PetSmart Charities, the leading funder of animal welfare in North America, has an expanded mission and more grant opportunities for animal organizations.
Historically their grants have supported their mission to end pet homelessness, but they have expanded their scope to also include connecting pets with people.
The result is ten different grant categories under the organization’s four strategic areas of focus.
Preventing Pet Homelessness
To help decrease the number of pets entering shelters, PetSmart Charities now offers three grant categories to support programs and initiatives that proactively prevent pet homelessness and mitigate pet homelessness during family transitions.
- Spay/neuter: Preventing unplanned litters through targeted spay/neuter programs and clinic development, free or low-cost spay/neuter surgeries, trap-neuter-return (TNR) efforts, as well as veterinary school initiatives.
- Intake diversion: Keeping pets from entering shelters by making wellness clinics, as well as behavioral training and education more accessible.
- Keeping pets and families together: Creating resources for families that are or may experience domestic violence, homelessness and/or Military leave and can no longer accommodate their pet.
Helping Shelter Pets Thrive
Many adoptable pets never find homes, facing euthanasia due to lack of capacity. By supporting organizations that provide resources, build capacity to care for homeless pets and focus on adoption, PetSmart Charities expects to enhance pets’ lives in shelters and help them find their forever homes.
- Shelter management: Supporting best practices in areas such as mentoring, disease control and strengthening shelter infrastructure.
- Pet transport: Supporting organizations that relocate adoptable pets to areas where the demand for pet adoption is high so they will have the best chance possible at finding their forever family.
- Conferences and training: Funding enrichment programs and workshops for those working for and volunteering within the animal welfare industry.
Supporting the Bond between People and Pets
While there are many tales of how people save pets’ lives through adoption, there are also inspiring stories of how pets can save people. By supporting organizations that bring people and pets together to leverage the power of pets to enhance the human spirit, PetSmart Charities ultimately aims to end pet homelessness and drive awareness of the benefits of pet ownership.
- Adoptions: Partnering with local animal welfare organizations to connect people with adoptable pets everyday at PetSmart stores or and at PetSmart Charities’ signature events, including National Adoption Weekends which are held four times a year.
- Capacity building: Assisting with the construction, rebuilding or remodeling of animal welfare organization facilities that fulfill the needs of homeless pets.
- Enhancing the quality of life through pets: Supporting programs that train pets to become service animals for military veterans or people with disabilities and for pet therapy programs in hospitals, schools, senior homes or with at-risk populations.
Providing Emergency Relief
In the event of a weather crisis and natural disaster, such as the Fort McMurray fires in Alberta, Louisiana Flooding, and Hurricane Matthew, the role of local animal organizations has been critical to providing immediate support in times of crisis. Temporary shelter, pet supplies and medical care are just some of the immediate needs of misplaced or abandoned pets.
- Emergency relief and disaster response: Providing assistance in the event of a natural or man-made disaster during the rescue, relief and/or recovery stages.
Four grant categories are currently open for applications - Adoptions, Spay/Neuter, Emergency Relief, and Conferences and Training.
The remaining grant cycles will be announced in February 2017.
Applicants must provide documentation verifying status as a 501(c)(3) organization for the US or registered charity in Canada.
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