— Our Dedicated Staff —
Director of Animal Care
Kayce Daniels
Director of Operations
Jan Jones
Office Assistants
Andrea Juarez
Wendy Munshaur
Senior Animal Care Technicians
Wendy Munshaur
Andrea Juarez
Sherry Chapman
Animal Care Aides
Victoria Moore
Jeb Jones
Lisa Lien
Sean Moore
Rachelle Hiser
NCHS BOARD OF DIRECTORS
2008
Maddie Nager, President
Martha Pedersen, Vice-President
Jennette Kovacs, Secretary
Terry Miron, Treasurer
Directors At Large:
Geoff Condon
Ken Kellett
Tim O'Keefe
Sandy Rakestraw
Anita Rouse
Volunteer Coordinator
Jill Johnston
North County Humane Society
2300 Ramona Rd., Atascadero, CA 93422
805 466-5403
ABOUT NCHS
North County Humane Society is a California - registered 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization.
North County Humane Society, a division of Action for Animals' Rights, serves all of San Luis Obispo County, California. The Humane Society operates the Margaret Raber Shelter for Cats and the Parfitt Adoption Center, a no-kill, for-life cat rescue shelter with cat adoption services.
OUR VISION
To live in a world where all animals receive compassion, respect, and humane treatment from all people.
OUR MISSION
To improve the health and well-being of animals in San Luis Obispo County by providing critical support services to animals, promoting positive human - animal relationships and responsible guardianship, and advocating for animal welfare issues.
We are advocates for abandoned, neglected and abused animals with preventative programs including:
• Spay and neuter support through spay / neuter discount certificates for dogs and cats
• Spay and Neuter Education
• Humane trap rental for our Trap, Neuter, Release program to control feral cat populations
• Friend For Life, for-life care for animals surviving their companions
Our History
1977
Action for Animals' Rights (AFAR) is the idea of three women dedicated to the preservation of wildlife and the humane treatment of all animals: Daphne Fahsing, Katherine Johns and Marie Carlson. Fahsing and Johns are co-founders; Carlson soon moves to San Diego. The first meeting of AFAR is held September 17, 1977. At an early meeting the county's director of animal regulation, Robert Dollahite, reports that his department is taking in "100 dogs per day, most of them unlicensed or unlocatable, and 200 cats per day during kitten season."
1979
In April, with $1,000 in donations, AFAR starts the first spay/neuter program in the county, and in September the county awards the group $10,000 from Revenue Sharing Funds.
1981
AFAR begins pressuring the City of Atascadero to hire a full-time director for the Atascadero Zoo, and is responsible for HSUS inspection and recommendation to the city which eventually leads to the hiring of a zoo manager and accreditation by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
1982
In January, AFAR moves its operations from Daphe Fahsing's home to a small office at 5385 El Camino Real in Atascadero. Fahsing and Johns are recognized as Citizens of the Month for July by the Atascadero Chamber of Commerce. The successful Adopt-a-Teacher program is formed and it eventually supports humane education for as many as 90 teachers.
1985
AFAR expands to South County, opening a branch office in Arroyo Grande, and helps house and adopt 54 goats rescued from San Clemente Island by Cleveland Amory's "Fund for Animals."
1986
AFAR moves into larger offices at 8935 Morro Road in Atascadero.
1987
On the occasion of AFAR's 10th anniversary, Lon Allan, editor of the Atascadero News, calls AFAR's spay/neuter program "a shining example of how a program can grow when it has people behind it who believe in it." He also writes that "AFAR's newsletter would be a good model for many organizations to follow, it is so well done." AFAR hires its first employee, Ellie Garcia, as office manager; she had been working for the organization for a year under the AARP training program and she remains with the organization until the move to Traffic Way in 1993. Garcia was much involved in the rescue of nine abused and neglected horses in Santa Margarita, which turns into the first animal abuse case brought and sentenced before a SLO County court. The horses are turned over to AFAR and are eventually adopted out to new owners.
1988
AFAR's first humane educator, Colleen O'Brien, is hired.
1989
A split occurs in the organization between the North County and South County members, resulting in the formation of another group in Arroyo Grande that eventually becomes CCAPS.
1990
AFAR begins recognizing people and animals with Hero Awards; for example, one goes to Rasputin, a Morro Bay dog who saved lives by waking people on boats when the Morro Bay pier caught on fire in 1990, and another to the Sheriff's Search and Rescue Team in 1992.
1992
< AFAR celebrates its 15th anniversary with a two-day Animal Fair at Atascadero Lake.
1993
AFAR moves to Traffic Way in Atascadero and opens an adoption shelter for cats. A new name, North County Humane Society, is adopted for doing business, while the original name is retained for official use.
1995
Co-founder Kate Johns dies after a long illness.
1997
Escrow closes on 2300 Ramona Road and the cats are loaded into vehicles for a ride to their new Dome Home.
2001
The Dome House is named the "Margaret Raber Shelter for Cats" in honor of Margaret Raber, a long time supporter of the organization.
2002
Action for Animals' Rights, dba North County Humane Society, celebrates 25 years of service to San Luis Obispo County.
2004
Taking over 2 years to complete, on Saturday June 5th, 2004, NCHS opens Parfitt Adoption Center located next to Margaret Raber Shelter for Cats. Over 2,100 square feet houses the offices of NCHS as well as nearly 100 adoptable cats and kittens. The Dome remains a sanctuary for all the other cats living at the Margaret Raber Shelter for Cats.
The Margaret Raber Shelter for Cats & The Parfitt Adoption Center