‘Never-ending’ need: No-kill pet rescue marks 30 years in Fort Lauderdale

Sue Hansen still thinks fondly of Polly, the “fattest beagle I have ever seen.”

In the early 2000s, a woman brought in Polly, a beagle that weighed well over 50 pounds, to Abandoned Pet Rescue in Fort Lauderdale. She wanted to surrender the dog because she was peeing everywhere. Staff suggested she bring Polly to a veterinarian, so she left in a huff. She tied Polly to a post outside the building instead.

Abandoned Pet Rescue staff and volunteers did what they have always done. Polly got medical care, including a diabetes diagnosis and insulin, toys to play with, volunteers to walk her and a safe place to sleep. Eventually, she dropped all the excess weight. Polly was never adopted and spent the rest of her days in the shelter’s front office.

“She sort of became our mascot,” said Hansen, the shelter’s treasurer and board member.

Polly’s story isn’t sad. It’s part of Abandoned Pet Rescue’s mission as the only no-kill shelter in Fort Lauderdale. The non-profit is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.

“It gives you a renewed sense of hope and humanity, that there are still places in the world where people just care for each other and for any living being,” Hansen said. “A very common comment that I get on the street is, ‘I don’t know how you can do that. I could never go to an animal shelter. It’s just so sad.’ And I say, ‘It’s not a sad place. Come visit. I promise you, you’re going to leave happy.’”

Since 1996, Abandoned Pet Rescue has gotten over 10,000 cats and dogs adopted. The shelter takes in about 350 animals each year, providing each one with medical attention, including spaying/neutering, vaccines, a microchip, testing for common illnesses, dewormer and flea and heartworm prevention. For an animal in basic health, that process costs about $485, which Abandoned Pet Rescue covers. It costs $65,000 a month to operate the shelter.

The need is “never ending,” said executive director Kara Starzyk. The shelter receives 30 calls and emails a day from people finding animals on the street or giving up their pets, which has become more common as South Floridians struggle with higher costs of living. Sometimes staff shows up to work and find cats left at the door. Space at the shelter, which houses 100 cats and 50 dogs, is limited.

Abandoned Pet Rescue commemorated its 30th anniversary last month with a fundraiser that raised $45,000. The shelter is planning a capital campaign in a few months to expand and modernize its pet clinic, which it has outgrown, Starzyk said.

“It’s not a fancy building. It’s old, it needs a lot of infrastructure repairs, but we keep it very clean and we’re constantly working on projects to improve the facilities,” she said. “But the majority of our money goes to caring for the animals.”

An increase in need

Hershey, a 14-year-old chihuahua, had loving owners who did not want to give her up. But after the death of a family member, they could no longer afford their housing. They had little choice but to bring Hershey to Abandoned Pet Rescue, where they knew she would not be killed and hopefully rehomed.

“One of the family members still texts me, ‘How’s she doing?’” Starzyk said. “I think it’s such a relief for her to know that she’s safe even though she’s a senior down here and that we will find her a good home.”

While animals find themselves at Abandoned Pet Rescue and other shelters for a variety of reasons, Starzyk said the shelter has seen an increase in pets who are surrendered by their owners simply because they can’t afford to take care of them anymore. There are expensive vet bills and pet fees at apartments. Since the pandemic, South Florida’s housing crisis has only exacerbated the issue at already overwhelmed animal shelters.

“It’s really causing hardship on families. They could barely feed themselves or take care of themselves. Sadly, a pet is frequently the first thing that they have to give up to survive,” Starzyk said. “That’s one thing that makes Abandoned Pet Rescue a safe place not only for animals, but for families as well. It’s peace of mind for them.”

Even popular, fashionable breeds are found alone in the streets of South Florida. There’s Noodle, a handsome goldendoodle who was recently found in Miami with his friend Coyote, a hound. There’s also Cashew, a 2-year-old French bulldog who was found “completely starved” on the street last year. Now, she’s happy, healthy and “can make someone very happy,” Starzyk said.

