ABOUT THE HOWL-O-WALKOWEEN
Fundraisers like the Howl-o-Walkoween have been helping us on our mission to teach empathy, compassion and kindness to children in our community for more than 30 years. We offer several on-going educational programs, supply humane education magazines to local schools and create children's programming for local public access channels. We are driven by the hope that through education we can prevent animal cruelty and neglect in our community.
Over the last two decades there have been numerous studies on what’s known as “The Link”. Researchers have found significant correlations between animal abuse, domestic violence, elder abuse and other forms of violence. Animal abuse does not happen in a vacuum and a home where an animal is being abused is a strong indicator that others in the home are not safe. Not only that, but researchers have found that children who witness abuse toward animals are at a higher risk of become abusers themselves, thus continuing the cycle of abuse and violence. But that’s where we step in.
Our goal as humane educators is to intervene. We don’t just teach kids how to safely greet dogs, prevent bites and be responsible pet owners. We teach them to understand how animals might feel in different situations. We teach them empathy and believe that when children are more empathetic and show compassion toward animals – they, in turn, will also be more compassionate toward people they interact with too, thus stopping the cycle of violence.
There’s no denying this world needs compassion, empathy and kindness more than ever, so why shouldn't a place that takes in the broken, abused and homeless pets be the place where it's taught?
When you stand up for animals, you stand up for your neighbors. We hope you'll stand with us.
