Month-long "Companions for
Change™" event supports over 500 animal shelters and
animal charities across Canada
MARKHAM,
ON, June 1, 2022 /CNW/ - Pet Valu Holdings
Ltd. ("Pet Valu") (TSX: PET), the leading Canadian specialty
retailer of pet food and pet-related supplies, today, begins Pet
Appreciation Month, its biggest, annual "Companions for Change™"
initiative. For the month of June, over 600 stores in the Pet Valu
family will be raising funds for Canadian animal organizations that
provide critical support to local animals in need. On June 18 and 19, many stores will host National
Adoption Weekend to help find the right forever homes for homeless
pets in their communities.
"Every day small, community-based animal charities make a
tremendous difference to thousands of Canadian animals. Pet Valu
created Pet Appreciation Month to support these hard-working
organizations," says Tanbir Grover,
Chief Marketing and Digital Officer. "As one of the founding
initiatives of "Companions for Change™", Pet Appreciation Month has
helped our national charitable program raise close to
$11 million over the last 11
years to help local pet rescues, shelters and other important
animal causes across Canada.
During lockdowns, many community-based shelters and charities were
unable to host vital in-person fundraising events so supporting
these organizations is more critical than ever as they need to
overcome months of fundraising challenges."
From June 1 to 30, all Pet Valu
stores including locations under its regional banners – Bosley's by
Pet Valu®, Paulmac's Pets®, Tisol®
and Total Pet® – will be selling paper PAWs. Customers
can purchase a PAW for the donation amount of their choosing,
dedicate it to a pet or loved one, and paste it up in the store.
Each Pet Valu store has selected at least one local animal rescue
or charity in their community to support and 100 per cent of the
donations will go to the store's designated charity.
One such organization that benefits from these donations is the
Regional Animal Protection Society (RAPS), which operates
the RAPS Cat Sanctuary, the RAPS Adoption & Education Centre, a
fostering network, social enterprise thrift stores and the
full-service RAPS Animal Hospital in Richmond, British Columbia. "RAPS
depends on animal-loving donors like Pet Valu to help us fulfill
our mission," says Eyal Lichtmann,
CEO of Regional Animal Protection Society. "The product and
financial donations we receive through Pet Appreciation Month each
year help us provide our animals with the care they need."
Pet Valu's "Companions for Change™" is dedicated to supporting
causes that help pets and pet parents in need in their local
community, and across Canada. In
addition to Pet Appreciation Month, each year, Pet Valu's hosts an
October "Companions for Change™" event, which sees all stores
raising funds, collecting product donations and hosting National
Adoption Weekends to support local community rescues. Since 2018,
Pet Valu has supported animal rescues and charities across
Canada achieve larger capital
projects with "Companions for Change™" grants. Pet Valu is the
national charitable supporter of Lions Foundation of Canada
Dog Guides, providing support through three separate programs: team
sponsorships, feeding puppies and dogs in training, and sponsoring
the annual fundraising walk. Pet Valu is also the proud sponsor of
the Don't You Want Me Project.
About Pet Valu
Pet Valu is Canada's leading
retailer of pet food and pet-related supplies with over 700
corporate-owned or franchised locations across the country. For
more than 40 years, Pet Valu has earned the trust and loyalty of
pet parents by offering knowledgeable customer service, a premium
product offering and engaging in-store services. Pet Valu's
neighbourhood stores offer more than 7,000 competitively-priced
products, including a broad assortment of premium, super premium,
holistic and award-winning proprietary brands. To learn more,
please visit: www.petvalu.ca.
SOURCE Pet Valu Canada Inc.