Use a mouse to adopt a pet? You bet. Florida Keys SPCA in Key West has joined the most unifying initiative to ever hit animal welfare, Petfinder.com, the first and most successful online shelter network.
From the comfort of your own home, you can log onto the searchable database of over 25,000 homeless pets and enter your criteria— kind of animal, breed, size, age and/or gender. The computer whirs into action, visits over 1,7000 shelters and rescue groups' pet lists, and spits back a list ranked in proximity to your Zip code.
Each pet has its own home page with a description and usually a picture. Thousands of pets a day are getting a second chance, and members shelters and rescue groups are receiving free email and technical support. Visitors can see the local shelter or rescue group pets at www.petfinder.com/shelters/FL104.html.
Shelter personnel and volunteers keep the list of pets continuously updated. Some shelters and rescue groups report that up to half of their adoptions are a result of Petfinder listings.
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) teamed with the site, lending the prestige of its name and providing national shelter outreach and continuing education. Petfinder.com is free to shelters and rescue groups and adopters, thanks to Ralston Purina, which has signed on as a sponsor and will be adding valuable features to the Web site, including a breed selector and other pet care content.
Shelters and rescue groups that are not members of Petfinder.com can join and have pet lists online within a few days. For more information, contact kim@petfinder.com.