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Our story

Young-Williams Animal Center began as the Knoxville/Knox County Animal Welfare Center that opened in January 2001. As the demand for animal services continued to grow, a group of concerned citizens, including attorneys Lindsay Young and Mark Williams, knew that a larger and more sophisticated facility was needed.

They began a campaign to build the new center as a partnership with the city and county along with private citizens who shared a passion for animal welfare.

The city and county provided funds for the kennel holding areas while a newly organized board of directors raised funds for the adoption floor and upgraded amenities throughout the building.

As a result of these efforts, Young-Williams Animal Center moved into a new $3.7 million facility in May 2004.

Young-Williams Animal Village opened in 2010 and is home to a secondary adoption floor, as well as the Young-Williams Spay/Neuter Solutions.

In July of 2012, Young-Williams Animal Center became a private 501(c)(3) organization.

In 2018, Young-Williams Animal Center achieved for the first time in its history no-kill status. The definition of no-kill means saving all medically and behaviorally treatable animals and maintaining a save rate of 90% or more.

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Mission

At Young-Williams Animal Center, our mission is to lead the community to end pet homelessness, promote animal welfare and enhance the human-animal bond.

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Vision

A home for every pet.

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Core Values

Compassion, Innovation, Integrity, Dedication, Collaboration and Empathy.

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Statistics

Young-Williams Animal Center believes in transparency which is why we openly share our shelter statistics with the public. The information below is data commonly used to measure success in animal sheltering, including the “Save Rate”. The “Save Rate” is the calculation of animals that leave our shelter alive divided by our total intake, as is the industry best practice. We also report our statistics nationally through Shelter Animals Count along with over 4,000 other shelters.

Year
Intake
Adoptions
Returned to Owner
Rescue
Total Live Outcomes
Euthanized or Died
Save Rate
2025 9,798 6,412 1,370 371 9,161 663 93.25%
2024 9,145 5,670 1,411 692 8,396 792 91.38%
2023 10,694 6,876 1,512 623 9,872 770 92.76%
2022 10,857 7,203 1,719 329 10,238 666 93.89%
2021 9,780 6,198 1,754 140 9,110 649 93.35%
2020 7,895 4,959 1,379 303 7,411 401 94.86%
2019 9,073 5,688 1,626 445 8,560 754 94.35%
2018 9,173 5,772 1,437 1,102 8,299 1,013 90.47%
2017 9,547 5,824 1,591 619 8,034 1,970 84.15%
2016 11,594 5,705 1,504 52 7,261 3,966 62.63%
2015 11,841 5,524 1,523 80 7,127 4,425 60.19%
2014 12,090 4,664 1,492 383 6,539 5,399 54.09%
2013 13,921 5,138 1,662 432 7,232 6,547 51.95%
2012 14,355 3,806 1,671 639 6,116 7,241 42.61%
2011 15,030 3,410 1,617 588 5,615 9,287 37.36%
2010 15,750 3,541 1,471 616 5,628 9,714 35.73%
2009 17,830 3,363 1,410 562 5,335 12,226 29.92%
2008 17,685 2,819 1,318 472 4,609 12,638 26.06%
2007 17,213 2,541 1,220 669 4,430 12,261 25.74%
2006 1,6914 2,194 1,078 1,200 4,472 12,090 26.44%
2005 16,195 2,448 960 1,087 4,495 11,546 27.76%
2004 16,033 2,953 878 888 4,719 10,848 29.43%
2003 13,835 2,649 760 1,080 4,489 8,966 32.45%
2002 12,331 2,326 841 789 3,956 8,009 32.08%
2001 11,864 1,500 783 1,059 3,342 7,718 28.17%