To: The Decision Makers at our Beloved Pet-Food Companies 

From: All Dedicated Cat and Dog Lovers and Dedicated Pet Food Customers 

We need your help! As you know, animal shelters are bursting at the seams and cat and dog rescues are stretched beyond capacity. In my region, for instance, ACCT Philly, the region’s largest animal care and control service provider, began 2024 completely full. With every kennel  in use. Just a few miles up north, another shelter made the decision to drastically slash adoption costs to make room for more dogs and cats in need.

There are simply not enough resources for all the cats and dogs who need our help. The closing of spay/neuter clinics during COVID, and the rising cost of the basic essentials, which has led to a severe increase in pets being abandoned outside, has created community-crisis conditions. And massive suffering for innocent animals.

On any given day in the United States, there are an estimated 70 to 100 million homeless dogs and cats struggling to survive on the streets. They’re subject to starvation, the elements, frostbite, predators, getting crushed under the wheels of cars, and the cruelty of certain people. Poor nutrition–due to food scarcity–also leads to disease in the current generation; birth defects in the subsequent generations. 

Of all the homeless or unwanted animals, only an estimated five million to seven million cats and dogs even make it one of the nation’s 3,500 shelters. But that’s no guarantee of safety. Each year, approximately 400,000 to 900,00 cats and dogs are euthanized. Last year, per Shelter Animals Count, national shelter euthanasia rates were at a three-year high. Without an intervention, this will only climb higher and higher.

The only way to remedy this issue is to dramatically increase the percentage of cats and dogs getting spayed and/or neutered as expeditiously as possible.

And this is where you, our vital Pet-Food Companies, can help. There are compassionate folks, throughout the country, who are stepping in and stepping up to feed starving cats and dogs. But, not enough of these people know how important it is to fix the animals they feed. Your company would make a positive, dramatic difference by minimally modifying the packaging design of your bags and/or cardboard containers to include the words: 

“IF YOU FEED THEM, PLEASE FIX THEM.” 

Additionally, adding a QR code that further directs people to a website that provides information on finding TNR (Trap, Neuter, Release) and Spay & Neuter resources would be exceptionally helpful and educational for the people who volunteer in the care and feeding of community cats and dogs. This website could potentially provide detailed information on these resources in their local, relevant communities. A national animal welfare group could manage this simple endeavor. 

PLEASE, FIND IT IN YOUR HEARTS TO HELP!!!  A first step would be to implement this simple package-modification, which would provide some relief for your largest repeat customers: ALL ANIMAL SHELTERS AND ANIMAL RESCUES! This relatively simple initiative could spread like wildfire at the grassroots level. Think of the impact your company could have on preventing the suffering that animal overpopulation creates for innocent cats and dogs; the leadership your company would demonstrate by implementing this; and the appreciation implementation would generate in educated animal lovers nationwide.

We also support all efforts by PennyFix (PennyFix.org) to encourage companies like yours to raise their prices by just a penny or two, so that extra money can be earmarked for spay and neuter services. Both of these initiatives could help prevent a future in which catastrophic numbers of cats and dogs struggle to survive on the streets, and/or are euthanized–although healthy and adoptable–in our nation’s overcrowded shelters. 

Thank you very much for considering this very worthy initative!