Nathan J. Winograd

After nine months and 26 cities, more than 76 hours of presentations, thousands of people, and tens of thousands of books sold, the 2007-08 national Building a No Kill Community tour is coming to an end. During my last appearance, 517 people registered to hear the message of hope contained in the No Kill philosophy, more people than attend most national conferences. The tide is turning. And it all comes down to all of you. Believe in your dreams, hold on to your principles, and never doubt that through hard work and perseverance, you will succeed.

They'll tell you its impossible, even though it has already been achieved. And they'll use it as an excuse to continue killing. To whitewash their failures to hold staff accountable. Or their failures to implement lifesaving programs. To keep customer service poor and the shelter dirty. To fill body bags, despite empty cages.

And when you call it into question, they'll label you "divisive." They'll give you one excuse after another:

But if you believe that, the animals haven't got a chance.

It is time for change. Demand No Kill.

Nathan

Independent Publishers Best Book Awards, 2008
Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation & The No Kill Revolution in America is a semi-finalist for the Best Book (Animal/Pets) of 2008. Finalists for the Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals will be announced at a ceremony in Los Angeles on the eve of Book Expo America, the nation's largest bookseller's convention in North America.

A Photographic Tour of U.S. Shelters
During the last several years, I have traveled to cities across the country trying to reform animal shelters, offering alternatives to killing, telling the story of promise embodied in the No Kill philosophy. My travels have taken me throughout Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and elsewhere. Mostly, I found despair. But I also found hope. And it is that hope that will pave the way for a No Kill nation. Take a photographic tour of what I found by clicking here . [ But please note : the photographs in the pictorial are very graphic.]

Animal Wise Radio
After several weeks of absence, I return to join Mike Fry and Beth Nelson, hosts of Animal Wise radio, to talk about No Kill this Sunday morning on KDWA AM 1460 in Minneapolis. But you don't have to live in the Twin Cities to listen. Nationally, you can also download the program as a podcast on iTunes or directly from the website at www.animalwiseradio.com .