BOSTON – MSPCA-Angell is working to distribute at least 100,000 pet meals in a single day, the loftiest goal ever set in the organization’s more than 150-year history.
The pet food pantry—called “Giving Back Tuesday”—follows a series of pop-up events in November that sought to help people impacted by the government shutdown and temporary freeze to SNAP benefits.
“So far this month, we’ve held 25 pop-ups, in addition to delivering pet food to 31 human food pantries,” MSPCA-Angell Community Outreach Director Alyssa Krieger said. “We’ve already distributed more than 200,000 pet meals in November, which is truly incredible.”
Krieger went on to call food insecurity a “real concern” in communities across the state.
“We work year-round to bring pet food into these communities, but with the cut in SNAP benefits earlier this month, the need surged, so we had to work harder than ever,” Krieger said. “We’re so lucky that our pet loving community really stepped up to help us ensure that no pet goes hungry due to this crisis,” she added.
According to Krieger, the number of pet families seeking assistance at MSPCA-Angell food pantries has been increasing since the beginning of the year.
“The economy has been in flux, and grocery prices have increased, which creates great food insecurity for families, including pets,” she said. “We know that when people struggle, their pets do too, and that’s why we’ve really been working on overdrive for months to help.”
To help pet families get through the holidays, MSPCA-Angell is hosting the largest pet food pantry ever in its long history.
Its Giving Back Tuesday food pantry will be held on Tuesday, from 2 to 6 p.m.. at the Franklin Park Playstead on Pierpont Road in Boston (near the Franklin Park Zoo’s Giraffe entrance).
“We think that it will be a really busy day,” said Krieger. “We’ve gotten fantastic support from the community to this point, and we’re extremely grateful.”
Those who would like to donate to help support the Giving Back Tuesday pet food pantry are asked to drop food off at the MSPCA-Angell’s Boston Adoption Center, send food via its wish lists at mspca.org/wishlist, or give at mspca.org/foodsupport.