St. Thomas pets are getting corporate help this week. Pet Valu is doing a huge fundraiser for shelters and animal welfare groups in their stores 
across Canada and the US. This weekend (April 9 & 10) is a BOGO event – buy one of something, get one free. What you do with your free item is your choice, but every store will have a donation bin that you can put it in if you wish. Each store has chosen a local animal welfare group to be the recipient for donations it receives. In our St. Thomas store, our Caring 
Pet Cupboard is the recipient. Hurray! And thanks from us and the Caring Cupboard.
You can also buy a paper paw for $1. The money raised from them also goes to animal groups chosen by the individual stores. In our store, the money will go to Animal Aide and Pets/Friends for Life. I’ve already bought mine and it’s in the store window.
And Darford Industries based in British Columbia sent us a truckload of dog kibble. Literally – here’s the truck 
delivering it. They make high quality no grain or additives kibble and treats that can be bought at Elgin Pet in St. Thomas. This donation came about because the daughter of STDOA executive members Joe and Linda Spencer heard about our Caring Pet Cupboard and she told people at Darford. They decided to help us out, and have they ever! Thank you, Darford, for this huge windfall.
Looking at the Darford website, I saw they do a lot for rescue and needy dogs. In their “Plus One Movement”, they put an extra one-meal package of kibble in every bag. The idea is that you can 
then put it in a pet food donation bin or give it to someone who needs it. An easy way to give!
People and businesses in St. Thomas have already been so generous (about 1300 lbs of kibble so far - not counting the 935 lbs from Darford* – plus cans and treats). We have expanded to Aylmer, providing dog and cat food to the Corner Cupboard food bank (open Tuesdays on John St. North ) and putting donation bins in the Aylmer Vet Clinic (Talbot St.) and Imperial Road Animal Clinic (John St. N.).
Like the St. Thomas Caring Cupboard, you do not have to be a registered client of the Aylmer food bank to get pet food. If you need it, just go in. If they have it, they’ll give it to you. And, please, if you are buying something to donate to the Caring Pet Cupboard, we really need cat kibble. We can’t keep up with the demand. Thanks.
*Darford’s donation put us well over one ton of donated kibble – in just under 4 months! Whoopee!!
(photos of the truck and boxes of Darford donated food by Linda Spencer)
