Five dogs find new homes at Pups 'N' Purrz event

(Originally published in the 12/23/15 edition)

   People packed Pups ’N’ Purrz for the pet supply store’s last adoption event of the year Saturday. 

   The store partnered with Pittsburg-based animal rescue organization Umbrella of Hope. The organization was aiming to adopt out a minimum of four pets to reach its 275 mark for the year, but five dogs ended up being adopted.

   The animals who found new homes this weekend were 5-year-old poodle/schnauzer mix Diego, 1-year-old chihuahua Gertrude, 4-year-old chihuahua Aura, 8-year-old schnauzer/Jack Russell/Tibetan terrier mix and Raphael and 16-year-old chihuahua Cybele. 

   Cybele’s adoption was particularly emotional for Pups ’N’ Purrz owner James Long, himself an owner of three senior-aged chihuahuas.

   “When that dog got adopted, I welted up a little bit,” he said. “I was happy to see that somebody adopted a dog that was that old.”

   Long was very pleased with the results, noting that neighboring businesses told him they were receiving more customers than usual. He also believes that the people who adopted the dogs were not just picking them up as Christmas gifts as none of them had children.

   “For them, this is a pet they’re going to have, not just like a Christmas gift,” Long said. “It’s an animal they wanted to adopt.” 

   Pups ’N’ Purrz will be hosting two more adoption events in January. The first will be with Tony LaRussa’s Animal Rescue Foundation from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 3, and the second will be another Umbrella of Hope event from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 9. Pups ’N’ Purrz is located at 44 First St. For more information, contact (707) 748-7433.

Cybele, a 16-year-old chihuahua was one of five dogs adopted over the weekend. (Photo courtesy of James Long)

Furry friends find new homes at weekend's pet adoptions

   (Originally published in the 11/11/15 edition)

Pups ’N' Purrz held its 3rd annual Adoption Day By the Bay over the weekend, and the store was able to find homes for several different pets.

   The First Street pet supply store partnered with other Bay Area adoption agencies- Umbrella of Hope, CARES and Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation- to adopt out dogs and cats. The event expanded to two days, which meant more opportunities for people to pick up a new friend.

   On Saturday, four chihuahuas were adopted: 5-year-old Fiona Apple, 5-year-old Jersey Mac, 8-year-old Megladon and 7-year-old Fuji Apple. 

   Sunday, however, was a day for the cats. Crush and Fanta, both 7 months old, found new homes where they will be able to continue their young lives with loving families.

   “It was a great turnout for both days,” Pups ’N’ Purrz owner James Long said. “Some people were looking for certain animals, and the agencies that didn’t have them on Saturday had them on Sunday, so I think expanding to two days helped.”

   The next adoption event will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Sunday Dec. 6 at ARF, located at 2890 Mitchell Drive in Walnut Creek. Additionally, Umbrella of Hope will be holding an adoption event from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 19. The agency is located at 4080 Railroad Avenue, Suite C, in Pittsburg. Pups ’N’ Purrz is located at 422 First St. 

Pet adoptions expand to two days for Pups 'N' Purrz event

   Pups ’N’ Purrz will be holding its 3rd annual Adoption Day By the Bay, where people can pick up a new dog or cat from various animal rescue agencies at the store. The difference this year is that there will be more days to take a furry friend home.

   In past years, the event had been limited to just one day. James Long, the owner of Pups ’N’ Purrz says this caused spatial problems for the store.

   “There are so many groups that want to come out and support the community,” he said. “I realized that last year when I had two groups in front, one group that was next to the garden and another group that was in the back parking lot outside.”

   Long talked to his wife, Karen Baltier-Long, about what they should do to better accommodate the groups.

   “She said ‘When you do it this year, let’s just do a weekend event on Saturday and Sunday,’” Long said.

   The days may have changed, but the core of the event is the same as the previous two years: giving older animals a chance to find new homes by partnering with different groups.

   Long says he was inspired by Dogs Day By the Bay, an event held by the city in 2010 and 2011 at the green by the downtown waterfront.

   “For some reason, they decided not to do it anymore, so I took that idea and decided to do Adoption Day By the Bay,” he said.

   In 2013, Long got into contact with various Bay Area adoption agencies about the possibility of adopting animals out of his store.

   “I said ‘This is a dog friendly town. Would you be willing to come to the store and do either a monthly or bi-monthly adoption event in front of my store?’” he said. “They came by to check out what it was like on weekends, and they noticed there were a lot of people walking up and down the street, so I’ve been working with a lot of the rescue groups ever since.”

   This year, Pups ’N’ Purrz will be partnering with three dog and cat rescue foundations: Umbrella of Hope out of Pittsburg, CARES out of Vallejo and Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation out of Walnut Creek.

   “It’s a thank you to the community and rescue groups for coming out and supporting my store,” he said. 

   The dogs sold are mostly small or medium breeds and generally tend to be older. Long himself happens to own three senior chihuahuas: Molly, 11; Layla, 9; and Margo, 13. 

   “People don’t want to adopt senior dogs because of their age and health,” he said. 

   Therefore, Long said he is a firm believer in helping senior dogs find homes.

   Ultimately, Long believes that pets finding homes will not only benefit the animals but also their new owners.

   “It’s like a companion,” he said. “You go to work, you come home, there’s somebody to greet you at the door and give you all the love and support.”

   Adoption by the Bay will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 7 and from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 8 at Pups ’N’ Purrz, located at 422 First St. Umbrella of Hope will be adopting out cats and dogs in the store from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. that Saturday, and CARES will be there from 2 to 5 p.m. ARF will be at the store from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday with a mobile van containing smaller dogs, adult cats and kittens. People who adopt a dog or cat on those days will get a 10 percent discount off their first purchase.