While May Marks the Start of Kitten Season, Hundreds of Adoptable Dogs are also Looking for Forever Homes During PetSmart Charities® of Canada's National Adoption Weekend--May 18 - 20 in PetSmart® Stores
BURLINGTON, ON, May 15, 2018 /CNW/ - Warmer spring temperatures mark the beginning of kitten season in Canada—a time when animal welfare organizations see a significant increase in their intake of unplanned and homeless litters of kittens.
While the season can be intensely challenging for shelters that must spay/neuter, vaccinate, and foster and care for more kittens than usual, the good news is that kittens are most often adopted within a week of an animal welfare organization bringing them into the adoption centre at a PetSmart® store.
Kittens aren't the only pets that will be looking for forever homes during PetSmart Charities of Canada's May National Adoption Weekend. More than 400 dogs from California, Louisiana and communities in northern Canada will also be up for adoption during the event.
"Pet transport is emerging as a standard practice in animal welfare to help alleviate over-crowded kennels in source shelter communities by relocating pets to destination shelters in areas where the demand for adoptable pets is extremely high," says David Haworth, DVM, Ph.D. and president of PetSmart Charities of Canada. "It's a win for all parties involved--most of all for the transported pets who will quite literally have a new lease on life and a great chance at finding the forever family they deserve."
Leslie Fee and her team from Embrace a Discarded Animal Society have been transporting dogs from the San Francisco Bay area to Langley and Kelowna, B.C. for several years now, thanks in part to grants from PetSmart Charities of Canada.
"At Embrace, we're committed to helping shelters in the neighbouring state of California by transporting dogs and cats from overpopulated shelters to our rescue ranch here in B.C., where they can relax, recuperate and decompress before being placed up for adoption in a local PetSmart store," says Fee, the founder of Embrace a Discarded Animal Society.
Fee says she's pleased to see that many people are choosing to adopt a pet when looking to add a new furry family member to their home, but she often hears from pet adopters that small dogs can be hard to come by in B.C. However, in the southern U.S., shelters are often overwhelmed with small dogs in need of forever homes. Transport programs like the one run by Embrace a Discarded Animal Society are helping to bridge the gap.
"Our partnership with B.C. area PetSmart stores together with grant funding from PetSmart Charities has helped us to adopt out more than 75 dogs over the past two months alone. That's 75 dogs that will now be enjoying the love and companionship of their adoptive pet parents and families, instead of facing what could have been a very different outcome."
Lincoln County Humane Society in St. Catharines, ON; Welland & District Humane Society in Welland, ON; Freedom Dog Rescue in Ottawa, ON; and Barrhead Animal Rescue Society in Spruce Grove, AB and more have all received grants from PetSmart Charities of Canada that are helping to prepare recently relocated pups for adoption at their local PetSmart stores this weekend.
In all, almost 200 humane societies, SPCAs, rescues and shelters across Canada will be bringing the widest array of adoptable pets into just about every one of the 130+ PetSmart store across the country. During the three-day adoption blitz its hoped that more than 1,500 pets will find forever homes.
| About PetSmart Charities of Canada's National Adoption Weekend |
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| What: |
More than 200 local shelters, rescues, humane societies and SPCAs will be bringing adoptable pets into PetSmart stores with a goal of adopting out 1,500 pets. |
| When: |
Friday, May 18 from 9:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m. |
| Where: |
PetSmart stores across Canada |
| Why: |
Adoptable pets near you are looking for a forever home |
A Free Gift for Pet Adopters:
Regardless of what type of pet you choose to adopt, or where you adopt that pet from, PetSmart offers a free Adoption Kit* that provides important content that helps to integrate a new pet into the family. Click here for more information about PetSmart's Free Adoption Kit. *Adoption papers required.
Adopting a Pet During National Adoption Weekend? Share it on Social!
Share your photos and stories with us! You can upload them to our website www.petsmartcharities.ca or share them on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram using the handles below and include the hashtag #iadopted.
About PetSmart Charities® of Canada:
PetSmart Charities of Canada is a registered Canadian charity with a mission to find lifelong, loving homes for all pets by supporting programs and thought leadership that bring people and pets together. In addition to finding homes for more than 25,000 shelter pets each year through its in-store adoption program in all PetSmart stores, PetSmart Charities of Canada provides funding to registered charities aligned with its mission through four key areas of grant support: Preventing Pet Homelessness; Helping Shelter Pets Thrive; Supporting the Bond Between People and Pets; and Emergency Relief and Disaster Support. Each year, millions of generous PetSmart shoppers help pets in need by donating to PetSmart Charities of Canada using the pin pads at checkout registers inside PetSmart stores. In turn, PetSmart Charities efficiently uses 89 cents of every dollar donated and has become a leading funder of animal welfare in Canada, donating nearly $14 million to date. PetSmart Charities of Canada is a member of Imagine Canada and is independent from PetSmart, Inc. To learn more, visit www.petsmartcharities.ca
Follow PetSmart Charities on Twitter: @PetSmartChariTs
Find PetSmart Charities on Facebook: Facebook.com/PetSmartCharities
See PetSmart Charities on YouTube: YouTube.com/PetSmartCharitiesInc
About PetSmart®:
In Canada, PetSmart, Inc. is the largest specialty pet retailer of services and solutions for the lifetime needs of pets. At PetSmart, we love pets, and we believe pets make us better people. Every day with every connection, PetSmart's passionate associates help bring pet parents closer to their pets so they, together, can live more fulfilled lives. This vision impacts everything we do for our customers, the way we support our associates and how we give back to our communities. PetSmart employs approximately 4,300 associates and operates more than 130 pet stores in Canada, as well as eight in-store PetSmart PetsHotel® dog and cat boarding facilities. The retailer provides a broad range of competitively priced pet food and products, as well as services such as dog training, pet grooming, pet boarding, PetSmart Doggie Day Camp™ and pet adoption. PetSmart and PetSmart Charities® of Canada work with more than 200 animal welfare organizations to bring adoptable pets into stores so they have the best chance possible of finding a forever home. Through this in-store adoption program and other signature events, PetSmart has facilitated more than 260,000 adoptions, more than any other brick-and-mortar organization.
Find PetSmart on Facebook: www.facebook.com/PetSmartCanada
See PetSmart on Instagram: @PetSmart
Follow PetSmart on Twitter: @PetSmart
See PetSmart on YouTube: www.YouTube.com/PetSmart
PetSmart homepage: http://www.petsmart.ca
SOURCE PetSmart Charities of Canada
Stephan Petar, Golin for PetSmart Charities of Canada, [email protected], 416.483.6225 ext. 3441
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