"Whisker Wonderland" to Host Largest Single Day Pet Adoption in California

LOS ANGELES, CA -The holidays are here and as people all across the Southland celebrate a time of giving and family, many are seeking pet companions to brighten their hearts and home. In honor of this special time of year, Found Animals Foundation will host the largest single day pet adoption event in California.

Seventeen Los Angeles area shelters including City of Los Angeles Department of Animal services, Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control, Southeast Area Animal Control Authority, Burbank Animal Shelter and Pasadena Humane Society will be participating.

The event, dubbed "Whisker Wonderland ," will take place from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. on Saturday, December 17 and feature discounted adoption fees. The event will also offer the popular "two for one" cat adoption special, Two For You, where adopters who take home two furry feline friends from the event will only pay the adoption fees for one.

"Pets make a great addition to any family, especially during the holidays," said Found Animals' Executive Director, Aimee Gilbreath . "There are so many dogs and cats in Los Angeles shelters looking for a warm home this holiday season. In this time of good will and cheer, we want to encourage anyone looking for a pet companion to head out to Whisker Wonderland, meet these loving pets, and ADOPT!"

Found Animals' staff and volunteers will be on hand to help facilitate adoptions and provide crucial materials, such as new pet owner guides, to make the transition to new surroundings more comfortable for both the pets and their new parents. Adoption fees the day of the event range from $40 - $125 and include spay/neuter, a pet microchip, and all vaccinations appropriate for the pet's age.

Adopters will also receive a variety of free gifts for participating in the event. Found Animals has partnered with Ortho Mattress who will specially produce 500 pet beds for adopters taking home a cat or dog.

For those visitors who don't take home a new animal on Dec. 17, the company will provide a certificate to be redeemed at any Ortho Mattress location in Los Angeles. In addition, adopters will also get goodie bags filled with coupons and pet food samples courtesy of Hills Pet Nutrition.

Los Angeles is one of the largest destinations of puppy mill dogs in America, Whisker Wonderland highlights the millions of animals available for adoption from the municipal shelter system each year.

Due to tremendous public misconception that these animals are undesirable (only approximately 50% make it out alive), coupled with minimal awareness in regard to shelter locations, these facilities are consistently overcrowded and underfunded. As a result, many centers are forced to put down animals simply for the lack of space.

Last year's event was tremendously successful resulting in 439 adoptions on the day of the event. Found Animals hopes that even more loving homes are found this year with a goal of 500 pets adopted at this year's Whisker Wonderland

Found Animals Foundation is a privately funded Los Angeles based non-profit organization dedicated to animal welfare issues and led by business and medical professionals. The Found Animals team works directly within the animal welfare community to improve animal shelter processes, fund pet sterilization research , promote effective animal welfare policy, and provide funding to area shelters and spay & neutering clinics.

The organization also sponsors and promotes pet adoption, pet spay and neutering, pet microchipping programs , and various animal and pet-related events.

To learn more about the Found Animals Whisker Wonderland adoption event and to find the shelter nearest you, please visit www.foundanimals.org .