Mission Statement of Crestwood Animal Shelter

  We are a small, non-profit, no-kill, all-volunteer, cat rescue serving Crestwood, MO and surrounding communities. 

  Are you looking to add a new member to your family or needing to find a new home for an existing cat due to changing life circumstances (illness, family death, expense, etc.)?  Look no further than Crestwood Animal Shelter (CAS)! 

  Unfortunately, we do NOT have the resources or staff to take in injured or feral cats or kittens from the general public. Please go to our resources link here if you are dealing with a Lost or Found cat or kitten (including feral).

  Our shelter is a temporary home to a variety of lovable cats and kittens in need of forever homes. We pride ourselves on matching each animal with the perfect family, ensuring a happy and healthy life for both the pet and their new owner. 

We offer adoption services, as well as resources for responsible pet ownership.

  In addition, for qualifying cats, we will receive surrendered cats to find them new homes.  We know that life circumstances change, and we want to assist pet cats and their owners through these transitions. 

  Thank you for considering Crestwood Animal Shelter for your cat ownership needs!

  Our shelter, located in Whitecliff Park, is an independent, nonprofit, no-kill adoption center for cats and kittens. We do NOT provide animal control services, which are now available through St. Louis County Animal Control.

  As of the COVID-19 pandemic, we no longer have dogs for adoption.

  The shelter is run by the volunteers of Friends Of Animal Control And Rescue (FOACAR), a Crestwood, Missouri-based 501c(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the care and welfare of animals.  FOACAR does business as (dba) Crestwood Animal Shelter. The shelter operates as a licensed Animal Care Facility with the Missouri Dept. of Agriculture, License #AC0014A8.

  Although physically located in the old Crestwood Animal Control Officer's facilities in Whitecliff Park, Crestwood Animal Shelter is independent of the City of Crestwood administratively and financially.  The shelter occupies the physical facilities in Whitecliff Park on a rental basis.  The volunteers of the shelter maintain and enjoy close contact with the park staff and appreciate the continued support of the Board of Aldermen over many years.

  The 40-60 volunteers of the shelter are all residents of local communities.  The shelter functions under the governance of a slate of officers and a board of directors according to the shelter's by-laws. The scope of work done by the volunteers is described here.

  The early roots of Crestwood Animal Shelter began in 2009 with the formation of an auxiliary group of volunteers to assist Crestwood's Animal Control Officer, Suzie Sutton. Suzie was a champion of animal welfare in Missouri as described here.

  The volunteer auxiliary organized as a Missouri-based, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization called Friends of Animal Control and Rescue, (FOACAR), with the purpose to "benefit animals and raise funds and donations in kind in support of animal control and rescue activities." In 2011 Suzie retired,  and the City of Crestwood decided to discontinue the position of animal control officer in favor of newly-available St. Louis County-wide animal control services. FOACAR negotiated with the City of Crestwood to allow the auxiliary to continue operating in Crestwood's original animal control facilities in Whitecliff Park as an independent animal shelter, focusing on cat and dog adoption services for the community.  The Crestwood Board of Aldermen agreed, and in 2014 FOACAR began doing business officially as "Crestwood Animal Shelter", (CAS).

  CAS provided cat and dog services from 2014 until March, 2020, the beginning of the global COVID-19 pandemic.  At that time, dog adoption services were suspended, whereas cat adoption services have continued to the present day.

  This year, the FOACAR volunteers are proud to celebrate 17 years of continuous service to Crestwood and surrounding communities.  We greatly appreciate the generous and continuous support of the community throughout.