Denver Dumb Friends League

Denver Dumb Friends League
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What Do You Know About This Extraordinary Organization?
f you’ve lived in the Denver area for more than a few months, the name Dumb
Friends League is surely familiar to you. Most people know that they have an
animal shelter, but there is so much more to their story. The Denver Dumb Friends
League was founded in 1910 and today, it is the largest animal welfare organization in
the Rocky Mountain Region.
If you haven’t been by the Castle Rock Buddy Center or the Central Denver shelter,
you can’t truly imagine the size and scope of their operation. No animal in need is ever
turned away. So how many animals are we talking about and what services do they
provide?
2007 HIGHLIGHTS
Lost and abandoned pets received
26,567
Animals adopted
15,181
Pets reunited with their owners
2,817
Dogs & cats received from other shelters 2,714
Pets nurtured in foster care
3,535
Pets placed with breed-specific rescue groups 284
Rehabilitated timid or unsocialized pets
1,042
Animals spayed or neutered prior to adoption
8,040
Investigated cases of animal cruelty
1,461
Dumb Friends League’s placement rate for healthy animals is 99%. It’s amazing to
see what lengths the staff and numerous volunteers go to in order to help animals find
good homes. There are two programs of note to help more difficult pets. The Head Start
program teaches more challenging dogs to sit, stay and follow basic commands and the
Canine Courage program is for unsocialized, timid or fearful dogs. Of the 1,042 dogs
enrolled in Canine Courage last year, 844 of them were subsequently adopted.
How Do They Do It?
To accomplish the job at hand, Dumb Friends League relies on donations to meet their
$12 million annual budget. The organization spends almost $18,000 per day on direct
animal care. They have six veterinarians on staff and many interns and veterinary
students who help with medical procedures. In addition, it takes 163 employees and 597
volunteers. The volunteers last year gave 152,303 hours of service. All of this to care for
the animals and find them kind and loving homes.
Dumb Friends Leagues shelters are the nicest we’ve seen. Their facilities are sparkling
clean, cheerful, friendly and inviting. Most surprising were the number of truly beautiful
animals, both purebred and mixed breeds. The annual Furry Scurry in May raised a
record $725,000 for the animals. Upcoming Dumb Friends League events include Lulu’s
Barkin BBQ in August and the Wag ‘n Trail event in September. The dogs featured on
these pages are currently adoptable. For more information on adopting, volunteering,
fostering, donating and fundraising events, visit ddfl.org or call 303-751-5772.