Furkids, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to rescuing and placing homeless and abandoned animals, is no stranger to success.

Since its founding in 2002, the organization has rescued over 65,000 animals, opened the largest cage-free, no-kill shelter in the Southeast for rescued cats (along with Sadie’s Place, a no-kill shelter for rescued dogs), and operates a string of popular thrift stores that give back to the community and help fund their work.

But 2024 saw their success reach new heights with a thriving nine-acre property in Cumming (30 minutes north of Peachtree Corners), multiple architectural awards and more — something they’re celebrating with an end-of-year Holiday Open House.

End of year events

The Holiday Open House will take place at their new headquarters in Cumming on December 6 from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Guests are invited to come out and mingle with the animals, enjoy hors d’euvres, beer and wine, tour the grounds and learn more about the organization’s plans for 2025.

On Sunday, December 8, they’re hosting a fun Santa Paws event for families to bring their four-legged friends to have their photos made with Santa Claus. Space is limited, so reservations should be made online to reserve a spot. The $25 photo fee gives guests a hi-res download of their photo as well as access to tour the campus, goodies and more.

They are also closing out the year with the last of their 2024 Vaccination and Microchip Clinics on December 14 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Free pet vaccines will be available for the first 150 clients that day. While there, families can also enjoy “catio tours, puppy playdates and other fun activities.”

The new facilities

Furkids purchased their nine-acre property in 2018 with a vision to turn it into a new headquarters and adoption center for the organization. But it’s become much more than that.

Originally home to the Wakoola Water Gardens, the property had fallen into disrepair, but came with an onsite two-story building and an incredible landscape and botanical garden already in place.

“I had 90 days to raise $1 million,” said Samantha Shelton, founder and CEO of Furkids. “It was a miracle. [Now] the property is an incredible oasis that we’ve restored, and we moved our headquarters there at the end of 2019.”

Shelton said that she has been raising money over the last six years to build a new event center and cat shelter. Today, both of those projects are completed and open, situated in the wooded, garden landscape of their Cumming campus.

Shiloh Gardens and Giaquinto Event Center

The Shiloh Gardens and Giaquinto Event Center opened in January 2023, as a welcoming venue for weddings, corporate events and private parties. They are currently booked through 2025. And 100% of the revenue earned from rentals is poured back into Furkids to help save and care for the animals they rescue.

The garden’s main entrance is a rustic breezeway of greenery and lights that opens onto a covered patio featuring a cascading fountain, koi pond, lights and seating areas. The garden lawn (ideal for an outdoor wedding) is an open greenspace set against a backdrop of pines and other trees. And the Giaquinto Event Center is a strikingly designed building that can be arranged to seat 280+ people for dinner or accommodate a classroom-style meeting.

An award-winning cat shelter

Furkids opened the Fort & Michele Felker Cat Shelter in December 2023, and it has since won three architectural awards — the Honor Award from the 2024 AIA Georgia Design & Honor Awards; an Honorable Mention at the 2022 American Architecture Awards from The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design; and recognition from The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.

Designed with the wellbeing of its animals and caretakers in mind, the 7,554-square-foot shelter features 12 free-roam rooms where cats can enjoy natural sunlight and access to an outdoor “catio” patio space, creating an enriching environment. There is also a cozy cat cafe where guests can enjoy a drink while meeting the adoptable cats — or just have a nice, quiet place to work.

Visitors are welcome to make an appointment to experience the shelter’s thoughtful design firsthand, whether they are looking to adopt or not.

“Furkids is committed to saving animals and providing inviting community spaces for our Atlanta neighbors,” said Shelton. “The architectural design excellence of our cat shelter welcomes animals and their human companions onto our campus.”

“We are delighted to have been a finalist for these prestigious awards,” she added, “and we will be replicating this standard throughout our campus, including in the construction of … two new buildings — a beautiful new dog shelter that will double our capacity and a new, state-of-the-art medical center that will help us … save more lives than ever before.”

Plans for the future

According to a recent press release, the architectural awards “underscore Furkids’ commitment to architectural and design excellence, which will be further demonstrated when Furkids completes construction of the new dog shelter and medical facility.”

The Sutherlin Dog Shelter will offer 13,000 square feet of space and accommodate up to 135 dogs — doubling the organization’s current capacity and providing a more comfortable environment for their long-term residents.

The Giaquinto Medical Center will feature state-of-the-art space and veterinary equipment, including six surgery tables (up from the three they currently have), five separate wards with space to treat more than 100 cases at a time, and the ability to better handle emergency needs that may arise.

The organization expects their animal control intake to increase by 50% in the first 6–12 months and then 100% within two years, bringing in 6,000 rescues from kill shelters each year and helping to ease the burden on local municipal animal facilities.

“We just broke ground on the Sutherlin Dog Shelter and the Giaquinto Medical Center and both buildings will be finished by the end of 2025,” Shelton shared.

“We have an incredible campus that provides all kinds of services to the community to help them with their pets and a beautiful green space featuring events like yoga, etc. We also have comedy nights and other … community events [planned] to welcome people of all ages and walks of life into Furkids,” she continued.

Frida’s Foundation

Another important highlight of the year was the merging of Frida’s Foundation, a volunteer-based nonprofit, with the Furkids organization.

Founded in 2019, Frida’s Foundation’s mission is to aid community cats and educate the public through high-volume spay/neuter programs, community outreach, collaboration and advocacy.

Since its inception, they have spayed/neutered over 3,500 cats, sent more than 2,500 cats to rescue and provided food assistance to over 4,500 cats within the community — achievements that were driven by Frida’s Foundation founder, Diviya Roney.

According to a press release announcing the merger, Frida’s Foundation’s “hard work and commitment to lifting people out of despair and giving hope to the hopeless is a mission that aligns perfectly with the core values of Furkids Animal Rescue & Shelters.”

Furkids absorbed Frida’s Foundation earlier this year, combining both organizations’ resources and expertise to enhance their shared mission of saving animals and supporting communities in need.

“It is very exciting for Furkids to acquire such a professional, well-run community cat organization,” Shelton said. “Philosophically, our two organizations are well-matched. We are looking forward to having Diviya continue the work of Frida’s Foundation at Furkids, and we welcome its dedicated volunteers and supporters … as we all work together to provide support for community cats and their caregivers in all Georgia counties.”

More details

Furkids Animal Rescue and Shelters Headquarters is located at 5235 Union Hill Road, Cumming, GA 30040. For more information, please visit furkids.org.

You can read more about Furkids CEO, Samantha Shelton, in our Faces of Peachtree Corners feature in the December/January issue of Peachtree Corners Magazine.