Animal Protection Society of Durham

Came to look and possibly arrange to meet a foster. Ended up coming home with the sweetest dog. The humans are so helpful. We were even allowed to see how our adoptee would do with a cat.

They are swimming in kittens as of July 2022. The kitty room was such a treat full of playful babies.

They can definitely use your support with donations and extra food and treats. Such a worthwhile place to help.

We've adopted 2 dogs from here over the last 3 years. The staff and volunteers are very friendly and helpful. The visit to the shelter is comfortable and easy to meet the available dogs and cats. We moved out of Durham but returned to adopt from aps because they do a great job.

Thank you Dr. Neiman for being so kind and gentle with my little puppy Maxie today. Taking her to get spayed has been stressful for me but your compassion definitely helped ease the process! She’s resting now all cuddled up 🙏❤️

They were awesome when we wanted to adopt a local stray who was technically owned by a neighbor. They waived the adoption fee since we had already provided vet care and had been caring for her for a bit. They made it easy to make it official and now we have our sweet girl!

Great animal shelter—staff are friendly, caring and patient. I found my two lovely pups at Durham APS. They were already fixed, partially vaccinated, and the price was still unbelievably low for adoption (around $75 each, I believe). They even gave me a metal name tag engraved with name and phone number, a collar, leash, and, for the toy breed, a small kennel. Those Accessories alone approached or exceeded the adoption cost!

I also appreciated the background check they performed before authorizing adoption. They required me to provide a landlord’s phone number, who they called to ask not just that housing a dog was permissible, but to ask about the space itself, and whether there was any indication that I had habits, work, or behavior that would interfere with proper care of a pup. Even given the mass excess of sheltered dogs, I valued APS’s thoughtful inquiry—it’s better to prevent an adoption that would be short-lived (or worse, unsuitable for the particular dog or breed).

Reflecting on how many Costs the shelter covered rather than shifting to me, I felt I had severely underpaid. I took 5 minutes to organize a Facebook Fundraiser, and the $540 goal was met within a week. I respect APS’s decision to keep the price low—is great to promote adoptions (granted that the adopter is thoughtful and prepared to keep the pet). Also, volunteer labor sustains a good portion of their work. So, donations allow APS to keep housing strays, fixing those strays to control overpopulation, completing early vaccinations, flea
Treatment, or other medical issues. Just by fixing the dogs that come in, APS is preventing more strays on the roads or shelters reaching capacity.

Don’t think for a second that the dogs at the shelter are second-class, exclusively older dogs, or only breeds that have “aggressive” instincts—in fact, the pups I adopted happened to be breeds far different than what I had guessed, both were puppies. One is a lab Dalmatian, who grew from 5 to a present 65 pounds. The other is a pomerian/papillon mix. I had guessed their breeds as cattle dog and lab, respectively (not that I cared), and I was way off point. It was, frankly, hard to choose among all the lovely dogs there—diverse breeds, many young dogs, many sweet adult dogs :/

As in many shelters, the pitbull breeds have tended to make up a sizable Proportion of dogs there—sadly, the harsh “no pitbull/pit Bull mix” policy in many apartments likely plays a role in sustaining an unfair stereotype about certain breeds’ proclivity for aggression.

So check it out for yourself! Or consider donating, volunteering, or recommending APS to your coworker, friend, or family member who is on the search for a furry friend :)