Cashew was the 24th French bulldog that the shelter has received since January 2024. That is likely because of over-breeding and a lack of education over the breed’s health issues, Starzyk said. Breeds like French bulldogs can cost thousands of dollars at a breeder, but Cashew can be adopted for just $150.

Other animals were rescued from cruel or unhealthy situations. Jordan, an energetic 2-year-old hound mix, was nursed back to health and properly trained at the shelter after he was found with a shock collar embedded into his neck over a year ago.

Just months ago, Abandoned Pet Rescue and other local animal shelters had to rescue 20 chihuahuas from a hoarding situation in which the dogs’ owner was about to be evicted from her home. Abandoned Pet Rescue took in six of the chihuahuas (who are all siblings and look alike) and got two adopted already. The shelter is adopting out the remaining chihuahuas (Fieto, Baby, Lola and Missy) in pairs.

“It’s a good example of the importance of spaying and neutering. One or two can lead to 20 very quickly,” Starzyk said.

Staff member Alexa Matos performed the well-choreographed dance of feeding the chihuahuas, quickly separating them to make sure everyone gets their own food.

“Chi-chis! Chi-chis!” Matos called to them. “It’s like a chihuahua rodeo.”

Going ‘the extra mile’ for 30 years

Before there was Abandoned Pet Rescue, Hansen said, it was just her and a friend trapping, spaying and neutering cats together.

Hansen and Kathleen Collette, a veterinarian, started a practice in Fort Lauderdale together. They got involved trapping the colony of feral cats living behind the strip mall the vet office was located in. Then, they expanded to dogs and other small creatures. In March 1996, Abandoned Pet Rescue was officially organized as a nonprofit. The group moved into its current building, an old veterinary hospital that was built by Collette’s uncle in the ‘50s, two years later.

Hansen, 78, the only original board member still serving, said that building was probably the biggest challenge Abandoned Pet Rescue has faced in its 30 years. The building was in such bad shape when the group moved in, she said, the roofer fell through the roof.

“We really walked into a huge mess,” Hansen said. “It was what we could afford, and we just built from the ground up and had all these wonderful volunteers that came in and got it together for us.”

The dedicated volunteers and staff at Abandoned Pet Rescue have been the key to the organization’s longevity, Hansen said. There are ways from people of all ages to volunteer, from young people walking dogs and cleaning kennels to retired folks playing with the cats inside. Some volunteers work with the nonprofit until they pass.

“It’s a passion of mine. I just love it. I always want to be involved in APR until the day I’m no longer here,” Hansen said. “It’s a community within a community. You just meet such wonderful people who are all trying to do the same thing, and you get to help a lot of animals.”

Starzyk said longtime volunteers like Dee McClintock, an 80-year-old who has worked with the organization for 18 years, are crucial to Abandoned Pet Rescue. McClintock said she’s stuck to her passion of trapping, neutering and taking care of cats for so long because the need is just so high.

“That’s what keeps you going,” she said. “Then you see the cruelty and the things that happen, and you just try to make the world a better place.”

Many volunteers and staff members are attracted to Abandoned Pet Rescue because of its no-kill policy, like Luna Carvajal, the cat adoption coordinator. Growing up with seven cats, 21-year-old Carvajal said she always wanted to work with animals professionally, but working at a kill shelter would break her heart. As soon as she turned 18, she googled “no-kill shelter” and found Abandoned Pet Rescue. Now she works with families to adopt cats, “which brings so much fulfillment,” she said.

The senior cats at the shelter are especially close to Carvajal’s heart, like Moo Moo, a senior cat around the same age as Carvajal’s oldest pet cat, Ana Banana. Moo Moo, one of Abandoned Pet Rescue’s longest residents, was finally adopted earlier this year.

“I’m a very small chapter of what has been such a huge, helpful organization. It feels very rewarding,” Carvajal said. “It’s a lot of hard work. It really takes a stab at your heart when you can’t help every animal that walks in, you can’t help every family that walks in. But we do such a big part.”

Abandoned Pet Rescue, 1137 NE Ninth Ave., Fort Lauderdale. Go to abandonedpetrescue.org for more information.