19 Best Dog Rescues in Georgia

Zack Keithy, our author, is a certified veterinarian technician (UC Blue Ash) for over 6 years (contact him here). The articles written here are based on his expertise and experience, combined with a review by our expert vet reviewers including Dr M. Tarantino. Learn more about us here.

When you’re searching for a dog rescue, how do you decide which organization to go with? There are so many to choose from, and each organization has a different mission. As a result, it can be difficult to figure out which one is best for your situation. Here is a list of the best dog rescues in Georgia that includes their unique missions and stories.

Quick note here: The main difference between dog rescues and shelters is that rescues are typically privately run and funded through donations, while shelters are organized by local government.

Dog rescues are not listed in any particular order. Check out other excellent dog rescues in other states here.

1. Furkids

Location: 5235 Union Hill Road, Cumming, GA 30040

Furkids is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization based in Atlanta, Georgia that runs the Southeast’s biggest cage-free, no-kill shelter for rescued cats and Sadie’s Place, a no-kill shelter for rescued dogs.

Furkids saves over 5,000 homeless and abandoned animals each year, providing them with the greatest medical treatment and a nurturing environment while searching for a forever home.

In the Atlanta area, the Furkids program currently has over 600 animals in its shelters, 10 PetSmart and Petco adoption centers, and over 600 foster families.

Furkids also runs four thrift stores, which help to support around a third of its lifesaving efforts.

Support them here!

2. PAWS Atlanta

Location: 5287 Covington Highway, Decatur, GA 30035

PAWS Atlanta is managed by a board of directors, and the animals in their free-roaming cat cottage, small and large dog area, isolation facility for sick pets, and animal intake facilities are cared for by a small but committed staff.

They also offer a 3.5-acre walking trail and off-leash area where you can learn more about them and their pets.

You are encouraged to go visit them and see all they have to offer at PAWS Atlanta!

PAWS Atlanta is not supported by the federal, state, or local governments.

The critical services they provide to the community are made possible by their donors’ generous contributions.

Their no-kill stance is straightforward. It means that they devote the time, medical attention, and behavioral training that all of the animals in their care require and deserve to thrive.

Only terminally sick animals with a poor quality of life or severely aggressive animals that have been assessed as such by independent, trained trainers will be put down.

Unlike some shelters, PAWS Atlanta never euthanizes a cat or dog due to space restraints.

Support them here!

3. Atlanta Humane Society

Locations: 4 available. Check here.

The Atlanta Humane Society is a no-kill shelter that serves the Atlanta Metro area by offering refuge, adoption, veterinary treatment, and community outreach.

For more than 148 years, they have been caring for their community and animals as one of Atlanta’s oldest charities.

They feel that the human-animal interaction is extremely important, and they urge their city and each other to take action.

Together, they put up a united front against brutality, neglect, and displacement by working cooperatively.

They unite homeless animals with loving homes, offer secure environments for neglected animals, and enhance their community by promoting compassion.

You may get involved here!

4. Angels Among Us Pet Rescue

Location: PO Box 821 Alpharetta, GA 30009 (mail only)

Angels Among Us Pet Rescue (Angels Rescue) was started in February 2009 by a small group of people dedicated to preserving the growing number of unwanted, abandoned, abused, and stray dogs and cats in Georgia’s animal control facilities and other at-risk circumstances.

In just ten years, this group has saved the lives of over 19,000 dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens thanks to the generosity of donors, fosters, and other volunteers.

Their efforts are supported by tax-deductible donations from caring individuals and organizations.

The mission of Angels Among Us Pet Rescue is to “Rescue One Until There Are None,” by focusing on saving as many animals as they can and raising awareness to educate the public.

Check out the adoption process here.

5. Georgia Animal Rescue and Defence

Location: 100 Dichroic Dragon Dr., Pembroke, GA 31321

Georgia Animal Rescue and Defense, Inc. is a 501(c)3 non-profit animal welfare organization and a licensed 509(a)2 no-kill animal shelter that is totally funded by private donations and gets no government assistance.

GARD was created in 2006 by a family of animal enthusiasts who has committed their lives to preserving animals and educating people about the pet overpopulation problem, and it is still privately owned by them.

Several Animal Control Shelters turn to GARD for assistance with overcrowding, hoarding, and special needs pets that no other rescue will take.

Citizens in the local community have approached GARD for assistance in finding homes for dogs they no longer want, soldiers deployed with no one to care for their dogs, elderly people going to nursing homes, local people who have discovered stray, starving dogs abandoned on the roads (something they see far too often), and the list goes on.

GARD is dedicated to placing all adoptable pets in loving homes. We do not euthanize adoptable animals, and once they are in our care, they do not have a term restriction.

Help them out here!

6. Rescue Me Georgia

Rescue Me Georgia (RMG) was founded in 2008 by two women who shared a common goal: to aid the forgotten canines of Jasper County who had no voice up to that moment.

