Animal welfare groups in the Washington DC area

This is a list of websites of organizations, individuals, and businesses in the national capital region, including Northern Virginia, the District of Columbia, and nearby Maryland, that significantly help animals.

Animal Rights (advocacy against cruelty to all animals)

• Local
  • Action for Animals Network {Alexandria, VA}
  • Compassion Over Killing (COK) {DC}, and their Neimans Kills Campaign
  • Poplar Spring Animal Sanctuary, farm & wild animals {Poolesville, MD}
  • Leigh-Anne's Animal Advocacy Network {Virginia}
  • Voices for Animals, and their annual Charlottesville Vegetarian Festival {Charlottesville, VA}
  • Vegan Meetup day, DC, 1st Saturday of every month
• Local, students
  • American University Animal Rights Effort (AUARE) {DC NW}
  • DC Youngsters Against Animal Cruelty {DC}
  • Students for Animal Rights, at UVA {Charlottesville, VA}
• National
  • Animal Awareness {Elkridge, MD}
  • Animal Rights Legal Foundation, Inc. {Alexandria, VA}
  • Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) {DC}
  • AnimalAdvocacy, letters {Yahoo Group}
  • The Animals' Agenda, Animal Rights Network Inc. {Baltimore, MD}
  • Center for Food Safety {DC SE}
  • Center for Respect of Life & Environment (CRLE) {DC NW}
  • Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade (CAFT), national office {DC}
  • The Essence of True Humanity Is Compassion (The ETHIC) [also] {Kensington, MD}
  • FARM (Farm Animal Reform Movement) {Bethesda, MD}, and their
    annual Animal Rights National Conference {McLean, VA}
  • Free Farmed certification, by Farm Animal Services, American Humane Association {DC NE}
  • Friends of Animals, office {DC NW}
  • Fund for Animals, campaign office {Silver Spring, MD}
  • Henry Spira/GRACE Project on Industrial Animal Production {Baltimore, MD}
  • Humane USA PAC {DC}
  • NOAZ Ark Foundation (National Organization to Abolish Zoos) {Alexandria, VA}
  • Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), office {DC}
  • Psychologists for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PsyETA) {Washington Grove, MD}
  • Share the World (STW) {DC}
  • Society for Animal Protective Legislation {DC}
  • Wildlife Advocacy Project, Meyer & Glitzenstein {DC NW}

Animals in the laboratory, national

• Advocates alternatives to animal use
  • Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics (CCIC) {DC}
  • Johns Hopkins Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing {Baltimore, MD}
  • CharitiesInfo.org, Humane Charity Seal, and Trauma Training, all by PCRM {DC NW}
• Advocates more-humane animal use
  • Scientists Center for Animal Welfare {Greenbelt, MD}
  • Animal Welfare Information Center, USDA Agricultural Research Service, NAL {Beltsville, MD}
  • WARDS, Working for Animals used in Research Drugs and Surgery {Vienna, VA}

Vegetarian (avoids eating animals)

• Local
  • Vegetarian Society of the District of Columbia (VSDC)
  • Baltimore EarthSave
  • Veg-DC discussion email list on RegionalVeg
  • Vegetarian Meetup day, DC, 2nd Wed. of each month
• National
  • Beyond Beef campaign {DC NW}
  • FARM (Farm Animal Reform Movement) {Bethesda, MD}, and their
    annual Great American Meatout, March 20, and
    annual World Farm Animals Day, October 2, and
    Choice: Consumers for Healthy Options in Children's Education
  • Food for Life Global {Potomac, MD}, International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON)
  • Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine {DC NW}, and their Healthy Eating Series
  • BlackVegetarians.com, Vegan Visions
  • Vegetarian Resource Group {Baltimore, MD}
  • Vegetarian Union of North America {DC}
  • Vegetarian Legal Action Network (VLAN) {DC}
  • International Vegetarian Union, contact {DC}
  • Voice for a Viable Future {Alexandria, VA}
  • Seventh-day Adventist World Church
    • General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists {Silver Spring, MD}
    • Columbia Union Conference {Columbia, MD}
    • Within that conference is their Potomac local Conference, which includes the DC area.
    • Columbia Union College {Takoma Park, MD}
    • Adventist Healthcare {Rockville and Takoma Park, MD}
  • Science of Spirituality (SOS) centers {in DC, Maryland, and Virginia}

Directories

• Animal Concerns's AR/Veg Events and Resources in the DC Area
• Pawprints' Guide to Central Virginia Animal Organizations
• Vegetarian Stuff Veggie Sites Directories for DC, MD, and VA
• World Animal Net, directory for DC, MD, and VA.

