Grant will help shelter provide ongoing medical care for up to 40 cats suffering from kidney failure
SACRAMENTO, CA (May 16, 2007) – United Animal Nations (UAN) today issued a $1,000 LifeLine Crisis Relief Grant to the Lago Vista PAWS Animal Center in Lago Vista, Texas, to provide veterinary care for 12 cats who became sick from eating contaminated pet food. Two cats, Aziza and Dexter, have already died. The grant will help the shelter pay for hospitalization, testing and other veterinary services that are expected to cost more than $10,000.
Some of the Lago Vista PAWS cats were eating Hill’s Prescription Diet m/d Feline food for diabetic cats, one of hundreds of pet foods recently recalled for containing imported wheat-gluten or rice protein concentrate contaminated with melamine. Because the cats live in a communal environment, as many as 40 Lago Vista PAWS cats were exposed to the tainted food.
“The pet food contamination crisis has overextended this shelter beyond its financial capacity,” said UAN President & CEO Nicole Forsyth. “Our LifeLine Crisis Relief Grant is intended to help them get on their feet and provide the urgent care and monitoring the exposed cats desperately need.”
In addition to struggling to provide veterinary care for the cats, Lago Vista PAWS has the expense of purchasing new diabetic food made by a different manufacturer from a veterinary clinic, which costs more than what it was paying for the Hill’s Prescription Diet m/d Feline food. According to Janet Cain, Vice President of Lago Vista PAWS, Hill’s agreed to reimburse $100 per animal for blood screening, but the shelter has not yet received any funds and their expenses per cat have far exceeded the amount the company has said it would pay.
“The manufacturer will not provide any additional assistance unless we can prove the food caused the cats to become ill, which is very difficult to do,” said Cain. “We are very grateful to UAN for coming through with funding to help us weather this crisis.”
UAN’s LifeLine Crisis Relief Grants for Organizations are intended to help non-profit organizations that are coping with an emergency involving a group of animals.
MEDIA CONTACT: Alexis Raymond, (916) 429-2457.
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