for them and the people who love them. We will steward our limited resources strategically, transparently, and with accountability. We will continue expanding direct-care and prevention programs wherever possible—working upstream to keep pets with their families and out of the shelter system.
Above all, we remain profoundly grateful for the trust this community places in us. The work ahead will require continued partnership, flexibility, and shared responsibility—but I am confident that together, we will meet this moment with resolve.
Thank you for standing with Halifax Humane Society. Thank you for believing in compassionate, thoughtful, and lifesaving solutions. And thank you for walking beside us into the new year with caring, compassion, and hope.
With sincere appreciation,
Sean
