Samantha Shelton’s life changed on a seemingly normal day. Standing in her kitchen, she glanced outside her window and saw a cat and her three kittens.
After learning the animals would be euthanized if she took them to a shelter, Shelton immediately knew she had to help and sprung into action. She left her corporate job and ran toward her newfound calling, which would become a remarkable journey of launching and expanding her nonprofit Furkids.
“It changed my life,” Shelton said. “That moment. And I guess I get teary-eyed because it comes from a place of gratitude that I get to do what I love every day and what I’m passionate about.”
Since then, Furkids has changed the lives of more than 65,000 cats and dogs, becoming the largest cage-free, no-kill shelter in the Southeast. Using a team of employees and volunteers across metro Atlanta, the organization provides many services and opportunities, including fostering and adoptions.
“I love meeting new people that can lend their skills and talents to the organization to help us save more lives,” she said.
Credit: Grace Salley
Credit: Grace Salley
Renée Jensrud works as a fundraising and nonprofit consultant and has known Shelton since 2019. Jensrud describes her as passionate, a big-picture thinker, and a connector.
“What she’s done [with Furkids] and her vision for it is really, I think, very special,” Jensrud said. “I don’t know that anyone could see this vision before Sam rolled it out as a vision.”
Jensrud also noted that Shelton takes so much of the load onto her shoulders and her method of getting things done, while not always the most traditional, led to the Furkids achievements we see today.
“She had this vision and she’s like, ‘I don’t know how we’re going to get to the end, but we’re gonna get there,” Jensrud said.
Shelton’s role as CEO means dreaming and envisioning the next steps for the organization and communicating the vision with her team. Furkids is building the new Sutherland Dog Shelter and the Giaquinto Medical Center on the headquarters’ property in Cumming.
With the addition of the medical center, Shelton expressed how important it is for Furkids to take in any animal, no matter their medical condition. The newly built cat shelter hosts separate rooms for cats with Feline Immunodeficient Virus (FIV) and Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV), diseases that cats can live with but still frequently lead to them being euthanized.
Furkids will also perform surgeries on animals that may not be deemed worth it by other organizations.
“Right now, as we’re talking, we’ve got a little puppy that’s at UGA, having a very expensive, very dangerous surgery,” Shelton said. “It may or may not make it, but we’re giving it a chance, and we’re putting up the $5,000 or $6,000 that it needs for this lifesaving surgery and we’re hoping it’s gonna make it. But I’m drawn to these cases because they don’t stand a chance anywhere else. And if we can do something to save a life, we’re going to do it.”
John and Kay Giaquinto are among Furkids’ largest donors and have become close friends of Shelton. Over the years, they have donated more than $4 million to Furkids and to Shelton.
“She is Furkids,” John Giaquinto said. “Of course, she’s the founder and now the CEO, so it all lays on her.”
The couple said she develops rapport and connections with anyone involved with the organization.
“When you get to know her, and people are so attracted to her and that’s why people are willing to donate money to this organization,” John said. “They not only believe in the organization and what it does, they also believe in her.”
HOW TO HELP
If you’re interested in volunteering, donating or fostering an animal at Furkids, go to furkids.org for more information.
About the Author
Ex-Georgia Bulldogs, Tucker High star Thomas Brown is Bears’ interim head coach
Live I-285 updates in the Greater Atlanta Area: accidents, road closures and delays
Mexico's congress votes to charge cruise ship passengers $42 per head for port calls
SunFed cucumbers and Costco eggs recalled due to potential salmonella contamination