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Sponsor a Puppy
You and 3 donors can provide a whole day's worth of food and shelter to puppy in need!
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- Donation details Your donation will provide resources such as food, shelter and water to a puppy waiting to be adopted. In addition, your commitment allows the APSA to continue to fight animal cruelty and to pass and enforce animal welfare legislation and better educate the puplic on responsible pet parenting.
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About the American Society for the Prevention of Cruely to Animals
The ASPCA was founded in 1866 as the first humane organization in the Western Hemisphere. The Society was formed to alleviate the injustices animals faced then, and we continue to battle cruelty today. Whether it'≠s saving a pet who has been accidentally poisoned, fighting to pass humane laws, rescuing animals from abuse or sharing resources with shelters across the country, we work toward the day in which no animal will live in pain or fear.Facts About Animals in Shelters
- Approximately 8-12 million companion animals enter animal shelters nationwide every year and approximately 5-9 million are euthanized (60% of dogs and 70% of cats).
- Shelter intakes are about evenly divided between those relinquished by owners and those picked up by animal control. These are national estimates; the percentage of euthanasia may vary from state to state.
- Less than two percent of cats and only 15-20% of dogs are returned to their owners. Most of these were identified with tags, tattoos or microchips.
- 25% of dogs that enter local shelters are purebred.
- Only 10% of the animals received by shelters have been spayed or neutered.
- 75% of owned pets are neutered.
Pet Overpopulation- The average number of litters a fertile cat produces is one to two a year; average number of kittens in litters is 4-6.
- The average number of litters a fertile dog produces is one a year; average number of puppies is 4-6. It is impossible to determine how many stray dogs and cats live in the US; estimates for cats alone range up to 70 million.
- Owned cats and dogs generally live longer, healthier lives than strays. Many strays are lost pets that were not kept properly indoors or provided with identification.
- About 60% of all households in the United States have a pet.
- About 60 million dogs and about 75 million cats are owned in the United States.
- About 65% of pet owners acquire their pets free or at low cost. The majority of pets are obtained from acquaintances and family members.
- 15 - 20% of dogs are purchased from breeders
- 10-20% of cats and dogs are adopted from shelters and rescues
- 2 - 10% are purchased from pet shops.
- At least 20% of cats are acquired as strays.
- Over 20% of people who leave dogs in shelters adopted them from a shelter.
The cost of spaying or neutering a pet is less than the cost of raising puppies or kittens for one year. The average cost of basic food, supplies, medical care and training for a dog or cat is $400 to $700 annually.
The following figures were gleaned from independent studies and estimates by experts in the animal welfare and related fields. These should be considered ballpark figures only. Most of the studies were national and there is tremendous variation by region.
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