Singapore, 5 October 2014 – Over 6500 people and 450 dogs turned up for a fun day out at Singapore’s largest dog adoption event over the weekend, 4th and 5th October, at the 3rd edition of National Geographic Channel (NGC) Free Pet Shop, with a flurry of activities available for both dog owners and their furry friends at Big Splash, East Coast Park, 12 noon to 6pm.
The NGC Free Pet Shop registered over 300 interested adopters who registered their interest at eight participating no-kill dog shelters – Action for Singapore Dogs, Animal Lovers League, Causes for Animals, Gentle Paws, Noah’s Ark Cares, Save Our Street Dogs, Three Legs Good, and Uncle Khoe’s K9 Shelter– over the weekend. This event presented an opportunity for the public to bring their elderly family members and children to mingle and interact with more than 150 dogs to determine which dogs are best suited for different family conditions.
Said Mr Victor Ting, 45, self-employed and father of two children aged 6 and 9, “The NGC Free Pet Shop is a good platform for me to teach my children about pet responsibility. There is no better way to learn about what dog adoption entails than bringing them here, interacting with the shelter representatives. It gives them valuable insights into what to expect if we do make a decision to adopt one day.”
The NGC Free Pet Shop returned for its third edition this year with a focus on education and encouraging animal compassion following recent news articles on animal abuse. As part of National Geographic’s global mission to inspire people to care about the planet, NGC Singapore brought together over 30 partners comprising no-kill dog shelters, pet industry experts and service providers, government and private organisations on one common platform to educate public members on pet responsibility and to encourage animal compassion across all ages..
Commenting on the change of society’s mindsets towards animals in general, Mr. Ricky Yeo, President of Action for Singapore Dogs said, “We experienced a good turnout for the event despite participating in this event for the third year. Kudos to the National Geographic Channel team for embarking on the journey to bring together so many like-minded partners! In addition, we observed a change in mindset not only towards adoption, but also towards the acceptance of Singapore Specials, a common name for mongrels and mixed breed dogs. This is evident with the increase in the number of queries and number of shelters helping the street dogs.”
The NGC Free Pet Shop has once more created more opportunities for dogs to have a second chance at life and to be accepted into a loving home. Interested adopters will go through an adoption process that will involve screening process, assessment of adopter’s lifestyle and family conditions, as well as guidance and support for pet care upon successful adoption.
For more updates, profiles of dogs available for adoption, and access to the NGC Free Pet Shop community, visit www.facebook.com/NGCFreePetShop.