Adoption

Talk about teamwork! More than 200 animal welfare groups from 53 communities found homes for 6,144 animals during the first-ever ASPCA Mega Match-a-thon, held March 30 to April 1.

“It really was inspiring to watch the collaboration among the different rescue organizations,” says ASPCA President & CEO Ed Sayres. “They reached out to their local media, spread the word to their supporters through social media, and showcased the amazing animals they have up for adoption. And over the three-day event, they got together and saved a record number of lives.”

In total, the ASPCA granted $492,250 to support the nationwide adoption event. A portion of the funds came as a result of the ASPCA’s participation in the fourth annual Subaru “Share the Love” event. The ASPCA received $1.4 million in funding from Subaru of America—62% has already been earmarked for the ASPCA’s “Share the Love” Grant Program. So far, approximately $884,000 has been distributed to local shelters.

Would your local shelter benefit from an ASPCA grant? Learn how it can apply today!

Do you know the top cause of death of dogs and cats in the United States? Cancer? Heart disease? Accidents? It’s none of the above.

Homelessness is the leading cause of death for dogs and cats, and while far fewer animals are being killed in animal shelters today than there were years ago, the fact that millions of dogs and cats are still dying in shelters is tragic.

Saving large numbers of animals from being killed in animal shelters takes collaboration, community involvement, resources, commitment and creativity. The ASPCA has melded all of those elements into a contest that challenges animal shelters across the country to come up with innovative ways to engage their communities and get more homeless cats and dogs into loving homes.

This year, we are very excited to be teaming up with television personality, bestselling author and philanthropist Rachael Ray to save animals through the ASPCA Rachael Ray $100K Challenge. We will be awarding more than $500,000 in prize grants to help shelters save more homeless cats and dogs.

During this contest, 50 animal shelters across the country will compete to save at least 300 more animals—during the months of August, September and October 2012—than they did during the same three months in 2011. The ASPCA and Rachael Ray will award a $100,000 grand prize to the shelter contestant that achieves the greatest increase in lives saved during this three-month period. A second place prize of $25,000 will be awarded to the shelter with the second greatest increase in lives saved, and the contestant that does the best job of engaging the members of their communities in animal life-saving efforts will win $25,000. Those organizations that do the best in their divisions will be eligible for between $5,000 and $40,000 in additional grants.

In addition to rewarding the most successful and innovative shelters in the ASPCA Rachael Ray $100K Challenge, we will again offer our expertise and resources to contestants to help them implement new strategies for increasing adoptions, improving return-to-owner rates, engaging the community, and increasing awareness through the media and other channels.

With the added support from Rachael Ray, we know the contest will gain even more visibility. All her life, Rachael has been an advocate for dogs and cats. Through her charitable dog food line Nutrish®, she has made a personal commitment to helping shelter animals who are in need of second chances at new homes and better lives. To date, she has donated more than $3 million in proceeds from the sale of her pet food line to organizations that help animals in need.

When we launched the first $100K Challenge back in 2010, we had one simple goal: to save more lives. And the results—a remarkable 101,263 lives saved during the contest periods in just the first two years—have been absolutely remarkable.

While we’re thrilled with those life-saving results in the short-term, we are equally excited that the $100K Challenge is helping contestants build support for their organizations, which means the increase in life-saving will continue well beyond the contest period. Contestants have realized increases in volunteer hours, social media engagement and donors. For example, in 2010, the number of the New Orleans-based Louisiana SPCA’s Facebook fans increased from 1,700 to 4,000 during the course of the contest, while the number of active volunteers at N.O.A.H. (Northwest Organization for Animal Help) in Stanwood, Washington, increased more than 20 percent. Shelters noticed that people who had never stepped foot in a shelter before the Challenge were enthusiastic about animal adoption after getting caught up in the community’s excitement about the contest.

Guinn Friedman of the Humane Society for Greater Savannah in Savannah, Georgia, 2011 Community Engagement Prize winner, describes her group’s experience in last year’s contest:

“Our staff was kind of dazed and sitting around the lobby one afternoon. I asked if they had nothing to do. They looked at me and said, ‘We have no more animals.’ It was the most amazing moment in our organization’s history. We all sat down together and wept—and this time, they were tears of joy.”

We hope that in its third year, our perception of what shelters across the country are capable of will be shattered again, and that the nationwide support to help shelters save more lives will continue to grow.

To learn more about this year’s ASPCA Rachael Ray $100K Challenge, please visit www.aspca.org/100k.

Happy Valentine’s Day, animal lovers! Are you celebrating with a little something sweet? Chocolates and candy hearts are nice, but we’ve got something even sweeter at the ASPCA Adoption Center: Jin and Lanai, a pair of the prettiest and friendliest kitties we’ve ever met.

In fact, five-pound lap-cat Jin is such a doll that we think she might make a great animal-assisted therapy cat! And Lanai is just as lovely; where Jin is snuggly, Lanai is hilarious and sporty.

We thought Valentine’s Day would be the best time to introduce you to these cuties, since they’re all about love! Not just affectionate with every person they meet, Jin and Lanai love each other, too, and want to go home together.

Jin needs special food and medicine for her allergies, but trust us, she’s beyond worth the little extra effort to keep her healthy. We’re head-over-heels in love with these stunning girls. If you think you might be too, please call our Animal Placement department in New York City at (212) 876-7700, ext. 4900.

Can’t adopt? Help these cuties find true love! Please share them on Facebook and Twitter.

Our snuggly, playful puppy Spruce has spent most of his young life at the ASPCA. On January 25, Spruce will turn one year old—and we’re pretty sure his Number 1 birthday wish is a loving forever home. (OK, Number 2 is probably a rope toy.) Will you help us find him a home?

Spruce loves snuggling with people, playing with other dogs, and getting lots of exercise. (He’s the perfect running buddy.) He’s loved by those who work closely with him, but he’s had lots of bad luck in his short life.

Spruce first came to us as a three-pound, little puppy. He and his siblings had just been rescued from the streets of the Bronx. We watched Spruce grow and get adopted…and then come back to us due to a change in his adopter’s life. Unfortunately for Spruce, this happened a few more times—always because his adopters had a life change.

Enough is enough. Spruce deserves better. He needs stability, and a family who will love him forever—no matter what. Could that be you?

We’re hoping that some experienced dog folks will give Spruce the happy first birthday he deserves. If you live in a 12-and-up household and would enjoy cuddling and working with this energetic sweetie, come meet Spruce! Call our Animal Placement department in New York City at (212) 876-7700, ext. 4120, to learn more. Know someone who’s perfect for Spruce? Share him on Facebook and Twitter!