PetSmart® and NBC’s TODAY Team Up to Promote Pet Adoption, Share the Top Reasons to Adopt
PetSmart’s National Adoption Weekend to be held at 1,500-Plus
PetSmart stores across North America This Weekend, Feb. 17-19
PHOENIX & NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–NBC’s popular morning show, TODAY,
teamed up with PetSmart,
the leading pet specialty retailer, to offer viewers inspiring reasons
to adopt a pet at PetSmart’s first National Adoption Weekend event of
2017, held today through Sunday at more than 1,500 PetSmart stores
across North America. The “Adopt a Pet Today” segment, part of
PetSmart’s support of TODAY’s Puppy with a Purpose series, aired
today during the 8 a.m. hour with pet expert and TV personality Andrea
Arden.
Puppy with a Purpose on TODAY is a 16-month special series where
a puppy is raised and trained in studio 1A with his progress featured on
the daily show. Seven-month-old black Labrador, Charlie, is being
trained by America’s VetDogs to become a service dog for a disabled
military veteran.
Charlie was joined on the TODAY set by seven adoptable pets from Louie’s
Legacy Animal Rescue, an animal welfare organization based in New
York and Ohio, and one of PetSmart’s 3,000 adoption partners across the
U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico for this weekend’s National Adoption
Weekend where tens of thousands of adorable pets just like the ones seen
on TODAY will find their forever families at PetSmart stores. TODAY has
a nearly 100 percent adoption rate when it features adoptable pets on
its show. There was great interest in the pets featured in the segment
and every pet received an application, which is being reviewed by
Louie’s Legacy. PetSmart said it expects about 20,000 pets to be adopted
during its national all-store event this weekend.
Arden shared the following top reasons to adopt a pet:
-
Adoption saves lives. Each year, upwards of seven million pets
enter shelters across North America and about three million of those
healthy, adoptable pets are euthanized. By adopting a pet and
providing them with a forever home, those who adopt are saving a life. -
Adoption is affordable. Adoption fees often include the cost of
spay and neuter surgeries, vaccinations and/or microchipping a pet.
Best of all, adoption fees support the shelters that help homeless
pets in need in the local community. -
Adoption offers a variety of pets. Whether you’re looking for a
small pet, a hypoallergenic pet, or a pet that will be by your side as
you work to achieve your New Year fitness resolutions, there are a
variety of adoptable pets available to choose from. AllPaws.com
is a great tool that can geo-locate and search for the perfect pet
based on categories like breed, age, gender, energy level, training
stage and temperament. -
Adoption is easy and accessible. Local animal shelters, rescue
organizations and animal control centers give you immediate access to
adoptable pets in your community. PetSmart makes it easy — you’ll
find lots of pets in every PetSmart store from coast to coast this
weekend.
With the help of its more than 3,000 adoption partners, PetSmart has
facilitated more 7.2 million adoptions since starting its in-store
adoption program in the late 1980s — more than any other
brick-and-mortar organization across North America. As a gift from
PetSmart to those who have chosen to give the gift of adoption, the
nation’s largest pet specialty retailer offers new pet parents a free
Adoption Kit*. The kit is offered to anybody that adopts a pet, no
matter where they adopted: a shelter, a community event or another
retailer. The kit includes $450 in free products and savings, as well as
content to help transition a new four-legged family member into their
new home.
Visit www.petsmart.com
to find the PetSmart store nearest you. Pet parents everywhere are
invited to share their pet adoption story on social media using
#iadopted.
*Adoption papers are 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 America’s VetDogs
Since 2003, America’s VetDogs (www.VetDogs.org)
has trained and placed guide and service dogs to provide independence,
enhanced mobility, and companionship to veterans with disabilities from
all eras. In 2015, VetDogs opened its programs to first responders,
including fire, police, and emergency medical personnel. America’s
VetDogs is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization founded by the Guide
Dog Foundation that relies on contributions from generous individuals,
corporations, service clubs, and foundations to fund its mission to help
those who have served our country live with dignity and independence. It
costs over $50,000 to breed, raise, train, and place one assistance dog,
but America’s VetDogs provides its services completely free of charge to
the individual.
America’s VetDogs was the second assistance dog school in the United
States to be certified by the International Guide Dog Federation and
Assistance Dogs International.
Contacts
Golin for PetSmart
Danielle Bickelmann, 469-680-2503
dbickelmann@golin.com
or
PetSmart
Media Line
623-587-2177
