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How To Create An Animal Shelter Donation Box

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#ad Animal shelters really need donations, especially this time of year. Find out how to create an animal shelter donation box from www.drugstoredivas.net. #MeowMixatTarget

Last summer, my grandma broke her pelvis in three places. She was in so much pain. The hospital kept her for a few nights and then she spent a few weeks in rehab. She worked so hard there … mostly so she could get back to her cat Sox.

Sox really needed her to come home. My grandma was the one who would feed her, and the person who would give her the most attention.

Shelter animals, they don’t get that much love and attention. It’s really up to compassionate volunteers to make those animals feel loved. But love doesn’t put food on the table. And it also doesn’t keep shelter animals warm. In the winter months, need lists for shelters seem to increase, especially with the need for blankets for the animals. So now is a great time to put together an animal shelter donation basket. I put one together for out local shelter in honor of my grandma and her love for Sox.

#ad Animal shelters really need donations, especially this time of year. Find out how to create an animal shelter donation box from www.drugstoredivas.net. #MeowMixatTarget

How To Create An Animal Shelter Donation Box

The needs of the shelter may vary by shelter, so you might want to call your local animal shelter to see what its exact needs are and what it will (or will not) take. Our local shelter will actually take open bags of food (so that works if you opened a bag and your dog didn’t love it), but some shelters may only take closed bags.

Blankets.
Our shelter is always looking for blankets. They’re great to line the cages with, plus the animals like to snuggle in them if it gets cold. The winter months are no time for animals to be running around outdoors, so many good samaritans will find abandoned cats and drop them off at shelters. It’s great for them to have a place to stay (especially in an area that snows), but more animals means more blankets.

Food.
If you’ve ever owned a pet, you know how much food he eats. Now, think about how much food an entire shelter full of animals will go through. I think that’s why our shelter will take open bags. It would rather feed it to its animals than see it go to waste. Wet food, dry food, any of it works.

Bowls.
The food you donated has to be served to the shelter animals. Volunteers can’t just open the bag and spread it over the floor. They need multiple bowls for food and multiples ones for water. Help them out and donate bowls. I would stick to pet bowls, though, not any kitchen bowls you may be thinking of discarding.

Toys.
Shelter animals need stimulation. They don’t have owners to play with them, so they have to play by themselves often. Donate a few toys to the shelter, like cat nip-filled mice and balls, so the animals can play with them.

Cat scratchers.
If you’ve ever had a cat, you know how much they love to stretch and scratch. We had a cat growing up who would scratch up the bottoms of our couches. It would be so bad for cats to scratch apart items in the shelter. To curb this habit, cat scratchers are a great idea.

Brushes.
Cats need to be brushed, especially during the warmer months. That’s when they shed a lot. And if they’re not brushed, they’ll lick more hair than they can handle — and that results in hairballs. Those are not fun, especially if you’re the one cleaning them up. So donating a brush is really helpful. There are actually special cat-specific brushes. You can’t just pick up a hair brush in the beauty section of a store and add it in.

Litter.
Oh my gosh, cats use a lot of litter. Just imagine how much multiple cats use. I can’t even guess at it. So definitely pick up some litter to donate to your local animal shelter.

Pet bed.
Some shelters are very particular about the beds they will take, so be sure to check and make sure you are able to donate a bed. I actually used a bed as the “box” for this donation box. It was a lot easier, plus didn’t make any garbage for the shelter to have to deal with when I drop off the donation.

#ad Animal shelters really need donations, especially this time of year. Find out how to create an animal shelter donation box from www.drugstoredivas.net. #MeowMixatTarget

You can pick up all of these items at Target. When you’re there shopping for your donation items, pick up Meow Mix Simple Servings to donate. Through November 15, you can save 20% with this Cartwheel offer. You can also find it at DailyBreak.com.

#ad Animal shelters really need donations, especially this time of year. Find out how to create an animal shelter donation box from www.drugstoredivas.net. #MeowMixatTarget

I stopped by Target to pick up the Simple Servings Chicken & Turkey 2 pack to try out on Sox before I donated the rest. She loved it. I loved that these Meow Mix Simple Servings are single servings of wet cat food. So you open the mess-free cup and put the food in a bowl without forks. Which, if I’m being completely honest, is something that creeps me out a little. If I’m using a utensil for cat food, I don’t want to use it for myself, even after it went through the dishwasher. My grandma always used plastic utensils to get the cat food out of the can for Sox, but with these, no utensils are needed. Better for me!

#ad Animal shelters really need donations, especially this time of year. Find out how to create an animal shelter donation box from www.drugstoredivas.net. #MeowMixatTarget

Also great is there’s no need to put a second serving in a container in the fridge (which we have to do with Sox because she’s so tiny). This is much better. And that makes it perfect for shelter donations as well.

#ad Animal shelters really need donations, especially this time of year. Find out how to create an animal shelter donation box from www.drugstoredivas.net. #MeowMixatTarget

Have you been to Target yet to pick up the new Simple Servings? If so, let us know what your cat thought in the comments.

Sheri

Monday 6th of November 2017

Great idea!

Debrashoppeno5

Friday 3rd of November 2017

I hope by now your Grandmother is back taking care of Soxs. This is such a great idea to help the shelters and of course money is always needed as well.