Founded in 2010 by a group of animal advocates who had a passion for animal welfare, Companion Animal Alliance (CAA) was born from a simple but urgent goal: To increase the save rate of animals in the community. At the time, about 20 percent of animals entering the shelter system were being saved. Fast forward to today, and that number has increased to around 80 percent, thanks to the dedication of the organization’s members
and volunteers.
As CAA’s mission has evolved, its focus has shifted to decreasing the number of animals coming into the shelter by providing resources to pet owners, treating animals humanely while in CAA’s care, returning animals to their owners, and expanding spay/neuter opportunities for the animals in the area.
INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS
CAA stands out as one of the largest animal welfare organizations by intake. Jen Hollas, CAA’s Communications and Events Senior Manager, shares, “We actually get in about 9,000 animals per year. That includes cats, dogs, small mammals, livestock, even wildlife. So I think it’s about double what other organizations get in.”
Along with being able to take in so many animals, CAA provides an assortment of programs that are open to the community. Hollas explains, “We have an award-winning Pets for Life program, which helps pet owners keep their pets, reunites pets with owners, and helps provide those resources. We have a big volunteer and foster program. Our shelter absolutely could not operate without them. We offer several different volunteer opportunities for elementary school-aged kids where they make treats and toys for the animals, along with graduate and post-graduate opportunities. We partner with LSU, and we have vet students come over on rotation every two weeks to help out with our vet staff here.”
The Date-a-Dog Program is a favorite among many, especially college students. This program allows shelter dogs to be “checked out” for the day. “We’ve had people just hang out with the dogs at their homes, take them to get pup cups, and walk around the lakes. That’s super popular for people that maybe can’t own a dog right now, but still want to have that experience of having one,” explains Hollas.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Promoting spay and neuter remains a top priority, especially in the wake of COVID-19, which caused significant backlogs. CAA offers low-cost and free spay/neuter services to help address this challenge.
The organization also hosts a summer camp for kids ages 7–11, teaching future generations how to responsibly care for animals. “We really focus on humane education and kind of starting with the next generation and promoting responsible pet ownership, promoting spay/neuter, and teaching them how to properly treat an animal and how to care for an animal,” says Hollas.
Throughout the month, CAA will host off-site adoption events at PetSmart on Millerville, pet food giveaways, vaccine clinics, and spay/neuter outreach. Just recently, they celebrated a milestone—performing their first puppy neuter in their mobile vet clinic.
HOW TO HELP
Whether you’re ready to adopt, foster, or simply share one of CAA’s social media posts, every little bit helps with increasing visibility for the organization. Hollas shares, “I always say that advocating is the easiest and best thing that you can do for us. Even just sharing a post on social media or word of mouth by talking about us, anything like that is going to help.”
By helping spread the word, families and individuals can all play a vital role in helping CAA continue its mission. For more information, visit caabr.org.
