Help Heart and Soul Animal Sanctuary Save Lives

Hi! My name is Julia, and I’ve volunteered at the Heart and Soul Animal Sanctuary, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, since 2018. Read on to learn about what the sanctuary does, why we urgently need your support, and the lives we will save by reaching our goal.

GOAL

My goal is to raise $5,000 in one month, starting on August 13th, to support the sanctuary’s dog rescue and adoption efforts and more. I created this campaign to surprise Heart and Soul’s founder and director, Natalie Owings, who works around the clock to fulfill the sanctuary's mission. Heart and Soul immeasurably improves the lives of animals and people alike. Their philosophy is about more than saving lives—it’s about providing the highest-quality animal welfare with kindness, compassion, and care.

A rescued puppy at the sanctuary, July 2022.

Heart and Soul's commitment to quality care is more than admirable; it is deeply needed—and it requires hard work and resources.

NEED & IMPACT

As demonstrated by its 25-year successful track record as an IRS-certified 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Heart and Soul is able to accomplish a great deal on a limited budget thanks to a small group of energetic and committed staff and volunteers, led by Natalie. Today, in addition to already steep costs associated with the high-level care and results that the sanctuary is committed to providing, dramatic inflation is affecting all areas of the work—veterinary bills, transportation, medication, food supplies, and more. The cost of saving lives is rising, and the animals need your help.

Although most puppies arrive emaciated, they are well fed and cared for at the sanctuary.

New Mexico has some of the highest euthanasia rates in the United States, in part due to overcrowded shelters. Thankfully, Heart and Soul saves between 200 and 300 adoptable dogs from euthanasia each year through our Colorado program alone. By donating to this campaign, you are saving animals' lives and uniting hundreds of human families with their new best friends.

Every single dollar we raise will go toward fulfilling the mission of the Heart and Soul Animal Sanctuary.

Here are just some of the ways your support has impact:

Adoption: We save the lives of hundreds of adoptable dogs and other species of animals per year by coordinating adoptions through safe, vetted sources when shelters or individuals cannot accommodate them. (The humans who adopt say this saves their lives, too!)

Rescue: Without the sanctuary’s decades-long reputation as a credible, blue-chip institution prioritizing the highest quality care possible for all animals, we would not be able to save hundreds of adoptable dogs from euthanasia per year. Thankfully, shelters across the Southwest know they can reach out to Heart and Soul in hopes of saving the lives of adoptable dogs and other animals. Maintaining our relationships and coordinating rescue logistics requires resources, including for emergency cases that may arise at any time without notice.

Many of the puppies we rescue are so young that they require round-the-clock bottle feeding.

Engagement: To accomplish our goals, we need engaged networks. We keep in touch with our community of adopters, volunteers, supporters, and followers through monthly mailed newsletters and on social media. The costs of layout, printing, and distribution are essential to maintain our relationships with shelters and other community members. In turn, this helps us be among the first to know for spreading the word about adoption opportunities and other community-relevant news.

Facilities: Heart and Soul facilities include the Giant Dog House, the Stables, the Kitty/Cat Bunk Houses, the Goat and Llama Playground, the Chicken Coops, the Bunny Hutch, the Aviary, and the St. Francis Chapel.

Transportation: Resources are needed to cover the rising costs associated with fuel and travel, which are requisite for the trips to and from Colorado to save adoptable puppies who would otherwise be euthanized. The sanctuary also requires a financial cushion for emergency transportation needs, should they arise.

Healthcare: Vet bills: They aren’t cheap. Plus in-kind medical supplies and care that the sanctuary provides directly: Administering medications, tick and flea prevention, securing vaccinations, assessing and dressing wounds, coordinating socialization visits with humans—all this and more readies temporary sanctuary residents for adoption, and keeps lifelong residents healthy and comfortable.

Education: Coordinating multiple day-long school visits, community engagement, and student development opportunities, with all the associated expenses, including the maintenance of the grounds to ensure the health and safety of the animals and human visitors.

Community-building: We are grateful to our committed community of supporters—adopters, volunteers, staff, students, educators, biologists, and lifelong learners. Supporting this campaign helps us keep our communities in the know about sanctuary events, rescue missions, adoption opportunities and stories, and day-to-day operations.

BACKGROUND AND MISSION

The Heart and Soul Animal Sanctuary is a cornerstone of animal welfare and education located in Glorieta, New Mexico.

Visitors to the sanctuary are welcome.

Founded in 1997, Heart and Soul saves thousands of animals in the greater American Southwest each year by coordinating adoptions, rescues, and on-site care for dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, guinea pigs, hens, goats, llamas, horses, and more. The 150-acre tract of sanctuary land is protected to ensure that it is a hospitable place for native plants, insects, and other animals to flourish.

In one of the sanctuary's most high-volume, high-need initiatives, Heart and Soul links puppies who would otherwise perish in shelters or on the streets with their forever homes. This is a multi-step process: Thanks to the sanctuary’s long-established relationships with regional animal shelters and communities, overcrowded and understaffed shelters contact Heart and Soul when otherwise their only option would be euthanasia. Individuals also contact the sanctuary if they find puppies or adult dogs who have been abandoned, and large numbers of rescues and adoptions, both in and out of state, are successfully coordinated this way.

A puppy who found a forever home in Colorado thanks to the sanctuary.

Natalie and a small team of part-time staff welcome the puppies to the sanctuary and nurse them back to health. This is no easy feat: many of the puppies are so young that they require round-the-clock bottle feeding and/or medical treatment for viruses and other ailments or injuries. Natalie lives on the sanctuary’s grounds, so she is “in the field” with the animals 24/7. Cases requiring veterinary care are treated by Smith’s Veterinary Services, who we gratefully thank for their involvement. Thanks to Natalie and her small but mighty team of committed collaborators, the vast majority of the puppies are rehabilitated physically, socially, and emotionally. The sanctuary then coordinates the puppies’ safe and comfortable transportation to trusted partner organizations in high-population regions of Colorado, where they are quick to be adopted into their forever homes.

“On any given day, we care for 150 animals. Some are permanent residents, while others are recovering from illness or injury as they await adoption to a forever home. We rescue from animal control euthanasia lists, overcrowded shelters, and concerned citizens who find animals in dire circumstances—puppies tossed in dumpsters or abandoned in boxes, wounded strays, starving horses, and discarded farm animals.”

- www.heartandsoulnm.org.

In addition to providing essential care and rescue for animals, Heart and Soul offers one-of-a-kind education resources for humans. The sanctuary welcomes dozens of students per year for tours of the grounds. These fun, informative learning journeys engage students and inspire compassion and empathy while imparting practical knowledge about the natural world. Heart and Soul also provides workshops for all members of the general public. The most recent (hosted on-site on June 20th, 2022) was a free educational presentation by an expert biologist on the "Bats of New Mexico."

Everything the sanctuary does honors its mission and philosophy : “Every single day, we do everything we can to ensure that the animals both temporarily and permanently in our care are living their best lives possible.”

THANK YOU FOR JOINING THIS CAMPAIGN AND SAVING LIVES!

Don't forget: Heart and Soul is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so your donation is tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.