The Richmond SPCA has set an important lifesaving goal this holiday season – to unite more than 500 dogs, cats, puppies and kittens with loving new families during the month of December.
Our center is full of amazing pets, of various shapes, sizes, ages and personalities, just waiting for a chance to become a family’s trusted and loyal companion, and we look forward to making their ultimate holiday wishes come true. Please help us achieve our adoption goal by taking advantage of the Priority special detailed below or by spreading the word about our adoption program to your friends, family, co-workers and neighbors. Thank you for your love of animals, and happy holidays!
To view the wonderful dogs awaiting adoption in our center, please
click here.
To view the wonderful cats awaiting adoption in our center, please
click here.
Our friends at Priority Automotive and its associated Richmond-area dealerships are generously paying (for the second year in a row!) the adoption fee for every dog, cat, puppy or kitten adopted from the Richmond SPCA December 12 through 31. That's right - you provide a precious homeless animal with a lifetime of love, and Priority will cover the adoption fee. Who says there is no Santa?
Adopters must be 18 years or older to adopt a pet from the Richmond SPCA and should bring photo identification that shows current address (a recent utility bill is acceptable if address on ID is not current). Please note that all puppies and adult dogs adopted from the Richmond SPCA must leave our care with an acceptable leash and collar, and every kitten and adult cat must leave our care in a safe and secure cat carrier. If these items are not with you at the time of the adoption, you will be required to purchase them in our Lora Robins Gift Shop, which has a fabulous selection of merchandise that is affordably priced with all proceeds benefitting our homeless animals. For more information about our holiday adoption special, please call 804-521-1307 or email
adoption1@richmondspca.org. Happy Holidays!
Dec. 12, 2012
Media contact:
Tabitha Hanes | director of advancement | thanes@richmondspca.org
Billy Dunkley | manager of communications | bdunkley@richmondspca.org
Richmond, Va.—Homeless dogs and cats awaiting adoption at the Richmond SPCA have a true best friend in Priority Automotive. To encourage adoption during December, the car dealership group is sponsoring the adoption fee for any pet adopted from the Robins-Starr Humane Center between Dec. 12 and Dec. 31.
“There are literally hundreds of dogs and cats in the care of the Richmond SPCA that will make wonderful pets and need a nice warm home for Christmas,” said Dennis Ellmer. “I don’t want the cost of adoption to stop anyone from taking one of these great dogs and cats home and making him or her a permanent part of their family. We’ve made pets a part of our family for years and want to share that wonderful experience with others,” he added.
Adoption fees at the Richmond SPCA are normally $99, and every pet available for adoption has been spayed or neutered, is up to date on age-appropriate vaccinations and is microchipped for permanent identification. Priority Automotive sponsored adoption fees at the Robins-Starr Humane Center for the first time in 2011. During the period of the 2011 promotion, the Richmond SPCA found homes for 453 dogs and cats, a growth from 182 the previous year, and the number of animals the private humane organization transferred into its care from municipal shelters grew 133% from 2010. In this second year with Priority’s sponsorship of adoption fees, the Richmond SPCA is setting its goals even higher, aiming to surpass 500 adoptions for the month of December and provide additional lifesaving throughout the community.
“We are so grateful to Priority Automotive because their generosity will mean that many more wonderful pets will be adopted by loving families this season than ever before,” said Robin Robertson Starr, the organization’s chief executive officer. “Last year’s partnership was a tremendous success and we hope to expand that success this year to help even more deserving animals in need. That will give them a wonderful holiday and will allow us to immediately save the life of another homeless dog or cat out of a government shelter, giving another pet the gift of life as well.”
As reflected in the Richmond SPCA’s no-kill model, each kennel or cage space made available through adoption will be quickly filled with a pet who otherwise would be at risk of losing his or her life at a local government shelter.
The Richmond SPCA has used the color-coded Meet Your Match adoption program since 2008, and visitors are encouraged to begin their pet search by completing a quick survey to assess the type of pet that will best fit their home and lifestyle. The knowledgeable adoption staff provides insight into each pet’s personality traits to counsel adopters on providing for that pet’s needs with the goal of making a match that lasts a lifetime.
The holiday adoption schedule includes extended hours during the Holiday Open House from 6-9 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 13, and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Christmas Eve. The organization is closed Christmas day. For more information, visit www.richmondspca.org or call 804-521-1307.
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The Richmond SPCA, founded in 1891, is a no-kill humane organization dedicated to the guiding principle that every life is precious. As a national leader in humane care and education, the Richmond SPCA is building a more compassionate community through programs of adoption, rehabilitation, spay/neuter, pet-retention, trap-neuter-return and humane education. For more information, visit www.richmondspca.org.
ABOUT PRIORITY AUTOMOTIVE
Priority Automotive was founded in 1999 by Dennis Ellmer with the acquisition of Chevrolet and Toyota dealerships in Chesapeake, Virginia. Today Priority owns and operates Priority Toyota, Priority Scion, Priority Nissan, Priority Volkswagen, Priority Used Car Super Center, Priority West End Sales & Service Center and Priority Collision Center in Richmond; Priority also owns Priority Toyota, Priority Scion, Priority Honda, Priority Chevrolet, Priority Acura, Priority Hyundai, and Priority Collision Center in Chesapeake, VA, Priority Indoor Superstore in Virginia Beach, VA and Priority Honda in Charlotte, NC. Priority has more than 100,000 Priorities For Life customers throughout Virginia and North Carolina. For more information visit priorityauto.com.