Wyoming becomes the sixth state to be declared "No-Kill" by Best Friends Animal Society. Their definition of a no-kill state is, "every shelter in the state saved 90% or greater of the pets in its care for 12-consecutive months." 

This is a huge win for shelter animals who will get a chance to find a loving home, no matter how long it takes. Best Friends Animal Society's goal is that every state becomes no-kill to save as many lives as possible.

Delaware, Idaho, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont are the other elite no-kill states. 

“Wyoming reaching no-kill shows what’s possible when community members, alongside animal shelters and rescue groups, work together to save the pets lives,” Julie Castle, CEO, Best Friends Animal Society states in a press release announcing the good news. “Today, Best Friends Animal Society celebrates Wyoming’s achievement and encourages every community across the country to continue working to bring about a time when no healthy, treatable pet in an animal shelter is unnecessarily killed.”

Apparently, Wyoming needed to save more cats to obtain the status of no-kill, so local shelters, rescues, and veterinarians worked together to find a way to help vulnerable or high-risk cats. A shoutout to a special-needs cat shelter called Second Chance Sheridan Cat Rescue that was vital in saving more lives. 

Castle went on to say, "Wyoming is an example of what saving every healthy or treatable pet can look like in rural and frontier areas. The state got here by understanding what its local communities needed and creating realistic options for those pets and residents."

The heartbreaking truth is that "a dog or cat is killed in America’s shelters every 90 seconds just because they don’t have a safe place to call home." Dogs and cats are our best friends and they all deserve a loving home, not a death sentence for lack of space. 

Learn how you can help save lives by adopting, fostering, volunteering, and being a voice for the voiceless. Check out where your state stands here. Together, we can save them all.