Donate to Home Van Pet Care Project

Monday, December 3, 2012

Update - December 2012


HOME VAN PET CARE PROJECT NEWS – December 2012
From:  Elizabeth Howard, Project Coordinator

Our primary mission is to provide food for the companion animals of homeless and very low income persons in our community.
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Christmas for the Animals:  At Christmastime we provide cat and dog toys, treats, canned foods, flea combs and so on. This year we have discovered some handy plastic painter buckets that are sturdy and reusable and will be great for storage of pet food.

We plan to fill the buckets with cat food or dog food as well as treats and toys for the animals and then we will distribute them at our regular pet food distribution time on December 19.
These sturdy, reusable buckets cost $4.00 each. We will prepare 40 buckets with a quantity of cat food or dog food as well as treats. If you can fund us for any number of these buckets we will appreciate the help.

Please also donate extra food for both dogs and cats. Any size bags are fine, and you can call to check on donation dropoff place and current needs. We also need to replenish our supply of collars, leashes and harnesses, sizes medium and large. We will need tarps also to cover campsites and dog areas. All the animals like those soft little blankets, and hay makes a good padding in a dog house or cat area so let us know if you have some you can donate. If you can donate any of these items or funds for the buckets and other items please let us know. We will also need volunteers to help with pickup of donations and possible storage for food and supplies.

Our Winterization Project: This is a yearly project to help homeless prepare their campsites for winter. The buckets of food fit well into this project, since having some extra food will gives pet owners a break if weather is bad and they can’t make it for pet food distribution. We will also check our running lines to see that everyone has them to comply with the tethering laws and give the dogs a bit more freedom.

Breakfast on the Plaza:  This year three animal service groups had tables: Home Van Pet Care Project, Inc., St. Francis Veterinary Clinic and Newberry Veterinarians. A Home Van Pet Care spokesperson is allowed to say a word to the crowd and we devoted much of our allotted time to urging spay/neuter. Just by being there with other groups, we show respect for the animals and make our services more available. This breakfast is a friendly and helpful event and we thank the Coalition and all who help make the event a success.

We’re working hard and enjoying the work to fulfill our mission to the animals. We thank you for helping us and ask you to help make this a memorable Christmas for all our animal and human friends. Financial donations are always welcome and checks can be mailed to Home Van Pet Care Project, Inc., c/o Elizabeth Howard, P. Box 14305, Gainesville, FL 32604, phone 352-473-9423,email holisticliz@hotmail.com. You can also donate by PayPal on our blog, http://homevanpetcareproject.com.