Humane Society in Carson City, Reno offers pet food assistance for dog and cat owners in need

The Nevada Humane Society branches in Carson City and Reno are offering a no-cost drive-through dog and cat food assistance program for pet owners in need.

The program, available Sundays and Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. gives pet owners the ability to provide a 2-month supply of dog or cat food for each of their pets.

An application is not needed or required. Pet owners who are struggling to pay for dog or cat food can simply show up Sundays and Wednesdays. The Carson City branch of the Nevada Humane Society is located at 549 Airport Road. In Reno, the branch is located at 2825 Longley Lane B.

The Nevada Humane Society is asking those seeking assistance to:

— Stay in their vehicles.

— Simply pull up, roll down your window and tell their team how many dogs or cats you have.

— Pop your trunk and Humane Society staff and volunteers will load it up with a 2-month supply of pet food for each of your pets.

— When the Nevada Humane Society is able to, volunteers may even toss in some pet toys.

Having started out with 36,000 pounds of pet food, this offering began on April 26 and will continue for the foreseeable future. Thus far, the Nevada Humane Society has provided pet food for more than 100 families and 300 Northern Nevada pets, said Nevada Humane Society spokeswoman Nicole Theodoulou.

According to the Nevada Humane Society, the pet food program is made possible through generous donations and grant funding. Among the donors are:

— Greater Good
— Alley Cat Allies
— Petsmart
— Chewy

"This is only our second day offering this program to the community, but it has been amazing to see the impact it is having and how much it’s helping people," said Theodoulou. "Many people who have come have recently lost their jobs, some are even homeless and the food we’re providing them for their pets is what is allowing them to keep their pets during this challenging time."

Several people shared their stories of struggling to feed their pets to the point where they thought they would have to give their dogs or cats away, she said.

"This was heartbreaking to hear and we are so glad that we are able to offer this support to help Northern Nevada Community Members in need together with their pets," said Theodoulou.

When the COVID-19 pandemic first started to impact communities in Northern Nevada, the Humane Society asked the community to help them keep their shelter population low by adopting, volunteering and providing emergency foster care. The Nevada Humane Society has also asked for donations so that it could continue caring and finding homes for pets in need.

For the past five weeks the Nevada Humane Society has waived adoption fees on all of its shelter pets.

"We feel this is essential to helping keep our shelter population low and to help pair community members with shelter pets, which is a proven method for reducing stress and providing people with comfort," said Theodoulou.

"We have received so many updates from people sharing with us how the shelter pet they are caring for has improved their quality of life right now, during this time of quarantine. Since adopting a pet is cost prohibitive for many people right now, we want to continue pairing as many community members with NHS shelter pets as possible" she said.

Go here more information on the pet assistance project.