Nowata Animal Shelter

The Bartlesville Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) was founded by two people who were saving stray animals in our neighborhood. They cared for the animals until new homes could be located in an effort to improve their quality of life. Soon, more people wanted to assist, and our membership has increased.

The Washington County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (WCSPCA) was established in 1965 in response to a local instance of atrocious animal abuse. The new group constructed an animal shelter and launched initiatives to inform the public about problems involving companion animals. The WCSPCA was given a contract in 1974 to take care of animals that the City of Bartlesville had seized. As a result, a lot more animals were used to serve food.

To protect people and other animals from potentially dangerous animals, the City of Bartlesville operates an animal control program, which is overseen by the Bartlesville Police Department.

The cinder-block shelter housed animals that Collinsville Animal Control had captured for a long time. Before January 2008, this was known as the Collinsville Animal Shelter (also known as "the shed"). There were simply cages inside the shed; there were no windows. The only source of illumination were the openings in the temporary metal sheeting and the blue tarps that covered the cages' "outside" areas. Adoptions were uncommon because most people were unaware of the shed and animals were given 3-5 days before being put to death. The majority of animals had no hope of surviving because there were so few cages available.

More than 6000 stray animals have found new homes with the aid of PAAS.