Petfinder.com Partnership Responsible for More Than 1.5 Million Pets in New Homes in 2003
May 26 2004 - 7:00PM
PR Newswire (US)
Petfinder.com Partnership Responsible for More Than 1.5 Million
Pets in New Homes in 2003 TUCSON, Ariz., May 26 /PRNewswire/ --
Thanks to the community-minded spirit of more than a half dozen
companies and organizations, in partnership with online animal
adoption resource and education network center Petfinder.com, more
than 1.5 million orphaned animals found loving homes in 2003.
According to Petfinder.com President Betsy Saul, who started the
adoption website in 1996, 1,551,627 pets went home last year as a
result of the sponsorship and support of companies and
organizations including Purina, PETCO Animal Supplies, Inc.,
Pethealth, Inc., the PETCO Foundation, Merial, Bissell Homecare,
Inc., and ASPCA. In total, Petfinder.com's shelter partners found
homes for 2,675,218 animals last year, with approximately 60% of
those adoptions directly attributable to Petfinder.com and its
partners. "It is the coming together of these allied but diverse
partners in the interest of saving lives that accounts for these
dramatic numbers," Saul said. "Their contributions were vital to
our success, and they each continue to play a significant role in
our growth and development." Petfinder.com provides online services
for 8,000 shelters in the U.S. and Canada, creating a daily
searchable database of 142,029 adoptable pets. Shelters provide
photos and descriptions of adoptable animals, which potential
adopters can locate through general area searches or specific breed
or species queries. The service is free to both the shelters and
the adopters, thanks to Petfinder.com's sponsors. "Petfinder.com
has brought about a revolution in animal welfare," Saul said. "But
we could not be doing what we're doing without the support of these
companies and organizations." Petfinder took its first great leap
forward to go national in 1998 when it partnered with the American
Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). Julie Morris,
Senior Vice President of the ASPCA National Shelter Outreach (NSO)
Department commented, "We value our relationship with Petfinder and
believe in the important services it provides to shelters across
the country. Petfinder uses an effective combination of technology,
marketing and compassion to assist shelters with one of the most
important and challenging aspects of their work -- finding
permanent, loving homes for shelter animals." Purina signed on as
the Web site's premier sponsor. "Purina's sponsorship of
Petfinder.com aligns with our mission of advancing the lives of
pets. We are thrilled to help Petfinder.com unite shelters with pet
adopters," said Michael Moore, Interactive Marketing Director for
Purina. Other exclusive sponsors are BISSELL Homecare, Inc., a
manufacturer of home cleaning and floor care products, and Merial,
maker of the number one veterinary-recommended flea and tick
preventative FRONTLINE(R), and heartworm preventative HEARTGARD(R).
"BISSELL admires Petfinder's vision and passion for the pet
community," said Jim Krzeminski, BISSELL's senior vice president of
product development, sales and marketing. "Given their dedication,
we're not surprised at this incredible accomplishment, and are
proud to be a part of their success." Petfinder.com has also
partnered with Pethealth, Inc., to provide the gift of ShelterCare,
paid for by Petfinder.com, to every dog or cat adopted from a
Petfinder.com member-shelter in approved states and provinces.
Pethealth, Inc. is the largest provider of pet insurance in Canada,
second largest in the United States and fastest growing pet
insurance provider in North America. The gift of ShelterCare is the
first of its kind. "The effective distribution of our ShelterCare
insurance would not have been possible without Petfinder," said
Pethealth President and CEO Mark Warren. "Our ShelterCare insurance
program, along with Petfinder's unmatched relationship with the
shelter and rescue community, allows us to protect over 340,000
dogs and cats through our insurance programs to date." PETCO, a
leading specialty retailer of premium pet food, supplies and
services, with a commitment to quality animal care and education,
has also supported Petfinder.com from the online adoption agency's
inception. It operates more than 670 neighborhood stores in 44
states and the District of Columbia, as well as a leading
destination for on-line pet food and supplies at
http://www.petco.com/, supporting adoption efforts through in-store
adoption events and fundraisers. "PETCO has always supported
adoptions, and the PETCO Foundation continues to play an integral
role in the company partnerships with animal welfare organizations
in our store communities," PETCO Foundation Director Paul Jolly
said. "Our relationship with Petfinder.com has enabled us to help
animals all over North America, including areas where we do not
currently have stores." The PETCO Foundation, PETCO's non-profit
organization, has raised more than $17 million for animal welfare
since inception in 1999. More than 2,000 non-profit grassroots
animal welfare organizations from around the nation have received
support from the Foundation. Petfinder.com is an online pet
adoption source, partnering with more than 8,000 animal welfare
organizations nationwide to find homes for orphaned animals. For
more information, or to find a new friend, log on to
http://www.petfinder.com/. DATASOURCE: Petfinder.com CONTACT: Kim
Saunders, Director of Public Relations, +1-908-810-1976, , or Betsy
Saul, President, +1-520-321-1606, , both of Petfinder.com Web site:
http://www.petco.com/ Web site: http://www.petfinder.com/
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