Foothills Humane Society
Our Mission
Foothills Humane Society is dedicated to sheltering and caring for stray and surrendered animals, reuniting lost pets with their families, and finding loving, qualified homes for every animal in our care. We are driven by a deep commitment to animal welfare, education, and responsible population control.
Our Journey
Since 1957, we have served the Polk County community, growing from a volunteer-operated organization into a vital resource for animals in need. Today, we operate out of our facility in Columbus, North Carolina, where we provide a safe haven for over 15,000 animals since 2010 alone.
How We Care
We believe in the power of both our dedicated facility and our incredible network of foster families. By combining our 11-acre campus environment with foster homes, we can provide specialized care, medical support, and the love that every animal deserves while they wait for their forever family.
Your Adoption Journey
We aim to make bringing home a new best friend a fun, easy, and personalized experience. Our team prioritizes one-on-one time, helping you select a pet that perfectly matches your lifestyle, home environment, and family needs. We are here to support you with training advice, introductions, and the guidance you need to build a lifelong, joyful bond.
Connect With Us
Ready to meet your new companion? We encourage you to browse our adoptable pets online and submit an application to begin your journey. We would love to see you at our facility in Columbus, where our team is waiting to introduce you to your next family member.
- Caring and friendly staff
- Efficient adoption process
- Lack of transparency on surrender outcomes
10/6 - Foothills Humane Society to host Fall Carnival Open House - The Tryon Daily Bulletin
COLUMBUS—The Foothills Humane Society will host its Fall Carnival Open House from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 17, offering families an afternoon of fall activities, games, and opportunities […]
9/10 - Foothills Humane Society waives adoption fees Sept. 12 - The Tryon Daily Bulletin
COLUMBUS—Foothills Humane Society will waive adoption fees for adult dogs and cats Saturday, Sept. 12, as part of the ASPCA’s nationwide The Rescue Effect campaign. The event will run from […]
9/10 - Foothills Humane Society waives adoption fees Sept. 12 - The Tryon Daily Bulletin
COLUMBUS—Foothills Humane Society will waive adoption fees for adult dogs and cats Saturday, Sept. 12, as part of the ASPCA’s nationwide The Rescue Effect campaign. The event will run from […]
8/27 - Foothills Humane Society to waive pet adoption fees on August 29 - The Tryon Daily Bulletin
COLUMBUS—Foothills Humane Society will waive adoption fees for all adult dogs and cats on Saturday, August 29, from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. as part of the ASPCA’s Rescue Effect […]
7/30 - Foothills Humane Society joins national adoption campaign - The Tryon Daily Bulletin
Fee-waived events planned through October to help pets find homes COLUMBUS—Foothills Humane Society is joining animal shelters and rescues nationwide in the ASPCA’s Rescue Effect campaign, a three-month effort […]
6/14 - Foothills Humane Society waives adoption fees as animal intakes rise
The Foothills Humane Society is waiving adoption fees for dogs and cats six months and older throughout Sunday, June 21, as the shelter addresses intake rise.
6/10 - Foster needed for dog recovering after alleged neglect, leg amputation in western NC
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office says a 2-year-old dog named Bacon is recovering after his leg was amputated following alleged neglect.
