History

Paws4ever began advocating for animal welfare in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, in 1962 as the Animal Protection Society of Chapel Hill. It incorporated as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization in 1972 and as its sphere of services expanded to serve the whole county, changed its name to the Animal Protection Society of Orange County, Inc. in 1977. From 1979–2004, the APS of Orange County, Inc., as a nonprofit charitable organization also administered the county government contract to operate county animal control services and its open-admission animal shelter, providing rescue, health exams, humane care, nutritional food, disease and parasite control, and veterinary care for sick or injured animals arriving in its care. Through those 25 years, APS of Orange County, Inc., proved itself to be a progressive and dedicated organization to the welfare of all animals and, with the help of several very generous donors, developed the Felicite Latane Animal Sanctuary on 50 acres near Mebane. It is here that the APS of Orange County built and operated a learning center for dog training and a wildlife rescue and rehabilitation center.

In 2000, the APS of Orange County began a capital campaign to build a second shelter facility at the sanctuary location, to expand its take-in capacity, to shelter more animals and to adopt out more companion animals. In 2003, the wildlife center moved from the sanctuary and out of APS of Orange County auspices to become Piedmont Wildlife Center. In July of 2004, after 25 years of administration, the county government ended its contract with the APS of Orange County to run its animal control services and shelter. In October 2004, the APS of Orange County opened the recently completed Adoption Center at the sanctuary as a closed-admission, guaranteed adoption center.

Today, the Adoption Center is a placement partner for animals transferred from county shelters, including Orange, Chatham and Caswell, where the number of adoptable pets outpaces the space to house them. The Learning Center provides the most affordable and comprehensive array of dog training in our area, and the sanctuary is home to a 3-acre dog park.

In October of 2008, 43 years after its beginning, the Animal Protection Society of Orange County changed its name to Paws4ever to better reflect the current mission and programs. Our current name and its tagline, "Adopt & Train." brings focus to the core areas of service that continue to make our whole community a progressive leader in the humane treatment of animals.