'Make Space For LA!' Adoption Event Helps Pets Impacted by Los Angeles Area Wildfires

Blue Buffalo to Cover Adoption Fees

Rancho Santa Fe, California--(Newsfile Corp. - March 12, 2025) - As the wide-reaching impact of wildfire destruction continues to be felt in the Los Angeles area, animal welfare organizations and the pets in their care face many challenges. The January 2025 fires left a giant hole in the city's ability to save the many lives of pets dependent on its infrastructure.

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The January 2025 Los Angeles County fires left a giant hole in the city’s ability to save the many lives of pets dependent on its infrastructure.

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In an effort to positively impact Los Angeles-area pets in need, starting Friday, March 14 and extending through National Puppy Day on Sunday, March 23, Blue Buffalo will cover adoption fees for all pets adopted as part of Helen Woodward Animal Center's Make Space for LA! adoption event.

The fires that erupted across Los Angeles resulted in the destruction of thousands of structures, including thousands of homes where people lost everything they owned, including their pets. Lost and injured animals by the hundreds (labeled "community animals") were taken in by area shelters with hopes of reuniting these pets with their families, but circumstances continue to be difficult. Even with owners found, many families are still struggling to secure a place to bring their pet home to.

"The heartbreak that most people don't realize is that with the kennels full of community pets there is simply no room for the regularly scheduled influx of pets that arrive at these shelters each week," said Helen Woodward Animal Center Adoption Services Director Kendall Schulz. "SPCA LA, like Helen Woodward Animal Center, pulls animals from high-kill facilities. If they don't have capacity available, pets' lives may be lost."

Helen Woodward Animal Center and Blue Buffalo have been working directly with SPCA LA and Pasadena Humane since the fires began. The Center traveled to the area, via Center Rescue Vehicle, approximately 15 times, providing supplies, veterinary assistance and pet food from Blue Buffalo. Blue Buffalo is donating to an Emergency Pet Pantry organized by Pasadena Humane to support ongoing recovery efforts and is also providing food and supplies to SPCA LA for the upcoming Kitten Season, which runs April through October.

As weeks have passed, however, SPCA LA's most recent and sincerest requests have been for the transfer of pets who would normally be next-in-line to enter their facilities but, due to lack of space, are at risk for euthanasia. Helen Woodward Animal Center has been working closely with rescue groups who regularly send pets to SPCA LA and is taking steps, like hosting Make Space for LA! to help address this urgent need.

"Blue Buffalo is a wonderful friend to the Helen Woodward Animal Center and is dedicated to the health and wellbeing of all pets," said Helen Woodward Animal Center's President and CEO Mike Arms. "We have been so grateful for their philanthropy since 2012, providing pet food for the Center's pets, promoting and supporting our global campaigns Home 4 the Holidays and Remember Me Thursday - to bring attention to pets in need of homes, and for their active support of shelter dogs and cats with their annual coast-to-coast food distribution during the holiday season. When the fires broke out in L.A., they immediately contacted us to ask how they could help."

"We are transferring as many orphan pets as we can from L.A. and surrounding shelters to clear as much space as possible," said Helen Woodward Animal Center Adoption Services Director Schulz. "The fact that Blue Buffalo is going to gift adopters with sponsored adoption fees means that we can get more pets into loving homes. We are thrilled to have this opportunity to save more lives."

"This is an incredibly generous gift that Blue Buffalo is providing to adopters to open up kennel space and allow us to rescue more orphan pets from high-kill locations, saving more lives," said Arms. "It's extremely important that the message is not that we are giving these precious lives away for free. We will still have the same rigorous screening and interview process to ensure that these pets are being placed with caring families."

Helen Woodward Animal Center encourages anyone looking to bring a pet into their home to consider rescue first. Between March 14 and March 23, Helen Woodward Animal Center and Blue Buffalo welcome potential pet parents to help Make Space for LA! with adoption fees sponsored by Blue Buffalo. Those who adopt will receive a starter bag of free pet food, along with other Blue Buffalo treats and gifts. Adopters will be responsible for the $36 microchip fee for their pets. For those who cannot adopt, the Center encourages families to consider fostering.

For more information, please contact Helen Woodward Animal Center Adoptions Department at: 858-756-4117 ext. 313, visit www.animalcenter.org or stop by at 6461 El Apajo Road in Rancho Santa Fe.

PHOTOS: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1PhGLStOVZmI1pugYPQc2NECk407gWwFG?usp=sharing

(This grants media permission to utilize photos without restriction – Credit: Helen Woodward Animal Center.)

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About Helen Woodward Animal Center

Helen Woodward Animal Center is a private, non-profit organization where "people help animals and animals help people." Founded in 1972 in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., the Center provides services for more than 90,000 people and more than 10,000 animals annually through adoptions, educational and therapeutic programs both onsite and throughout the community. Helen Woodward Animal Center is also the creator of the International Home 4 the Holidays pet adoption drive, the International Remember Me Thursday® campaign and The Business of Saving Lives Workshops, teaching the business of saving lives to animal welfare leaders from around the world. For more information, go to: www.animalcenter.org.

About Blue Buffalo

Blue Buffalo, the country's most loved and trusted natural pet food, started with a promise made to a lovable Airedale named Blue who struggled with cancer, the #1 disease-related killer of dogs and cats. His family, the Bishops, wanted to feed him the best food possible, so they searched for food with high-quality ingredients, but decided to create something even better - natural pet food for dogs and cats with nutritious ingredients, real meat first, and some of the highest standards in the industry. Since Day 1, BLUE's team of veterinarians and animal nutritionists have carefully selected high-quality, natural ingredients and upheld its True BLUE Promise to dog and cat pet parents - real meat as the first ingredient with NO chicken (or poultry) by-product meals, NO corn, wheat or soy, and NO artificial flavors or preservatives. The result is a portfolio of high-quality, natural food and treats that both dogs and cats love. This simple idea: "Love them like family. Feed them like family." lives on today in every Blue Buffalo recipe. Visit BlueBuffalo.com to learn more.

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