A: Our adoption fees vary depending on the age of the animal. All our adoption fees include age-appropriate vet care, including spay/neuter surgery for all dogs over 6 months of age, DHLPP shots, rabies shots, and de-worming. All cats are spayed/neutered before adoption.

A: The Alternative Humane Society was started in 1977 as an “alternative” to the Humane Society. We are an all-volunteer organization. We have never had a shelter, an office, or any paid staff. The majority of our work is done from volunteers’ homes. AHS runs a limited admission foster program for dogs and cats. The number of animals we accept is determined by the number of foster homes we have. Once we take in an animal, we keep it for as long as it takes to find it a home.

The Whatcom Humane Society (WHS) is an open admission shelter with contracts with the City and County that obligate them to take in any animals that are brought to them. Until the problem of animal over-population is solved, WHS inevitably gets overcrowded and when the shelter gets too full, some animals have to be euthanized. While AHS is different from WHS, we have the same purpose of helping homeless companion animals. All rescue organizations, whether they euthanize or not, are part of the bigger picture and we recognize that there are simply too many unwanted cats and dogs and not enough good homes for all of them. The real solution is to reduce the number of kittens and puppies born each year by spaying and neutering our pets.

A: Our Tax ID Number is 91-1551706

A: Our goal is to end the euthanasia of healthy, adoptable animals in our lifetime. We do not endorse the use of the term “no kill” because it implies that someone is “killing,” and that is not a useful mindset. The answer to this tragedy is not to diminish or demean the incredibly hard and important work others do through degrading language, but rather for all of us to work together to help reduce the animal population. We do this through ambitious spay/neuter programs and with improving operations to be able to take in more animals.

AHS teams do all the work to keep AHS going and growing. To learn more about our volunteer opportunities and events, call our hotline, 360-671-7445, to schedule a conversation and volunteer orientation. You can fill out a volunteer application online too.

A: All the animals in our care are in foster homes throughout Whatcom County. You can meet many of our adoptable animals at our adoption events. Appointments can also be made to meet an animal in their foster home.