Discussing The Importance Of Adopting Shelter Dogs And The Holiday That Promotes It
May is jam packed with various holidays both major and minor. This includes holidays like Cinco De Mayo, VE Day, Mother’s Day, Memorial Day, and more! However, one of the less popular, yet very important, holidays in May is National Rescue Dog Day. National Rescue Dog Day occurs every year on May 20th. There’s a good chance you’ve never heard of National Rescue Dog Day which is exactly why we wrote this article. We want to help spread the word about this wonderful holiday and cover everything you need to know about National Rescue Dog Day.
History Behind The Holiday
According to the official NationalRescueDogDay website, this amazing holiday was founded by Lisa Wiehebrink. Lisa Wiehebrink is a children’s book author and the executive director of Tails That Teach (an organization that helps children learn the proper and loving way to treat pets. Lisa was inspired to create the holiday based on her love for her rescue dog named Cooper. Cooper was such a loving and grateful dog that Lisa wanted to spread awareness about rescue dogs to pet lovers everywhere.
The Purpose Of The Holiday
Rescue dogs are absolutely remarkable animals for a variety of reasons. They don’t have an easy life and have often experienced terrible things such as abandonment, displacement, abuse, malnourishment, and anxiety. Despite enduring such horrible things, they still manage to keep going. Shelter dogs are resilient and have overcome obstacles many other pets couldn’t. The aim of National Rescue Dog Day is to raise awareness about how great rescue dogs can be and how so many of them desperately need a good home.
The Sad Truth
According to the A.S.P.C.A. (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) roughly 3.1 million dogs enter animal shelters every year in the U.S. While some of these dogs are adopted or returned to their owners, many of them never leave the shelter. The A.S.P.C.A. reports that an average of 390,000 dogs are euthanized every year in the U.S. This is due to limited space, resources, and staff at U.S. animal shelters. These are truly tragic numbers. However, not all rescue dogs have to suffer the same fate because there are ways you can help.
How You Can Help
The most obvious way you can get involved with National Rescue Dog Day is to adopt a rescue dog yourself! Adopting a rescue dog is a win-win situation because you’re getting a new best friend and you’re giving a dog in need a good home. However, not everyone has the means or circumstances to adopt a rescue dog. If you can’t adopt a rescue dog, then you can always sponsor one! Sponsoring a dog means you provide vital funds to help care for a shelter dog until they are adopted.
Aside from adoption and sponsoring, you can also donate your time to your local animal shelter. Most animal shelters are always looking for volunteers to help with caring for and cleaning after the shelter animals. We also encourage you to help spread the word about National Rescue Dog Day by sharing this article with your fellow dog lovers. Be sure to mention this incredible holiday on social media too by using the hashtag #nationalrescuedogday.
More Articles Like This
We hope you enjoyed this article and that you get involved with National Rescue Dog Day this May 20th. For more great pet themed articles like this, check out the blog section of the official Top Dog Pet Sitting website. Happy National Rescue Dog Day to you and your furry friends!