Providence and the Animal Care Shelter Maturity Model™
An initiative aimed at supporting societal change and sustaining the preservation of life
Introduction
Throughout history, society has witnessed individuals whose boldness and moral conviction have sparked revolutions—sometimes quiet, sometimes thunderous—in how humanity treats its most vulnerable. A single idea, when carried by passion and conviction, can reorder the moral compass of an age. Yet, as the story of Henry Bergh and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) reveals, even the most revolutionary initiatives risk fading into the background, their original vitality diluted if sustainability is not woven into their fabric. In response to this perennial challenge, the Animal Care Shelter Maturity Model™ (ACSMM™) emerges as a forward-looking framework, designed to bridge the gap between inspiration and enduring impact.
A Bold Beginning: The Legacy of Henry Bergh
As noted by Nathan Winograd in his Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation and the No Kill Revolution in America, it was February 8th, 1866, when Henry Bergh took the stage in New York City to deliver what would become the first presentation on animal protection in the United States. His voice, resolute and impassioned, called for a moral awakening — a collective commitment to empathy, mercy, and justice for animals. “This is a matter purely of conscience. It has no perplexing side issues. Politics have no more to do with it than astronomy. No, it is a moral question in all its aspects,” Bergh proclaimed, cutting through the noise of his time with uncommon clarity.
Moved by his speech, one hundred signatories rallied to his call, placing their names beneath Bergh’s Declaration of the Rights of Animals, each pledging themselves to suppress cruelty and champion mercy. Armed with this Declaration, Bergh secured a charter from the State of New York, giving rise to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA)—the nation’s first humane society. The momentum was swift and decisive: just nine days later, on April 10th, 1866, New York State enacted a law prohibiting cruelty to animals, bestowing upon the fledgling ASPCA the authority to enforce this groundbreaking statute. Henry Bergh, with conviction and courage, went to war for the voiceless.
Bergh’s passionate opposition to animal cruelty was matched only by his loathing for the ease with which society condoned the needless killing of animals—an expedient but morally bankrupt solution to the challenges of animal control. In moments of reflection, Bergh expressed a deep concern for the future, lamenting, “I hate to think what will become of this society when I am gone.”
The Perils of a Singular Vision
The New York Post summarized the precariousness of Bergh’s legacy: “The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was Henry Bergh and Henry Bergh was the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.” His was a society powered by one man’s vision—a one-man power. Upon Bergh’s death, the fragility of this structure became painfully evident.
Contrary to Bergh’s wishes, the ASPCA soon accepted a contract from New York City to run the dog pound — a tragic misstep that would haunt the organization for decades. In little more than ten years, the ASPCA’s core mission shifted: animal sheltering and impoundment replaced cruelty prosecution as the primary function, and by 1910, the organization was largely reduced to managing the intake and euthanasia of dogs and cats. The number of animals saved dwindled to a small minority; the original vision of mercy and lifesaving was supplanted by expedient, wholesale killing.
ASPCA was not alone in this transformation. Across the nation, humane societies followed suit, moving from advocacy and prosecution to the more bureaucratic, transactional role of shelter management. The result, as Nathan Winograd describes in his *Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation and the No Kill Revolution in America*, was “a century of squandering not only [Bergh’s] life work, but more significantly the ASPCA’s vast potential.” Humane agencies, created to save lives, became institutions where death was the norm and mercy the exception.
Providence, Commitment, and the Fate of Ideas
What went wrong? The story of Henry Bergh’s legacy is a story of providence, passion, but also a cautionary tale about the dangers of unsustained vision. As William Hutchinson Murray observed: “Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans; that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too.”
Commitment—true, unequivocal, and sustained—beckons help from unforeseen quarters, marshaling the resources of providence itself. But what becomes of bold ideas when their champions are gone? Progress can wither, and without systems designed to endure, even the most profound revolutions can become footnotes, their purpose diluted by expediency and inertia.
Goethe’s poetic wisdom, echoed by Murray, offers a rallying cry: “Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.” Yet the genius of boldness must be matched by the wisdom of sustainability.
