Food Drive for Homeless Animals Month

Do you regularly donate food to your local shelter, food pantry, or other service organizations? If so, I’d like to personally thank you for your generosity and kindness. Not everyone has the means to do that, but when we can, we definitely should try to do so. Even if your local grocery store has a collection bin and you toss in a can of soup or a bag of rice each visit, you are helping people more than you know.

Homeless animals are always in need of a meal, too. Many of us don’t think about homeless animals until we see a stray forlorn cat or dog sniffing around a dumpster. (I once tried to rescue a stray cat from the dumpster behind our local White Castle restaurant—to no avail—and now every time we drive by, my daughter asks if we’re going to rescue the kitty!) But shelters are overrun with homeless animals needing food, shelter, and especially love and care, and I’ve never heard of any shelter that would turn down a donation of food or even love.

If you’ve got the time and money, would you consider making a donation to your local shelter this month? If so, you could pick out your favorite dog, cat, and other rescued homeless animals (everything from horses to rabbits to guinea pigs and more, depending on what type of shelter your local one is) gear to give, which can make your gift even more personal. If you’re stuck, here are a few ideas for shelter giving.

• New, clean water and food dishes. If you have slightly used ones that are still in good condition, these can be given as well.
• Bags or cans of food—dog food, cat food, hamster pellets, fresh vegetables for guinea pigs and rescued reptiles, you name it. If you like, you could see if your pet store has a gift card option so you could just give that as well; that way the shelter could purchase the kinds of food it really needs most. Cash also works for this purpose, of course.
• Animal vitamins, treats, and chew toys are always appreciated, too!
• Aside from food, you can always give blankets, toys, pet carriers, leashes, beds, and other pet supplies. One fun way to do this is to get a group of friends together to make blankets and pet toys to donate. You can also usually find very cheap items at dollar stores, and soft, small blankets for cheap at baby stores. I know we bought our cats one from Babies R Us for $3.00 one year.