Sophie’s Circle was founded in 2008 after founder Kathy Blackman stumbled upon a husky in a local shelter who was about to be euthanized that very day due to space issues. The dog was heartworm positive, so it was easier for the shelter to justify ending her life, even though h
eartworm treatment is highly effective. Kathy realized that there was an opportunity to make positive change in the animal welfare community, adopted the dog, named her Sophie and created the foundation in her honor.
Sophie’s Circle (SC) started out as a pet food pantry, which was established in 2008 and the mission was to provide pet food to financially challenged families in an effort to keep pets in their homes. There were way too many pets being surrendered to shelters and the euthanization rates were very high. It wasn’t the fault of the shelters; there were simply too many animals being surrendered. The food pantry continues to this day and has given thousands of pounds of pet food to thousands of families in the 15 years since its inception.
Along the way, many people were asking to have their dogs rehomed and by 2010 Sophie’s Circle became a dog rescue in addition to the pet food pantry. All breeds of dogs are brought into the rescue, given any medical or behavioral attention they need and rehomed. As of this writing, SC has rehomed just shy of 4000 dogs. We average 400-500 adoptions annually and all of our dogs are in private foster homes while they await their forever home.
SC is a 100% volunteer organization and has operated without a payroll since our founding. We rely heavily on the community for support and are fortunate to work with vet clinics who understand the mission and help the cause. Specifically, Granada Animal Hospital in Ormond Beach and Beachwood Animal Hospital in New Smyrna Beach are always happy to help our dogs, along with several other vets going into Orlando and Jacksonville. There are many community businesses that support us by giving donations and gift cards for our raffles and events. Mario’s Restaurant in Ormond Beach always helps when asked, and Kennelmaster Foods, makers of Doggie Chicken Chips in New Smyrna Beach has supported our efforts since the beginning.
We are so blessed to have the love and support of the community.
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