Every day there is an overabundance of horrifying and dreadful stories about abused, abandoned, starving, or tortured animals on the Internet, in the news, and on Facebook, so I thought telling you about something positive was in order! Enter Empty Bowl Pet Food Pantry!
Empty Bowl Pet Food Pantry was started in the summer of 2010 to lend a hand to desperate pet owners who were finding it difficult or impossible to feed their animals.
Phoenix is one of a handful of cities that was hit hardest in the real estate crash, and people found themselves forced to choose between feeding themselves and feeding their beloved pets. Empty Bowl distributes FREE pet food to hungry and homeless animals around the Valley. They also organize spay and neuter clinics (to prevent the possibility of more mouths to feed), and assist in educating people about treating animals humanely and with respect.
Founder, Mary Neuling, began Empty Bowl in honor of Roxie, a starving American Bulldog mix she adopted as a puppy. Roxie is a special needs dog; she is crippled and has lost 90% of her sight, but Roxie is one of the lucky ones and has a loving and forever home with Mary.
A long time advocate for animals, Mary is a member of the Animal Kinship Ministry, and is “committed to feeding and saving the lives of animals, and especially helping those pet families who are homeless and unemployed.”
CJ Anderson is co-founder and President. She knows that “a catastrophic illness, loss of a job or home, losing ones life savings, or returning from war broken and closed down… all this and more contribute to the 95,000 pets turned in to the Maricopa County Animal Care - the second largest animal control facility in the United States after Los Angeles.”
CJ has learned that seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities are generally too proud to ask for help for themselves, but they WILL step up for their beloved pets, and once the pet food arrives, humans get help too!
Empty Bowl haspartnered with schools, food banks, assistance dog organizations, veterans, and senior groups, and they have now become an integral part in the community of problem solvers around the Valley.
If you have pet food, time, or money to donate, contact Empty Bowl Pet Food Pantry at 888-679-1109 or email them at emptybowlpetfoodpantry@yahoo.com
Learn more about Empty Bowl on their website at www.emptybowlpetfoodpantry.org. Follow them on Twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/empty_bowl ,or "Like" them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/emptybowlpetfoodpantry?v=wall
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