Share your pet's lucky story

Essentials PetCare knows how much a rescued pet can mean to a family. In fact, the company was founded through the inspiration of a rescued dog named “Annie.” Founders Douglas Spiker, DVM, and Christine Battista, MS, discovered Annie as an abandoned and seriously ill puppy in New Port Richey, FL. Annie inspired Spiker and Battista to create Essentials PetCare, a veterinary clinic that would provide affordable, accessible, and quality care, so cost would not be a barrier to basic, preventative veterinary care.

But Annie is just one of millions of rescued pets. According to the ASPCA, Americans adopt about 3.2 million shelter animals (1.6 million dogs and 1.6 million cats) every year. Each of those pets has a story to tell, just like Annie, and those stories need to be told. That is why Essentials PetCare is launching the Lucky Pet initiative on March 1st and encourages pet owners to share their “Lucky Pets” and tell their rescue stories.

“Every rescued pet has a story,” says Battista, “We want to give pet parents a platform to tell it.”

To participate, pet owners can post photos of their pets on Facebook, include the hashtag #LuckyPet, and tag @EssentialsPetCare with summaries of their pets’ adoption stories.

During the month of March, there will also be a “Lucky Pet” selfie station in the clinic’s lobby, which is located on the west side of the Port Richey Walmart. Pets and their owners can pose with St. Patrick’s Day props to make fun and shareable photos to help us spread the word about the many benefits of pet adoption.

“We hope that featuring these “Lucky Pets” will also inspire others to rescue their own lucky pet,” says Battista. “Pasco County shelters and rescues have many pets in need of forever homes.”