The City of San José Animal Care and Services is now enlisting military veterans in a new initiative to place overlooked shelter animals into caring homes. According to a press release from the City of San José, they have joined up with the national program Pets for Patriots to align their services with the needs of animals and those who have served the country, creating mutual benefits for both.
In what appears to be a seamless linking of missions, City Manager Jennifer Maguire proclaimed the success of their first adoption, as per the City of San José, "I am thrilled to announce that we are now one of two municipal shelters in the Bay Area recognized by Pets for Patriots as an official shelter partner," she said, and the City seems to have swept into this partnership with gusto, seeing John Carlo, an Air Force veteran, adopting Emilio, a two-year-old tabby from the center that very weekend. The new policy, which also involves waiving adoption fees for veterans, manifests the city's gratitude for their service. San José Animal Care certainly hopes this will lead to more veteran adoption of overlooked animals.
Eligibility for the Pets for Patriots program includes a variety of animals that otherwise may linger in the shelter. These are adult, special needs, or long-term homeless dogs and cats and larger breeds. Veterans have a choice to find a creature that understands second chances almost as well as they do, and this symbolic gesture underscores the forsaken corners of our society from where both may emerge into newfound purpose. Veterans eager to adopt can apply online and typically wait no more than two business days for approval.