Position Statement
AUSTIN PETS ALIVE! RECEIVES $40,000 GRANT FROM PETSMART CHARITIES® TO HELP MORE HOMELESS PETS FIND HOMES IN CENTRAL TEXAS
Grant will extend ability to offer virtual cat adoptions amidst COVID-19 pandemic
AUSTIN, TX (January 2021) – Austin Pets Alive! (APA!) has received a $40,000 grant from PetSmart Charities to help prepare more shelter pets in Central Texas for adoption and ensure they are ready to find loving homes. With the help of this grant, the organization will offer virtual cat adoptions, a safe and socially distanced way for Austinites to find the purr-fect pal, to support its efforts to help homeless pets find homes.
APA!’s specialized programs provide treatment and the chance at adoption to cats with medical issues, like ringworm or feline leukemia, as well as orphaned kittens, cats that need a little help learning to trust humans, and barn cats that prefer the “working” life. APA! has helped thousands of cats in the greater Austin area avoid the threat of euthanasia and become beloved family members. This grant will support virtual adoptions so that APA! can keep connecting cats and kittens with loving families, who can complete the entire adoption process from the comfort of home. And once the world starts to look a little more normal again, the grant will support APA! cat adoptions at local PetSmart stores, too.
“In this new virtual world, finding ways to get our pets into homes while keeping adopters and our staff and volunteers safe is of the utmost importance,” said Kristen Hansen, Cat Program Manager at Austin Pets Alive!. “This grant will help us offer virtual cat adoptions so we can continue to get more cats adopted than ever before. Last year we nearly tripled the adoption rates of our ringworm-positive kitties, who if not in our care, wouldn’t have a chance at life. This grant will help us continue saving those vulnerable and precious lives so they can have the forever homes they all deserve.”
“We are proud to support APA! in its adaptive efforts to connect homeless cats and kittens with loving homes during the pandemic,” said Heidi Fulcher, associate relationship manager at PetSmart Charities. “Thanks to this work, thousands of pets will receive vital care, along with the best chance of adoption, in methods that are safe for both pets and people.”
Since 1994, through its partnership with nearly 4,000 humane societies, SPCAs and pet rescues across North America, PetSmart Charities has helped more than 9.5 million pets to find loving homes via its in-store adoption program in over 1,650 PetSmart® stores. The leading funder of animal welfare has also donated nearly $430 million to positively impact communities, to help preserve families, to improve access to veterinary care and to connect people and pets through initiatives like this with Austin Pets Alive!.
In 2020, Austin Pets Alive! rescued nearly 12,500 pets and trained, rehabilitated, or treated them through the non-profit’s seven lifesaving programs. Those interested in learning more about Austin Pets Alive!, its pets, and its programs can visit austinpetsalive.org.
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About PetSmart Charities®
ABOUT PETSMART CHARITIES®:
PetSmart Charities, Inc. is committed to finding lifelong, loving homes for all pets by supporting programs and thought leadership that bring people and pets together. Through its in-store adoption program in all PetSmart® stores across the U.S. and Puerto Rico, PetSmart Charities helps to find forever homes and families for more than 600,000 shelter pets each year. PetSmart Charities also provides grant funding to nonprofits aligned with its mission. Each year, millions of generous PetSmart shoppers help pets in need by donating to PetSmart Charities using the PIN pads at checkout registers inside PetSmart stores. In turn, PetSmart Charities efficiently uses more than 90 cents of every dollar donated to fulfill its role as the leading funder of animal welfare in North America, granting more than $430 million since its inception in 1994. Independent from PetSmart Inc., PetSmart Charities is a 501(c)(3) organization that has received the Four-Star Rating from Charity Navigator, a third-party organization that reports on the effectiveness, accountability and transparency of nonprofits, for the past 17 years in a row – placing it among the top one percent of charities rated by this organization. To learn more visit www.petsmartcharities.org.
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