City of Seattle Gregory J. Nickels, Mayor

NEWS ADVISORY
SUBJECT:   Seattle Animal Shelter offers Older Pets FREE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:    10/27/2008  11:55:00 AM	FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Don Jordan - Seattle Animal Shelter (206)386-4286 (206) 953-2529 (mobile) Irene Stewart – Mayor’s Office for Senior Citizens (206) 684-0492 Katherine Schubert-Knapp  (206) 684-0909 Kathy Sugiyama  (206) 684-0909

SEATTLE — In recognition of November as “Adopt-a-Senior Pet Month,” the Seattle Animal Shelter waives the adoption fee for seniors and adults with disabilities who adopt a dog or cat aged six years or older. If you are considering adding a pet to your household and you are eligible, consider the shelter’s “Golden Pets for Golden Years” program.  

Anyone holding the city of Seattle’s “Gold Card” or “FLASH Card” is eligible to adopt a dog or cat aged six years or older, free of charge, and receive a 50-percent discount on a pet license. This offer is in addition to another program offering cardholders a 50-percent discount on adoption fees for cats aged 2 years or older.

Through the Mayor’s Office for Senior Citizens, residents of greater Seattle, who are 60 years of age or older, are eligible for the “Gold Card for Healthy Aging” and adults with disabilities are eligible for the “FLASH Card.”

“These cards offer many benefits and can make life a little easier for our seniors and people with disabilities,” Mayor Greg Nickels said. “Through this special offer from the shelter, we have a win-win situation. We help senior dogs and cats by placing them in loving homes, and cardholders can bring a sparkling companion into their lives.”

For many people, adopting an adult cat or dog is the right thing to do. Adult cats and dogs are often already socialized with people and other pets, they’ve been house trained, and they usually have more mellow temperaments, according to Shelter Director Don Jordan.

“Numerous studies have shown having a pet as an integral part of the family unit helps pet owners lead longer and happier lives,” Jordan said.

Adopting a cat or dog from the Seattle Animal Shelter not only saves that animal from unnecessary euthanasia, but through these special offers, it is also a tremendous value. With the 50-percent discount, a two-year Seattle cat license costs $11, and a two-year dog license costs $15. A full-price adoption package for the general public ranges from $60 to $65 for a cat, and $95 to $135 for a dog, and includes:

·        Initial vaccinations

·        Deworming

·        Feline Leukemia testing

·        Certificate for free health exam at local veterinarians

·        Spay or neuter

·        Microchip (About the size of a grain of rice, the microchip is injected under the cat’s skin, providing an identification number associated with that animal. Animal shelters can then “scan” a lost animal and retrieve its records from the microchip.)

The “Gold Card” and “FLASH Card” are part of a countywide campaign to promote health and access to services by publicizing toll-free assistance telephone numbers. Cardholders can also use the cards to register for services and programs, and as library cards at Seattle Public Libraries. Eligible residents of greater Seattle can obtain the “Gold Card” or “FLASH Card” at any of the 13 Neighborhood Service Centers; the Mayor’s Office for Senior Citizens, Central Building, Suite 350, 810 Third Ave.; and at the Seattle Animal Shelter, 2061-15th Ave. W., approximately one mile south of the Ballard Bridge.

For more information about the “Gold Card” and “FLASH Card” programs, call the Mayor’s Office for Senior Citizens at (206)684-0500.

To talk with an adoption counselor or preview cats and dogs available for adoption, the Seattle Animal Shelter is open every day, noon to 6 p.m. For more information, please call (206)386-PETS(7387). You may also preview animals currently available for adoption at: http://www.seattleanimalshelter.org

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