Giving back to pets and guardians in need

Petco and the Petco Foundation are partnering with Best Friends Animal Society and Hill’s Science Diet to host the third annual National Pet Food Drive October 28 through November 11. Donations of dog and cat food are being accepted at every Petco and Unleashed by Petco to help families have a nutritious and happy Thanksgiving with their pets. Each store is partnering with a local food bank or animal welfare group to see to it that the donations go directly to the folks who need it most.

Best Friends is helping supply the volunteer manpower in the stores to educate the clientele about the mission and help garner donations.

Once again, Hill’s Science Diet is committing to match every bag of Hill’s Science Diet dog and cat food donated, up to 80,000 pounds. This year’s goal is to get a half-million pounds of pet food donated. People can donate whatever brand they’d like, but they maximize their donation by making it Hill’s Science Diet.

Volunteers speak out

“Best Friends understands that reaching a day of No More Homeless Pets requires everyone working together for the animals, all across the country,” shares Patty Meehan of Lafayette, Louisiana. “Doing a food drive locally, in partnership with Petco Foundation, for the benefit of local rescues and animal welfare organizations, is a perfect demonstration of how large, national organizations can really make a difference at the local level. As a Best Friends volunteer, it is terrific to be able to volunteer locally, to see how, by working together, we can make a real difference.”

Kenn Agata of Queens, New York, found the experience uplifting: “I can tell you that the bin had easily over 500 pounds of food in it when I came into the store on the final day of the drive for my four-hour stint. Eight customers contributed about 150 pounds of food as a result of my contact with them, which really made me proud. One particular moment during my time at the Petco store stands out particularly for me as a young teen came in with her mom and Philip. I explained the nature of the food drive to the young lady who used American Sign Language to translate to her mom. Twenty minutes later, when they were about to exit the store, they came over and handed me a bag with 10 cans of cat food. This act of generosity, along with that of the other folks who came in with their dogs and cats to shop for food and other pet-related items, served as a testimony to me that the animals in need in our community can take comfort in the fact that there are generous people who will help them, and perhaps their human companions, in seeing that no one will go hungry.”

Over in Salt Lake City, Utah, Susan Hunt volunteered last year as well because it is important to her to help needy families so they can keep their furry family members in their home, healthy and safe, especially during the holidays. One of her favorite parts of volunteering for the food drive is meeting fellow animal lovers and hearing their stories. Susan says, “In Salt Lake City, we had a great response to the food drive. People were very generous and happy to donate. I cannot stand the thought of an animal being hungry or going to the ‘pound’ due to lack of resources or food. What a wonderful idea, and I will always be part of any food drive in the Salt Lake City area.”

Get involved

To find your local Petco or Unleashed by Petco, go to petco.com.