Press Release

 

ASPCA Proud of Animal Welfare Successes in Tampa

 

August 10, 2007

ASPCA Media Contact

NEW YORK, August 10, 2007—The ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) is extremely proud of recent successes in Tampa, an ASPCA® Mission: Orange™ community. As recently announced by Hillsborough County Animal Services (HCAS), and as reported on in the media, dog and cat adoptions at HCAS have increased by 37 percent from February to July 2007, compared to this same period in 2006. Furthermore, in the last three months, pet adoptions at the shelter have increased by an astounding 51 percent.

“HCAS Director Bill Armstrong credits a number of factors for the shelter’s success, including ASPCA Mission: Orange, a focused and collaborative effort which aims to create a country of humane communities by curbing the needless euthanasia of adoptable pets, one community at a time. HCAS, along with the Humane Society of Tampa Bay, the Animal Coalition of Tampa and No More Homeless Pets Hillsborough County—other ASPCA Mission: Orange partners—has pledged to increase its “save rate” for homeless pets to 50 percent by the year 2010.

“We’re extremely proud of what our Tampa partners—indeed, the entire Tampa community of Tampa—have accomplished in such a short time,” said ASPCA President and CEO Ed Sayres. “Tampa’s continued efforts to improve the lives of animals make it a model not only for ASPCA Mission: Orange communities but also for the entire nation.”

The increase in the save rate is due to a more focused emphasis on adoptions. Organizations such as the Humane Society of Tampa Bay and local rescue groups are routinely transferring healthy and treatable animals out of HCAS for adoption elsewhere. In addition, potential adopters are allowed to view all animals in the facility, and a volunteer program is also helping boost adoption numbers.

Another recent success in the community was the Humane Society of Tampa Bay’s 8th Annual Pet Telethon, which was held on August 4th and 5th, and raised more than $160,000. Event volunteers also report finding new homes for 84 cats and dogs. The telethon is just the latest in a string of successful adoption events in Hillsborough County; In May, local ASPCA Mission: Orange partners participated in a large-scale pet adopt-a-thon at the Florida State Fairgrounds where more than 170 cats and dogs were adopted.

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Founded in 1866, the ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) is the first humane organization established in the Americas and serves as the nation’s leading voice for animal welfare. One million supporters strong, the ASPCA’s mission is to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the United States. As a 501 [c] [3] not-for-profit corporation, the ASPCA is a national leader in the areas of anti-cruelty, community outreach and animal health services. The ASPCA, which is headquartered in New York City, offers a wide range of programs, including a mobile clinic outreach initiative, its own humane law enforcement team, and a groundbreaking veterinary forensics team and mobile animal CSI unit. For more information, please visit www.aspca.org.
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