About Us

Founded in 2001, the idea for starting a nonprofit, Sheltering Animals of Abuse Victims (SAAV), grew out of the aspirations of two University of Wisconsin law students—Pamela Hart and Megan Senatori— who wanted to use their law degrees to help animals. They focused their efforts on providing resources to serve a unique need—the lack of safe shelter for animals when a domestic abuse victim seeks safety from an abuser.

Determining that it would take a community-wide approach to launch the formal shelter program they created, Pam and Megan collaborated with two community partners—Domestic Abuse Intervention Services and the Dane County Humane Society. More than twenty years later, SAAV has provided confidential, safe, temporary care for more than 300 animals affected by domestic abuse. In addition, SAAV provides support for victims through animal care grants. SAAV also provides outreach and advocacy about the link between animal cruelty and human violence, including a campaign designed for veterinarians and a campaign for teens.