Meet SPCA Baccalieu Trail, a Pet Valu Companions for Change™ supported charity

In 2022, SPCA Baccalieu Trail in Newfoundland opened their first shelter facility.  It was a big moment for the organization which had, for 11 years, been relying on fosters to take in local animals who needed temporary homes. The shelter acts as a safe haven for cats and dogs looking for their forever families, and provides these shelter animals with medical care and training exercises.  “We want to see pets living their best lives and we want to help find families to provide that for them,” says Brittney Szucs, the SPCA’s Shelter Manager. “The donations that we receive from Pet Valu and Pet Valu customers really help us take care of the animals at the shelter.” Szucs explains that there are some pets who spend a long time at the shelter, making support from donors like Pet Valu critical.  “We've had animals stay here for over a year, waiting to find their forever families. And it's sad to see when they're overlooked. Sometimes their perfect match shows up even after they've been waiting for a year. And it's just amazing to see an animal go from being unwanted to the centre of this person's world.” From pet food to toys to cat litter, Pet Valu supports the shelter’s work by supplying them with essential products that make their operation possible.  The SPCA also partners with Pet Valu stores to host pet adoptions. “One of the best parts about partnering with Pet Valu has been gaining more of a community feel,” says Szucs. “When we go to Pet Valu for adoption events, or to pick up donations, it feels like we're meeting friends.” In addition to shelter services, the SPCA runs a thrift shop, operates regular fundraising recycling drives, distributes free pet parent education materials, and supports their local pet parent community with low-cost spay and neuter programs that help to manage the pet population and decreases the number of pets who are struggling to find homes.   “One of the programs that we offer is ‘PetFix’ and we also offer one called the ‘Why Litter?’ program,” Szucs says. “PetFix reduces the cost for our spay and neuter procedures and the Why Litter? program helps to find homes for kittens and also to get the mom cat spayed so she can stay with her family.” Keeping pets together with their families is a priority for the SPCA Baccalieu Trail and they direct much of their resources towards this goal.   “I love to help people be able to keep their pets. These are difficult times to be in but we can provide support and education for people,” Szucs says. “I love for people to take advantage of our PetFix program to help spay and neuter their pets to reduce the pet population. And I'd love to see every single year more and more animals being adopted from the shelter.”