Petco Love, Dogs Playing for Life Launch National Playgroup Rockstars Adoption

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Press release: Petco Love

On May 13, national nonprofit organization Petco Love joins forces with Dogs Playing for Life and BOBS from Skechers to launch a National Playgroup Rockstars Adoption event at more than 30 animal shelters around the country to showcase social adoptable dogs in a fun and playful environment.

Dogs Playing for Life created the unique playgroup shelter dog enrichment program operating with the simple philosophy of “Every Dog, Every Day, Let Them Play!” The goal – to ensure shelter pets’ positively experience life at an animal shelter, while providing shelter staff the information needed to help that pet find its new loving home. Playgroup Rockstars are dogs that are well-socialized and love to play with just about any dog playmate. At the May 13 event, participating shelters will waive or have reduced Playgroup Rockstars adoption fees and offer special Play Pair gifts for pet parents adopting two Rockstars.

Most pet parents see pets as family and want to bring their pets with them where they go and incorporate them into their daily lives. This often means having social dogs is important to their pet adoption decision. There’s a reason it’s called the “dog pack” – dogs are social and energetic pets who thrive on companionship with other dogs. It is also true that a tired dog is often the most well-behaved dog. That’s why adopting a Playgroup Rockstars Dog Play Pair will help pet parents with both of their newly adopted dogs’ socialization, mental and physical stimulation, and overall health and wellbeing.

“The first dog I had was an only child, so to keep him happy we went on long walks morning and night. But still during the day he was home alone, and I always felt guilty working long hours,” said Susanne Kogut, Petco Love president. “When he passed, I decided to adopt two large dogs because I thought they would have each other for company, and when I was busy, they could still get their exercise playing and running together in the yard. Adopting two play buddies was the best decision I ever made for the dogs and for me. Many people choose to adopt two kittens for the same reason, but we seem to approach dog adoption differently. Adopting a Play Pair, two Playgroup Rockstars, makes great sense.”

Aimee Sadler, the founder of Dogs Playing for Life, began developing the program in 1998, when she observed large dogs at shelters often never left their kennel due to staffing and volunteer limitations. As a dog trainer specializing in behavior issues, she sought to change all that by shifting the shelter paradigm to incorporate large scale playgroups in the everyday activities. Dogs Playing for Life trains shelter staff how to assess dogs properly to enable them to run large dog playgroups as a normal part of shelter life. “When you see a bunch of shelter dogs all romping together and having fun versus frustrated being alone in a kennel, well it is simply magical. These dog play groups allow dogs to be dogs and enjoy their day, despite the fact that due to unfortunate circumstances they landed in a shelter. Add on that the ability to showcase their beautiful and playful nature might be their ticket to a new loving home, I can’t help but believe we are making a difference by prioritizing a better experience for them while sheltered,” said founder Aimee Sadler. Dogs Playing for Life programming now takes place at more than 300 shelters across the U.S.

BOBS from Skechers is partnering with Petco Love and Dogs Playing for Life for this unique adoption event. “We know that large dogs are currently the population most at risk in shelters across the country and they need to find loving homes more than ever,” said Jenn Clay, vice president of corporate communications at Skechers USA, Inc. “That’s why BOBS from Skechers is excited to highlight the benefits of adopting large dogs and play pairs through this special event, and continue our ongoing mission to help shelter pets who need it most.”

The May 13 Playgroup Rockstars event is being held at the shelters and locations listed below. Most participating shelters will waive dog adoption fees for a Rockstar. For people who already have pets, the Playgroup Rockstars Adoption Event allows you to identify and see the dogs in action who might be the perfect match for your existing pet. For those considering adopting two dogs, the teams on the ground can help you find the perfect pair. Adopters of Play Pairs will also receive gift cards from Petco.

Participating shelters:

Arizona Animal Welfare League- 25 N 40th St, Phoenix, Arizona 85034

Alachua County Animal Resources- 3400 NE 53rd Ave, Gainesville, Florida 32609

Anderson County Paws- 1320 US-29, Anderson, South Caroline 29626

Animal Compassion Team (ACT)- 2789 S Orange Ave, Fresno, California 93725

BARCS- 301 Stockholm St, Baltimore, Maryland 21230

Brandywine Valley SPCA (three locations)-

West Chester: 1212 Phoenixville Pike, West Chester, Pennsylvania 19380

New Castle: 290 Churchmans Road, New Castle, Delaware 19720

Georgetown: 22918, Dupont Boulevard, Georgetown, Delaware 19947

Brevard County Animal Care Center- 5100 W Eau Gallie Blvd, Melbourne, Florida 32934

Cabot Animal Support Services- 2951 S. 1st St, Cabot, Arkansas 72023

Cache Humane Society- 2370 W 200 N, Logan, Utah 84321

Chicago Animal Care and Control- 2741 S Western Ave, Chicago, Illinois 60608

City of Los Angeles (two locations)-

South LA Animal Services Center/Chesterfield Square: 1850 W 60th St, Los Angeles California 90047

East Valley Animal Services Center: 14409 Vanowen St, Van Nuys California 91405

Dallas Animal Services- 1818 N. Westmoreland Rd, Dallas, Texas 75212

Fresno Humane- 1510 W. Dan Ronquillo Dr., Fresno California 93706

Humane Society of Northeast Georgia – 845 W. Ridge Rd, Gainesville, Georgia 30501

Humane Society of Sarasota County- 2331 15th St, Sarasota, Florida 34237

Jacksonville ACPS- 2020 Forest St, Jacksonville, Florida 32204

Jacksonville Humane Society- 8464 Beach Blvd, Jacksonville, Florida 32216

Kanawha-Charleston Humane Association- 1248 Greenbrier St, Charleston, West Virginia 25311

Kansas City Pet Project- 4400 Raytown Rd, Kansas City, Missouri 64129

LA County- Palmdale Animal Care Center – 38550 Sierra Hwy, Palmdale, California 93550

Lee County Humane Society- 1440 Ware Dr, Auburn, Alabama 36832

Longmont Humane Society – 9595 Nelson Rd, Longmont, Colorado 80501

Miami-Dade County Animal Services- 3599 NW 79th Ave, Doral, Florida 33122

Montgomery County Animal Shelter- 8535 TX-242, Conroe, Texas 77385

Nebraska Humane Society- 8929 Fort Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68134

Oakland Animal Services- 1101 29th Ave, Oakland, California 94601

Operation Kindness- 3201 Earhart Dr, Carrollton, Texas 75006

Paws for Life K9 Rescue- 15321 S Brand Blvd, Mission Hills, California 91345

Siouxland Humane Society- 1015 Tri-View Ave, Sioux City, Iowa 51103

Stockton Animal Shelter- 1575 S Lincoln St., Stockton, California 95206

Ventura County Animal Services- 600 Aviation Dr, Camarillo, California 93010

Williamson County Animal Center- 1006 Grigsby Hayes Court, Franklin, Tennessee 37064