In late April, AHS received a donation of 41 pallets of pet food from GreaterGood.org. We quickly distributed the nearly 36,000 pounds of wet and dry pet food to a variety of food banks and organizations to support our community. Below are two stories, one from a recipient of the pet food and one from an organization we worked with, demonstrating the impact of this pet food donation. 

Helping Gloria feed her five pets for the month

Twin Cities resident, Gloria, loves to sit in her front yard, basking in the sun with her three little poodles and two senior cats. As a single mom who took care of her five children on her own after a devastating divorce, the long-time pet lover worked multiple jobs, struggling to make ends meet for years. Her children have since grown up, but Gloria still faces financial challenges.

"I live on $700 a month I get from social security. I have to be really careful with every penny that comes my way," says Gloria. "But I'm not embarrassed about my situation. I am a survivor and proud that I don't waste a thing. I know how to stretch a dollar."

Gloria has three poodles (Perla, Patrick, and Lilly) and two cats (Pinky and Katie). The five animals are the highlight of her life. "They make my life so rewarding and so much better. I don't know what I would do without them, especially since I live alone."

Every month Gloria visits her local food shelf. Her visits help supplement her food pantry. Occasionally the food shelf has pet food, but not always. "Animal food is so expensive. I almost think it's more expensive then human food. When they don't have pet food, I just try to find people food that I can feed them."

The long-time animal lover was surprised to see her food shelf was stocked with so much cat and dog food recently. She learned it was thanks to Animal Humane Society and GreaterGood.org's Rescue Bank.

"It was so wonderful and quite amazing. I got enough to feed all my animals for the month. I can't believe people are so kind to do this. I won't have to worry this month about feeding my furry kids," says Gloria.

Enabling People and Pets Together to serve more clients

For People and Pets Together in South Minneapolis, the demand for pet food has never been higher. Every week the nonprofit pet food bank serves hundreds of limited-income people with pets in the neighborhood. Since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, program director Nick Atwood has seen a rise in need due to layoffs and furloughs. "Our clients would use every last dollar to feed their dogs and cats instead of themselves. The donation from GreaterGood.org's Rescue Bank helps them take one worry off their list. It frees up their resources so they can get food for themselves."

Nick says when Animal Humane Society reached out to ask if People and Pets Together could use some of the donated cat food and dog food, it was a strong yes!

"Large donations make such a big difference to us," says Nick. "We usually get food in small quantities and now we have enough to last several months."

This supply of pet food gives Nick and other volunteers a small break from pounding the pavement to get more monetary and food donations for their clients. Nick says "I can't thank all the pet food companies who donated so generously to People and Pets Together. The spirit of giving makes you feel good during these tough times."