Oxford Animal Resource Center Reached/Maintained No-Kill in 2022

The Oxford Animal Resource Center, Oxford’s municipal animal shelter, reached/maintained “no-kill” status in 2022, according to Best Friends Animal Society’s annual data report.

This means the shelter saved more than 90% of the dogs and cats that entered the shelter last year.

“Receiving no-kill status is a huge accomplishment, especially since 2022 was our first full year of operation,” said OARC’s director, Kelli Briscoe. “To our facility, it means that hard work and dedication to our animals’ physical and mental health were successful.”

Briscoe said animals coming into OARC do not just sit and wait for a new home.

“Enrichment for shelter animals is huge while they are waiting for an adoption, and we strive for them to be as mentally enriched as possible, thus resulting in successful adoptions,” she said. “We rely on our community volunteers to short- and long-term foster so we can continue to help as many animals as possible.”

When the OARC became a municipal department of the city of Oxford in the summer of 2021, the goal was to have a resource center that strived consistently to obtain no-kill status.

“Since we have been established, our goal has been to increase positive public perception through education and animal welfare advocacy,” Briscoe said.

In 2022, OARC’s save rate was 96%.

Best Friends Animal Society, a leading national animal welfare organization dedicated to ending the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters by 2025, recognizes this achievement as a positive step forward and one that can be replicated by other shelters.

A 90-percent save rate is a nationally recognized benchmark to be considered “no-kill,” factoring that approximately 10 percent of pets who enter shelters have medical or behavioral circumstances that warrant humane euthanasia rather than killing for lack of space.

“It is Oxford Animal Resource Center’s mission to provide ethical and humane care for animals while prioritizing live outcomes,” Briscoe said. “Our primary goal is to promote quality care and compassion through education, protection, and community outreach.”

To learn more about the Oxford Animal Resource Center, visit www.oxfordarc.org.