Every life counts
Senior and feral cats come first here — the gray-muzzled, the fearful, the ones other shelters pass over. Worth is not measured in adoptability.
Our story
A small rescue with a big promise
What started in 2016 as one woman's promise to a handful of old cats is now Cook County's safety net for seniors, ferals, kittens, and the families who love them.
How it began
It started with the old ones nobody wanted
In April 2016, Paws Furever Home opened its doors in Adel as a private sanctuary for senior cats — the old ones who had outlived their people and had nowhere left to go. Shelters are hardest on seniors: overlooked by adopters, stressed by the noise, first on every list. We wanted them to have soft beds, sunny windows, and names that someone still said out loud.
The longer we served, the clearer Cook County's needs became. Feral colonies were growing behind barns and businesses. Families were surrendering cats they loved because a spay or a bag of food was out of reach. So the sanctuary grew — into TNR, into vouchers, into a pantry — until the promise to a few old cats became a safety net for the whole county.
- 2016 — Senior cat sanctuary opens in Adel
- TNR program & feral shelter added for community cats
- GA Dept. of Agriculture voucher grant & pantry at Adel Wesleyan Church
The founders
Two neighbors, one promise
Paws Furever Home was founded by Kathy Yert and Candas Bennett — two Adel neighbors who saw what happened to old cats when their owners passed away or went into care, and decided it wouldn't happen on their watch.
A decade later, nothing about that has changed. Kathy and Candas still run the rescue as volunteers, fitting feedings, meds, trap runs, and pantry days around day-to-day life. There is no paid staff and no clock to punch — just a promise kept daily. Every cat here is known by name, by history, and by the way they like their breakfast.
"Old cats gave their whole lives to somebody. The least we can do is make sure the ending is soft — warm, fed, and loved by name."
— Kathy & Candas, founders
What we believe
Our values
Three convictions guide every decision we make — from which cats we take in to how we report back to the community that funds us.
Humane first, always
We choose TNR over euthanasia and fixing over surrendering. The humane answer is sometimes the harder one — we take it anyway.
Open books
We're a 990-N filer with a public EIN and published impact reports. Donors fund the work — donors get to see the work.
View public documents
How we're organized
Volunteer-led, board-governed
Small doesn't mean informal. Paws Furever Home, Inc. is a registered 501(c)(3) with the structure to stay accountable for the long haul.
Volunteer board
A small working board of unpaid volunteers oversees finances, policy, and programs. It meets quarterly, and minutes are available on request.
Active committees
Day-to-day work runs through three volunteer committees: Care & Meds, TNR & Transport, and Pantry & Supplies — each with its own lead and schedule.
Annual meeting
Held each spring in Adel and open to supporters: board elections, a budget review, and a look back at the year's numbers. Bring your questions.
Welcome to everyone
Non-discrimination policy
Paws Furever Home, Inc. does not discriminate in its programs, volunteering opportunities, adoptions, or services on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, marital status, or military or veteran status.
Everyone in our community is welcome: the families who bring their cats to us, the volunteers who scoop litter and drive transports, the adopters who open their homes, and the neighbors who simply stop by the pantry for a bag of food. Respect is not a program here — it is the ground rule everything else stands on.
Have a concern? Report it confidentially to [email protected] or call (229) 896-7492. Anonymous reports are accepted, and every report is reviewed and answered within 5 business days.
They can't ask — you can answer
A bag of food, a clinic ride, a warm bed. You make it happen.
Every dollar stays in Cook County: voucher surgeries, TNR clinics, sanctuary care, and pantry shelves. Give once, or sponsor a senior monthly.
Paws Furever Home, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity · EIN 81-2267285 · Gifts are tax-deductible.