Sustainability: The Missing Ingredient
Great ideas may set society in motion, but the challenge is to sustain them—especially in the absence or diminishment of their original architects. The fate of the ASPCA reminds us that without systems and safeguards, even the noblest intentions can be repurposed or lost over time. Sustainability is not merely about survival; it is about fidelity to purpose, adaptability to change, and the embedding of values so deeply into structure that they outlast any individual.
The Animal Care Shelter Maturity Model™ (ACSMM™): A New Framework for Enduring Change
It is with these lessons in mind that the Animal Care Shelter Maturity Model™ (ACSMM™) enters the stage. Conceived as the first structured, industry-specific maturity model for animal care organizations, the ACSMM™ seeks not just to inspire, but to institutionalize excellence. It is a roadmap, not a rulebook—a living framework designed to translate vision into durable systems and sustained action.
What Is the ACSMM™?
The ACSMM™ is a behavioral model. It asks not only what shelters hope to achieve, but how they function minute by minute, and how their everyday practices align with the enduring goal of No-Kill. Unlike prescriptive philosophies or static best-practice lists, the ACSMM™ is adaptive, contextual, and rooted in practical realities.
Through its structure, the ACSMM™ enables organizations to:
Assess and baseline their current operations across eight core domains and six distinct maturity levels.
Set tailored, meaningful goals that reflect the unique needs and aspirations of their community.
Identify operational gaps using real-time Compass survey scoring, offering a clear-eyed view of strengths and weaknesses.
Generate a step-by-step improvement roadmap, prioritized for maximum impact and efficiency.
Track ongoing progress through annual reassessments and expert facilitator guidance, ensuring momentum is maintained.
Crucially, the ACSMM™ does not compete with existing philosophies or dictate what success must look like. It operationalizes proven practices, empowering leadership, while respecting the local context and community values. It is a mirror—revealing an organization’s true state, and a map—charting a unique path forward.
More Than a Model: A Moral Compass
At its heart, the ACSMM™ is not merely a management tool—it is a moral compass. It guides organizations to align their stated values with their daily realities, to turn intention into impact and aspiration into achievement. By making lifesaving the default, rather than the rare exception, the ACSMM™ aspires to realize the dream that animated Henry Bergh’s original vision: a humane agency devoted first and foremost to mercy and the sanctity of life.
A Living Framework
The ACSMM™ is intentionally dynamic. It grows in strength as it is shared, challenged, and improved by the field itself. Whether as early adopters, pilot partners, or critical friends, all are invited to help shape its evolution, ensuring that it remains relevant, effective, and anchored in real-world experience.
Conclusion: Building Lifesaving That Lasts
The journey from vision to victory is rarely linear. It demands courage to begin, resilience to persist, and a willingness to embrace new ways of thinking. The ACSMM™ offers the animal care community an alternate path—one rooted in structure, compassion, and sustainability.
Let us honor the animals and advocates who came before by ensuring that the shelters of tomorrow are built not just on hope, but on systems capable of turning hope into victory—again and again, for every animal, in every community. For those ready to translate vision into reality, the ACSMM™ stands as both guide and companion.
The future of animal sheltering need not be uncertain. With courage, commitment, and the right tools, we can build lifesaving that lasts. The ACSMM™ makes this future not only possible, but within reach: structured, sustainable, and worthy of the legacy of bold visionaries like Henry Bergh.
Let us build lifesaving that lasts.
*** This work includes historical references and adapted quotations from Henry Bergh and from Nathan Winograd’s Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation and the No Kill Revolution in America. All rights to original works are retained by their respective authors.
The No Kill ACSMM™ Institute
ACSMM™ | Advancing and Accelerating the Path to Shelter Lifesaving
If your organization is interested in:
• Becoming an early adopter or pilot partner
• Helping test or refine ACSMM tools
• Exploring how the model complements your current strategies
Let’s connect and explore how we can advance lifesaving together.
Marv Serhan
Founder & Director, The No Kill ACSMM™ Institute
www.acsmm.org | marv@acsmm.org
