Stumptown Strays

Mission

Stumptown Strays is committed to rescuing shelter dogs (and the occasional cat!) with treatable medical needs, providing lifesaving veterinary care, and aiding these dogs on their path to their forever homes.

According to the ASPCA, hundreds of thousands of dogs are euthanized in shelters annually. The high cost of surgery and medical care is a major contributor driving this statistic. Founded by veterinarians, Stumptown Strays partners with our local over-crowded animal shelters and rescues as well as other dog rescue organizations in Washington, California, and Texas, to take in dogs with treatable medical needs that may prevent them from ever making it out of the shelter. 

Once an animal has received and recovered from the medical treatment and surgeries we provide, we work in partnership with our foster families to match each dog with their forever families. We could not do this important and expensive work without your generous donations!

Bottom Line for Portland

Stumptown Strays works in partnership with Multnomah County Animal Shelter and Clackamas County Dog Services providing additional adoption services for stray dogs in the Portland area when they are severely over capacity or unable to provide a specific type of care. We alleviate stress on the local animal welfare system by transferring dogs from the shelter into our foster homes, providing necessary medical care, and finding forever homes.

Stumptown Strays also helps to lower the overpopulation of dogs and cats by ensuring our dogs are neutered/spayed before adoption or offering a partial refund of puppy adoption fees after neutering.

There are dogs in Portland metro that will never make it out of the shelter and into a family because of treatable medical needs that a typical busy shelter can’t afford to accommodate. The work that we do takes an “unadoptable dog” and makes them adoptable, helping people grow their family with a pet they never would have met otherwise.

Quote

“Love doing transport for Stumptown Strays!!!  Seeing these animals relax on the drive to Stumptown is great.  Some stay shy, some are quite curious.  The shelters that are transferring these animals for the medical care are so appreciative that this tiny rescue can help them make sure the animals that they cared for can receive needed medical care.  It is such a fun, positive experience to be able to help Stumptown in such a small way.  I get excited every time I see a Stumpie in their foster home and then get adopted into their forever home!” - Jan Meyer, Stumptown Strays Transport Volunteer

“Fostering is part of a tangible solution to the ongoing animal shelter crisis. Welcoming these vulnerable dogs into my heart and home, knowing that their chance at a better life is made possible through Stumptown Strays’ dedication and medical care, fills me with immense happiness and purpose.” -Sarah Wartooth, Stumptown Strays Foster, and Adopter

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

There are organizational and personal biases that exist in the animal welfare and adoption communities. Part of that is seen within the strict requirements and policies many animal rescues have for adoption. This places barriers and restricts people from adding a dog to a family on the basis of age, socioeconomic status, and education to name a few. To combat this, we have minimal adoption requirements up front and instead seek to match each dog to a person who understands any continuing medical needs of our dogs and will treat them like a loved member of their family. Additionally, we lower adoption fees (all the way to $0) for dogs with higher medical needs to remove one financial barrier that may exist.

Our leadership is 2/3 female and 1/3 LGBTQ+ and we seek out diversity training and ways that we can encourage active participation in the animal welfare community for BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and all other marginalized groups that have typically been left out of this space.

Incentives

Anyone, age 18 and up, who donates $100 to Stumptown Strays via Give!Guide will be entered into a drawing to win one tattoo by Alice Kendall owner of Wonderland Tattoo. The winning tattoo can be one of Alice's one-off designs or a simple custom piece in color or black & grey that can be completed in 3 hours, which is approx 6" in size. Placement can be arm, leg, or upper back/shoulder. Custom design limited to 3 elements in order to fit in the allotted time frame.

Partner(s)

We’re so thankful for Alternative Mornings w/ Greg and Biscuit at 94/7 FM for their support on air and on their social media platforms!