Our associates give their all to helping our customers, their pets, and the animals in our care. But their generosity doesn’t stop there. It extends well beyond our store walls.
PetSmart associates extend our value of ‘Passion for Pets and People’ through their support of the causes they care about most during our annual giving campaign, Be The Difference. They also used paid volunteer time (every associate gets at least four hours each year) and in 2021, 800 associates were paid for about 3,500 hours of volunteer time, donating more than $100,000 in value of volunteerism to the causes they care most about.
We are proud of the many ways our associates reflect our value of 'Passion for Pets and People' by giving their time and talents to the organizations they care most about. Here’s how we’re making a difference, together.
Connecting and Supporting People and Pets
PetSmart Charities is the leading funder of animal welfare in communities across North America. Since 1994, we've granted more than $500 million to change-making organizations that help transform the lives of pets and those who love them — thanks to our donors.
PetSmart Charities focuses on two key areas:
Connecting people & pets: We work with more than 2,500 shelters and rescues to help connect pets with loving homes. We’ve helped save the lives of more than 10,000,000 pets through adoption since inception.
Supporting people & pets: We provide critical funding to programs that help keep people and pets together, including: making veterinary care more accessible, reducing pet food insecurity and providing support during natural disasters.
PetSmart is also committed to supporting sustainability. We’re proud to serve as a Champion Member in the Pet Sustainability Coalition as well as participate in in the Retail Industry Leaders Association's (RILA) sustainability group.
Giving Time
We know volunteering is important to our associates, but other obligations can get in the way. That’s why we created a program to offer associates paid volunteer time.
In 2021, we expanded our paid volunteer hour program to all PetSmart associates, whether they’re full-time or part-time. Each associate receives a minimum of four hours of paid time every year to volunteer for a non-profit that supports our values and ignites their passions. In 2021, more than 800 associates logged nearly 3,500 hours of paid volunteer time.
Helping Associates in Need
Our associates give so much to others, but just like everyone, they sometimes need some help themselves. That’s why we founded the PetSmart Associate Assistance Foundation (PAAF).
The PAAF provides financial assistance and emergency resources to associates during unforeseen hardships. It’s funded by PetSmart and our associates, who donate to help one another in their time of need. Since its inception in 2011, the PAAF has granted more than $3 million to over 3,000 associates.
In 2021, we also launched two new scholarship programs. We made an initial investment of $1M in a program to support associates and dependents of color, and we launched an additional program to support any associates and dependents below officer level. In 2021, we awarded 13 scholarships to associates or dependents and are in the process of awarding 18 more scholarships in 2022.
We’re proud of all our associates do to help each other and animals in need. Simply put, giving back is what we do — it’s part of our passion for people and pets.
If you have questions about giving back or ideas you’d like to share, we’d love to hear from you! Please email us to let us know your thoughts.
Comments