Picture a terrified lost dog, darting in and out of traffic, sleeping under brush in the desert, driven by fear to the point where it won’t allow anyone near. Its flight drive is so powerful it doesn’t even recognize its owner.

Enter H.A.R.T.T. – the Humane Animal Rescue and Trapping Team, a volunteer-based Arizona nonprofit organization that humanely captures lost family pets, homeless dogs, and homeless cats who are severely injured.  

H.A.R.T.T.’s team of more than 100 trained volunteers specializes in helping families find their lost family pets, and in humanely capturing shy and skittish dogs and injured cats who can’t be rescued through traditional means.  

Cheryl Naumann started the organization in 2017. A long-time animal welfare advocate whose experience including serving as president and CEO of the Arizona Humane Society, she also runs a luxury pet boarding service with her husband in North Phoenix. She puts long hours in for her “day job” as a human resources executive for a large national corporation, but finds time outside of work hours to be not only HARTT’s founder, but one of its most prolific volunteers, personally rescuing  nearly 1,000 animals since 2012.

The equipment and techniques she’s developed have been so successful, Cheryl now leads humane trapping workshops twice a year and has taught the skills to more than 600 people across the U.S. and in five other countries.

Click here to learn more about HARTT: https://azhartt.org/

Original air date: January 16, 2025.