City of Fort Wayne – Giving Tuesday is a day to inspire the community to do good by sharing kindness and giving. This year, November 28, 2023, Fort Wayne Animal Care and Control is asking the community to share their generosity with shelter animals.

Being Northeast Indiana's largest open-access shelter, FWACC does not turn away animals brought to us from Allen County - no matter their condition. This year, over 11,000 animals have come to the doors of FWACC; whether they need additional medical care or go into a foster home because they are too small for adoption, saving their lives has only been possible through the Angel Fund.

The Angel Fund helps provide crucial life-saving medical care to the shelter animals, and it is utilized daily to help the animals that have no other place to go. This fund only exists because of generous donations from the community. Nearly $181,035 has been spent to help the animals in our care.

Our goal is that no healthy, treatable animals are put to sleep in our community. Donations can be made online by clicking here, in-person, over the phone at 260-427-1244 option 1, or mailed to Fort Wayne Animal Care & Control at 3020 Hillegas Road, Fort Wayne, IN 46808.

Help your pets remain happy and healthy during the cold, winter months by following these measures. 

DO:

Keep your home humidified and towel-dry your pet as soon as they come inside. Repeatedly coming out of the cold into the dry heat of your home can cause itchy, flaking skin. Be sure to remove any snowballs from between their foot pads and wash off the salt from their paws.

Give your horses shelter and dry warmth. This will help them escape from the wind and cold. If you have body-clipped your horses, keep them blanketed throughout the winter.

Keep water accessible and offer extra food. Extra food helps generate enough body heat to stay warm. Be sure their water is not frozen.

Keep you cats inside. Felines who spend time outside can experience frostbite or become lost or injured.

Tap your car hood. Neighborhood cats tend to seek warmth from the engine compartment, with many sleeping under car hoods for the night.

DO NOT:

Never shave your dog down to the skin during the winter months. A longer coat will provide more warmth. If your dog is long-haired, simply trim them to minimize the clinging ice balls, salt crystals, and de-icing chemicals that can dry their skin. Don’t forget the haris between their toes. If your dog is short-haired, consider getting them a coat or sweater with a high collar that will cover them from the base of their tail to their belly. 

Never leave pets outdoors or in a vehicle. If left outdoors, pets can freeze, become disoriented, lost, stolen, injured, or killed. Additionally, don’t leave pets alone in a car during cold weather; cars can act as refrigerators that retain the cold and can cause animals to freeze to death.

Do not bathe often. Washing your pet too often can remove essential oils and increase the chance of developing dry, flaky, skin.

The Indiana Coalition of Animal Welfare Professionals alongside shelters and rescue organizations across the State of Indiana are coming together on behalf of Governor Holcomb’s proclamation to designate November 5-12, 2023, Adopt a Hoosier Shelter Pet Week!

This proclamation will bring awareness to the growing public problem of pet homelessness and the crisis shelters and rescues are facing. Indiana shelters and rescuers call the community to act now to adopt, foster, donate, and/or volunteer during Adopt a Hoosier Shelter Pet Week to help alleviate this crisis and reverse the monumental steps taken back in saving the lives of homeless pets.

To celebrate "Adopt a Hoosier Shelter Pet Week" FWACC and all our offsite locations will have the following reduced adoption fees:

• Dogs 6 months & older are $50
• Fall in love with a $4 feline
• Smalls (rabbits, guinea pigs, etc.) are fee-waived

View all adoptable animals and our hours on our website by clicking here >>> https://www.cityoffortwayne.org/adopt.html