There are a number of sheltering methodologies "out there" put forth by a number of organizations to save the lives of shelter animals. All methods being used to save the lives of shelter pets are a good thing. The No Kill Equation is the only method which has been proven to work in every place it is fully embraced and implemented. The No Kill Equation was developed by Nathan Winograd of the No Kill Advocacy Center. Did Nathan develop the idea of no kill as a concept? No. He was not the first. What he did do was to present the programs and services necessary to end the needless destruction of shelter pets in an equation form to make it easily understood so that it can be molded and shaped to fit the needs of any community.
It is called an Equation because it is an all in way of thinking and functioning. If any one ore more elements are overlooked or not used, the end result falls short of the goal. We sometimes refer to it as a recipe or a building design or a "get me off this deserted island raft design." No matter what you call it, the elements all work in concert with each other and many of them overlap.
The reason the Equation works is because it is dual-purpose in nature. If functions to keep animals from entering the shelter in the first place (the "keep them out" elements) and it functions to get those animals who do end up in the shelter out quickly (the "get them out" elements). This means the animal shelter is just that: a shelter. It is a safe haven, a safety net, a temporary place to house animals until they are returned home or they are re-homed. When intake is reduced and output is increased, there are fewer animals in the shelter at any given time so costs are decreased.
images courtesy of the North Alabama Spay and Neuter Clinic, Becky Lynn Tegze, Dana Kay Mattox Deutsch, Anders Knudsen, Nathan Winograd, Carrie Canterbury and Lisa Vallez