The current initiative undertaken by the Saugerties Animal Welfare Fund focuses on accumulating resources for and establishing a new facility for the Saugerties Animal Shelter. 

SAWF was created in 2018 as a response to the Saugerties Animal Shelter not meeting the new shelter standards being put forth by the New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets that will be placed into effect by December 2025. The current building is an equipment garage located on the same property as the town Transfer Station, that, around 40 years ago, was repurposed into the animal shelter it is now. Traces of the garage persist, as is evident by the pitted concrete floors, cracked cinder block walls, and the outline of the former garage door. 

For the last six years, SAWF has been successful enough in securing grants and donations for a new shelter facility that it is no longer just a glimmer of an idea, it is a reality we will soon see.