Adopting a Pet During American Heart Month Won’t Just Warm Your Heart, It Could Help Protect It

In this Month of Love and Heart-Health, PetSmart® & PetSmart
Charities® Host National Adoption Weekend Feb. 17-19; Shares Heart-Warming
and Heart-Protecting Reasons to Adopt a Pet

PHOENIX–(BUSINESS WIRE)–It’s well known that adopting a new pet and saving a life will warm the
heart, but now scientific evidence is showing that owning a pet could
help ward off heart disease, too.

During American Heart Month, PetSmart
and PetSmart
Charities are celebrating the heart-warming and heart-protecting
reasons to adopt a pet during their first National Adoption Weekend
event of the year. Taking place in nearly every PetSmart store across
North America Feb. 17 – 19, National Adoption Weekends feature the
widest array of adoptable pets and there’s no shortage of great reasons
to bring one home.

Mounting Evidence for the Heart-Protecting Power of Pets

According to the American
Heart Association (AHA), owning a pet could help protect you from
heart disease. A scientific
statement issued in 2013 by the leading cardiac health organization
notes, “numerous studies have explored the relationship between pet
(primarily dog or cat) ownership and cardiovascular disease, with many
reporting beneficial effects.” Just a few of the heart-health benefits
seen in pet parents are increased physical activity, lower cholesterol
levels, lower blood pressure and even improved survival rates following
a cardiac event.

Data from the Human
Animal Bond Research Institute, a non-profit organization dedicated
to gathering, funding and sharing research on positive health impacts of
companion animals, further supports the healing power of pets. In a 2014 survey
of 1,000 physicians, HABRI found that 60 percent of doctors have
recommended getting a pet as part of a patient’s treatment plan, while
88 percent reported that they’ve seen a patient’s physical condition
improve as a result of human-animal interaction.

“It’s reasonably well understood that adopting a pet quite literally
saves a companion animal’s life, but it’s a lesser known fact that pets
can have a tremendous impact on the health and well-being of pet
parents,” said David Haworth, DVM, Ph.D., the chair of HABRI’s research
working group and president of PetSmart Charities. “Through a growing
body of scientific research, we know that pet ownership can not only
warm our heart, but its cardiovascular benefits can also help to protect
it. During American Heart Month and our first National Adoption Weekend
of the year, we are giving potential pet parents even more compelling
reasons to consider adopting a pet.”

The Heart-Warming Reasons for Pet Adoption Remain Strong

Pet homelessness remains a serious issue across North America. There are
millions of healthy, adorable and adoptable pets currently in shelters
and rescue facilities just waiting for a lifelong, loving home.

Feb. 17 – 19, many of these adoptable pets will be looking for their
forever families during PetSmart Charities’ signature National Adoption
Weekend events hosted at nearly every PetSmart store across North
America. PetSmart, The Adopt Spot, has helped to facilitate over 7.2
million adoptions to date, more than any other brick-and-mortar
facility. From dogs and cats to rabbits, chinchillas, ferrets and more,
PetSmart Charities’ National Adoption Weekend invites more than 3,000
animal welfare organizations to bring a wide array of adoptable pets to
nearly all 1,500-plus PetSmart stores to help match them with potential
pet parents. For every 30 seconds a PetSmart store is open, a pet is
adopted, totaling 1,400 pets lives saved every day.

PetSmart Charities’ February National Adoption Weekend

A Free Gift for Those Who Adopt

No matter which heart-related reason inspired a pet parent to adopt, nor
where they chose to adopt, PetSmart offers a free Adoption Kit*, which
provides important content on how to integrate a new pet into the family
and true value – more than $450 in free items and discounts on pet
essentials and services. Included are coupons for a free bag of dog or
cat food from Simply Nourish™, Authority® or Good Natured™, a free
veterinarian visit, a complimentary private training session with an
accredited trainer, a free Doggie Day Camp session and a free overnight
boarding stay, as well as half-off on a grooming service. Also included
are savings on all the essentials for a new pet, including beds, crates,
gates, brushes, feeding bowls, collars, leashes, toys and treats, as
well as solutions like pet calming products, and stain and odor remedies
for any mishaps that may occur.
*Adoption papers required.

About PetSmart®

PetSmart, Inc. is the largest specialty pet retailer of services and
solutions for the lifetime needs of pets. At PetSmart, we love pets, and
we believe pets make us better people. Every day with every connection,
PetSmart’s passionate associates help bring pet parents closer to their
pets so they can live more fulfilled lives. This vision impacts
everything we do for our customers, the way we support our associates
and how we give back to our communities. We employ approximately 55,000
associates, operate approximately 1,500 pet stores in the United States,
Canada and Puerto Rico and 204 in-store PetSmart® PetsHotel® dog and cat
boarding facilities. PetSmart provides a broad range of competitively
priced pet food and pet products and offers dog training, pet grooming,
pet boarding, PetSmart Doggie Day Camp day care services and pet
adoption services in-store. Our portfolio of digital resources for pet
parents – including PetSmart.com, PetFoodDirect.com, Pet360.com and
petMD.com – offers the most comprehensive online pet supplies and pet
care information in the U.S. Through our in-store pet adoption
partnership with independent nonprofit organizations, PetSmart
Charities® and PetSmart Charities™ of Canada, PetSmart helps to save the
lives of more than 500,000 homeless pets each year.

Follow PetSmart on Twitter: @PetSmart
Find
PetSmart on Facebook: www.facebook.com/PetSmart
See
PetSmart on YouTube: www.YouTube.com/PetSmart

About PetSmart Charities®

PetSmart
Charities, Inc. is a nonprofit animal welfare organization that
saves the lives of homeless pets. Each year nearly 500,000 dogs and cats
find homes through our adoption program in all PetSmart® stores across
the U.S. and sponsored adoption events. Each year millions of PetSmart
shoppers contribute to PetSmart Charities to help pets in need by making
donations on a pin pad at the register. PetSmart Charities efficiently
uses 90 cents of every dollar to support its mission of finding
lifelong, loving homes for all pets. PetSmart Charities grants more
money to directly help pets in need than any other animal welfare group
in North America, with a focus on funding adoption and spay/neuter
programs that help communities solve pet overpopulation. PetSmart
Charities is a 501(c)(3) organization, independent from PetSmart, Inc.
PetSmart Charities has received the Four Star Rating for the past 13
years from Charity Navigator, an independent nonprofit that reports on
the effectiveness, accountability and transparency of nonprofits,
placing it among the top one percent of charities rated by this
organization.

Follow PetSmart Charities on Twitter: @PetSmartChariTs
Find
PetSmart Charities on Facebook: Facebook.com/PetSmartCharities
See
PetSmart Charities on YouTube: YouTube.com/PetSmartCharitiesInc

About PetSmart Charities™ of Canada

PetSmart
Charities of Canada is a nonprofit animal welfare organization that
saves the lives of homeless pets in Canada. Each year more than 20,000
cats and dogs find Canadian homes through our adoption program in nearly
all PetSmart stores across Canada and our sponsored adoption events. A
leading funder of animal welfare, PetSmart Charities of Canada has
granted more than $10 million to help pets in need with a funding focus
on adoption and spay/neuter programs that help communities solve pet
overpopulation. PetSmart Charities of Canada is a registered charity,
independent from PetSmart.

Contacts

Golin for PetSmart Inc.
Danielle Bickelmann, 469-680-2503
dbickelmann@golin.com