Serving Barnwell County and its neighbors since 1852
Best Friends Animal Society grant recognizes Barnwell County Animal Shelter for increasing lifesaving pet transports and adoptions through Partner Up Challenge
Barnwell, SC June 2, 2025 ─ Barnwell County Animal Shelter was recently awarded a $7,500 grant from Best Friends Animal Society, a leading national animal welfare organization working to end the killing of cats and dogs in America’s shelters.
The grant recognizes Barnwell County Animal Shelter’s efforts to increase pet transports and adoptions through the Best Friends Partner Up Challenge — a nationwide initiative designed to build lifesaving momentum by strengthening collaboration between shelters and rescue groups to help place more pets in loving homes.
The Partner Up Challenge ran from April 1-30, 2025. Over 160 organizations participated, leading to over 2,100 animals positively impacted across the country.
“Through the Partner Up Challenge, we built and strengthened our partnerships with Home for Good Dog Rescue, Animal Advocates Rescue, Pawsitive Connections Rescue, held a successful adoption event, and were able to get 48 dogs and one cat into homes while creating more space for pets in need,” said Marlena Ray. “We were honored to be chosen to participate in the challenge, and for Best Friends’ support in amplifying our transfers and lifesaving. Being awarded this grant means we can save even more of our community’s homeless pets and keep the momentum going!”
A pet is “transferred” when they are moved from a shelter facing capacity issues to another shelter or rescue group that has the space and resources to help them get adopted. Transfer partnerships are critical to lifesaving and play an important role in reaching no-kill. Best Friends works with shelters and rescues across the country to improve partnerships and increase transfers.
“No-kill is all about working together, and Barnwell County Animal Shelter and the other Partner Up Challenge participants really came together to save the cats and dogs of Barnwell County,” said Whitney Bollinger, Director of Strategy & Network Operations, Best Friends Animal Society. “We are thrilled to recognize Barnwell County’s important lifesaving work with a grant that recognizes the value of collaboration and will help more cats and dogs get into homes.”
Our Mission Statement Is to work with county law enforcement offices to provide assistance for abandoned, abused, unwanted, and neglected animals; to ensure that these animals reside in an environment that provides protection, love, activity, and nourishment; and to place these animals in caring, loving homes where they can lead productive lives.
About Best Friends Animal Society
Best Friends Animal Society is a leading animal welfare organization dedicated to saving the lives of dogs and cats in America's shelters and making the entire country no-kill. Founded in 1984, Best Friends runs lifesaving facilities and programs nationwide in partnership with more than 5,000 shelters and rescue organizations. From our headquarters in Kanab, Utah, we also operate the nation's largest no-kill animal sanctuary — a destination that brings our mission to life for thousands of visitors each year. We maintain the most comprehensive animal sheltering data in the country and make it accessible to the public — empowering communities with critical insights into the needs of their local shelters and how they can help. We believe every dog and cat deserves a home. And we believe that, by working together, we can Save Them All®.
