Homeless Animal Rescue Team of New Mexico - HART NM
The Homeless Animal Rescue Team is Valencia County's premier animal rescue organization. The HART is staffed by a Board of Directors, consisting of President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and three Directors. The HART staff has extensive knowledge and has undertaken local and state-wide animal issues.
HART staff have collaborated and/or initiated a number of efforts which have led to recognition as a state-wide resource for individuals and agencies serving New Mexico's animal population. Since 1996, it has embarked on an agenda of promoting the concept and practice of the No-Kill Sheltering of Animals and has expanded its agenda beyond Valencia County to include the State of New Mexico.
Within the HART organization are programs that deal with different issues concerning animals. We house a No-Kill Shelter Plan, we house a Foster Home Program, we house a new Spay and Neuter Assistance Program. Also, we house a new Education Program, under which individuals from the very young to the very old can partake in multimedia education/service projects that benefit specifically the animals in the environment, and contribute to environmental education for all individuals.
The mission of HART is to promote, coordinate and integrate the education, recovery, and service agendas in the field of animal guardianship which are consistent with the mission of the no-kill concept of animal recovery. The HART undertakes activities within the following goals:
To identify the needs of the animals of Valencia County and surrounding areas;
To engage in activities in animal recovery and guardianship which have implications for Valencia County and the State of New Mexico;
To engage in activities in animal recovery and guardianship which have regional, national and international implications;
To promote and develop animal recovery and guardianship through it's Foster Home Program and the Spay and Neuter Assistant Program;
To promote and develop education and training programs for providers of services to the animal population;
To foster and promote collaboration in the field of animal recovery and guardianship with other animal rescue, breed, and service agencies;
To foster initiatives in successful animal recovery and guardianship for individuals, corporations, communities, counties, and states.
A special concern of each of these goals is to target unique groups of animals, including severely neglected, abused, homeless, injured, and those at risk.
Board of Directors
Shannon Kmatz - President
Shayla Marteney - Co-Vice President
Chelsea Winters - Co-Vice President
Alexandria Sharpe - Secretary
Carolyn Taylor - Treasurer
Why volunteer
Fostering animals saves lives!
Fostering increases an animal’s chance of getting adopted.
Your own pets will learn more social skills.
You get to see if you’re ready to own another pet.
Fostering is temporary.
You can choose how to foster. Only want to bottle feed baby kittens? Prefer to foster pit bulls? We are happy to work with you to accommodate what you are comfortable with.
Fostering keeps animals out of shelters. Valencia County Animal Shelter takes in 100 to 125 pets a week.
You are saving a life. You feel good, your shelter or rescue group helps more animals, and your foster pet is happy, healthy, and well-socialized.