MSPCA-Angell

Boston Brahmin lawyer George Thorndike Angell began a high-profile protest of animal cruelty in 1868, after reading about two horses being raced to death by carrying two riders each over forty miles of rough roads.

Among distinguished locals on the first board of directors were John Quincy Adams II, Henry Saltonstall, and William Gordon Weld.

[4] In 1927, the society formed the American Fondouk Maintenance Committee in Fez, Morocco, and opened a center there two years later.

The following year, an MSPCA animal shelter opened in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, now known as Berkshire Humane Society.

Together with Angell colleagues, Holzworth authored a number of pioneering studies of disorders affecting cats, including feline infectious peritonitis and hyperthyroidism.

In 1964, the MSPCA launched "Operation Gwamba" in Suriname which saved 9,737 animals from hydroelectric dam flooding and was the largest such project in history.

In 1986, MSPCA-Angell launched the statewide subsidized Spay/Neuter Assistance Program (SNAP) for low income pet owners who qualify.

[2] In 1994, a new MSPCA facility was opened in Brockton, Massachusetts, and Nevins Farm in Methuen launched the Equine Ambulance Program to offer emergency rescue and transport of disabled horses in New England and ambulance services events involving horses worldwide.

[2] In 2013, advocacy efforts led to the passage of the Animal Control Law – the most significant animal-related legislation in decades.

It also operates Angell Animal Medical Center in Boston and, since 2014, MSPCA-Angell West in Waltham, both 24/7 emergency facilities.

These locations include MSPCA-Angell Clinics in Boston, Methuen and Centreville, Massachusetts for low-income clients as well as the MSPCA-Angell West in Waltham, Massachusetts and Angell Animal Medical Center in Boston which both provide 24 x 7 emergency service, specialty care and primary care.

The MSPCA has a Law Enforcement Department and organizes the annual Walk for Animals on Boston Common.

[24] The MSPCA-Angell also takes a relatively negative view of zoological parks and aquaria unless such institutions meet "rigid criteria, without which there is insufficient justification for their existence" [25] In 2007, the MSPCA-Angell led a successful campaign for the Boston City Council to create a city ordinance prohibiting pet rental agencies from operating in Boston.