School of Law Receives $200,000 Grant from PetSmart Charities to Help Families and Pets in Vulnerable Communities

Abstract

The University of Georgia School of Law recently received a $200,000 grant from PetSmart Charities® benefitting the Community Interventions for Sustainable Access to Care program.

Nearly 50 million pets in the United States cannot access even the most basic veterinary care. Due to cost and other barriers, pets in under-resourced communities often do not receive essential services such as preventative care, vaccinations, spay/neuter services, and dental and other medical care. In the U.S., 70 percent of homes include pets. As research continues to reveal the benefits of the human-animal bond, a movement is underway to connect pet parents to the health care their pets need to ensure pets and their families stay together.

On a statewide level, Georgia municipalities spend close to $100 million each year on the impounding, care and disposal of un-homed dogs and cats, according to the law school’s Practicum in Animal Welfare Skills (PAWS) Director and Associate Professor Lisa Milot.

By helping keep pets in good, if under-resourced homes, the Community Interventions for Sustainable Access to Care program seeks to reduce those costs, benefitting not just the individual pets and their people but also the communities in which they live.

“Many of these costs arise because of an owner’s inability to access veterinary care and training because of financial barriers, a lack of information or transportation, or geographic constraints,” Milot said. “If impounded cats and dogs are not quickly reclaimed, the animals with behavioral issues and those that arrive in poor physical condition are either euthanized or receive months of rehabilitation that cost taxpayers hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars each before they can be placed.”

Milot is grateful to PetSmart Charities for its support of the program and of PAWS. “This initiative will determine if it is cost-effectively possible to remove some of the access barriers for the resources identified earlier so that more dogs and cats can stay in good, if under-resourced, homes and so the animals that are impounded despite the interventions require less rehabilitation at taxpayer expense,” Milot said.

The PAWS program has identified two socially vulnerable communities in the Athens area that will be provided with pet care support. Estimated to benefit approximately 300 dogs and cats immediately, and ultimately thousands more if successful, key elements of the program include: information sessions for owners covering legal requirements and best practices for pet ownership, small group dog training sessions, and access to free or low-cost routine veterinary services provided on-site in the selected communities.

UGA students from the School of Law and the College of Veterinary Medicine, under the guidance of Milot and veterinary professionals, will provide the necessary services while gaining experience in their chosen fields.

“Importantly, Athens-Clarke County Animal Services data from the identified areas will be tracked and analyzed,” Milot said. “We hope to see that the combined educational and pet care components significantly improve the health quality of the cats and dogs in our targeted communities and that the determined costs will be sustainable and much reduced from what municipalities are currently paying. If the program is successful, our ultimate goal will be to replicate the Community Interventions for Sustainable Access to Care program in other areas of our country and keep more families and their pets together.”

“When pet parents lack the resources to care for their pets, they often feel no other choice but to surrender them,” said Kelly Balthazor, Senior Community Grants Manager at PetSmart Charities. “We don’t believe the benefits of caring for pets should belong exclusively to those with privilege. Together with innovative programs like this, we can deliver solutions that help pets stay healthy and stay in their homes.”

Milot’s research in the area of community interventions with respect to pet care has spanned approximately seven years, and it includes a previously successful pilot project on which this current PetSmart Charities partnership builds.

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ABOUT THE UGA SCHOOL OF LAW
Recognized as one of the best returns on investment in legal education, the School of Law is also consistently regarded as one of the top law schools in the nation. Since 1859, the school has been preparing the next generation of legal leaders. It currently offers three degrees – the Juris Doctor, the Master of Laws and the Master in the Study of Law. The school's accomplished faculty includes nationally and internationally renowned scholars, and its approximately 11,500 living graduates are leading figures in law, business and public service throughout the world. Connecting students to these thought leaders and opportunities to serve state and society is central to the school's mission. For more information, please see www.law.uga.edu.

ABOUT PETSMART CHARITIES®
PetSmart Charities, Inc. is committed to making the world a better place for pets and all who love them. Through its in-store adoption program in all PetSmart® stores across the U.S. and Puerto Rico, PetSmart Charities helps nearly 600,000 pets connect with loving families each year. PetSmart Charities also provides grant funding to support organizations that advocate and care for the well-being of all pets and their families. Our grants and efforts connect pets with loving homes through adoption, improve access to affordable veterinary care and support families in times of crisis with access to food, shelter and emergency relief. Each year, millions of generous supporters help pets in need by donating to PetSmart Charities directly at PetSmartCharities.org, while shopping at PetSmart.com, and by using the PIN pads at checkout registers inside PetSmart stores. In turn, PetSmart Charities efficiently uses more than 90 cents of every dollar donated to fulfill its role as the leading funder of animal welfare in North America, granting more than $475 million since its inception in 1994. Independent from PetSmart Inc., PetSmart Charities is a 501(c)(3) organization that has received the Four-Star Rating from Charity Navigator for the past 17 years in a row – placing it among the top one percent of rated charities.

About PetSmart Charities®
Follow PetSmart Charities on Twitter: @PetSmartChariTs
Find PetSmart Charities on Facebook: Facebook.com/PetSmartCharities
See PetSmart Charities on YouTube: YouTube.com/PetSmartCharitiesInc

Media Contact:
24-Hour PetSmart Charities - Media Line: 623-587-2177

University of Georgia School of Law - Lisa Milot, (706) 542-5239, lmilot@uga.edu

Photo caption:
Lisa Milot, University of Georgia School of Law Practicum in Animal Welfare Skills director and associate professor, will oversee the Community Interventions for Sustainable Access to Care program, which recently received a $200,000 PetSmart Charities grant to find a way to save Georgia municipalities millions of dollars each year while keeping vulnerable families and their pets together. Milot is pictured with two of her dogs, Holly and Indi. Photo credit: Anne Yarbrough Photography.

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