Lucky Dog Animal Rescue

What it reported doing in 2025

Adoption program: lucky dog animal rescue's central program is our adoption program. Lucky dog's adoptions remains the core of our animal programs. 2025 was the strongest year for adoptions that we have seen since the pandemic adoption boom in 2020. 3,175 dogs and cats found loving homes through our adoption program. Of those pets, 1,795 were dogs and 1,381 were cats. During that time, we saved 3,512 animals from high kill shelters throughout South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Texas, Mississippi, Florida, and puerto rico. By the end of 2025, lucky dog had saved more than 33,000 animals since our founding in may 2009. The vast majority of these dogs and cats were placed in carefully screened, loving adoptive homes. Those that were not adopted in 2024, remained in foster care into 2025, where they stayed until they found their own adoptive homes. In 2025, lucky dog had a 100% success rate, meaning that all adoptable dogs and cats rescued were successfully adopted or placed in a long-term foster situation.foster program: lucky dog's foster program is critical to our ability to save dogs from high kill shelters. Because lucky dog has no facility of its own in northern Virginia, the number of dogs and cats we can rescue out of the shelters is directly dependent on the number of foster homes we have to place them in. In 2025, we on boarded 1,230 new fosters, utilizing our virtual and in person trainings. Fostering a lucky dog or cat requires a special commitment, opening your home up to the animal, providing him or her food and shelter, attending adoption events, and helping your dog or cat find the right home.volunteer program: without lucky dog's volunteer program, the organization could not operate. We continue to offer many volunteer opportunities that allow people to support the animals from home as well. Throughout 2025, volunteers organize adoption events and fundraisers, drive dogs from the shelters to Washington d.c., transport dogs to and from adoption events, handle dogs at adoption events, foster dogs, maintain the website, and complete all the administrative work that makes the organization run. At our South Carolina rescue campus, volunteers assist with laundry, dog walking, and kennel cleaning. In 2025, lucky dog added more than 2,407 volunteers to its roster, including a number of lucky dog adopters which is a real testament to the success of the rescue.education program: lucky dog not only strives to place pets in loving forever homes, we are committed to educating the dc community about responsible pet ownership. Our volunteers work very hard to educate new adopters about what to expect after adopting a dog or cat, as well as provide ongoing support to adopters as they transition animals into their homes. In addition, we added a significant amount of resources to our website addressing everything from training to nutrition to common veterinary ailments. In South Carolina, lucky dog regularly brings school groups to our property to learn about animal welfare and the do's and don't's of pet ownership. In 2025, we began holding regular vaccine clinics as part of our efforts to help our community in South Carolina not only learn about but have access to core vaccines for their pets.youth program: lucky dog works hard to ensure that the next generation of pet owners learn early about the value of adoption, how to properly care for dogs and cats, and the importance of volunteerism. Our youth program engages children of all ages in educational workshops, in volunteer activities, and in bake sales. In addition, our junior events volunteers help our staff keep adoption events running. In addition, our volunteers and staff visit schools, girl scout and boy scout troops, and other youth groups to make presentations and get our youth engaged. Our youth have even formed "lucky dog clubs" in their schools. With the opening of our South Carolina rescue campus, we not only visit schools, but they come to visit us.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 51.6%; rating input score 52
• Program expense ratio: 79.3%; rating input score 79
• Fundraising efficiency: $16.84 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Pass
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Missing
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: Limited
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 85.7%; rating input score 86; 19th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 38.8%; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.17; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 16.1%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 15.7% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 14.7% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 20.7% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings