They are the innocent lives of the abandoned, neglected, or even abused. Yet they offer us unconditional love without judgement. Too often cats and dogs can land in cages or wandering on the street, forgotten and unloved or even euthanized. For 30 years, Kalamazoo Animal Rescue (KAR), led by Kelly Fischer, has had a different approach.
“We’ve been around since 1991,” Fischer says. “We started as just a home-based rescue. And we had volunteers who would foster animals until they get their adoptions. Kalamazoo Animal Rescue has always required that all our animals get spayed and neutered before they are adopted in order to decrease the overpopulation of animals.”
Today, KAR is located in their own facility at 4669 Executive Drive in Portage. They launched a low-cost Wellness Clinic in 2020 in partnership with Dr. Kathleen Corbett, DVM, to meet a growing need for accessible veterinary services, in addition to the rescue. In 2025, KAR completed 764 adoptions, 1,043 spays and neuters, and 255 bottle babies successfully raised.
“We have since hired on Dr. Loeffler as our full-time veterinarian,” Fischer says. “We are working into a full-service medical clinic. We are starting now to open up to the underserved community, people who may not necessarily be able to afford to have their animals vetted elsewhere. We are now in the process of purchasing an X-ray and a dental X-ray to further that mission.”
Fischer says her interest in helping animals began when she was very young and helped feed orphaned animals by bottle-feeding them—a bottle-babies program now at KAR that holds a special place in her heart. The shelter is run by her daughter, shelter manager Jordan Fischer.
“All animals deserve the best care,” Fischer says. “And we want to make sure that we can offer that to the underserved where they may not be able to afford to do even the basic care of their animals. Our mission statement is that we will be here until every ‘1’ has a home.”
To learn more about KAR, to volunteer or foster, or to book an appointment, visit Kalamazoo Animal Rescue.
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