ARL’s community-based Healthy Moms, Happy Litters program provides care for parent pets and offspring The Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL) is ready to find homes for a trio of 5-month-old Pug puppies that came to the organization through an innovative community-based program aimed to promote spay/neuter and assist pets as well as the people who care for them. Healthy Moms, Happy Litters is a community-based program established in 2016, and provides complimentary assistance to local families and their pets in the event of an unplanned or unwanted litter. Two of the puppies at ARL through ..read more

Objective Provide animals with the highest standards of care to help them heal and thrive in their new homes. Vision in Action When Winter arrived at ARL, she was suffering from a broken leg. Our veterinary team assessed her injury and came up with a treatment plan based on her unique needs. The plan included amputation because the fracture was beyond repair. During the procedure, it was discovered that she was also missing a kidney! After her surgery, she faced a long road ahead to recovery. She needed round-the-clock care, including specialized veterinary treatment and other supplies to kee ..read more

Abandoned rabbits found Easter weekend The Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL) is currently caring for four injured, and abandoned rabbits that were found in a Northborough, MA, neighborhood on Easter weekend. The rabbits, all estimated to be about a year old, were discovered on Easter weekend on Shady Lane in Northborough, MA, and initially taken in by a wildlife rehabilitator. Northborough Animal Control contacted ARL seeking assistance with the animals, and the four rabbits were transported to ARL’s Boston Animal Care and Adoption Center. One of four rabbits found abandoned in Northboro ..read more

Puppy given second chance transported from overcrowded shelter in Mississippi A nine-week-old puppy is getting the second chance of finding the home and the life she deserves thanks to the Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL). Clementine, an adorable female lab-mix puppy, was found along with her sibling as strays in Mississippi, and while healthy overall, a ruptured corneal ulcer may have changed her outcome. Along with blindness, a corneal rupture causes severe pain and can also lead to infection if untreated. The best course of action for Clementine was to remove the eye, and after recoveri ..read more

Stray cat found huddling under parked car This past weekend, the Animal Rescue League of Boston’s (ARL) Field Services Department rescued a scared, cold, and rain-soaked stray cat found hiding under a car in the parking garage at Legacy Place, a busy shopping center in Dedham. A shopper spotted the male cat and contacted Dedham Animal Control and ARL, but also tried luring the cat from underneath the car with a can of tuna fish, but while the cat sniffed at the food he did not move from beneath the vehicle. Oskar taking it easy at ARL’s Dedham Animal Care and Adoption Center. Once on-scene ..read more

ARL celebrates 125th anniversary with Anna Harris Smith Day of Service On March 13, the Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL) marked a momentous milestone, celebrating its 125th anniversary. ARL held its first meeting in February 1899, but was officially incorporated on March 13, 1899. To celebrate the occasion, ARL honored its founder with the Anna Harris Smith Day of Service. The Day of Service included a number of community-based efforts to provide pet care and wellness services, staying true to Anna’s forward-thinking vision. ARL founder Anna Harris Smith, shown in 1913. ARL being hono ..read more

Community cats savvy at finding warm and safe spaces This past week the Animal Rescue League of Boston’s (ARL) Field Services Department rescued a community cat and her neonatal kittens who found themselves in a safe but precarious place – the ceiling of a New Bedford restaurant. ARL has not received permission from the establishment and will be omitting the name of the restaurant. According to staff and a local community cat feeder, the mom cat had shown up a couple of weeks earlier, however, concern began to grow once staff started to hear kittens mewing. Due to the concern, the establishmen ..read more

125 years ago, Anna Harris Smith, a social worker from Dorchester, was called to action after seeing the cruel mistreatment of Boston’s working horses and the number of stray and homeless animals. She advocated for a centrally located shelter to care for them and remarked, “while getting dogs and cats off the street is work worth doing, the teaching of thoughtful kindness is the work that changes families, communities, and a nation”. On March 13, 1899, thanks to Anna’s efforts, the Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL) was officially incorporated and began helping millions of animals heal, find ..read more

Stray puppy lucky to escape life-threatening circumstance The Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL) recently took in a 10-week-old stray puppy who is lucky to be alive after being found along a high-traffic area in Boston. The 10-week-old Chihuahua named Sparkle, was found this past week in the Neponset Circle area, along the on-ramp heading towards I-93. The Good Samaritan who rescued her had seen the dog in the area for several days, however, when the small dog wandered towards the busy roadway, her rescuer sprang into action to save the dog. Weighing just 3 pounds and being an all-black dog ..read more

ARL only large MA animal welfare agency with dedicated Community Cat program Following a record-setting 2023, the Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL) continues to see a dramatic increase in the intake of community cats. In 2023, ARL took in nearly 900 cats through the Community Cat Program, including more than 400 kittens, which is the highest number of cats to come in through the program since its inception in 2017. 2024 has already been extremely busy, as ARL took in 68 community cats, including 22 kittens, in January – a 75 percent increase over the first month of 2023. Lacey, a communi ..read more