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CHARITY REVIEW
Issued: February 2026 Expires: February 2028

Paws With A Cause

Standards Not Met
Standards Not Met
14 19
(616) 877-7297
4646 Division Avenue
Wayland, MI, 49348
https://pawswithacause.org/
📄 Full Report 🖨️ Print 📋 BBB Charity Standards

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

Paws With A Cause does not meet the following 2 Standards for Charity Accountability:

Standard 14 (Budget)
Have a board-approved annual budget for its current fiscal year, outlining projected expenses for major program activities, fund raising, and administration.

PAWS does not meet this Standard because, when the organization provided 2026 budget information, the budget:

  • Did not identify total projected program service expenses.
  • Did not identify total projected fundraising expenses.
  • Did not identify total projected administrative expenses.

Standard 19 (Cause Related Marketing)
Clearly disclose how the charity benefits from the sale of products or services (i.e., cause-related marketing) that state or imply that a charity will benefit from a consumer sale or transaction. Such promotions should disclose, at the point of solicitation: (a) the actual or anticipated portion of the purchase price that will benefit the charity (e.g., 5 cents will be contributed to abc charity for every xyz company product sold), (b) the duration of the campaign (e.g., the month of October), (c) any maximum or guaranteed minimum contribution amount (e.g., up to a maximum of $200,000).

PAWS does not meet this Standard because, in the past year, the organization participated in a promotion for the sale of consumer goods that indicate that the organization will benefit from these purchases. The promotion, however, did not specify:

  • The actual or anticipated amount of the purchase price that will benefit the organization.

The BBB Wise Giving Alliance requested but did not receive complete information from the organization and is unable to verify the organization's compliance with the following Standard(s) for Charity Accountability: 1, 6

Paws With A Cause meets the remaining 16 Standards for Charity Accountability.

Stated Purpose:
"to transform lives and strengthen communities through partnerships with custom-trained working dogs."

Year, State Incorporated:
1979, MI

Paws With A Cause (PAWS) reports that the organization raises, trains, and matches their dogs to serve individuals, families, and organizations with different disabilities and needs. PAWS custom-trains five types of assistance dogs: service dogs for physical mobility to serve people with physical disabilities, including those with mobility impairments; hearing dogs to help people who are deaf or hard of hearing; epileptic seizure response dogs to assist those with epilepsy; service dogs for children with autism; and medical alert dogs for clients with type 1 diabetes or postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS). Through the organization's animal assisted services and therapy visitation program, PAWS also places trained dogs with the goal to serve multiple individuals in facilities such as schools, hospitals, doctors’ offices, business and corporate offices, and senior living facilities. According to the organization, PAWS' partnerships with law enforcement agencies and veterans’ organizations also allow trainers and staff to connect PAWS dogs to assist security officers and veterans across the United States.

For the year ended September 30, 2025, Paws With A Cause's program expenses were:

Training and services $5,004,309
Total Program Expenses $5,004,309

Chief Executive
Michele Suchovsky, Chief Executive Officer

Compensation*
$128,578

Chair of the Board
Anne Barea

Chair's Profession / Business Affiliation
Former Portfolio Manager, Kellogg Company

Board Size
19

Paid Staff Size
70

*2024 compensation includes annual salary and, if applicable, benefit plans, expense accounts, and other allowances.

Method(s) Used:
Direct mail appeals, Telephone appeals, Invitations to fund raising events, Print advertisements (newspapers, magazines, etc.), Grant proposals, Internet, Planned giving arrangements, Cause-related marketing (affinity credit cards, consumer product sales, etc.)

Fundraising costs were 13% of related contributions. (Related contributions, which totaled $6,320,283, 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 Paws With A Cause's audited financial statements for the year ended September 30, 2025.

Source of Funds
Contributions $3,699,889
In-kind contributions $1,124,343
Capital campaign contributions $1,113,839
Investment income $625,373
United Way funding $273,371
Service fees $217,498
Unrealized gains on investments $145,759
Miscellaneous income $94,309
Special events $69,657
Independent Charities of America funding $39,184
Total Income $7,403,222

Programs: 81% Fundraising: 13% Administrative: 6%

Total Income $7,403,222
Total expenses: $6,200,529
  Program expenses $5,004,309
  Fundraising expenses $797,981
  Administrative expenses $398,239
  Other expenses $0
Income in Excess of Expenses $1,202,693
Beginning Net Assets $15,457,107
Other Changes In Net Assets $2,557
Ending Net Assets $16,657,243
Total Liabilities $1,200,132
Total Assets $17,857,375

Note 1: In the above financial section "other changes in net assets" refer to a loss on sale of capital assets.

Note 2: According to the organization's audited financial statements for the year ended September 30, 2025, PAWS received in-kind contributions totaling $1,124,343 in the form of investment securities ($1,016,811), materials and supplies ($73,158), and breeding services ($34,374).

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