Sheltering Animals & Families Together

What Sheltering Animals & Families Together does

Sheltering Animals & Families Together (SAF-T) is a Michigan-based non-profit educational organization founded in 2008 by attorney Allie Phillips to address a specific gap in the domestic violence (DV) shelter system: the absence of guidance for safely housing pets on-site with survivors. Its core product is the SAF-T Start-Up Manual (third edition), which codifies four housing models — in-room, indoor kennel, outdoor kennel, and transitional housing — and addresses operational, liability, insurance, staffing, and partner coordination questions. The manual is provided free of charge to DV shelters and for a $25 fee to other requesting organizations.

SAF-T monetizes exclusively through tax-deductible donations from individuals, corporations, and foundations, with Guide Star accreditation. It operates no proprietary software or technology platform; instead, value is delivered through the manual, free individualized technical assistance (provided personally by the founder and board members), an online shelters directory, webinars, the SAFeTY Chronicles podcast, and a Pet Safety Planning Brochure for survivors. Distribution is direct-to-shelter via online request forms and the SAF-T Coalition peer network.

The organization has scaled from 4 known U.S. pet-friendly DV shelters in 2008 to more than 325 shelters across the United States, Australia, Canada, England, the Netherlands, and Spain. It is endorsed by nine national organizations spanning DV advocacy (NCADV, NRCDV), criminal justice (NDAA), and animal welfare (RedRover, National Link Coalition, Ahimsa House, VioPet, Pets of the Homeless, SNAAP), and holds formal partnerships including a 2019 alliance with Banfield Foundation on the Safer Together Advisory Committee. The team is small (1-10 employees) and the program is operationally anchored in founder Allie Phillips, a former Michigan assistant prosecuting attorney and former American Humane Association executive.

Name

Sheltering Animals & Families Together

Legal name

Sheltering Animals & Families Together (SAF-T)

Website

https://www.saftprogram.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SAF-T is a non-profit educational organization that helps domestic violence shelters implement on-site pet housing through its Start-Up Manual, free technical assistance, and a coalition of 325+ pet-friendly shelters across six countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Social Services for Domestic Violence Shelters

NAICS

Community Housing Services (62422)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYAFAEALAC

Animal Welfare & Advocacy Organizations

Agriculture & Food Production/Animal Production & Aquaculture/Animal Welfare, Boarding & Production Support Services (non-veterinary)

SECONDARYBPAGAIAG

Animal Cruelty Prevention, Investigation & Humane Law Enforcement

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Animal Welfare & Wildlife Rescue

SECONDARYBPAGAIAK

Education & Community Outreach (Responsible Pet Ownership)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Animal Welfare & Wildlife Rescue

Keywords

• Pet-friendly sheltering
• Domestic violence services
• Nonprofit education
• Human-animal bond
• Shelter technical assistance

Headquarters

HQ city

Grand Haven

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: SAF-T is a non-profit educational organization that relies on tax-deductible donations from individuals, corporations, and foundations. Donations fund the SAF-T Program's operations, staff time to support existing and future SAF-T Shelters, travel to conferences, and awareness-raising activities. The organization is Guide Star rated.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Sheltering Animals & Families Together (SAF-T) is a nonprofit educational organization that helps domestic violence shelters implement on-site pet housing programs. It distributes the SAF-T Start-Up Manual and provides free technical assistance, training, and consulting so that families fleeing abuse can bring their companion animals to the shelter. The organization also produces educational content such as the SAFeTY Chronicles podcast to advance awareness of the link between animal abuse and interpersonal violence.

Product overview

Sheltering Animals & Families Together (SAF-T) offers a unified educational and support ecosystem centered around its core SAF-T Program, which is the first global initiative guiding domestic violence shelters on housing families with their pets. The primary product is the SAF-T Start-Up Manual, which provides comprehensive guidelines for implementing pet-friendly housing at shelters. Supporting offerings include the SAF-T Technical Assistance Center (providing free expert guidance), SAF-T Training & Consulting (professional training services), The SAFeTY Chronicles Podcast (educational media), and the Pet Safety Planning Brochure (survivor resource). These products work together to enable domestic violence victims to flee abusive situations without abandoning their pets.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The SAFeTY Chronicles Podcast: A podcast exploring how to keep people and pets safe from the cycle of interpersonal violence as well as celebrate the human-animal bond.

