CARES: Shelter Saving Lives Through Transparency, Kindness, and the Power of Social Media

CARES Clarksdale Animal Rescue Effort and Shelter is aptly named, as it is a shelter that truly cares. Gabi is the board president and currently the acting director (for no pay) of the shelter in Clarksdale, Mississippi. With the help of the entire board of CARES, she took charge of shelter operations following the departure of the Executive Director and Director of Operations in June 2025 (after working for a year at the shelter).

Gabi stepped into her role in July and inherited a shelter that was 70K in debt and challenged by too many dogs and limited kennel space. Gabi works full-time as a nurse, has two school-age children, and a husband who farms, but she’s committed to running the shelter until they recover financially and can afford to hire a director. Meanwhile, she is infusing the shelter with her positive energy and leading with a determined, open heart.

Since taking charge, she has worked diligently to repair damaged relationships, placed forty dogs in new homes, and created a new atmosphere that prioritizes transparency. Gabi, Andrea (shelter manager/vet tech) and Anita (receptionist/adoption coordinator/social media creator/everything else) share the struggles, the stories, and the success of the shelter’s work openly.

At the time of our visit in October of 2025, the shelter was full, housing 80 dogs and puppies. The shelter team is committed to not euthanizing for any reason except extreme medical or behavioral needs. As Gabi says, when a dog comes to CARES, they are family.

We had the pleasure of meeting Titan, a big lug of a dog who survived being tied to a tree for so long that the scar was still healing around his middle from where he was found, basically hanging from a chain. Despite a tough situation, Titan seemed to bear no ill will, and his big personality stole our hearts immediately.

Even when full, if someone comes to the shelter looking for help, the staff will find a way. It might mean asking the person to hold onto their dog while the staff networks the dog through social media or looks for a space at another shelter or rescue, or it might mean the dog takes up residence in one of their offices. They offer food, supplies, vet services, anything to assist the resident in keeping their dog.

Shortly before we arrived, a large gray puppy was found and brought in. The shelter is currently full, so Gabi set him up in Andrea’s office (she was out until later that week) while they figure out a solution.

CARES receives truckloads of food and supplies from Chewy and distributes them to the community through twice-monthly pet pantries.

Without rescue connections, the shelter must find adopters for all of its dogs. Anita markets them far and wide via social media, and sometimes that leads to Andrea driving dogs to out-of-state adopters.

The Clarksdale area is typical of many rural southern states, with few resources and a struggling tax base. Many shelters across the country are closing their doors once their kennels are full, but CARES staff are finding ways to help anyone who asks. This may not have been their history, but recently things have made a turn for the better.

When asked what they are doing that is driving their success, Gabi and Anita talked about three things. First, transparency about their debt, their intakes, and their problems. “They see what we see,” Gabi told us. The shelter belongs to the community, and they trust that community with the truth about the situation.

The second thing they are always be kind and receptive. As Anita explained, “People need to be heard. They need to know someone cares.” The staff responds to every request for help, every inquiry, every call.

And the third thing is harnessing the power of social media. Anita posts on all the platforms with stories, requests, information, pictures, and videos. This enables them to find help not just in Clarksdale, but beyond.

The shelter is a non-profit, but it receives some municipal funding from both the county and the city. Those funds only amount to 17% of their budget, so fundraising is a full-time job.

They are fortunate to have a local veterinarian who generously donates and discounts services, plus have the opportunity to take shelter animals and community animals to Mississippi State University for spay/neuter surgeries every eight weeks.

Twice a week, the shelter hosts a community clinic with a vet providing low-cost services to the community. Shelter dogs (and cats) are fully vetted and spayed/neutered prior to adoptions, and receive heartworm preventatives.

The shelter was in the process of setting up a grooming space off their lobby. They were looking for a local groomer to utilize the space and also groom some shelter dogs.

Housed in a former farm store, the shelter’s spaces are large, open, and bright. Their lobby has enormous windows for walls with high ceilings, where new tractors used to be displayed. It’s a great way to repurpose an existing structure, instead of spending millions on a new building.

Staff supervise playgroups of 10-20 dogs multiple times a week in a large fenced area behind the shelter. What they really need most is more volunteers and fosters. With such a large number of dogs (and cats) and only 6 staff members, they could provide even better care with more help.

It’s exciting to see a rural shelter in the south that is finding a way to succeed in saving dogs and serving its community. Hopefully, they will find their way out of debt so they can hire additional staff. Meanwhile, Clarksdale is lucky to have a board committed to the shelter’s success, Gabi’s open-hearted leadership at no cost, and a staff committed to the best  possible outcome for all the dogs within their care.

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For more information on any of our projects, to talk about rescue in your neck of the woods, or partner with us, please email cara@WWLDO.org.