Front Street Shelter Transformation Means Dramatic Decrease In Kills

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Sacramento's Front Street Shelter has seen a dramatic drop in kill rates in the past four years, so how are they doing it?

Every animal is worth saving—that's the motto at the shelter.

Public Relations Coordinator Bobby Mann is one of several staffers who have helped turn the shelter around in just a few short years.

"In December of 2010, we had a save rate of 19 percent, which is unacceptable for any community," he said.

Three years later, that number jumped to more than 88 percent of the animals that came through the shelter.

Mann says it starts with perception. They've switched up the marketing and even the name to Front Street Animal Shelter.

They've made new partnerships with other shelters, sometimes even flying animals out of state for rescue.

And you'll see volunteers like Peggy Coppin at offsite adoption events.

"It's such a great opportunity to educate the public," she said. "They still think of, as I did, 'the pound.'"

Front Street's Facebook page gets about a million people viewing it a week. Its newest campaign uses T-shirt sales to fund pet responsibility camps for kids.

"Our long-term goals are to educate the future pet owners of Sacramento, so that we have fewer animals coming in," Mann said.

And with fewer animals coming in, fewer are euthanized.

"We unfortunately are not yet saving them all, but we are for sure planning on it," he said.