Heaven Can Wait Animal Rescue Foundation is based in the community of High River, but serves all of the smaller towns and villages in the MD of Foothills including Blackie, Longview, Cayley and offers support to Turner Valley/Black Diamond and the Town of Okotoks, as well as the rural and ranch community in between.

Kim Hessel, Founder, saw a critical need for an organization dedicated to helping rural animals after a particularly gruesome and disturbing case of animal abuse within the Town of High River in February of 1999. Options and education are still needed today to offer protection, empathy and compassion towards the unwanted animals of our society.

We provide shelter, care and nourishment to abandoned, abused and homeless domestic animals within High River and the surrounding area. This includes altering of the animals, vaccinations and tattoo identification, as well as addressing and treating any other health issue. Responsible rehoming is an essential part of our philosophy, and one we take extremely seriously.

Additionally, we work actively in our community to trap and alter feral cats. Feral, or unsocialized cats, are a problem in most smaller communities, and contribute to overpopulation issues. For each cat trapped and altered, literally thousands of potential births have been avoided. Feral trapping is an important part of what HCW does, and we encourage residents in smaller communities to approach us for help and answers to feral cat issues.

The focus of our work has always been to reach as many animals as possible with the resources available to us. At any given time, we are caring for approximately 150 – 200 animals, with our concentration on companion animals. Cats are a significant portion of those numbers due to their breeding patterns, and their perceived lack of value. Unfortunately, we’re only able to reach what feels like a small number of animals in time to help them. There is always much more work to be done.