Humane Society of Huron Valley is an independent animal welfare

Animal welfare

Animal welfare is the physical and psychological well-being of animals.The term animal welfare can also mean human concern for animal welfare or a position in a debate on animal ethics and animal rights...

 organization located in Ann Arbor, MI. The organization was formed in 1896, and opened a shelter on Cherry Hill Road in 1951.

Goals

The HSHV attempts to reduce the over-population of pets, and to provide education and outreach to the community. Another main goal of the HSHV is to stop animal cruelty. The shelter facility cares for lost, stray, and injured animals, as well as animals surrendered by their owners.

Services

HSHV offers adoption services, a full service veterinary clinic open to the public, animal rescue, and investigates animal cruelty in Washtenaw County. http://www.hshv.org/about.htm

Animal Shelter

The animal shelter of HSHV provides care to homeless animals from Washtenaw County. In 2010, HSHV took in 6,100 dogs, cats, and other companion animals, of which 820 were returned to their owners, and over 4,100 were adopted out or transferred to other animal rescue organizations. According to the Asilomar Accords this gives them a live release rate or "save rate" of 81.3%.

HSHV is considered an "open admissions shelter", meaning they do not turn away animals from within their service area. In addition to accepting animals from the public, the Humane Society of Huron Valley, also known as HSHV, serves as the stray holding facility for Washtenaw County

Washtenaw County, Michigan

Washtenaw County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 344,791. Its county seat is Ann Arbor. The United States Office of Management and Budget defines the county as part of the Detroit–Warren–Flint Combined Statistical Area...

, Canton, Michigan, and Plymouth, Michigan

Plymouth, Michigan

Plymouth is a city in Wayne County of the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 9,132 at the 2010 census. The City of Plymouth is an enclave completely surrounded by Plymouth Charter Township, Michigan.-Geography:...

http://www.ewashtenaw.org/government/boc/agenda/wm/year_2007/2007-06-20wm/2007-06-20wm18.pdf. There are prevention measures in place to try to keep pets with their owners, such as a behavior helpline, a Safe Harbor program for pet owners in a temporary housing crisis, and a supplemental pet food program called Bountiful Bowls.

Veterinary Clinic

The veterinary clinic at HSHV is a full-service clinic open to the public. The clinic is staffed with 6 veterinarians, including vets who specialize in surgery, exotic pets, and small domestic pets. They offer low-cost spay and neuter services and have periodic low-cost vaccination clinics.

The New Shelter

HSHV's new building opened at the Cherry Hill Road location on October 28, 2009, after a closure of a few days to facilitate moving the animals from the old shelter to the new one. The fifty-year-old facility was outdated and in poor condition. After a three-year capital campaign, including a construction bond from Washtenaw County, and donations from private individuals, HSHV raised all but $850,000 of the $8.6 million needed to construct the new state-of-the-art facility. Since its opening, adoptions have gone up 29%.

Affiliation with Other Organizations

The Humane Society of Huron Valley is an entirely independent agency that receives neither funds nor directives from any other organization, including the Michigan Humane Society

Michigan Humane Society

The Michigan Humane Society is a private, non-profit organization providing animal welfare and sheltering services to the metropolitan Detroit area...

 or the Humane Society of the United States

Humane Society of the United States

The Humane Society of the United States , based in Washington, D.C., is the largest animal advocacy organization in the world. In 2009, HSUS reported assets of over US$160 million....

. HSUS has a "long-standing tradition" of leaving day-to-day shelter operations to local entities.