Celebrating 5 years of impact in the San Luis Valley

When we opened the doors to our San Luis Valley Animal Center in March of 2021, we knew we would play a vital role in Alamosa and the surrounding communities.

In fact, supporting the community with expanded access to veterinary care for existing pets while providing programs and services to reunite lost pets with their people, and connecting people with adoptable cats and dogs were key reasons we decided to open our third animal center location in the valley.

“The future is bright,” said Katie Parker, President and CEO of Humane Colorado. “As we look forward to the years ahead, we’re more committed than ever to strengthening our foundation in the community, expanding partnerships across the region, and continuing to be a reliable and trusted resource for the people and animals who count on us.”

In addition to sheltering services, our team engages with the community through local events, humane education for youth and pet owners, and accessible spay/neuter and vaccine clinics. Additionally, through our partnership with the Colorado Pet Pantry, our team in the San Luis Valley has provided supplemental, nutritious food to over 8,500 animals and their families since 2025.

Our San Luis Valley Animal Center strives to serve as a model for other small and rural communities facing similar challenges, such as limited access to affordable veterinary care and animal welfare services. Since 2021, we’ve welcomed over 10,000 homeless pets to our San Luis Valley Animal Center. In the last year alone, we’ve seen a 58% increase in adoptions, indicating more people in the Alamosa community trust Humane Colorado when they are ready to welcome a new pet into their homes.

This year, we are working hard to expand access through regular spay and neuter clinics, vaccine and wellness clinics, and more. Over the last three years, we’ve spayed or neutered more than 1,700 owned cats and dogs from the community through our 10 low-cost or free spay/neuter clinics. These high-quality, accessible services help prevent pet overpopulation, suffering, and homelessness in our rural Colorado communities.

In late March 2026, we partnered with Great Good Charities to host a 3-day spay/neuter event that helped over 400 owned cats and dogs in the San Luis Valley receive vital preventative care and wellness services such as nail trims and flea treatment.

The past 5 years have brought a lot of impact to the valley’s community. As we continue to learn about the needs of this and other rural communities across Colorado, we will continue to expand our capacity for care and compassion. We can’t wait to see what the next five years have in store for Alamosa.