The Pawfect Match: Petco Love and BOBS from Skechers™ Celebrate National Matchmaker Day

Honoring Those Who Make Love Matches Between Adoptable Pets and Their New Families

SAN ANTONIO, Aug. 29, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Making a perfect love match is no easy task, but animal shelter and rescue workers across the U.S. play cupid every day and find adoptable shelter pets their new, loving homes and families. Petco Love, a national nonprofit, and BOBS from Skechers™, are celebrating the lifesaving work done by animal welfare professionals on August 31^st, National Matchmaker Day.

National Matchmaker Day is not just about romantic connections; it's also an opportunity to highlight the incredible work being done to find loving homes for pets in need. These unsung heroes of animal welfare are the true matchmakers, using their expertise, intuition, and boundless compassion to create lasting connections that change lives.

Adoption coordinators make a difference in pets' lives by taking the time to get to know dogs and cats staying in shelters and connecting their community with their perfect pet matches. These matchmakers play a pivotal role in assessing the unique personalities, needs, and characteristics of each animal from playful kittens to senior dogs, to every unique pet in their care. Jodi, Foster and Rescue Manager at Charleston Animal Society in South Carolina, has made thousands of love matches for 13 years. What's her secret to finding a perfect match? "Talking with the adopters about what they look for in a cat or dog, and asking about their daily lives to determine who might be a good fit," said Jodi.

Kleighrayne, Medical Outcomes Coordinator at Pima Animal Care Center in Arizona, uses the same approach. She helped almost 3,000 pets find their love matches in foster and adoptive homes over the past six years. "I absolutely love my job and I love PACC and all that it stands for. I work with amazing people and my job is to get animals out of the shelter and into homes, and it's extremely fulfilling," said Kleighrayne. Nathaniel, Canine Specialist at KC Pet Project, also offers this advice for a successful love match to new adopters, "Realizing that you're adopting a family member, not just a pet."

Shelter staff advise adopters to keep an open mind when visiting animal shelters, because they never know who they will meet and who could be their perfect match. They also encourage community members to support their local shelters so workers can make even more love matches. "One of the best ways you can support your local animal shelter or rescue is by adopting a pet," said Petco Love president, Susanne Kogut. "The spark between a pet and their new family, it's pure magic."

If you cannot adopt, volunteers are always needed at shelters. A crucial way you can help is by fostering a pet at your local shelter - whether it's for a day, a week, or a month, there is a pet fostering option that can work for you. If approximately 2% of pet-owning households in the U.S. fostered one pet a year, the nation could eliminate preventable euthanasia tomorrow.

Petco Love has helped find loving homes for over 6.7 million pets and counting, in partnership with Petco and more than 4,000 organizations. To date, Petco Love has invested more than $350 million in adoption and other lifesaving efforts. Learn more about Petco Love at petcolove.org and search for adoptable pets near you here.

About Petco Love
Petco Love is a life-changing nonprofit organization that makes communities and pet families closer, stronger, and healthier. Since our founding in 1999 as the Petco Foundation, we've empowered animal welfare organizations by investing $350 million in adoption and other lifesaving efforts. We've helped find loving homes for more than 6.7 million pets in partnership with Petco and organizations nationwide. Our love for pets drives us to lead with innovation, creating tools animal lovers need to reunite lost pets, and lead with passion, inspiring and mobilizing communities and our more than 4,000 animal welfare partners to drive lifesaving change alongside us.  Join us. Visit petcolove.org or follow on Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn to be part of the lifesaving work we lead every day.

About SKECHERS U.S.A., Inc.
Skechers U.S.A., Inc. (NYSE: SKX), a Fortune 500® Company based in Southern California, designs, develops and markets a diverse range of lifestyle and performance footwear, apparel and accessories for men, women and children. Collections from The Comfort Technology Company™ are available in over 180 countries and territories through department and specialty stores, and direct to consumers through digital stores and over 4,700 Company- and third-party-owned physical retail stores. The Company manages its international business through a network of wholly-owned subsidiaries, joint venture partners, and distributors. For more information, please visit about.skechers.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.

About BOBS from Skechers
BOBS from Skechers' charitable collection of shoes, apparel and accessories have improved animals' lives: over the past eight years, Skechers has contributed more than $10 million to help 1.9 million shelter pets, including saving more than 1.4 million rescued animals in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Japan. It all started in 2011, when Skechers launched a movement to support children impacted by natural disasters and poverty – a cause that has helped the Company donate more than 16 million new pairs of shoes to kids in more than 60 countries worldwide. To learn more about BOBS from Skechers' commitment to making a difference, visit BOBSfromSkechers.com and follow the brand on Facebook and Instagram.

Contact: Crystal Bugary, media@petlove.com 

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SOURCE Petco Love