Poverty's Pets

Poverty's Pets Poverty's Pets supports under-served communities with a focus on spay/neuter & community education.

Poverty’s Pets was incorporated in 2005 under the direction of the Founder and Animal Advocate, Kate Sivolella and is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. With a mission of aiding abandoned, neglected, and abused companion animals in low-income and underserved communities, Poverty’s Pets also provides education programs and veterinary care services (including spay/neuter) to families in the low-income areas of Phoenix, AZ. In addition to these initiatives, Poverty’s Pets partners with local schools to educate students on the respect and welfare for all beings, and to promote positive interactions between the dogs and students. Since 2008, Poverty’s Pets has facilitated the adoption of over 1000 animals, provides medical services (including spay and neuter) to over 800 each year. With a compassionate volunteer network, it is Poverty’s Pets goal to end animal cruelty, suffering, overpopulation and homelessness.

For over a decade, we have placed numerous calls to the Arizona Humane Society about this house of horrors. Our most rec...
10/05/2026

For over a decade, we have placed numerous calls to the Arizona Humane Society about this house of horrors. Our most recent call, which we posted about, was back in January. At that time, AHS confirmed a long history of calls about the property, not just Poverty's Pets.

The truth is, the property torments the surrounding homes with the never-ending cries of puppies. Over the years, we have scooped up many dogs in the alley who have escaped. Despite knowing where they came from, they don’t go back.

This house of horrors just breeds, breeds, breeds, and the dogs are left outside 24/7, matted and tick-infested. Unfortunately, there is not much else we can do, as they are no longer penned up and continued welfare checks fall by the wayside. But the suffering continues in what we feel are deplorable conditions.

This little man, who was simply lying in the alley, was well underweight and had hundreds of ticks. No doubt the dozen or so pups on the property and the adults are in the same condition.

Endless suffering permeates this house, year after year. Our attempts to help with spaying and neutering are obviously seen as the enemy.

But this little man—he escaped, and he is not going back.

10/02/2026

Education! Yes, the weather is finally breaking in Phoenix. Eighty-eight degrees is not 110, but it’s still hot in direct sun, especially on concrete and without water.
When we first saw the puppies, we assumed their situation was temporary. A few hours later, we swung by again. Since we were able to knock on the door—which isn’t always possible, as many yards are locked—we did just that. We kept our message short and sweet, and the owner was appreciative. She explained that she sometimes needs to contain the puppies because they’re so wild.
Our concern was the kennel’s placement and the lack of water. And yes, even at 88 degrees, the Phoenix sun can still be dangerous.

A few weeks ago, we learned about a dog who had been roaming a trailer park. We went out to deliver a pool and dog food ...
09/29/2026

A few weeks ago, we learned about a dog who had been roaming a trailer park. We went out to deliver a pool and dog food to the woman who had been caring for her off and on. We hadn’t planned to leave with her, but it quickly became clear that removing her from the situation was the better option. We scrambled and set her up on a volunteer’s front porch. She’s still there today.

Yes, she is safe, has a pool, gets walks, and even has a swamp cooler. But a volunteer’s porch can only be a temporary stop. Pinto needs a rescue with foster and adoption resources to help her find a home of her own.

Her microchip gave us a name and address, but the phone number was no longer in service. For good measure, we made two trips to the address to make sure the note letting the owner know we had their dog was received. The owner never contacted us, so it was clear they didn’t want her back.

Dogs can go missing for months or even years, and finding an unspayed dog doesn’t tell us the whole story. We hoped her owner had been searching for her—and that the multiple litters happened while she was missing, not while she was in their care. But the owner never contacted us, so it was clear they didn’t want her back.

Pinto needs a rescue partner for her next chapter. Rescue partners—and your friends—please contact us if you can help her find a home. Thank you.

Our partnerships save lives. As you can imagine, so much more goes into these happy-ending pictures.With little Dorothy,...
09/21/2026

Our partnerships save lives. As you can imagine, so much more goes into these happy-ending pictures.

With little Dorothy, there was no doubt in our minds that she was pregnant, which is why we reached out to our pals at Almost There Rescue | PHX AZ Dog Rescue. Once there, their check-in protocol confirmed that although she looked and felt pregnant, her intake exam showed that she was not.

Now what?

The volunteer who transported Dorothy had nowhere for her to go. A big thank-you to ATR, who committed to keeping her overnight, and to our other pals at HARTT, who juggled things around and made room for Dorothy.

Poverty’s Pets likens the rescue of a dog to a nine-inning game. When we handed Dorothy off to HARTT, the game was still in the early innings.

Dorothy was not pregnant, but she had a belly full of pyometra—a life-threatening uterine infection in unspayed female dogs that requires immediate emergency surgery. HARTT and Dorothy still had some rough innings ahead. Her surgery was difficult, and the cost was well beyond that of a routine spay.

But in the end, Dorothy won the ball game, thanks to partnerships that truly do save lives.


How is this sweet, sweet boy not adopted?We have had Rango in our care for over four years. If there were ever a dog who...
09/20/2026

How is this sweet, sweet boy not adopted?

We have had Rango in our care for over four years. If there were ever a dog who deserved a home to call his own, it is Rango.