5/25 - NC State Women’s Committee meeting hosted in Polk County - The Tryon Daily Bulletin
MILL SPRING—The Polk County Women’s Leadership Group hosted the NC State Women’s Committee meeting in Polk County this May. Accommodations were at the Tryon Equestrian Center, with two days of […]
10/11 - Part 6! More dogs..all the dogs..🐶 Come meet them today!!! #doglovers #adoptdontshop #adoptadogtoday #dog #puppy #love #puppylove #humanesociety #FoothillsHumaneSociety #who #rescued #whorescuedwho #cutedogs #AdorablePets
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10/11 - Part 5… more dogs…might as well meet them all! 🐶🐾🦴 #adoptdontshop #cute #dog #cutedogs #DogAdoption #who #rescued #whorescuedwho #rottweiler #hounddog #pitbull #muttsofinstagram #RescueStory
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10/11 - Part 4! Time to meet some dogs❤️. Who is your favorite?! More to come. #adoptdontshop #doglovers #DogAdoption #whorescuedwho #FoothillsHumaneSociety #dog #humane #society #humanesociety #adoptadog #cuteanimals #cutedogs
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10/11 - Part 3 meeting the shelter pets… more cats 🐈🐈⬛🙀 #KittenAdoption #kittenrescue #kittensforadoption #adoptme #whorescuedwho #cat #catadoption #FoothillsHumaneSociety
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10/10 - Part 2! Apologies for the sound problems… but the puppies can’t wait to meet you! #puppylove #PuppyAdoption #FoothillsHumaneSociety #adoptdontshop #puppybreath
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10/10 - Meet all the animals of our shelter on this rainy afternoon! This is Part 1! Follow for Parts 2-6! #adoptdontshop #adoption #catlovers #cat #rescuecats #humanesociety #FoothillsHumaneSociety #meetthepets #find #your #new #FindYourNewBestFriend
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10/9 - Consider this our weekly news report!!! Whew…that was a mouthful…we did it in one take but we did have to cut out some info that was no longer valid. The links are in the comments for different events and opportunities. Please spread the word and we hope to see you soon! #FoothillsHumaneSociety #adoptdontshop #doglovers #adoptadog #rescue #dog #rescuedogsrock #catlovers #rescue #cat #rescuecats #KittenAdoption #kitten #season #kittenseason #here #kitty #kitty #herekittykitty #humanesociety #volunteer
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10/6 - What your next Staff Meeting needs is: a dog. 🐶 (Trust us) Luckily, we can help. ☎️ Call us? 828-863-4444. ⭐️ Starring: Jimmy & Sun. #FoothillsHumaneSociety #ColumbusNC #PolkCounty #Dogs #StaffMeeting
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10/2 - 🗳️🐾 VOTING IS NOW OPEN for the 2026 Polk County Dog Commissioner! Meet the current can-dog-dates vying for your vote and get to know the pups behind the campaigns. Each $1 vote supports Foothills Humane Society, and the dog with the most votes will be crowned Polk County Dog Commissioner and lead the Mutt Strutt parade on October 24! Think YOUR dog has what it takes? There’s still time to enter the paw-litical race! Nominations are open through October 10. Meet the candidates, cast your votes, or enter your own dog in the race at: www.foothillshumanesociety.org/2026dogcommissioner #FoothillsHumaneSociety #PolkCounty #DogCommissioner #Pawlitics #ColumbusNC #Saluda #Tryon #MillSpring #GreenCreek #SunnyView
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9/24 - IT'S ENOUGH SLICES! 🍕 ...Er, we mean KITTENS! 🐱 We are really drowning in cats and kittens right now, and our food supply is running super low! To keep all these sweet fur-babies growing healthy and strong, we could really use a helping hand from our amazing community. Here is what we need most right now: 🐾 Bags of Purina Cat Chow & Purina Kitten Chow 🐾 Cans of Fancy Feast Pate 🐾 Cans of Royal Canin Mother & Babycat How you can help: 🛍️ Shop our Wishlists: Order online and have donations shipped directly to our door! (Links in comments on Facebook) 📍 Drop Off In Person: Bring donations directly to the shelter at 989 Little Mountain Rd, Columbus, NC. Every single bag and can helps us care for these little ones until they find their forever homes. Thank you so much for your support! 😻 #FoothillsHumaneSociety #EnoughSlices #Cats #Kittens #CommunitySupport #NonProfit #AnimalShelter #ColumbusNC #PolkCounty
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9/21 - We could tell you how great they are, but we think you should come see for yourself. 👀🐾 These are just a few of the dogs currently available and ready to meet you! Learn more about them on our website, or give us a call at 828-863-4444. If there’s someone specific you’d like to meet, we recommend calling ahead since some of our dogs may be spending time in foster homes. 💙 #FoothillsHumaneSociety #AdoptADog #AnimalShelter #NewBestFriend #ColumbusNC #PolkCounty #WNC
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