After hearing on the news that folks in Atlanta were abandoning pets because they could no longer afford pet food, Ann King, the owner of Blooming Cookies/Paws Fifth Avenue Pet Gifts was motivated to help, and rallied the Atlanta pet community, uniting shelters, rescues, and pet businesses to join in the cause to help needy pets and people.
Alarmed by a local news report about owners who were deserting their pets because they could no longer afford the cost of food, King, who owns Blooming Cookies and Paws Fifth Avenue Pet Gifts, immediately began to organize a pet food relief network. The purpose is to lend a helping hand to owners in need as well as to support shelters and foster families, who are taking in a record number of dogs, cats and even horses. By rallying Atlanta’s pet community, animal shelters, rescue groups, and pet businesses, King and her team have already established over 20 pet food donation sites in Fulton County.
“Individuals, businesses and organizations have generously come aboard,” says King. “Our desire is to prevent animal neglect and to spare loving pet owners the devastation of having to give up a best friend.” The high rate of home mortgage foreclosures is also causing a burden on shelters and on people who foster pets. “Many families are being forced to move to apartments that don’t allow animals,” King explains. “If a loving owner has no other alternative but to give up his pet, we can lessen the heartbreak by ensuring the animal will be well-fed until he is adopted.”
