ACNC regsitered charity animal rescues put our hearts, time and most of all our wallets on the line to support animal welfare in the state of Victoria. We do this, to be able to support local councils around Victoria by intaking, vet working and adopting out animals that they do not have the time and capacity to do on their own. 
Rescues provide safe landing zones for animals that would otherwise be discarded or euthanised due to the consistant overflowing status of council shelters. 

Obtaining approval and registration with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) costs a lot of money that rescue teams pay out of their own pockets. Registered charities sign all sorts of forms, adhere to strict reporting requirements and follow numerous regulations to ensure we maintain our not-for-profit status.

This support should allow ACNC Registered Animal Charities to be considered an approved source of animals for pet shops under the Victorian Domestic Animal Business (DAB) license. 

Currently we are not. This means that any pet shop - such as PETstock, Pets Domain or PetBarn can not accept animals from an ACNC Registered rescue charity to house in their adoption pens adopt out to those visiting their stores. 

I want to share Kilanis story with you. She came into rescue from an overflowing shelter in Victoria. Kilani had shutdown, she was hissy and willing to attack anyone who dare come near her or her siblings. She would lash out and defend herself, she was terrified. We were contacted to rescue Kilani - and we accepted her and her siblings without a second thought. We understood that Kilani needed a chance and time to decompress and learn to trust in a safe and loving environment. Kilani was on the euthansia list. Without us, she would be dead. 

After Kilani has been incare for six months we made the decision based on her progress that she was ready for adoption. 
She was online and advertised on social media platforms for two months with not a single enquiry.

Eventually the opportunity arose to place her into a pet store adoption pen and  she was there for two weeks. In that time she came met lots of people, who showed her more attention and love, her guard dropped with every interaction and she blossomed into a loving, sweet and affectionate girl. 

Kilani was adopted from the petstore - but her adoptors visted her SEVEN times before making the choice to adopt. Seven times, they drove there to see her, play with her and interact with her. Seven times they had family discussions about how she would fit into their family and lives. Seven times and then Kilani found her forever home. 

This level of exposure is undeniably important for cats like Kilani who are often overlooked for the adorable little kittens. Kilani has a wonderful family, full of love, trust and new beginnings. This is the pure value of pet store adoption pens.

By changing the law to recognise ACNC registered charities as approved sources for animals being supplied to pet shops, we can ensure that more animals like Kilani find loving homes while supporting organisations that adhere to strict regulatory standards.

Please sign this petition to urge the Victorian Government to amend the law so that ACNC registered charities who are up to date with their reporting can be recognised as approved animal sources for pet shops.

Do it for Kilani and all the others who would be left behind without us.