Shelia and Marybeth banded together and agreed to focus their efforts in Jasper County on a tiny, rural animal control (specifically located in Monticello, Georgia).

Although the majority of their foster homes are in the Atlanta area, they still make every effort to save dogs from Jasper County as well as other animal control facilities in the Atlanta area.

RMG has grown and saved the lives of over 5,000 animals in the last 12 years. We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit animal rescue organization with a license in the state of Georgia.

Check out their available dogs here.

7. Homeward Bound Pet Rescue

Location: PO Box 792, Ellijay, GA, 30540 (mailing only)

Homeward Bound Pet Rescue is a non-profit organization based in Gilmer County, Georgia, with a 501(c)(3) status.

The all-volunteer crew is committed to the rescue and rehabilitation of homeless companion animals who have been abandoned, surrendered by their owners, or saved from high-kill county shelters.

Homeward Bound offers these animals the required medical care and attention, as well as emotional, behavioral, and socialization needs, before attempting to place them in loving homes through adoption.

From entering data to writing grants to fostering homeless pets to working directly with the animals at our shelter, Homeward Bound requires a diverse range of skills to keep it running.

Support them here!

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8. Southern Comfort Animal Rescue

Location: 1484 N. Highway 19, Glenwood, GA 30428

Southern Comfort Animal Rescue, Inc. is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to rescuing and rehoming injured, unloved, and abandoned companion animals.

Southern Comfort was formed in Savannah, Georgia, in 2001 to provide sanctuary and temporary foster or permanent homes for pets left behind by troops from neighboring Ft. Stewart’s 3rd Infantry Division who were deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.

The company relocated to Glenwood, Georgia in 2006.

In Wheeler County, Southern Comfort meets a critical need.

The county is one of the poorest in the country, and there is no animal control or shelter for stray animals.

As a result, on a daily basis, many stray dogs and puppies are abandoned.

All animals are quarantined for two weeks when they arrive.

Before being put in carefully selected forever homes, all animals are treated for acute medical concerns, vaccinated, and spayed or neutered if older than 5 months.

Check out the adoption process here.

9. Coastal Pet Rescue

Location: 7430 Thomas Ave, Savannah, GA 31406

Coastal Pet Rescue is a non-profit animal rescue organization dedicated to helping homeless, mistreated, and abandoned dogs and cats in Savannah and the surrounding areas.

Through its foster home program and small capacity shelter, Camp Pawsawhile Retreat, Coastal Pet Rescue has changed the lives of homeless pets in Chatham, Bryan, and Effingham Counties since February 2003.

Coastal Pet Rescue is a well-known resource in Savannah for the welfare of homeless, abandoned, and abused companion animals and their goal is to reduce euthanasia in their county’s animal control facility by rehoming adoptable pets and providing resources to pet owners to encourage responsibility.

Do your part here!

10. Orphan Annie Rescue

Orphan Animal Rescue is a no-kill rescue organization that saves dogs from all across Georgia; many of them are on their “last day” at high-intake shelters when they come to them.

All of their dogs are in loving foster homes in the metro Atlanta area, and they are an all-volunteer group.

In their program, they offer a wide range of breeds, sizes, and personalities, and they look forward to working with you to discover the perfect match.

There are many ways you can help them out from volunteering to adopting a pet to providing them with a forever home.

Find out more here.

11. Canine Dog Rescue

Location: P.O. Box 248, Lawrenceville, GA 30046 (mailing only)

Canine Pet Rescue is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to rescuing German Shepherds from high-kill shelters across the South.

Their dogs are housed in foster homes as well as in their small 7-run kennel on founder Carla Brown’s horse farm.

Carla has been involved in rescue for over ten years, and in 2009, she created CPR to focus her efforts on German Shepherds.

It was only natural for her to focus her rescue on GSDs after owning shepherds for several years and becoming involved with a local Schutzhund Club.

Other breeds of dogs are also rescued using CPR and are available for adoption.

Each dog in their program receives basic care, as well as any additional care that may be required.

The dogs are provided with enough housing, food, water, and mental stimulation during training and recuperation.

At any given moment, this group has anything from 10 to 20 canines in rehabilitation, and there are several permanent residents who assist them in becoming comfortable.

Do your part here.

Other Dog Rescues in Georgia Worth Mentioning

There are several other dog rescues in Georgia that are in need of your help, but unfortunately, we are unable to cover every single one of them.

Through online reviews and friends’ recommendations, here are 8 more you can visit and support:

• North Georgia Animal Alliance (North Georgia)
• Mostly Mutts Animal Rescue (Atlanta)
• Barkville Dog Rescue (Jasper)
• One Love Animal Rescue (Savannah)
• Best Friends Dog Rescue (Cairo)
• Royal Animal Refuge (Tyrone)
• Forgotten Paws Dog Rescue (Atlanta)
• D.A.R.E Animal Rescue (Valdosta)

Find Dog Rescues in Other States Here

• 20 Best Dog Rescues in Florida
• 20 Best Dog Rescues in North Carolina