The Bissell Pet Foundation’s next Empty the Shelters event in Michigan is Saturday, April 29, and the Barry County Animal Shelter is taking part with hours from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The Grand Rapids-based non-profit will pay all adoption fees at 69 shelters and rescue organizations on that day, and will thank families for choosing adoption with the gift of an Adopt Box. The adopters will be responsible only for the license fee for the pet they choose.
Potential adopters must register by April 26 at the Barry County shelter, 540 North Industrial Park Drive in Hastings.
More than 2,000 pets are expected to find loving, forever homes in the latest effort.
“Many pets in shelters and rescues have never experienced a loving home and Empty the Shelters will give so many pets the second chance they deserve,” said Cathy Bissell, founder of Bissell Pet Foundation.//
Adoption events in May and October last year successfully placed more 2,800 cats and dogs in loving homes last year, thanks to the program sponsored by the foundation, according to it’s website.
Millions of pets are abandoned or released to shelters and rescue organizations each year, In Michigan alone, approximately 40,000 pets are euthanized yearly because they are unable to find new homes. Bissell Pet Foundation is dedicated to reducing these numbers through pet adoption, spay/neuter programs, micro chipping and foster care, the website said.
In previous events, 96 percent of adopters reported pets remained in their new homes three months later; 54 percent of adopters were first-time adopters and 90 percent of all adopters planned to adopt again.
