Dogs on Deployment Receives a $10,000 Grant from PetSmart Charities

 

As the face of family changes over the years, what remains constant is the role pets play in our lives.

Many people consider pets family members and it can be challenging to find resources when facing life changes and issues such as homelessness, lack of pet-friendly housing, military deployment or fleeing domestic violence in search of a safe-haven. Pet parents in these and other at-risk situations often determine they have no options beyond surrendering their beloved pet to a local shelter.

Dogs on Deployment received a $10,000 grant from PetSmart Charities to help keep more pets in loving homes and out of shelters nationwide.

With this grant from PetSmart, Dogs on Deployment will help preserve the bond between pets and their people by providing help to service members caring for their pets through free pet boarding and financial grants. Through its volunteer network, Dogs on Deployment Boarders will also help by providing loving homes for military pets during their owner’s service commitments. To date, Dogs on Deployment’s reach has impacted over 270,000 Americans, and more than 1,800 service members’ pets have been successfully boarded. Dogs on Deployment aids pets of all types that belong to active duty, reservists, guard, honorably discharged veterans and their families. 

 

“Dogs on Deployment promotes responsible, lifelong pet ownership within the military-pet community. No beloved pet should ever be surrendered to a shelter due to a military commitment. We exist to help military members keep their family pets by alleviating the need for pet relinquishment from military members due to the hardship of deployments,” said Alisa Johnson, President & Co-Founder, Dogs on Deployment. “Together with this grant from PetSmart Charities, we will continue to deliver programs that achieve results for military families and their pets.”

“At PetSmart Charities, we recognize the importance of preserving the bond between pets and people, no matter what life challenges or circumstances pet parents may be facing,” said Jenny Aho, regional relationship manager at the national nonprofit. “We are proud to support Dogs on Deployment’s work to not only ensure pets are well taken care of while their pet parents serve with honor, but also to keep pets and military families together.”

Check It Out!

US Marine, Frederick, deployed for 6 months and didn’t have any one to watch his German Shepherd, Wook. He found a DoD Boarder with Dandi, who watched him while he served our county. They were reunited at Petsmart. Watch the happy reunion!

 

 

Since 1994, through its partnership with nearly 4,000 humane societies, SPCAs and pet rescues across North America, PetSmart Charities has helped more than 8.5 million pets to find loving homes via its in-store adoption program in over 1,600 PetSmart® stores.

As the leading funder of animal welfare, PetSmart Charities has also donated nearly $400 million to improve access to veterinary care,  positively impact communities, connect people and pets and to help preserve families through initiatives like this with Dogs on Deployment.

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. 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 almost $400 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 16 years in a row – placing it among the top one percent of charities rated by this organization. To learn more visit www.petsmartcharities.org.

About Dogs on Deployment

 

Dogs on Deployment’s main mission is to provide an online resource for military members to search for volunteers willing to board their pets during deployments. Our secondary mission is to provide resources, education and advocacy for the military pet community, including our Pet Owners and DoD Boarders.

Dogs on Deployment is a national 501(c)(3) non-profit organization where over 91% of all spending goes to programs. In addition to growing our national network of dedicated volunteer pet boarders, we promote lifelong pet ownership in the military community by:

• Advocating for military pet owner rights on military installations
• Providing educational resources for military members about responsible pet ownership
• Granting financial assistance to military members for help with their pet’s care during emergencies
• Promoting healthy pet lifestyles, including spay and neuter, insurance options and vaccinations
• Connecting with community organizations to ensure Dogs on Deployment resources are available to military families