Barren River Animal Welfare Association (BRAWA): Grant Report

How did this grant help your organization and the pets in your care?

Since receiving the grant funds in March 2019, BRAWA was able to reduce adoption fees on hard-to-place dogs including special breeds such as pit bulls, disabled and senior dogs, black dogs, large dogs, and those with behavioral issues. In most cases, regular adoption fees were reduced by 50%. Signage was placed on select dogs saying "The Petfinder Foundation is Helping Me Find a Home."

BRAWA operates completely on grants, donations, fundraisers, and revenue generated from adoption fees. The grant funds help offset the revenue that we lost due to the reduced adoption fees.

How many pets did this grant help?

To date, the grant has benefited 27 dogs.

Please provide a story of one or more specific pets this grant helped.

Stumpy (first photo) is a 7-year-old pit bull mix weighing 70 lbs. and with three legs. For these reasons, he was often overlooked at the shelter, and the staff at BRAWA knew it would take a special family to provide the support and care he needed. He was originally adopted from BRAWA in 2017; however, he was returned to the shelter in March 2019 as a stray and his previous owner did not reclaim him. He was adopted within a week on March 23, 2019, by a family with another pit bull. They immediately fell in love with Stumpy and he was very happy to get his new family (second photo).

Barbary (third photo) is typical of the many pit bulls and similar breeds taken in at BRAWA. He came to us a stray by way of Animal Control. When he first arrived, he showed signs of neglect, had fighting scars and skin issues, and was in poor condition. He received extensive medical treatment and was at the shelter for more than two months before being adopted by a wonderful new family. His fee was reduced as a result of the Petfinder Foundation grant. He was adopted on May 17, 2019.

As you can see from the fourth photo, Cierra is very happy with her new family. A pit bull mix, she was overlooked for weeks at the shelter. She was adopted at a special off-site adoption day and her fee was reduced thanks to the Petfinder Foundation Grant. She went home with a great family — and a big smile — on May 19, 2019.

Rubble (fifth photo) is another disabled dog who benefited from the Petfinder Foundation grant. He is a boxer/shepherd mix with three legs. He was originally adopted from our shelter in 2018; however, he was returned in April 2019 due to the adopter’s personal issues. He was adopted on May 11, 2019. We also placed several other dogs with vision/hearing issues.

Yogi (sixth photo) is a large Mastiff/Boxer mix. He was an owner-surrender due to the owner’s health issues. Yogi was scared and confused about why he was at the shelter and because of his large size, he was often passed by for adoption. He was at the shelter for over a month and was adopted and benefited from the reduced adoption fee adopted on April 20, 2019.