The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing cruelty towards animals. Based in New York City since its inception in 1866, the organization's mission is "to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the United States."http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_aboutus

History

Following the creation of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) in the UK in 1824 (given Royal status in 1840), Henry Bergh founded the ASPCA on April 10, 1866 in New York City. It is the oldest and first animal welfare organization in the United States. ASPCA was founded to stop the injustices animals face across the United States. On February 8, 1866, Bergh pleaded on behalf of animals at a meeting at Clinton Hall in New York City. Some of the issues that he discussed at this meeting were cockfighting and the horrors of slaughterhouses. After getting many people to sign his "Declaration of the Rights of Animals," Bergh was able to gain an official charter to incorporate ASPCA on April 10, 1866. On April 19, 1866, the first anti-cruelty law was passed since the founding of ASPCA, and the organization was granted the right to enforce anti-cruelty laws. At that time, there were only three staff members of the ASPCA. In 1867, ASPCA operated its first ambulance for injured horses and advocated various alternatives for inhumane actions towards animals such as horses, live pigeons, cats and dogs. By the time of Bergh's death in 1888, 37 out of the 38 states in the union enacted anti-cruelty laws that were enforced by the ASPCA. Early goals of ASPCA focused on efforts for horses and livestock, since at the time they were used for a number of activities. Starting at the turn of the 20th century, small animals like cats and dogs became more of a focus for members of ASPCA. ASPCA wrote its first annual report in 1867 when a man was sentenced to ten days in prison for beating a cat to death.http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_historyat the time of citation, this item was not available online

Medicine for animals under ASPCA

One of the early goals of ASPCA was to improve the health and welfare of animals. The first animal hospitals under ASPCA were created in 1912. Since the creation of these hospitals, ASPCA found a new tactic in improving their cause. ASPCA since have been able to develop various medical procedures and innovations with help from new discoveries in medicine and technology. Some of these procedures and innovations include the following:

• In 1918, ASPCA veterinarians developed the use of anesthesia and as a result were able to work on a horse with a broken kneecap
• In 1954, ASPCA hospitals added pathology and radiography laboratories and programs
• In 1961, ASPCA veterinarians performed their first open-heart surgery on a dog