2012 has been an amazing year for the Found Animals Foundation team and as we take time to reflect and celebrate this holiday season we wanted to share some of our accomplishments and plans for the New Year. Since our mission is to minimize the number of pets killed in shelters, we focus on programs that reduce shelter intake and increase live release rates. All told, over 130,000 pets and their people were helped by Found Animals programs this year and we look forward to seeing that number grow dramatically next year. None of this would be possible without the support of our phenomenal staff, volunteers and partners – we hope you’ll consider joining our “family” to help pets in Los Angeles in 2013 and beyond.
Spay4LA celebrated 10,000 spay & neuter surgeries in October.
- Our worldwide Michelson Prize and Grant Program now has 20 research projects underway from the US to Australia and New Zealand and even Argentina. To date we have committed over $10M in funding towards the search for a single dose non surgical sterilant for cats and dogs. Talented researchers at universities and biotech companies are hard at work on products that will revolutionize how we manage pet populations. While a product is still several years away, every month and every new grant brings us closer to the solution.
- Since surgical spay and neuter is still the best option, Found Animals is a generous supporter of local non-profits that offer subsidized low cost and free services. In 2012 we spent over $750,000 supporting our partners at FixNation, Spay4LA, and the Spay Neuter Project of Los Angeles (SNP LA). These groups provided a combined total of over 46,000 surgeries this year alone!
Adopt & Shop employees spreading the word “don’t shop, adopt!”
- Our adoption programs work directly with LA City, LA County, SEAACA and other local municipal sheltering agencies to get at risk pets into new homes. A total of over 5,500 pets were placed through our programs this year – nearly half of them cats!
- Over 1,300 adult cats were adopted through our 9 Lives for $9 promotion this summer, which represents a 36% increase over the same period last year.
- Over 700 pets, including nearly 300 cats, found new families through our Lakewood Adopt & Shop location. Not bad for a store that is only 1,000 square feet!
- An additional 395 cats were placed through our Cat Adoption Center on site at the SEAACA shelter.
- We had over 3,100 adoptions of harder to place pets through our Twelve Pets of Christmas promotion at 19 locations throughout the Southland.
Team Microchip is committed to making sure all lost pets find their way home.
- Shelters from California to Florida and everywhere in between are using our affordable microchips and our free Found Animals Microchip Registry. This complete system is designed to make it as fast and easy as possible for shelters and owners to get lost pets home quickly. Our team is dedicated to educating pet owners and pet professionals about how to maximize microchip technology to drive more reunions and to ensure that cost is never a barrier to chipping a pet or keeping it registered.
Hosting the Wallace book signing, our friends from Angel City Pits giving Wallace some love.
- Educating our community on new ideas and resources – whether it be shelter staff, non-profit groups, or pet owners – is key, so the Found Animals team is always investing in outreach. This year:
- Found Animals was featured in nearly 100 press articles highlighting our various programs and activities.
- Our website had over 1 million visitors come for information and resources and we shared with our Facebook and Twitter audience of over 100,000.
- We hosted our first awards gala honoring Tony Cardenas, Lu Parker, and PetSmart CEO Bob Moran for the great work they do on behalf of Los Angeles animals.
- The Found Animals Forum is designed to bring the best new ideas to the LA animal community and Emily Weiss and Jackson Galaxy certainly delivered.
- The Outdoor Cats Conference featured speakers with a variety of perspectives on the issues and challenges and started an important conversation.
This is the 2nd year in a row our Volunteer Appreciation party has fallen on Halloween. Thank You Volunteers!
Foster kittens right to left: Zooey, Mr. Belvedere, Gretal and Billy
- More and bigger Adopt & Shop stores featuring more pets for adoption and an expansion of products and services to support pets and their people.
- A push to help unweaned kittens in a big way through a foster and nursery program.
- An expansion of services and support to communities in South Los Angeles.
All of these programs will mean we need more staff and more volunteers in 2013, so be sure to keep an eye out for ways to get involved!
