Henry Bergh founded ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) on April 10, 1866 in New York City. It is the oldest and first animal welfare organization in the United States.
On February 8, 1866, Bergh pleaded on behalf of animals at a meeting at Clinton Hall in New York City. Some of the issues that he discussed at this meeting were cockfighting and the horrors of slaughterhouses.
After getting many people to sign his “Declaration of the Rights of Animals,”Berghwas able to gain an official charter to incorporate ASPCA on April 10, 1866. On April 19, 1866, the first anti-cruelty law was passed. At that time, there were only three staff members of the ASPCA.
Today ASPCA has five regional offices in the United States, has a multi-million dollar budget, which they transparently make available to the public, and employs thousands of individuals on a full or part-time basis.
On April 5, 2019 Apple, three-month-old dachshund mix, became ASPCA’s 100,000th relocated animal.
365 Holidays a Year 