Category: About us

We are very excited to announce the 2020 Utah Humane Society Happy Tails Reading Program supporting kids and pets!

Reading stimulates the imagination, builds important neuro pathways, and helps children to expand their understanding of the world around them. But did you also know the benefits of reading to animals? Learning to read can be stressful for young children, but when you read to an animal you take away the worry of making mistakes and replace it with a judgment-free reading experience. This has proven to increase motivation to read, increase confidence in reading, and improve fluency while reading. 
This program also has many benefits for shelter pets. Studies have shown that being read to decreases stress levels, can calm restless animals, and helps shy animals gain confidence when meeting new people. All of the perks directly improve an animal’s chance of being quickly adopted and decreases the time they spend in the shelter.  

The Utah Humane Society is excited to offer a chance for children to come in and read to our adoptable animals. 

• This program is open to kids 1st-6th grades.
• To ensure safe interactions, we do require an adult 18 or older to accompany the youth reader during their time with the animals.
• When a youth reader signs up, they will get a bookmark about cats and a sticker next to their name on our reading chart for every 30 minutes of reading.
• Once you have signed up, you will not need to schedule reading times, you can come in anytime our adoption lobby is open.
• You bring your own book or choose one from our library.

Please come by anytime during our normal business hours and we will be happy to get you signed up!

You’ll see the sign below posted on the door when a cat is enjoying a story.

Murray, UT (Sept. 24, 2019) — Affordable spay and neuter services needed for pets in Washington County  

The Utah Humane Society Board of Directors has approved the opening of an affordable spay, neuter, and vaccination clinic in St. George, Utah to help address the animal welfare needs of Washington County. The organization is actively seeking a full-time veterinarian and office space where the clinic can operate. Pending the hiring of a veterinarian and additional staff, the anticipated opening of the clinic will be in 2020. St. George, the largest city in Washington County, is the third fastest-growing community in the United States according to a new U.S. Census Bureau report. Washington County is an underserved animal welfare area with ten shelters and rescue groups and two veterinary clinics. The largest shelter has 15 dog kennels.  

“We realize that the St. George population is growing and there is a desperate need for spay and neuter services to control the pet population,” said Vaughn Maurice, Utah Humane Society executive director. “Local shelters handle over 13,000 animals each year, and the community does not have affordable options for pet sterilization. We can help by extending clinic services to the public now and assessing the need for additional pet resources in the future.” Job opportunities are available for a veterinarian as well as a Southern Utah executive and humane education coordinator for the Washington County area. 

The Humane Society of Utah is a local, independent 501(c)(3) private nonprofit organization. It is not a branch of the Humane Society of the United States. The animal welfare organization does not receive any state or federal funding and relies solely on donations and support from the community. To view available job opportunities, visit UtahHumane.org/jobs. Please contact [email protected] with information about potential properties for lease or sale that could be used as a clinic location. ###