Petco Love raises awareness for Pet Vaccination Month

For the month of March, nonprofit organization, Petco Love is encouraging pet owners to vaccinate their pets and stay up to date with their vaccines at their local veterinary clinics for National Pet Vaccination Month. Spring is a common time for new litters of puppies and kittens and at this young age, the potential exposure to deadly and contagious diseases and viruses is especially high.¹

Free vaccine clinic at Charleston Animal Society. (Photo courtesy of Petco Love)

In an organizational release, Whitney Miller, DVM, MBA, DACVPM, Petco's chief veterinarian and Petco Love advisor said, "Keeping up with your pet's vaccinations can make all the difference in their overall health, wellness, and safety against potentially deadly diseases. No pet parent can stand to see their pet suffer from an illness that could have easily been prevented, and that's why we strongly recommend preventative vaccines for pets, which are absolutely lifesaving."¹

Petco Love partners with various animal welfare organizations to host free vaccination clinics for pets in need. One example being the Charleston Animal Society with its record-breaking vaccination event. These partnerships are achieved through its “Vaccinated and Loved” campaign to serve highly impacted areas across the United States where diseases like parvovirus and distemper in dogs, and panleukopenia in cats, are prevalent. Petco Love surveyed pet owners at these free vaccination clinics and found that only 37% of pets were previously vaccinated and 42% had never seen a private vet.¹ This year, Petco Love’s goal is to distribute 1 million free vaccines to pets in need.

"Our survey results indicate that some pets would go without vaccines if these free clinics weren't available to pet parents. The data shows us access to free pet vaccinations is crucial for many families and saves pets lives. We see these free vaccine clinics making a huge difference in communities, where pet parents don't have to decide whether or not they can afford vaccinations to keep their pets healthy,” said Petco Love president, Susanne Kogut in the release.¹

Pet parents in need of free pet vaccinations can visit freepetvaccines.org to find a participating clinic. Some clinics may permit advance registration and provide additional offerings such as discounted microchips and rabies vaccines, although quantities may be limited. Vaccines distributed under this initiative are DAPPv Canine and HCP Feline vaccines.

Reference

Nonprofit Petco Love, Petco, and animal welfare partners urge pet parents to vaccinate their pets and keep up to date on their lifesaving vaccinations. News release. Petco Love. March 1, 2023. https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nonprofit-petco-love-petco-and-animal-welfare-partners-urge-pet-parents-to-vaccinate-their-pets-and-keep-up-to-date-on-their-lifesaving-vaccinations-301758970.html