[UPDATED, 5/8/25] Charleston animal welfare activists this week reached a milestone they’ve dreamed of for more than a decade — saving 90% of shelter animals in the state from euthanized death.
“Over the course of nine years, more than 892,000 pets were given a second chance at life, demonstrating the incredible impact of statewide collaboration” by shelters and animal organizations across South Carolina, said Abigail Appleton, chief project officer of No Kill South Carolina (NKSC). It grew out of an initiative spearheaded by the Charleston Animal Society (CAS) a dozen years ago and funded through major support by Petco Love.
In recognition of the accomplishment announced at a Thursday press conference, Gov. Henry McMaster proclaimed May 8 as “No Kill South Carolina Day.” While he and other federal leaders offered congratulatory video messages, S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson attended the Thursday event “to address animal cruelty in our state and how we can move up from being perennially in the bottom tier of state animal protection laws,” according to CAS President and CEO Joe Elmore.
“The pinnacle of our 150th anniversary year [at CAS] was achieving this historic milestone,” Elmore said. “As our lifesaving commitment continues for the next 150 years, we encourage every South Carolinian to continue supporting their local shelters, adopting pets in need and advocating for policies that protect animals, including adequate funding.”
During a luncheon at Trident Technical College, Elmore added, “”This is a monumental achievement, particularly for a state in the Deep South, which we really thought impossible. There are definitely pockets in the state that are not there yet. … it inspires us to continue to build on this, because there are others that we just can’t leave behind in our state.”
In 2013, the animal society built the first “no kill” community in the Southeast, Elmore said. Two years later, it announced NKSC as a statewide initiative and launched it the following year.
“We set a benchmark called the NKSC Lifesaving Rate of 90% to be reached by organizations working together to collectively reach it,” Elmore recalled. “We framed this as a community-centric goal, not organization-centric, as all issues — homelessness, poverty, violence, et cetera — are community-based, not centered around organizations. We do not use the terminology of ‘no kill shelter’ for this reason.”
Animal welfare advocates said improving efforts to save animals has continuing challenges. To keep cats out of shelters, for example, communities need to expand spay-and-neuter programs. Dogs in shelters face rising veterinary costs and behavioral rehabilitation issues. There also are continuing funding issues as well as veterinary shortages in the United States, which makes a newly-funded veterinary school at Clemson University helpful in South Carolina.
Help keep the City Paper free.
No paywalls.
No subscription cost.
Free delivery at 800 locations.
Help support independent journalism by donating today.