In 2011 the formation of the Pet Pantry of Lancaster County began with a meeting of the three founders at a corner table of a local café. Those three individuals along with countless other volunteers and staff have helped the Pet Pantry become the leading animal welfare organization it is today by uplifting their mission of empowering animals to thrive by listening and responding to their upspoken needs. At the time of formation, many community members were struggling. The economic downturn had led folks to make the heartbreaking decision to surrender their beloved pet solely because they were experiencing hardship and could not provide food for their pets. Others were forced to choose between feeding themselves or feeding their pets. Still, others were selling off all their possessions to be able to provide their pets with food. There had to be a way to help these caring families and prevent these animals from leaving their loving homes and ending up in the shelter system. Thus, The Pet Pantry of Lancaster County was created. Starting out small, in the living room of one of the founders, the team went to work collecting pet food donations from generous community members and portioning out that food to those in need. They started by feeding the pets of just 12 families. Soon, as word about our program spread, they quickly were overwhelmed with the need and had to move to a bigger location to accommodate the food donations and portioning out that was needed. So it was on to the founder's garage. Using both the garage and a few storage units, the team was able to steadily increase the number of families served. Holding monthly food handouts in the parking lot of the storage unit facility, they quickly jumped from helping 50, then 100, then 150 families in need -- receive food for their pets. Eventually, the team was able to move their entire food storage and sorting operation to the storage unit facility. The community's need for nutritious, reliable pet food support continued to grow and after a while, it was obvious to the team that they would need even more space. Through working with a local business the team was able to acquire warehouse space to both store food and distribute pet food. It was at this point in time, in 2013, that they realized there was a need for other animal welfare services in the community. One of those being health care and wellness resources for family pets. The Pantry founded a veterinary program to provide more in-depth education to help keep pets healthy by reducing pet overpopulation concerns through Lower-cost Spay/Neuter and feral cat Trap, Neuter, Return (TNR) programs. With the intention of removing barriers to accessing exceptional veterinary care, the team provides lifesaving procedures to community members without the high cost of a private practice veterinary. With the addition of these services, a larger more visible location was needed. In May of 2014, the Pet Pantry moved yet again to its current location on Millersville Road in Lancaster. There the team finally had the space needed to really expand programs and bring the final piece of the "puzzle of need" together, rescue. The team came to realize that while they were doing all they could to keep animals where they belonged -- in their loving homes -- there were animals out there that needed a second chance to find their forever home. Reasons for animal surrender vary and the team identified there was a way to provide a better solution to antiquated, stressful sheltering environments. Focusing mostly on cats, as at that time this is where the need for care was greatest, the Pantry formed its own rescue within the Millersville Road location. It was also around this time that they realized there was a need for fundamental veterinary care for animals that were being cared for by other rescues. These rescues were smaller in scale and could not afford standard private practice veterinary costs to spay/neuter and treat some of the medical problems that they encountered in their own rescue dogs. Often these rescues were taking on severe medical cases, these rescues needed a tested and true partner to help care for the medical need of these special animals. Again, the Pet Pantry stepped up and created the "Rescue Wednesday" program where local rescues could bring their animals to the Millersville Road location for spay/neuter services and other veterinary needs. This collaboration allowed the partner rescues to help even more animals each year. The team is proud to have built these relationships with their partner rescues and to date, they work with over 10 local rescues consistently. In January of 2017 the Pet Pantry merged with one of it's most valued partner rescues, Lost Paws of Lancaster. This merger allowed the team to create an even greater impact through other adoption locations and provided more second chances to animals in need. We truly appreciate the trust Lost Paws of Lancaster placed in the operation capabilities of the Pet Pantry team. Following ten significant years, today, the Pet Pantry has grown into an organization that is rooted in the community and dedicated to empowering animals to thrive by listening and responding to their upspoken needs. The team is very proud to focus care, funding, and support on the Lancaster community. That is where the need is and that is where the team of the Pet Pantry has dedicated their hearts and hard work. Averaging over 400 adoptions a year, 1,000 feral cat TNR surgeries a year, 70,000+ pounds of dry dog/cat food given out a year, 150+ families helped a year, over $250,000 in veterinary care a year to those in need, and 50+ life saving veterinary procedures a year for animals with nowhere else to turn to for help, the Pet Pantry truly has become the animal welfare organization in Lancaster County that is there to uplift families and their pets here in Lancaster County. The Pet Pantry of Lancaster County has existed and will continue to exist because of your support for animals in need. With your help we can continue to be a voice for the voiceless.
