This week’s charity spotlight is so adorable I just can’t stand it. Are you an animal lover? Do you have pets? Does the mere site of a puppy or kitten make your voice go up 12 octaves and your dignity go out the window as you squeal, “It’s soooooo cute?” If so, you’re going to love Freekibble and its sister site, Freekibble Kat.
The Freekibble tail (do you see what I did there) began in 2008 when 11-year-old Mimi Ausland, a budding philanthropist, wanted to make sure dogs and cats in her local Oregon animal shelters had enough good nutritious food to go around. Freekibble partnered with the pet food company, Halo, Purely For Pets and now they deliver food to shelters across the United states. According to the kibble counter at the bottom of the website home page, over 600 million pieces of kibble have been donated since 2008.
Interestingly, Freekibble has a corporate sponsor so they don’t necessarily need donations but they do need people to show an interest in the cause. In order to show that people care about Freekibble and to keep their sponsorship, they’ve created a very clever way to keep people coming back to the site. . . trivia! Each day when you visit Freekibble or Freekibble Kat you will be greeted with a Bow Wow Trivia or Meow Trivia question. The questions are multiple choice but you don’t even have to get them right. Just by participating, Halo donates 10 pieces of kibble to animal shelters.
When you check out the site, be sure to visit Mimi’s blog under Freekibble Kids and the “Knews” section for fun posts about animals and other kids doing big things. The stories titled, “Unlikely Animal Friendships” are precious. A Cockatoo and a cat?A hound dog and a pot-bellied pig?It’s almost cute overload I tell you. Oh, and I almost forgot, pictures of dogs and cats galore.
Although the site appears to be aimed at kids and tweens, the work they’re doing for shelter pets is clearly grown-up stuff. In July 2011 they were mentioned in an article featured in “O” magazine. You know “O” magazine is Oprah, right? If Ms. Winfrey is talking about you, odds are you’re a pretty big deal. I hope the site prompts adults to visit and answer trivia questions, and inspires kids to think about how they can help their own community.
Hey! Did you know the Tanzanian Tiger is not found in Africa, nor is it a wild cat? I didn’t either, but I do now, AND I just donated 10 pieces of kibble to a shelter just by answering the question. Visit the site today, answer a question to get those 10 pieces of kibble donated to an animal shelter and tuck all those factoids away for your next game of Trivial pursuit.
Make your heart happy. Do good!
