"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's
soul remains unawakened."
Anatole France
"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's
Who we are
Angel-Paws Inc. is a Townsville based charity that specialises in offering abandoned and rejected animals a second chance at life.
We take in animals from across North Queensland and work with vets and foster carers to bring them to full health before finding them a new home. Angel-Paws Inc. is run by a small team of staff and a huge network of passionate foster carers and volunteers who work tirelessly to help our four-legged friends find a well-deserved forever home. We are a no-kill organisation which means that we are committed to every animal we accept.
Founder Ayla Watt and Nugget
Our past, present and future
In 2009, Angel-Paws founder Ayla Watt, purchased a puppy from a backyard breeder. Nugget was 11 weeks old and cost $100.
She had no vet work done at all. She had not even been wormed. As Nugget grew, it became obvious that she had a number of medical issues. The worst of Nugget's conditions was hip dysplasia in both hips. Nugget started treatment immediately.
When initially diagnosed, Ayla concluded from her years of working for animal rescue groups that if Nugget were lost and ended up in one of these places she would not have passed the medical tests to be rehomed.
Nugget would have been destroyed. It was from this realisation that Ayla decided to start her own animal rescue and make a point of difference to how other rescues were run.
In October 2014, Angel-Paws Inc. was registered as an incorporated entity, shortly followed in March 2015 as a registered charity with Deductible Gift Recipient Status.
Angel-Paws Inc. has grown dramatically and there is now a core group of staff and volunteers working together to run Angel-Paws Inc with hundreds of others willing to give their time.
In the future, Angel-Paws Inc. aims to grow and develop further to assist more animals. Our future is not set in stone, but we envisage having our own vet clinic in the next 5 years and to continue working with regional and local vet clinics to achieve the same goals; reduce the amount of unwanted animals and educate the general population on animal responsibility.
We plan to continue working within the community to raise awareness of animals in need and the importance of being a responsible pet owner. While we hope this will help reduce the number of abandoned and unwanted animals, we also aim to work with local and state governments to introduce legislation making desexing mandatory.
What makes us different
Angel-Paws Inc. is unique for a number of reasons but what makes us really special are the people who work with Angel-Paws Inc. and the animals we work to help.
Every person who works with Angel-Paws Inc. is a volunteer who chooses to give their time, resources and love out of the desire to help the animals. Our foster carers even open their homes, gardens and lives to care for our angels. We are totally dependent on our foster carers, as unlike many animal shelters, Angel-Paws Inc. has no central shelter; instead all our animals stay with foster families in real homes with real people.
As long as we have a carer available, we will help any animal we can, regardless of their age, sex, size, breed or temperament. We don't focus on only cats or kittens or dogs or puppies, we aim to give a second chance to any animal that needs it.
We ensure that every animal who leaves our care is vet-checked, parasite treated, micro-chipped and desexed. When someone applies to adopt an animal, we do a house check to make sure that the animal will be looked after and is going to a suitable environment for them. These checks ensure the safety and wellbeing of our animals even after they have left our care.
Who we work with
Angel-Paws Inc. works with a number of individuals and organisations, as well as our volunteers, to rescue and help animals. As we are a charity, we only accept animals that have been surrendered or that we know have been abandoned. We work with vets from across North Queensland to rehome animals that have been dumped at their clinics or handed in to them to be euthanised.
Angel-Paws Inc. also works with council pounds to rescue animals that are on death row. Finally, we assist individuals who, through no fault of their own, are unable to care for their animals. We are here to do what's best for the animal, regardless of where it has come from. Once an animal has come into our care, we work with vets, animal specialists and foster carers to ensure the animal reaches their full potential.
The reach of the Paw
Angel-Paws Inc. is based in Townsville North Queensland, however we take in animals from as far north as Cairns, west as Charters Towers and south as Bowen. We also assist animals in the numerous coastal communities in this area, including Palm Island. Our angels have travelled all across Australia, including as far as Perth and Hobart to their new forever homes.
