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Petmate Academy April 5, 2022 |
National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day takes place on April 30th and is a day dedicated to the thousands of animals living in shelters across the country, still waiting to be adopted into a loving, welcoming home. In an effort to raise awareness and encourage people and families to adopt instead of shop for the next pet in their lives, shelters often host special events and gatherings to get people to come out and visit with some of the amazing animals in their care. So, if you're an animal lover who looks forward to helping those in need, you can make a difference in different ways while celebrating on Saturday, April 30th, 2022!
Making a difference in the lives of animals in need of a nurturing environment where they can thrive can be easy! Local animal shelters, especially rural animal shelters are often caring for pets of all types including cats, dogs, rabbits, reptiles, and sometimes even horses or donkeys. Whether you're considering adopting or looking for others ways to make a difference, there are plenty of ways you can help make a difference in a shelter pet's life.
You can visit your local shelter on National Adopt a Shelter Pet day to discuss the adoption process while considering adopting one of the animals available. Of course, this isn't a decision to take lightly. It's vital to make sure you have the means to care for your pet, including covering the cost of food and veterinary expenses.
You can learn a lot about the different animals at the shelter, such as details about their behavior and how well they get along with children and other pets. Having this valuable information will help you decide if a specific animal is right for you and your home, whether you're adopting a dog, cat, or any other animal.
Not everyone can commit to keeping a pet for years. Even if you can't adopt a pet, you can become a foster parent. Some animals simply don't do well in shelters. When you foster an animal, you're keeping them safe and comfortable in your home until someone adopts them. Fostering an animal gets it out of the stressful environment at the shelter and allows animals to break out of their shell while receiving the love and attention they genuinely need and deserve. Throughout the years, you can foster different animals to make room for other animals at the shelter. Fostering not only helps the pet in your care thrive and find a forever home, but it also helps your local pet shelter keep the pets in their care alive and well cared for.
If you're unable to adopt or foster a pet, you can still help by volunteering at the shelter in your spare time. Animal shelters can almost always use the extra assistance with cleaning up, feeding the animals, and even taking the shelter dogs for walks to get some fresh air and exercise. If you have any extra time in your schedule to volunteer, go for it because your effort will certainly make a difference.
When you can't volunteer at the shelter, you can still make a difference by donating much-needed supplies. Shelters often run low on nearly everything, including food, bedding, treats, and toys for the animals. You can send a care package to a place of your choice that contains different items, including bags of dry food, cans of wet food, chew toys, blankets, and much more. It's even better to catch these items while they're on sale. If you can get a good deal, you can stock up on essentials for the animals in the shelter while doing a good deed.
One thing to note, before you go out and buy tons of food and supplies, be sure to check with your local pet shelter first to ensure they accept that type of dog food.
With National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day quickly approaching, these are some of the ways you can help the animals at your local pet shelter. Whether you're willing to adopt, become a foster, or are gracious enough to donate your time or supplies, you can make a difference and help these incredible animals that don't have a place to call home.
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