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CHARITY REVIEW
Issued: April 2025 Expires: April 2027

Friends of Animals

Standards Not Met
Standards Not Met
1 6 7
777 Post Road, Suite 205
Darien, CT, 06820

Standards For Charity Accountability

Governance

  1. Board Oversight
  2. Board Size
  3. Board Meetings
  4. Board Compensation
  5. Conflict of Interest

Measuring Effectiveness

  1. Effectiveness Policy
  2. Effectiveness Report

Finances

  1. Program Expenses
  2. Fundraising Expenses
  3. Accumulating Funds
  4. Audit Report
  5. Detailed Expense Breakdown
  6. Accurate Expense Reporting
  7. Budget Plan

Fundraising & Info

  1. Truthful Materials
  2. Annual Report
  3. Website Disclosures
  4. Donor Privacy
  5. Cause Marketing Disclosures
  6. Complaints

Friends of Animals does not meet the following 3 Standards for Charity Accountability:

Standard 1 (Oversight of Operations and Staff)
Organizations shall have a board of directors that provides adequate oversight of the charity's operations and its staff. Indication of adequate oversight includes, but is not limited to, regularly scheduled appraisals of the CEO's performance, evidence of disbursement controls such as board approval of the budget, fund raising practices, establishment of a conflict of interest policy, and establishment of accounting procedures sufficient to safeguard charity finances.

FoA does not meet this Standard because its board of directors did not:

  • Review the performance of the Chief Executive Officer at least once every two years.

Standard 6 (Board Policy on Effectiveness)
Have a board policy of assessing, no less than every two years, the organization's performance and effectiveness and of determining future actions required to achieve its mission.

FoA does not meet this Standard because:

  • The board of directors does not have a written policy stating that, at least every two years, an appraisal be done assessing the organization's performance and effectiveness and determining future actions required to achieve its mission.

Standard 7 (Board Approval of Written Report on Effectiveness)
Submit to the organization's governing body, for its approval, a written report that outlines the results of the aforementioned performance and effectiveness assessment and recommendations for future actions.

FoA does not meet this Standard because:

  • The organization has not completed an effectiveness assessment in the last two years.

Friends of Animals meets the remaining 17 Standards for Charity Accountability.

Stated Purpose:
"to free animals from cruelty and institutionalized exploitation around the world."

Year, State Incorporated:
1957, CT

Friends of Animals (FoA) promotes endangered species and other wildlife protection through its educational efforts, with campaigns against wild horse round-ups and the wild bird trade, the horse-drawn carriage trade, the fur trade, and hunting and predator control. The organization sponsors chimpanzee conservation projects in West Africa and funds the protection and recovery of an endangered African antelope species. FoA states that it funds and manages the Primarily Primates sanctuary in San Antonio, TX, where approximately 300 animals and birds released from animal labs, zoos, the exotic pet trade industry and the entertainment industry, reside on 78 acres of land. The organization also engages in vegan advocacy educational projects, and provides low-cost spaying and neutering services for dogs and cats nationwide.

For the year ended April 30, 2024, Friends of Animals's program expenses were:

Spaying and neutering: $1,472,915

Public information and animal protection costs: $2,944,113

Total Program Expenses: $4,417,028

Chief Executive
Priscilla Feral, President

Compensation*
$149,476

Chair of the Board
Priscilla Feral

Chair's Profession / Business Affiliation
President, Friends of Animals

Board Size
7

Paid Staff Size
20

*2023 compensation includes annual salary and, if applicable, benefit plans, expense accounts, and other allowances.

Method(s) Used:
Direct mail appeals, Grant proposals, Internet, Radio, Special events

Fundraising costs were 2% of related contributions. (Related contributions, which totaled $4,370,654, are donations received as a result of fundraising activities.)

This organization is tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. It is eligible to receive contributions deductible as charitable donations for federal income tax purposes.

The following information is based on Friends of Animals's audited financial statements for the year ended April 30, 2024.

Source of Funds
In-kind contributions $110,278
Bequests and trust income $2,829,291
Investment income, net $267,536
Contributions $1,431,085
Spay and neuter vouchers issued, net $1,195,979
Merchandise and literature sales $3,021
Miscellaneous income $115,085
Total Income $5,952,275

Programs: 95% Fundraising: 2% Administrative: 3%

Total Income $5,952,275
Total expenses: $4,658,608
  Program expenses $4,417,028
  Fundraising expenses $85,151
  Administrative expenses $156,429
  Other expenses $0
Income in Excess of Expenses $1,293,667
Beginning Net Assets $11,545,442
Other Changes In Net Assets $344,832
Ending Net Assets $13,183,941
Total Liabilities $754,200
Total Assets $13,938,141

Note 1: According to FoA's audited financial statements for the year ended April 30, 2024, the organization received in-kind contributions totaling $110,278 in the form of donated advertising.

Note 2: In the financial section above, "other changes" in net assets refers to a change in value of trusts.

An organization may change its practices at any time without notice. A copy of this report has been shared with the organization prior to publication. It is not intended to recommend or deprecate, and is furnished solely to assist you in exercising your own judgment. If the report is about a charity and states the charity meets or does not meet the Standards for Charity Accountability, it reflects the results of an evaluation of information and materials provided voluntarily by the charity. The name Better Business Bureau is a registered service mark of the International Association of Better Business Bureaus.

This report is not to be used for fundraising or promotional purposes.

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Report completed by:
BBB Wise Giving Alliance