Products and services

• SAF-T Start-Up Manual

Quantifiable outcome

• 65% of domestic violence victims delay or refuse leaving an abusive home out of fear of leaving their pets behind, making pet-inclusive sheltering a critical life-saving intervention
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Banfield FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2019, SAF-T partnered with Banfield Foundation on its Safer Together Advisory Committee to expand on-site pet housing at domestic violence shelters and raise awareness among veterinarians and communities regarding the issue of pets of DV survivors.
• National District Attorneys AssociationflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerSAF-T is endorsed by the National District Attorneys Association. Founder Allie Phillips previously worked at NDAA, where she founded and directed the National Center for Prosecution of Animal Abuse. NDAA provides credibility and referral pipeline to prosecutors and criminal justice professionals.
• National Coalition Against Domestic ViolenceflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerSAF-T is officially endorsed by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), the leading national voice on domestic violence policy and advocacy in the U.S.
• National Link CoalitionflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerSAF-T is endorsed by the National Link Coalition, which focuses on the link between animal abuse and violence against humans. SAF-T founder Allie Phillips serves on the National Link Coalition Steering Committee.
• National Resource Center on Domestic ViolenceflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerSAF-T is endorsed by the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence (NRCDV), a key federally-funded resource for DV professionals. NRCDV has hosted SAF-T webinars and published the SAF-T flyer.
• RedRovercoreGTM or Marketing PartnerSAF-T is endorsed by RedRover, an organization that also offers RedRover Safe Escape grants (veterinary care and temporary boarding) and RedRover Safe Housing grants (start-up costs for DV shelter pet housing projects) to support the SAF-T ecosystem.
• Ahimsa HouseminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSAF-T is officially endorsed by Ahimsa House, a Georgia-based organization focused on the human-animal bond in domestic violence situations.
• Pets of the HomelessminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSAF-T is endorsed by Pets of the Homeless, a national nonprofit that provides food and veterinary care to homeless people and their pets, expanding the safety net for DV survivors with pets.
• Safety Network for Abused Animals and PeopleminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSAF-T is endorsed by this organization which also provides direct assistance to domestic violence survivors with pets in the Washington DC metro area.
• VioPetminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSAF-T is endorsed by VioPet, a Spain-based organization working on violence and pet protection. VioPet serves as the contact point for pet-friendly DV shelter locations in Spain.
• American Humane AssociationflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounder Allie Phillips served as Vice President of Public Policy and then Vice President of Human-Animal Strategic Initiatives at American Humane Association, where she launched the SAF-T Program concept, establishing a foundational strategic partnership.
• Animal Shelters and Animal Rescue OrganizationscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerSAF-T programs require DV shelters to partner with local animal shelters or rescue organizations. These partners help if the shelter cannot care for certain pets, provide guidance on animal sheltering care, and assist with behavior issues or housing of large/excessive animals. SAF-T provides sample MOUs for these partnerships.
• Local VeterinarianscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerSAF-T programs require DV shelters to partner with a veterinarian who provides physical examinations, basic medical care, and medical care for injuries sustained from abuse for incoming pets, and may provide expert testimony in court regarding animal abuse.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• RedRover: RedRover operates the Safe Escape and Safe Housing grant programs that directly fund pet-inclusive domestic violence sheltering, overlapping with SAF-T's mission and serving the same DV-shelter customer base.
• Urban Resource Institute (URI): URI operates the largest network of pet-friendly domestic violence shelters in the U.S. (7 of 12 in NYC), making it both a SAF-T coalition member and a direct operator of pet-inclusive DV housing.
• Ahimsa House: Georgia-based nonprofit providing temporary pet housing for DV survivors, endorsed by SAF-T and operating in the same intersection of animal welfare and domestic violence services.
• Pets of the Homeless: National nonprofit providing food and veterinary care to homeless and DV-affected individuals with pets; SAF-T coalition endorser addressing overlapping pet-inclusive safety net needs.

Emerging players

• National Link Coalition: National advocacy coalition on the intersection of animal abuse and interpersonal violence; SAF-T's founder sits on its steering committee, making it a closely allied peer in policy and awareness work.
• Purple Leash Project (RedRover + Purina): A Purina-funded initiative operated with RedRover to help domestic violence shelters become pet-friendly, representing a well-capitalized adjacent program targeting the same DV-shelter customer base.
• Safe Haven for Pets (at S.A.F.E. House): Nevada-based DV shelter with a dedicated on-site pet housing facility that intersects with SAF-T's pet-inclusive sheltering mission and shares the same survivor population.

Broad incumbents

• Animal Welfare Institute: A larger, established animal welfare advocacy organization that has historically engaged on the animal abuse/domestic violence link, providing broader policy and legislative platforms overlapping with SAF-T's mission.
• American Humane Association: Major national animal welfare organization where founder Allie Phillips previously launched the SAF-T concept; remains a strategic ally and overlapping advocate for the human-animal bond in violence contexts.
• National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV): The leading U.S. domestic violence policy and advocacy organization, which formally endorses SAF-T and represents the primary institutional DV-side stakeholder for pet-inclusive sheltering reform.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@saftprogram/podcasts
• Facebookfacebook.com/saftprogram
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/saftprogram

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sheltering Animals & Families Together