So Here's My Pitch - Extreme Makeover: Shelter Edition

Obviously, this would infringe upon Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, but I thought I’d throw it out there anyhow just to portray my ideal outcome. ************************************************************ How does a country/culture that spends approximately $41 billion a year on pets and the pet industry not yet understand the importance of supporting shelters when it is time for a new family pet? One answer is obvious - few people enjoy visiting their community shelter because, frankly, the trip can be pretty depressing. Rather than face the squalor of local shelters, they visit their local pet stores. Local pet stores, while shiny and bright from the outside, are guilty of contributing to the growing number of orphaned animals and also perpetuating the business of inhumane puppy mills. Extreme Makeover: Shelter Edition is the solution! If the physical structure of shelters is altered to create an environment in which both animals and people thrive, look at all that we can achieve. Extreme Makeover: Shelter Edition would change the current view of our shelter system; most importantly, it would save the orphaned animals that enrich our lives. Extreme Makeover: Shelter Edition would play a profound role in changing the face and perception of animal welfare. By altering the shelters to create a more hospitable and welcoming atmosphere, public education and outreach has a chance to flourish. Families looking to adopt will have the opportunity to learn the pressing needs and limitations American shelters face. For example, in order for every domestic animal to have a home, each U.S. family would need to care for approximately nine dogs or cats. Clearly, pet stores and backyard breeders heavily contribute to overpopulation, a reality that shelters face nationwide with increased adoption rates and overcrowding. As community outreach grows and changes, so does the perspective of families seeking a new furry member. Every Sunday, ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition tugs at heart strings all across America with a powerful display of human compassion and teamwork. Imagine the impact of a similarly structured show dedicated to puppies and kittens and helping our furry friends live a happier life. This program would succeed on a major network or a cable channel like Animal Planet, touching the animal lover audience. The stories told through Extreme Makeover: Shelter Editioncan help increase the chances that potential pet owners head toward Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter (BARCS) and other like-minded animal shelters over Petland. For me personally, seeing this dream come to fruition would be satisfying an ultimate goal in my life. I’ve been in love with animal welfare for about five years. I discovered the cause after college while at my first “real world” job with a consulting firm. My job was all quantity without quality and in a search for balance I started volunteering at my local shelter and fell in head first. From that point on I make a daily effort to positively contribute to this cause and to get my foot in the professional animal welfare door. Our culture that places such a high value on pets must also contribute equally to the welfare of our animal shelter system. Extreme Makeover: Shelter Edition would change the current view of our shelter system; most importantly, it would save the orphaned animals that enrich our lives. Don’t we owe them the same in return?

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