Many animal lovers are already familiar with Freekibble.com and Freekibblekat.com, the trivia game sites that donate to shelters ten pieces of kibble for every answer (right or wrong) you give to their questions. You can visit every day (and really, you should!), but on special days sponsors will donate five times as much kibble. Today, Feb. 5, is one of those days.
The sites and the concept are really cool, no doubt, but what's even cooler is that our friends at Tonic scored an interview with the girl behind the site, 13-year-old Mimi Ausland! She shared lots of fun facts, including how she was inspired to start these sites and -- something we're all itching to know -- how much kibble has been donated since she started nearly two years ago.
Check out the full interview at Tonic!
Posts tagged "ShelterPets"
Flickr/sneakerdog
The Save the Dogs From the Chill Project takes donations of old sweaters and repurposes them for dogs in shelters, something that's particularly important this winter when temperatures all across the country are reaching record lows. Even the southern states are seeing below-freezing temperatures, and not all shelters have indoor areas for all their dogs.
You can keep tabs on the project's progress on their blog -- at the present moment, Jones tells Paw Nation, "We have received so many donations that boxes are starting to pile up to the ceiling. It's crazy! We want to try and have everything mailed out by the end of next week."
And, of course, you can send your own used sweaters (or check your local Goodwill to scoop some up on the cheap) to the address in this post. Come on, you're never going to wear that ugly Christmas sweater again, are you? Lend a paw to a dog in need!
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Yuki poses at our local dog park.
Kristen Seymour
On a warm fall Saturday in 2002, my fiance and I stopped in a Petsmart to buy cat litter. While he searched the aisles for the right brand, I wandered over to one of the pet-rescue groups, Puppy Hill Farm, that sets up shop in the store each weekend. I'd grown up with dogs, but my fiance hadn't, and I had yet to talk him into adopting one.
As we were about to leave the store, we both stopped in our tracks. A young couple was bringing in a black Labrador mix puppy, and we overheard something about it being their roommate's dog, for which they couldn't provide care after the roommate had dropped out of school and moved home. It took my husband about five seconds to fall in love with this puppy. It took me less time.
We named the dog Yuki, and she quickly became an enormous part of our lives. Yuki exhibited typical puppy behavior, but was eager to please and very smart, so although she was large (about 60 pounds), she went everywhere with us. We took her tailgating, to outdoor restaurants, up to Canada for vacation, and she was even in our wedding. She was the perfect running buddy, but was gentle enough to take on visits to my grandmother's nursing home.
Hilary Swank gets some puppy love for a good cause. Bryan Bedder, Getty Images
Helping shelter animals definitely is no acting gig for Swank; this actress walks the walk. She currently lives with two rescued dogs: Karoo, a Jack Russel/Corgi mix she found as a tick-infested stray while working on a film; and Rumi, a Golden Retriever mix she adopted from the East Valley Humane Society. Throughout her life, she's also rescued other dogs, cats and birds.
Swank says in her Iams profile, "Every day when I look at Karoo and Rumi, I know they're thankful I've adopted them into my family, and I'm just as thankful they've adopted me." Finally, a celebrity with whom we can really connect!
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