New Jersey close to becoming no-kill state of adoptable pets in shelters

CHERRY HILL, N.J. (WPHL) — More than 300 animal welfare advocates and community members met in Cherry Hill, N.J. for the “Bring No-Kill Home” Summit on Sunday, the second convention in a nationwide series hosted by Best Friends Animal Society, a national animal welfare organization.

Recent data collected by Best Friends shows New Jersey is on the cusp of achieving a no-kill designation with 89.5% of cats and dogs in shelters statewide saved. The Garden State is 0.5% short of the no-kill benchmark. This year, 1,600 pets need to be saved to make New Jersey a no-kill state. According to Best Friends Animal Society, nearly 95% of pets that are unnecessarily killed in New Jersey shelters are cats.

New Jersey continues to battle overcrowding in its animal shelters. Overcrowding is a nationwide trend that advocates believe stronger sterilization laws can help combat the problem. In the 2024 year-end report by Shelter Animal Count, 13,527 animal sheltering organizations were operating in the U.S. in 2024. The animal advocate group tracked 1,109 rescue organizations and 336 shelters in the Northeast region, which includes New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island. The Shelter Animal Count found that across the U.S., there was an uptick in shelter euthanasias amongst dogs from 9.2% in 2023 to 9.4% in 2024, and a slight decline in cat euthanasias from 8.3% in 2023 to 8.0% in 2024.

Best Friends defines “No-kill” as a state having a 90% save rate for animals entering a shelter. Typically, the number of pets who are suffering from irreparable medical or behavioral issues that compromise their quality of life and prevent them from being rehomed is not more than 10% of all dogs and cats entering shelters. For any community to be no-kill, all stakeholders in that community must work to achieve and sustain that common goal while prioritizing community safety and good quality of life for pets as guiding no-kill principles. This means cooperation among animal shelters, animal rescue groups, government agencies, community members and other stakeholders, all committed to best practices and protocols. 

Best Friends Animal Society is a leading animal welfare organization working to end the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters and make the country no-kill in 2025. Founded in 1984, Best Friends is a pioneer in the no-kill movement and has helped reduce the number of animals killed in shelters from an estimated 17 million per year to 415,000 last year. Best Friends runs lifesaving programs across the country, as well as the nation’s largest no-kill animal sanctuary. Working collaboratively with a network of more than 5,000 animal welfare and shelter partners, and community members nationwide, Best Friends is working to Save Them All®. For more information, visit bestfriends.org. 

For a list of animal shelters in New Jersey, CLICK HERE.