Businesses

• Vegan food, restaurants, caterers (or almost vegan)
  • Everlasting Life's Source of Life Juice Bar {DC NW, and Largo MD}
  • Soul Vegetarian Restaurant & Exodus Carry-Out {DC NW}
  • Sunflower Vegetarian Restaurant [also] {Vienna, VA}
  • The Vegetable Garden {Rockville, MD}
  • Yuan Fu [also] {Rockville, MD}
  • Sprouts, within The Diner @ Ellicott {College Park, Univ of MD}
  • Sticky Fingers Bakery {DC NW}
  • The White Pig, Bed and Breakfast, at Briar Creek Farm {Schuyler, VA}
  • Heba's Health Foods {Manassas, VA}
• Other businesses
  • AnimalRightstuff {Reston, VA}
  • Pangea Vegan Products {Rockville, MD}
  • Ryce Publishing {Derwood, MD}
  • Green Earth Travel {Cabin John, MD}
  • Veganopoly {Bethesda, MD}
• DC-area vegetarian-friendly businesses: directories on the web

Companion animal rescue, shelter, adoption, and protection

• Washington DC
  • Washington Animal Rescue League {NW}
  • Washington Humane Society, and their WHS page for kids {NE & NW}
  • Alliance for Stray Animals and People {DC, MD, VA}
  • Animal Welfare Meetup day DC, 1st Wed. of each month
• Virginia
  • Animal Welfare League of Alexandria {Alexandria}
  • Animal Welfare League of Arlington {Arlington}
  • Companion Animal Rescue & Education (CARE) {Reston}
  • Fairfax County Animal Shelter {Fairfax}
  • 4 Paws Rescue Team, Inc. {Merrifield}
  • Friends of Homeless Animals of Northern Virginia {Merrifield}
  • Homeless Animal Rescue Team (HART) {Fairfax Station}
  • Humane Society of Fairfax County {Fairfax}
  • Humane Society of Loudoun County {Leesburg}
  • Lost Dog & Cat Rescue Foundation (LDRF) {Chantilly & Sumerduck}
  • Pet Overnight Medical Care Association {Falls Church}
  • Rikki's Refuge {Orange}
  • Shiloh Project {Fairfax}
  • Virginia Animal Welfare Program, Division of Animal Industry Services, VDACS {Richmond}
  • Last Chance Animal Rescue, Inc. {where?}
  • Virginia Pet Rescue, Yahoo Group
  • City of Fairfax, Adopt-A-Pet {Fairfax}
  • Save Our Shelters (SOS), Pound Animals in Virginia {Richmond}
  • Loudoun County Animal Care and Control {Waterford}
  • Northern Virginia Animal League, Inc. {Manassas}
  • Prince William County, Animal Control Bureau {Manassas}
  • Virginia Animal Control Facilities, Henrico Humane Society {Richmond}
  • SPCA of Northern Virginia {Arlington}
  • Paws and Claws {Reston}
  • Mini-Pigs Inc., a potbellied pig sanctuary {Culpeper}
• Maryland
  • All-Breed Rescue and Referral, Inc. {Gaithersburg}
  • Alley Animals, Inc. {Towson}
  • Animal Advocates of Howard County {Ellicott City}
  • Defenders of Animal Rights, Adopt-A-Pet {Phoenix}
  • Maryland SPCA {Baltimore}
  • MetroPets {Silver Spring}
  • Montgomery County Humane Society {Rockville}
  • Montgomery County SPCA {Washington Grove and Gaithersburg}
  • Prince George's County Animal Shelter, of the P.G. County Animal Management Division {Forestville}
  • Roxie's Fund for Animals {Silver Spring}
  • Partnership for Animal Welfare (PAW) {Greenbelt}
  • IMOM, In Memory of Magic {Cheltenham}
  • Pets With Disabilities {Prince Frederick}
• National
  • Alley Cat Allies {DC NW}
  • Alley Cat Resue, National Cat Protection Association {Mt. Rainier, MD}
  • American Humane Association, office {DC NE}
  • CHAI - Concern for Helping Animals in Israel {Alexandria, VA}
  • Doris Day Animal League and Foundation {DC NE}
  • Humane Society of the United States, and their
    Humane Activist Network {DC NW}
  • Humane Society International {DC NW}
  • National Humane Education Society {Leesburg, VA}
  • Prevent a Litter Coalition (PaLC) {Reston, VA}
• Directories
  • Adopt-a-Pet, shelters in DC, Maryland, and Virginia
  • Center for the Study of Community Animal Management, shelters in DC, MD, VA
  • DC Pages directories under "Pets": Rescue, Shelters, and Adoption
  • Guide to Online Pet Resources, for DC, Maryland, and Virginia
  • HelpTheCritters.com, including directories for Virginia, and Maryland
  • Hugs for Homeless Animals, shelters in DC, Maryland, and Virginia
  • Kyler Laird's animal rescue resources, shelters in DC, MD, and VA
  • Pet Lover's Companion, directory for the DC area
  • Pet Harbor, not specific to this area, but searches shelters by zip code

