About Us - PATCHES AZ

Wayne Miller founded R.A.I.N. (Rescue Animals In Need). It became a 501(c)3 tax exempt, no-kill, non-profit animal rescue organization in 2008 and has helped thousands of cats and dogs throughout the Phoenix Area.

Wayne teamed with The Animals (and HumansDisaster in 2017 to form P.A.T.C.H.E.S. (Protecting Animals through Community Housing, Education, and Support). PATCHES is a nonprofit that resides connected with Empty Bowl Pet Food Pantry (Humans and Animals in Disaster).

Empty Bowl Pet Food Pantry is a 501(c)3 that was founded more than 10 years ago and has a Platinum standing in GuideStar. 

They help pets and their companions during times of health and financial challenges or disasters across the state. Their core belief is that no one should have to choose between feeding themselves or their animals. In 2016, Animals in Disaster – Empty Bowl Pet Food, received $776,000 in pet food and pet items from the community, of in-kind donations and cash. 

PATCHES mission is to protect animals in the Phoenix valley with housing and support while educating the community on animal welfare and statistics. As well as, provide a safe and efficient adoption process that is affordable for all parties involved while keeping the animals in need happy and healthy to ensure the best chance of adoption.

PATCHES OVERVIEW

Animal rescues face many challenges today that make it hard for them to adopt out more animals. Problems like foster homes are getting harder to find, limited time and locations to adopt from.

PATCHES use long adoption hours (9am-9pm) seven days a week and is only closed on Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas day

PATCHES believes in using a live-feed camera of dogs and cats in their kennels or rooms. Potential adopters can receive the feed on their computer, tablet, or phone to view the dogs and cats and watch their actions. A search feature will allow a potential adopter to view only the dogs or cats that are of interest to them. This included gender, color, breed, and age. This live-feed will also be available in the PATCHES lobby for those who do not want to walk the facility. If an adopter finds a dog or cat that interests them, they can schedule a meet and greet time. The available history of any dog or cat will be furnished to potential adopters.

The founders of *RAIN (Rescuing Animals In Need) formulated the concept of a new type of animal rescue organization. In cooperation with Animals and Humans in Disaster, PATCHES (Protecting Animals Through Community Housing, Education & Support) became a formal a division of Animals and Humans In Disaster. PATCHES is a program where rescues can co-work together, increase adoptions and grow their rescue to help more animals.

PATCHES views problems with pet overpopulation in Maricopa County will continue to grow as the population continues to grow so proactive solutions must occur. Population estimates in the Metro Phoenix area have a continuous growth projection through 2050.

As the population grows and households grow, so does the number of animals we introduce in the valley.  This raises the percentages of unwanted animals, which in turn makes it difficult for MCACC to manage additional intake on an overstressed shelter system

METRO PHOENIX AREA ESTIMATES

                                    2019                2020                2030                2040                2050

Population Estimate   4,927,000        5,045,000        6,216,000        7,465,000        8,729,000

Household Estimates  1,811,000        1,854,000        2,285,000        2,744,000        3,209,000

Estimated Dogs           881,000           902,000           1,110,000        1,335,000        1,561,000

Estimated Cats            936,000           958,000           1,181,000        1,418,000        1,659,000

Totals                          1,817,000        1,860,000        2,291,000        2,753,000        3,220,000

  • ·Population Estimates from the “Arizona Department of Administration/Population Statistics.”
  • Estimates of all Animal Data from the “National Pet Owners Survey.”

 The founders of *RAIN (Rescuing Animal in Need), and *Animals and Humans in Disaster have teamed up, with their experience and knowledge, to help rescues receive the opportunities and support they need to grow their rescue, by developing a project called *PATCHES (Protecting Animals Through Community Housing, Education & Support).

For more information, please contact us.