Arfriend was created in 2004 in honor of a dear friend — a Beagle named Bart— who always met his friends with a cheerful greeting, a wagging tail and total acceptance.

Our purpose is charitable and educational, benefiting both humans and animals, and promoting compassion for all living beings.  In 2005 Arfriend became a public benefit corporation, and later that year was approved as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

We are active in providing and distributing educational materials regarding animal health & safety, disaster preparedness, spay/neuter information, storm drain pollution/waste disposal solutions and pet loss/grief support.

Our website is a resource guide for both humans and animals, raising public awareness and providing information to promote comfort, kindness, healing, teaching and acceptance for each other.

The first public event sponsored by Arfriend was a booth at the Annual West Hollywood, CA Book Fair in October, 2004. Booth participants included authors and organizations: Pawprints Literacy Plus Foundation, No Voice Unheard, Animal Wellness Magazine, City Dog Press, The Well-Heeled Dog and the Original Dog Whisperer and founder of Raise with Praise, Paul Owens.

We participated in the Book Fair for seven years and had an excellent forum in which to provide knowledge and information to WeHo's large community of pet guardians and their companion animals. Other participants in Arfriend-sponsored Book Fair booths included the Los Angeles Audubon Society, SoCal Nature, author Jim Gilbert, Jorji Publications, Spike the West Hollywood West Crime Watch Dog, Recycled Pets Rescue and Tim Young with Murphy the inimitable Boston Terrier performing Murphy's Safety Songs; also Karen "Doc" Halligan, DVM signing her book What Every Pet Owner Should Know and demonstrating canine CPR techniques plus author Linda O. Johnston, signing her Kendra Ballantyne Pet Sitter Mystery books, along with Lexie, brilliant canine star of the Kendra Ballantyne Pet Sitter mystery series.

We sponsored two seminars at the Bodhi Tree Bookstore in West Hollywood, "The Spiritual Side of our Animal Friends" with speakers Barbara Y. Martin and Dimitri Moraitis, and "A Spiritual Approach to Pet Loss and Bereavement" with speakers Dr. Steve Smith of Home Pet Doctor and holistic acupuncturist/herbalist Yasmin Harounian who spoke about ailing and aging animals.

We co-sponsored the 2nd Annual Bow Wow Pow Wow along with The Colony, TX Parks & Recreation Department and The Colony, TX Animal Control Center, and sponsored the event Give ‘Em Shelter to benefit the Farmers Branch,TX Animal Adoption Center and Cause for Paws Rescue organization. Arfriend presented a check to the City of Farmers Branch for use at the animal adoption center and donated a trailer to Cause for Paws for transporting equipment to their off-site animal adoptions.

We held Fund-Raising Garage Sales to benefit Arfriend, and provided a Bronze Sponsorship for Diamond W’s Hooves, Paws, Wings and Claws Adoption Event in Alvarado, TX.  Arfriend twice co-sponsored Bark in the Park in Farmers Branch, TX.

Our focus more recently has been to continue our work in California. We look forward to staying active in the animal advocacy community. Since Arfriend began in 2oo4, there have been great strides worldwide in the public level of awareness about the welfare of all animals. We feel much gratitude for having been a very tiny part in helping to raise some of the collective consciousness about our human responsibility to look after the animals.

We remain full of optimism regarding the welfare of all living beings.

For further information about Arfriend,
please email info@arfriend.org.