Emergency Immediate Relief Fund For Animals

With the assistance of the State Department of Agriculture, this innovative program first began in Missouri in 1997 and has since been established to help animals in other states. The state's Director of Agriculture is able to access the fund at the request of animal health officers who are state employees. Because less is spent on administrative costs, a greater percentage of every dollar is used to care for the animal. Those who contributed, the states that have utilized this fund and the American Animal Welfare Society, view these occasions as a win-win situation where the animals are the big winners.

This fund is established for the immediate and timely relief of animal suffering. It is for the purpose of providing a quick and temporary fund from which to draw when local officials, local options, other state options and humane organizations have been unable to respond to the immediate need of the animal. It shall be used for temporarily providing relief such as food, water, shelter, vet care, transportation, humane euthanasia, or other relief which the Director of Agriculture deems necessary and in his or her judgment, could be accomplished by the immediate use of this fund.

In cases where funds are available from other sources but cannot be accessed immediately, monies from the fund can be used if provision is made to replace the monies into the fund.

Wherever the fund is used and any costs are recovered by sale of animals, contributions to the animals or any legal remedy, those monies up to an equal amount of those withdrawn from this fund will be replaced in the fund.

The Director of the Department of Agriculture shall administer this fund within these established guidelines. The fund will accept monies from any interested source and use them within these established guidelines.

If your state has not yet established an immediate relief fund for animals please have your regulators contact us for assistance.