IDA Declares May to be "Responsible Guardian Month"
Put Your Compassion Into Action by Volunteering to Help Animals in Your Community
IDA has declared May to be "Responsible Animal Guardian Month" to inspire compassionate individuals around the U.S. to honor the cherished animal companions whose love and affection provides so much joy. During this month, we encourage people to help homeless animals by getting IDA's "Adopt and Save A Life" public service announcement (PSA) aired in their communities and participating in IDA's Fourth Annual Guardians For Life Essay Contest.
IDA's "Be A Guardian: Adopt and Save A Life" PSA - IDA has produced many powerful PSAs that bring a message of compassion for animals to television audiences nationwide. In our new 30-second PSA, Columbo's Peter Falk and Shera Danese, world-renowned primatologist Jane Goodall, Wendie Malick from Just Shoot Me and Veronica Mars' Kristen Bell urge people to be guardians, not owners, and to "Be A Guardian: Adopt and Save A Life" instead of buying animals from breeders or pet stores. This is the latest in a series of powerful IDA PSAs that bring a message of compassion for animals to television audiences. You can view the PSA online. While our animal companions have loving homes where they can live out the rest of their days, millions of animals are euthanized in our nation's shelters every year because they don't have guardians to take care of them. You can help them by getting this PSA aired in your community. To learn how, please contact Dr. Elliot M. Katz at emk@idausa.org or (415) 448-0075 or Hope Bohanec at (415) 448-0058
What Else You Can Do:
Here are some ways that you can help animals during Responsible Animal Guardian Month:
- Coordinate a volunteer project for your local animal shelter or sanctuary. This could involve caring for the animals, raising funds for their programs, or reminding people in your community to have their animals spayed and neutered to reduce animal homelessness.
- If there are feral cats in your community, implement a Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program to ensure they are cared for. For more information, visit www.neighborhoodcats.org. programs, or reminding people in your community to have their animals spayed and neutered to reduce animal homelessness.
- Work with your elected leaders to incorporate "guardian" language into city ordinances, charters, by-laws and other official documents. Visit our Guardian Cities page and check whether your city is there. If not, contact Dr. Elliot M. Katz at emk@idausa.org or (415) 388-9641 ext. 225. He will send you a Guardian Pack to help you get started, and is also available to personally guide you through every stage of the process. To learn more about the campaign and how you can help, please visit www.guardiancampaign.com. Read IDA's guide to responsible guardianship.
- PREPARE FOR YOUR COMPANIONS IN AN EMERGENCY!
Download the Guardian Card (pdf): Front Side | Back Side - If your family member, friend, neighbor or colleague is an outstanding animal guardian, nominate them for IDA's Guardian of the Month. To nominate someone, please write to guardiannomination@idausa.org telling us about their efforts to help animals.
- Download IDA's Responsible Animal Guardian Month flyer and post it at your workplace or in coffee shops, health food stores and anyplace with a bulletin board.
- Request Guardian Campaign brochures from IDA and send them out with a letter or note to those in the media who still use the term "owner." email lit@idausa.org to request yours today.