Wildlife

• Local
  • Audubon Naturalist Society {Chevy Chase, MD} and two sanctuaries
  • Citizens for the Preservation of Wildlife, Inc. (CPW) {Fairfax, VA}
  • Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary {Upper Marlboro, MD}
  • Metro DC Challenge to Sprawl Campaign {Arlington, VA} of the Sierra Club
  • Northern Virginia Conservation Trust (NVCT) {Annandale, VA}
  • Second Chance Wildlife Center {Gaithersburg, MD}
  • Wildlife Rescue League, and Hotline {Falls Church, VA}
• National, protecting endangered species
  • African Wildlife Foundation {DC NW}
  • Bushmeat Crisis Task Force {Silver Spring, MD}
  • Defenders of Wildlife, and their Grassroots Environmental Effectiveness Network (GREEN) {DC NW}
  • Endangered Species Coalition {DC NW}
  • The Jane Goodall Institute {Silver Spring, MD}
  • WildAid, office {DC NW}
  • Wildlife Land Trust, of the Humane Society of the United States {DC NW}
  • World Wildlife Fund [also] {DC NW}
• National, advocates hunting
  • The Conservation Fund {Arlington, VA}
  • The Wilderness Society {DC NW}
  • The Wildlife Society {Bethesda, MD}
  • Safari Club International (SCI), Washington DC office {DC NE}
• Government agencies
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, a bureau within the Department of the Interior
  • U.S. Wildlife Services, USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) {DC and Riverdale MD}
  • Virginia Wildlife Services, USDA APHIS {Moseley, VA}
  • Maryland and Washington DC Wildlife Services, USDA APHIS {Annapolis, MD}
  • Maryland Wildlife and Heritage Service, DNR
• Directories
  • DC Pages' Environment & Wildlife directory
  • Yahoo Washington DC, Wildlife

Businesses that help animal welfare organizations

• Animal Strategies, of Priority Ventures Group {Arlington, VA}
• Humane Society University, of HSUS {DC NW}
• Social Action and Leadership School for Activists (SALSA), of the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) {DC NW}
• Technical Assistance & Support Consultants (TASC) {Mt. Rainier, MD}
• Lantern Books {Herndon, VA}

Not enough information

• Adopt-a-Pet {where?}
• Animal Liberation Network {Hunt Valley, MD} Connected to animal liberation websites or Animal-Liberation.Net?
• Animal Political Action Committee (ANPAC)
• National Alliance for Animal Legislation {DC}
• National Association of Nurses Against Vivisection {DC}
• Student Action Corps for Animals (SACA) {DC SE}
• UMCP Coalition for Animal Rights (CFAR), and Food for Life Club {College Park, MD}
• DC EarthSave (DCES) [also]
• EnviroExpression {Potomac Falls, VA}
• Jewish Vegetarians of North America, Administrator {Federalsburg, MD}

More information

• Legislation, local
  • Anti-Cruelty Statutes, in DC, Maryland, and Virginia
  • State Legislation Update, for DC and MD, by Doris Day Animal League
• Directories of local organizations working on related topics
  • EnviroLink Atlas of environmental DC-area groups
  • Enviroment groups in the DC area
  • Health, food, and hunger organizations in the Washington DC area
  • Peace & Justice DC-area groups list
• Directories of animal-related organizations, national
  • Environmental Organizations Online (EOO), including Animal Rights links
  • JustGive guide to groups helping animals
  • Animal Rights and Protection groups, at World Advocacy
• Related websites, national
  • Animal Concerns Community, at Network for Change
  • Animal Welfare, Internet directory at Google
  • Saving Our Resources Today (SORT)

Notes

See the E, The Environmental Magazine, cover story: "The Case Against Meat; Evidence Shows that Our Meat-Based Diet is Bad for the Environment, Aggravates Global Hunger, Brutalizes Animals and Compromises Our Health. So Why Aren't More Environmentalists Switching to Vegetarianism?" by Jim Motavalli, January-February 2002 issue.  Do any local environmental groups reflect that in their policies?

This page was created to help local animal advocates find each other, so they can work and play together, and support each other.

If you know of other organizations that would be appropriately be listed here, and they're near DC, and they significantly affect many animals, and they are not limited to only one species of animal, then let me know.