May is National Pet Month and Purina (a Nestlé company) is offering specially marked packaging for several of its dog and cat products to support the Purple Leash Project, a national initiative founded by Purina and RedRover to provide more resources and support for domestic violence survivors with pets. With its Beggin', Tidy Cats, Purina Cat Chow and Beneful brands, Purina is close to reaching the goal of donating more than $1 million to help create more pet-friendly domestic violence shelters across the U.S., so survivors and their pets can escape abuse and heal together.
Currently, as few as 10% of domestic violence shelters in the U.S. allow pets. Due to a lack of pet-friendly accommodations, nearly 50% of victims delay leaving their abuser because they are unable to take their pet with them to a shelter. Purina and RedRover's efforts will help to get to the goal of 25% of domestic violence shelters being pet-friendly by 2025.
Since 2019, Purina and RedRover have worked to drive awareness of the core issue and change the landscape of domestic violence services for survivors with pets through Purple Leash Project grants, volunteer efforts and successfully advocating for federal resources and funding.