Sioux City nonprofit recognized for helping over 1,000 animals find homes last year

SIOUX CITY (KTIV) - A Siouxland nonprofit is being recognized for helping more than 1,000 pets in Sioux City find a forever home.

Friends of the Animal Shelter Rescue, or FOTAS Rescue, was founded to help stray, unwanted and abused animals in Sioux City. Their mission is to cut down on pet over-population at shelters. They spay and neuter while also giving animals their vaccines, microchips and other procedures to make it easier for shelters to help find them new and loving homes.

“We’ve got to get control over spaying and neutering first and foremost,” said Cindy Rarrat, Director of Sioux City Animal Rescue and President of FOTAS Rescue. “And so, FOTAS Rescue comes forward, and they are the ones that are raising funds to generate funds for the spaying and neutering of these animals. And I think that’s very important and without them I don’t know what we would do because they come through and help so much.”

After getting the animals ready, FOTAS holds on-site adoptions and works with PetSmart to get the animals into new homes. Just last year, they helped 1,080 animals get adopted after their rescue from the Sioux City Animal Rescue. On Thursday, PetSmart leaders will visit the animal shelter to recognize FOTAS Rescue for their success, and to make a donation to their efforts.

”They want to know about our program and how we have been so successful,” said Rarrat. “Because in the tri-state area, we’re one of the top groups in this area to have adoptions for pets, and they want to know what our secrets are. It’s just good old-fashioned hard work. It takes a lot of people to make an army, and together we can all band together and we get these animals homes.”

As a nonprofit, FOTAS Rescue has no paid employees, and all the money it raises goes right back into the animals’ veterinary care. They also donate some of the money raised to other rescue organizations in the tri-state area so they can care for their animals too.

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