Did you know that an animal is abused every 10 seconds?  Since 1866, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) has a long history of helping abused animals of all sizes and has dedicated April as their campaign for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.  Similar to the pink ribbon for Breast Cancer, the ASPCA has designated the color orange to show support for their important cause.

How can you help in this endeavor?  Learn more at the ASPCA.org website.  Support your local shelter or rescue groups by donating, volunteering, acting as a foster home, or adopting a needy pet.  Whether you want a mixed breed or a purebred, rescue groups are out there doing their part to assist through rescuing, protecting, and placing animals.  Go online to see if a specific breed rescue group is in your area if you have a certain breed in mind.  Mixed breed dogs also make amazing pets and give just as much love to a family.

Did you know that abusing an animal is still considered a Class 1 misdemeanor in most states?  Dog fighting, animal hoarding, and puppy mills are far too prevalent for our overextended judicial system.  If this issue is important to you, check locally to see if a petition has started to create stronger punishments for animal abusers.  The Animal Legal Defense Fund has created an app for your smartphone to report any negligence or abuse that you know of within your community.  Go to www.aldf.org for more information.

Let’s all do our part to prevent animal cruelty. Pets needs kindness and love too.  Use your social media to spread the word to wear orange for animals, use #fightcruelty with a tag to the ASPCA, or follow them on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram.  Contact your local shelter or rescues to see how you can help.  Animal cruelty can be stopped so let’s do what we can to put an end to animal abuse.