Consider these Northwest Florida shelters for your end-of-year giving | Pet Peeves

Dr. Dara Johns
·3 min read

Dear readers,

It is the time of year for giving thanks. One thing I am thankful for are the many volunteers who give back to our community with their time and money to help stray and wild animals have a better life.

They work behind the scenes and receive little recognition. They clean cages at shelters. They walk dogs and empty litter boxes. They feed wild birds that are being rehabilitated.

Crate training dogs: Properly crate training puppies will pay big dividends for adult dogs

Take steps now: How you can be proactive in preventing wild animal invasions in your home

I have created a list of some local shelters and wildlife organizations that are worthy of our financial support. Please consider putting one of these groups on your list of year end giving:

  • Panhandle Animal Welfare (PAWS) is located at 752 Lovejoy Road in Fort Walton Beach. Their phone number is 850-243-1525. Their website is paws-shelter.org. They also run a gift and thrift shop at 179 N.E. Eglin Parkway called the Junkyard Dog. It is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays.

  • Pet Welfare is located at 683 Range Road, Eglin Air Force Base. Their phone number is 850-678-5066. Their website is petwelfare.net.

  • Save Our Cats and Kittens (SOCKS) is located at 498 Carmel Drive in Fort Walton Beach. Their phone number is 850-863-5756. Their website is saveourcatsandkittens.com. They also have a thrift store called Cat’s Crossing located behind the shelter on Comanche Drive. It is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. The thrift store phone number is 850-863-8999.

  • Nauti Dawg Rescue, a cute name for our area, is a dogs-only rescue. They do have a location on Truxton Avenue in Fort Walton Beach. Their website is nautidawgrescue.com. Their phone number is 850-737-8362, but it would be rare to get an answer. You are better off filling out contact info and letting them reach out to you. They also have a Facebook presence at Facebook.com/NautiDawgRescue.

  • Saving With Soul, a foster program that has been around since 2012, was originally centered around one shelter. In 2017, they went out on their own and work with shelters in Okaloosa, Walton and Santa Rosa counties. Their website is savewithsoul.com. They want to "make miracles happen" for homeless pets. They are located at 1021 Beal Parkway in Fort Walton Beach. You can call them at 850-307-5600.

  • Alaqua Animal Refuge is located at 914 Whitfield Road in Freeport. Their phone number is 850-880-6399. Their website is alaqua.org.

  • Emerald Coast Wildlife Refuge is located at 3051 Clopton's Circle in Navarre. Their phone number is 850-684-1485. Their website is emeraldcoastwildliferefuge.org.

  • Animal Protection League (APL) does not have a physical address. They function primarily to assist with the cost of spays and neuters. Their mailing address is P.O. Box 51, Fort Walton Beach, FL 32549. Their website is okaloosaapl.org. You can find several ways to give on their website. Ninety-nine percent of every dollar donated goes directly to veterinary bills.

  • Underdogs also does not have a physical address. They prefer to be contacted by email at SaveUnderDogs@aol.com. Their website is saveunderdogs.com. Their phone number is 850-582-8727.

These groups are hard at work year-round. Go to their websites, give them a call and check them out and then give as you feel led.

This article originally appeared on Northwest Florida Daily News: Fort Walton Beach area animal rescues, shelters to support at holidays