History

In 1965, a group of concerned Waukesha County residents recognized a need for a county-wide humane society and centralized shelter building, where homeless and stray animals could be cared for humanely, and given a second chance. Up until this time, each municipality in the county handled its own animal impounding, creating confusion for residents and no main facility or contact to reconnect lost dogs with their owners.

In July of 1965, the Humane Animal Welfare Society of Waukesha County was granted incorporation and a search began for a suitable shelter site and design.

Building plans were finalized and ground was broken in September 1968. Showing true community spirit, many suppliers donated materials to the project, including planning and contracting fees donated by Mike Schallock. Founders such as Romey Schoeninger and Jane Knox painted all the interior walls. The Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity of Carroll College (now Carroll University) even manned shovels to dig drain tile tunnels.

While the shelter was under construction, dedicated HAWS volunteers Jane Knox, Mary Whipple, and Jeanette Saunders used their own vehicles to transport animals in need from Waukesha to Milwaukee’s Wisconsin Humane Society. They handled 21 animals their very first week, indicating the growing need in our community! HAWS’ own shelter couldn’t be done quickly enough!

The shelter for HAWS held its grand opening on July 19, 1969. A dream was realized — a caring place for the county’s residents to bring the animals they could no longer keep, in addition to an excellent location in the middle of Waukesha County to house stray animals looking to reconnect with their owners.

 

Additions to the building came quickly as needs continued to rise. Expansions in 1973, 1979, 1991, 2009, 2012, and 2017 included areas for training and classes, which illustrated HAWS’ dedication from the very beginning toward community education on animal welfare.

Today, HAWS’ shelter includes a kennel with adoption, stray, quarantine, and special care areas; separate, dedicated wards for dogs, cats, and small animals; a lobby with interview rooms and administrative offices; multi-purpose rooms for events, seminars, and training; and a veterinary medical clinic that provides spay/neuter procedures and comprehensive medical care for shelter animals as well as other community animals in need. 

Our staff includes an Executive team as well as a Humane Educator, Certified Dog Behaviorist and Trainers, Mobile Adoptions Coordinator, Veterinarians, experienced Adoption Counselors, Kennel Caregivers, and development and administrative staff. Our present-day facility accommodates over 8,000 animals each year and welcomes more than 35,000 human visitors.

With a generous donation from June Tennis, HAWS was able to open the Spay-Neuter Initiative Program (SNIP) clinic. Initially, the clinic’s focus was to spay and neuter HAWS’ adoptable pets prior to adoption, while also providing them with basic medical care. Services have now expanded to assist local breed rescue groups and also to the pets of low-income Waukesha County residents.

In 2005, through Project Guardian, free spay/neuter procedures were also made available for outdoor cats in the community, effectively ending a persistent feline overpopulation concern.

Additional sponsor donations have allowed HAWS’ SNIP to grow in both size and procedures offered. Medical procedures available for our shelter pets and rescue partners include advanced diagnostics, dental cleanings with extractions, hernia repair, lump removal, amputations, bladder stone removal, cherry eye repair and wound repair.

Life-saving pet transports saw a new twist when a routine November charter flight full of dogs from Louisiana took a very unusual turn. Facing mechanical difficulties, the pilot was forced to land the plane at Western Lakes Golf Club – just a few short miles from their destination of Waukesha’s Crites Field. Miraculously, all passengers, both people and dogs, walked away from the landing with only scrapes and bruises. What could have been a tragic event turned into an amazing show of community support and teamwork, as first responders, gold course employees, shelter volunteers and staff came together to quickly get all to safety. The story reached international levels, and all of the dogs found their forever homes very quickly.

After celebrating a successful 40-year run sponsored by the Friends in May of 2023, HAWS’ annual spring outdoor fundraising event was rebranded as HAWSfest, coordinated and run by staff members. From its origins as a pledge walk to support various HAWS programs and initiatives, HAWSfest is now a full-scale event for pets and their people with a lure course, dog sprint, food and beverage trucks, vendors, contests, kids’ activities, adoptable pets and more! Regular sponsors commit annually, including the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department that provides the “radar” for fastest dog competitions.

This year is HAWS’ 60th Anniversary. Like many things, we’ve gotten better with age!

Over these six decades, HAWS has grown into a vibrant community organization. Since our incorporation on July 22, 1965, we’ve impacted the lives of tens of thousands of pets and their people. Our facilities and programs have continued to expand to ensure we meet the needs of the citizens of Waukesha County and beyond…and we’re just getting started. The future is bright!

Throughout 2025 we’ll be sharing memories, stories, hopes and dreams – the 60 things we love about HAWS. We’ll be celebrating the individuals, groups and initiatives that have made HAWS the leader in animal welfare: an open-admission, no-kill shelter dedicated to strengthening the relationship between animals and humans through adoptions and education – making a more compassionate community possible.
We are incredibly thankful to have reached this milestone, and invite you, our greatest source of support, to join us in a year of reflection and celebration!