With Michigan’s shelters and rescues overwhelmed by animals in need, many are taking advantage of the opportunity to host adoption events at local PetSmart stores and help connect pets with potential adopters.
PetSmart Charities, the 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported by the pet supplies giant, has partnered with thousands of municipal shelters and nonprofit rescue organizations across the country, about 55 of which are in Michigan, said Heidi Marston, PetSmart Charities’ director of pet placement. The nonprofit works with those local partners to host adoption events in PetSmart stores, exposing rescue animals to people who wouldn’t typically come out to a shelter, she said.
“What we continue to find is that the public, by and large, either isn’t going to shelters at the same pace or shelters aren’t open at times that are convenient for people,” Marston said. “The more that groups are able to bring their animals to where the community is, the better outcomes that we’re seeing.”
PetSmart Charities is celebrating its 30th anniversary and expects to reach a total of 11 million in-store pet adoptions sometime this year, Marston said. Michigan stores contributed 50,000 of those pet adoptions between 2019 and 2023, with roughly 7,500 taking place last year alone, she said.
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The nonprofit also runs an incentive program for its partners, providing monetary awards to organizations based on their annual adoption totals. Partners can earn up to a maximum of $250,000 per year should they reach 7,500 adoptions, according to PetSmart Charities’ website.
Like the rest of the country, Michigan’s shelters are mostly full and overwhelmed, Marston said. However, animal intake has stayed the same or actually dropped, she said. Instead, animals are staying in the shelter longer, with larger dogs often languishing the longest.
Most PetSmart stores have adoption centers where cats can stay overnight, allowing shoppers to visit them throughout the day. Cat adoptions have continued to rise in general, possibly due to their ease of care, Marston said. In contrast, landlord restrictions on dog breeds and sizes create barriers to home placements for shelter pups, she said. Rising pet food costs and lack of access to veterinarian care also can create hesitancy in potential adopters.
“Michigan is no exception to just having lots and lots of dogs that are desperately in need of adoption, and particularly big dogs,” Marston said.
Understaffing might also lead shelters to only open themselves to the public at hours that are inconvenient for potential adopters. Community presence at PetSmart stores goes a long way toward alleviating that issue: Some groups are able to hold events with fixed hours each week and can find new homes for 50 to 60 dogs a day through in-store adoptions, Marston said.
Municipal shelters located in more vulnerable, low-income communities with large populations tend to experience higher animal intake rates, Marston said. Shelters in the Detroit, Flint and Kalamazoo areas have done “tremendous work” but also see the most need, she said.
“I believe when we ask communities for help and tell them what we need, generally people show up,” Marston said. “So we need to be reaching out and inviting the community in to support.”
On a visit to Detroit Animal Care late last year, Marston said, PetSmart Charities was able to pull 10 large dogs from the shelter to take to pop-up adoption events. The organization was able to find new homes or placements for each of those dogs within a few hours, she claimed.
Amulet, a “low-rider, chunky Bulldog mix” among the 10 pulled from Detroit Animal Care, made an instant connection with a woman who walked into a PetSmart store to pick up her dog from the groomer, Marston said. Despite having breathing problems, a skin issue and other conditions, the woman declared Amulet as “the most beautiful dog I’ve ever seen” and adopted her on the spot, Marston claimed.
“I think that that shows over and over, and I think it showed for Detroit, too, is bringing these dogs to places like PetSmart stores where people are already walking in who love pets, catches their eye and puts these animals in front of them,” Marston said. “It was really cool to see that we were able to do that, and I think it was also just a big morale bump for the Detroit team, too, to see some of the success for those dogs that they’ve been caring for.”
One of the nonprofit’s goals is to promote ways to help local organizations other than through adoptions, such as volunteering or fostering animals even for short periods of time. PetSmart Charities has found dogs that are allowed a short break from the shelter for a one-night “sleepover” or “field trip” are 14 times more likely to be adopted, Marston said.
“The message I think we want people to see is adoption is needed, and if you can’t, can you do a sleepover? Can you volunteer? Can you foster?” Marston said. “All of that really helps in terms of an outcome and creating capacity for these organizations that are really overwhelmed right now.”
For more information, visit petsmartcharities.org.
