More than 6,000 Animals Adopted During Mega Match-a-thon

The ASPCA recently announced that 224 animal welfare groups in 53 communities across the country found homes for 6,144 animals during the ASPCA’s first-ever Mega Match-a-thon from March 30 through April 1.

The ASPCA granted $492,250 to support a host of large-scale adoption events held nationwide in an effort to save more lives of shelter animals.

“It really was inspiring to watch the collaboration among different rescue organizations in a community,” said ASPCA President & CEO Ed Sayres. “They reached out to their local media, spread the word to their supporters through social media, and showcased the amazing animals they have up for adoption. And over the three-day event, they got together and saved a record number of lives.”

“There were so many standout moments from the weekend that it’s hard to choose just one,” added Julie Morris, senior vice president of community outreach for the ASPCA.

• Columbia, Mo.’s Mega Match-a-thon event got an extra boost from the oldest volunteer, 96-year-old Wilma Bader, who helped No-Kill Columbia prep for the event by clipping color-coded Meet Your Match adopter passes.
• The Humane Society for Southwest Washington in Vancouver, Wash. broke their own record for the most adoptions in a single day (44) within the first two hours of their event.
• Greater Androscoggin Humane Society in Lewiston, Maine sped the adoptions process along – and got more animals into homes – with the use of iPad devices by their adoptions counselors.
•  Bangor Humane Society in Bangor, Maine closed up early and went home after running out of animals.
• Rubbles, a 12-year-old blind Shih Tzu, was adopted from the Humane Society of Greater Miami in Miami, Fla. by a local soldier.
• Riverside County Department of Animal Services in Riverside, Calif. is currently trying to determine if the more than 400 animals they adopted that weekend broke a record for the most animals adopted by a single shelter.

A portion of the funding for the ASPCA Mega Match-a-thon event comes as a result of the ASPCA’s participation in the fourth annual Subaru “Share the Love” event. The ASPCA received $1.4 million in funding from Subaru of America, Inc. as a result of its participation in “Share the Love.”