Rango is loving, affectionate, easygoing, adorable, and the best companion. We did Rango a bit of a disservice by mistakenly believing he needed to be an only dog. We were wrong. Rango does incredibly well with social, dog-friendly dogs and currently has a playmate he romps with every day.

But the truth is, Rango especially loves human companionship. We estimate him to be approximately seven years old. He loves car rides, walks, cuddling, and simply being with his person.

Rango has waited a long time. We hope his person finally finds him.

Say it ain’t so! Porter has left the building—and this is a big deal!Porter has quite the history. He was once on the ru...
09/18/2026

Say it ain’t so! Porter has left the building—and this is a big deal!

Porter has quite the history. He was once on the run, covering well over 25 miles. Finally, after several months, our friends at HARTT brought him to safety.

Porter spent many years in our care at the Columbus House, but it became apparent that he needed more than what we were offering. He lacked confidence, and we thought perhaps a change of scenery would do him good.

In stepped The Dog Tribe Co.—and boy, did Porter thrive under the training and care of Rachel and her team!

Today, Porter is living his absolute best life. His mom and dad are completely smitten with him, and vice versa. The updates we receive are both incredibly sweet and somewhat surreal, as Porter waited years to find his people.

Porter is quite the couch potato now, perhaps catching up after all those miles traveled on those paw pads.

As we always say, there is a lid for every pot. Thanks to Rachel and her team, Porter has finally found his.

We cannot express how thrilled we are for Porter. He now has a dog sibling to pal around with, multiple soft beds and couches, and a mom and dad who loved him to the moon and back from the moment they set eyes on him.


This was a case of an owner with the intent to do good and a situation that spiraled out of control. It is also a case w...
09/16/2026

This was a case of an owner with the intent to do good and a situation that spiraled out of control. It is also a case where two organizations, HARTT and Poverty’s Pets, combined our resources to sterilize and provide aftercare for the remaining twelve dogs on the property — and a neighbor’s dog for good measure.

The twelve dogs were returned home to a grateful owner, and they will never again contribute to our man-made pet overpopulation crisis.

Spay and neuter is the only solution. We simply cannot adopt, foster, warehouse and, in many circumstances, hoard our way out of this mess.

These few pictures and videos are just a snapshot of the coordination, time, stress, heartache, cost, and in the end, fulfillment that went into helping a homeowner who never intended for this to happen. She loves her dogs. She just needed a helping hand.

To our friends at HARTT — we do good work! Well done team.


One trailer park can keep us busy for months.When a family contacted us about a female pittie who had shown up weeks ear...
09/15/2026

One trailer park can keep us busy for months.

When a family contacted us about a female pittie who had shown up weeks earlier, we simply asked them to keep her safe.

“We can’t afford to feed her,” and “she is always hot,” the anxious woman told us.

We explained that we would deliver food and a pool, with the option of calling County for a stray dog pickup. But in the meantime, we just wanted her to stay put because taking her ourselves simply did not seem possible.

Well, one thing led to another.

And now this sweet girl is literally staying on the enclosed front porch of a volunteer’s house because we simply have nowhere for her to go.

For most of the last 72 hours, she has slept. After living in survival mode in this relentless heat, she is exhausted.

We don’t have a name for her yet.
Although she does have a microchip, but it is unregistered. We were told it was implanted at Petco, presumably through a free microchip clinic?? And we have to ask: what good is a microchip if there is no registered owner information attached to it? She has clearly been used for breeding.
More free spay and neuter, please. Less unregistered microchipping.

Despite everything, this deserving girl is good with dogs and cats. The kids at the trailer park told us she followed them everywhere. Now she needs someone to give her somewhere to go.

If you are a rescue and can help this sweet girl, please reach out to Poverty’s Pets. Our volunteer’s front porch is keeping her safe for now.

As we carry heavy hearts today on the 25th anniversary of 9/11, we are thankful for the first responders, many of whom l...
09/11/2026

As we carry heavy hearts today on the 25th anniversary of 9/11, we are thankful for the first responders, many of whom lost their lives while saving others.

More than 300 dogs worked endless hours in the aftermath, including Bretagne, pictured here giving her handler, Denise Corliss, a paw of encouragement. Bretagne passed away 10 years ago and was believed to be the last surviving 9/11 search-and-rescue dog.

Today, we remember those who lost their lives, their families, and the many heroes who stepped forward in the aftermath.


Where are all the dachshund lovers?? Gordy is waiting for you!Gordy is spending some time with our trusted trainer, The ...
09/10/2026

Where are all the dachshund lovers?? Gordy is waiting for you!

Gordy is spending some time with our trusted trainer, The Dog Tribe Co., and he is making gigantic progress in the confidence department. He has also made a few friends along the way!

To know Gordy is to love him. We are so proud of this little man, who had to be humanely trapped back in January and was once completely ruled by his insecurities. Look at him now!

Gordy is ready for the next chapter — a home of his own. If you think you might be Gordy’s person, we would love to hear from you. Apply to adopt Gordy here:
https://povertyspets.org/application/

Address

PO Box 40112
Phoenix, AZ
85067

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