BISSELL Pet Foundation, a national animal welfare organization dedicated to ending pet homelessness, is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its signature Empty the Shelters event with a nationwide reduced-fee adoption effort through Sunday, May 17.
The Jacksonville Humane Society (JHS) and the City of Jacksonville’s Animal Care and Protection Services (ACPS) are participating in this nationwide event, joining more than 335 shelters across 39 states to help pets find loving homes. During the event, BISSELL Pet Foundation will sponsor reduced adoption fees of $70 or less for cats and dogs, making it more affordable to welcome a new pet into the family. All pets are spayed or neutered, vaccinated, and microchipped.
“Ten years ago, Empty the Shelters began with a simple goal — to bring awareness to the incredible cats and dogs in shelters,” said Cathy Bissell, founder of BISSELL Pet Foundation. “Today, it has grown into a national effort that has helped nearly 400,000 pets find families. Those adoptions have opened space for other pets to enter shelters, provided relief for shelter teams and created the heartwarming joy that only adoption can bring. This impact has all been possible thanks to the commitment of shelters, adopters, donors and supporters across the country. As we celebrate 10 years, we encourage everyone to consider adoption and help more pets find the homes they deserve. It’s never too late to make a difference.”
“After the amazing turnout from our Really Large Adoption Event, Team ACPS is excited to continue the lifesaving as part of Empty the Shelters,” said Mike Bricker, ACPS chief. “We’ll be capping off the 17 days of lifesaving with another large in-house event to find homes for as many pets as possible. We know that we can count on the community to show up for our pets again, and we can’t wait to help connect loving families and shelter pets — so keep an eye on our social media for more details!”
“We are thrilled to participate once again in Empty the Shelters with Bissell and have ACPS join in this year,” said Lawrence Nicolas, JHS CEO. "Bissell has assisted many families in connecting with adoptable pets at shelters by providing funds to lower adoption fees, and we are thankful that Jacksonville is a part of this initiative!"
Empty the Shelters is the nation’s largest funded adoption event and has helped nearly 400,000 pets find homes across the United States and Canada since its inception in 2016. Sponsored by BISSELL Pet Foundation, the program works with hundreds of animal welfare organizations to reduce adoption fees and make pet adoption accessible to more families. All pets available through participating shelters are spayed/neutered, vaccinated and microchipped. Each shelter determines its own adoption process — prospective adopters are encouraged to contact shelters directly for details.
