Rancho Coastal Humane Society: COVID-19 Operation Grant Report

How did this grant help your organization and the pets in your care?

We purchased supplies for our foster program, including carriers, wet and dry food, kitten formula, bottles and nipples.

On March 20, the shelter closed to the general public due to COVID-19. We immediately put out a call to our foster volunteers to help us care for our existing animals and make sure we were ready to take on kitten season. Usually, we gather supplies from other departments, but it was important to have dedicated foster supplies in light of the situation. We are so grateful the Petfinder Foundation helped us address this urgent situation.

How many pets did this grant help?

From March 20-Sept. 11, 2020: 187 dogs, puppies, cats and kittens.

Please provide a story of one or more specific pets this grant helped.

I would like to highlight Pogo (first photo). He is a 4-month-old domestic shorthair kitten. Pogo is currently available for adoption and has been in our foster program since the end of August. Pogo came to us through our FOCAS animal transport program. What makes Pogo unique is that he arrived with an infected wound in his left front leg. We tried to treat it, but unfortunately, our vet had to remove the leg. But don’t tell Pogo! He doesn’t know he has three legs. He is an amazing, cuddly kitten and speaks to the resilience we all need during these challenging times. Pogo loves to do the “zoomies” around his foster home. One of the new animal carriers was used to transport Pogo to and from the shelter to his foster home. Now he just needs a “fur-ever” home. You can meet Pogo here.

The second photo shows our new foster program coordinator outside the foster supply shed.