PerkinElmer’s “Steps for Pets,” held Oct. 27 at the downtown Riverwalk in Shelton, drew more than a dozen dog owners there to help the Connecticut Humane Society and raise awareness of the need for donations to the Society’s food bank for pets.
The food bank is similar to those for humans, except that it distributes pet food and pet supplies to needy families instead of human food and supplies. The idea is to help individuals and families hit by poverty and unemployment to afford to keep their pets, thus cutting down on the number of homeless animals kept at animal shelters or cared for by rescue groups, explained Alexis Tomczak, an employee at PerkinElmer in Shelton.
“If you’re experiencing hard times, they give you some pet food so you can keep your pet,” Tomczak said.
PerkinElmer, which manufactures biomedical and environmental testing equipment and operates a facility in Shelton, sponsored the event.
Wendy Simko, a graphic designer and a member of the company’s Employee Action Committee, which promotes community service projects by Perkin Elmer employees, said she has been a volunteer dog walker at the Humane Society’s shelter in Westport, and also adopted her dog there, so she was familiar with the pet food bank and its need for donations.
She said the suggested holding the Steps for Pets event, and the committee approved it.
Many of the dog owners who showed up were PerkinElmer employees, but a few were other people from the area who wanted to help.
“They’re just part of the community of dog owners,” noted Connecticut Humane Society Executive Director Gordon Willard.
The event started with a group dog walk around the perimeter of the Riverwalk. Then, participants entered their dogs in the Halloween costume party.
Pet owners were encouraged to donate pet food for dogs, cats and other pets, and the contest entry fees also benefited the Humane Society.
Simko said the event was enough of a success that she was encouraged to repeat it in the future.
“We’re definitely going to do this again,” she said.
