June 2017 - Colorado Pet Pantry

Animal Welfare Share Program write-up by Dumb Friends League

Many animal welfare organizations receive donations of pet supplies they don’t need, and yet they must purchase items that other organizations may have in surplus. To help “spread the wealth” among these organizations, the Colorado Pet Pantry, in partnership with the Dumb Friends League, launched the Animal Welfare Share Program this spring.

The goal of the Animal Welfare Share Program is to help participating rescues and shelters save money on crucial supplies while increasing efficiency in the use of items donated by the community.

This partnership creates a centralized location for shelters in the Denver metro area to share donated resources like pet food, medical supplies (excluding prescription drugs), collars, leashes, pet beds, crates, and other pet-related items. Participating rescues and shelters can pick up items they need and drop off surplus items for other rescues to utilize.

Happy Birthday to Us!

Time is sure flying, and this week we celebrated our 4th Birthday! In June 2013, we held the first pet food bank at Bienvenidos Food Bank in northwest Denver. We didn’t know how it would go. Would anyone come? With a packed box truck, we arrived and unloaded. Soon there was a line. We fed 157 pets that day, and made sure they had food for a full month.

We want to help families to feed their pets and keep them in their loving homes. Four years after we dreamed up this idea, we’ve grown in volunteers, financial support, and partnerships. In 2016, we fed 6,335 pets for a month. This year, our goal is to feed 11,000!

Thank You for Helping Us Celebrate Our 4th Birthday. This was only achievable through the support of you and the community.

Colorado Expression Magazine Writes about the Colorado Pet Pantry

By award-winning writer, and President of the Dog Writers Association of America, Jen Reeder, published in Colorado Expression Magazine!

A FEW YEARS AGO, Anthony Valle’s career was booming. With a doctorate in business administration and years of experience as a successful senior project manager for numerous Fortune 500 companies, his skills were in demand. So when he was offered a lucrative contract to work in Denver, he drove from New York with his wife, young daughters and their beloved dogs to the Centennial State.

But fortune can be fickle. A week after arriving, Valle found himself unemployed due to legal wrangling between his employer and another company. Suddenly job offers dried up; aside from managing one major fiber-optic project, he hasn’t found work in his field for two years. Instead, he maintains a low-income job to help keep his family afloat until something more promising pans out. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” Valle said. “We went from having a beautiful home to living in a hotel. It’s been a really hard road.”

The Valles have stayed close throughout their hardships—both with one another and with their dog, Cleo. The American Staffordshire Terrier is a registered emotional support dog who loves to snuggle, take walks and sleep in bed with Valle’s daughters every night. But due to allergies, Cleo needs special dog food, which became increasingly challenging to provide. “It would have been extremely devastating to every one of us if we would have had to give up Cleo because we couldn’t afford to take care of her,” Valle said.

Fortunately, the Colorado Pet Pantry stepped in. The nonprofit, founded in 2013, helps keeps pets in the families that love them by providing dog and cat food to people in need. The pet food bank “brought us peace of mind,” Valle said. “We’re sure that Cleo’s going to be healthy and taken care of.”

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