“Every time we come, they are so kind, and everyone of course loves the dogs and loves the cats,” said Tammy Workley, who assists with the canine adoption program through Friends of the Burlington County Animal Shelter. The pets initiative at Subaru of Cherry Hill was held on Oct. 18.
It was not your typical Saturday at Subaru of Cherry Hill.
There were purrs and wet kisses – all part of the Subaru Loves Pets initiative on Oct. 18.
“We have Friends of the Burlington County Animal Shelter, a group that works with the shelter to help their pets get adopted,” shared Donovan Robinson, internet sales manager at Subaru. “We have partnered with them for quite a few years. This is an annual initiative that we have as part of Subaru Loves Pets.
“We do offer a sponsorship for this event as well. If there are up to 30 animals adopted, we also give a donation towards Friends of the Burlington County Animal Shelter.”
Every October, Subaru retailers partner with local animal welfare organizations to help prepare shelter pets for adoption through grants administered by the ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) and hosts pet events at its location, according to the Subaru of America website.
Subaru believes that all pets deserve loving homes. The ASPCA reports that 5.8 million dogs and cats entered shelters and rescues in 2024, where many live day after day without the love of a family or a home.
As part of its annual initiative, Subaru purchases 60 specialty kits, half for dogs and half for cats, Robinson said. The kits for cats include cat scratching posts, toys and collars and kits for dogs include a leash, a couple of toys, a water dish and disposable bags.
The Subaru Loves Pets initiative is held at the dealership, with additional events throughout the year. The Friends of the Burlington County Animal Shelter participated with Subaru at the Haddonfield Crafts & Fine Arts Festival in July, the Haddonfield fall festival in October and the Philadelphia Art Show in June and September.
“We like to do two events here, whether at the dealership or events we sponsor,” Robinson explained, “whether it’s offering some volunteers to a location to help set things up or giving a monetary donation. It’s kind of multi-layered.
“This is our on-site event, then we do some things throughout the year, usually halfway through the year during the summertime so (the Friends) don’t have to wait until October to get this done. This is a more localized event,” he added, emphasizing that the dealership event is done to “try to capture some other people that are in our dealership on a Saturday, when it’s busiest and the most foot traffic around.”
Those who came in on Oct. 18 got to meet eight cats and two dogs.
Karleen Canfield, member of the board for the Friends, said the Subaru of Cherry Hill initiative has helped give exposure to the shelter’s cats and dogs, as well as their organization.
“October is a big adoption month,” she noted. “We are basically looking to get them adopted and let the staff snuggle some of the kitties and pet some dogs.”
Canfield is the former director of the Hissy Hut, a cat adoption and TNVR (Trap, Neuter, Vaccinate and Release) portion of the Friends of the Burlington County Animal Shelter.
“(Interested adopters) can put in an application,” she pointed out of the adoption process. “They wouldn’t be able to walk out with the cat today, but they can put in an application and then an adoption coordinator would review it and give them a call.
“They will come in and meet the animal, or if they have already met the animal, they can come and pick (their new pet) up.”
The Hissy Hut is located at 84 Mill St. in Mount Holly.
“Our adoption center is all cats who have come from outside, whether trapped … or someone reports that they have a friendly cat that has come around,” Canfield explained. “If we have space, we will take him/her in and find them a loving home …
“And kittens, we take in as many kittens as we possibly can until we’re maxed out.”
The Hissy Hut also has a barn program that takes in non-adoptable cats. The Friends of the Burlington County Animal Shelter is a community-driven nonprofit that supports the shelter.
“We take some of the burden off the staff by helping to socialize cats, walk the dogs – we’ll even help clean out the runs, all kinds of stuff,” Canfield said. “We support them and give them more bodies.”
The dog portion is foster based.
“We’re trying to find a piece of land to do the same thing for the dogs,” Canfield reported. “We just can’t seem to find the right property or land, but we are keeping our fingers crossed on that aspect.”
Tammy Workley assists with the foster dog program.
“We have a small, but dedicated group of volunteers …” she said. “We pull our dogs directly from the Burlington County Animal Shelter. These are the dogs that aren’t doing well with the shelter that need a little extra attention and need to be in homes. Maybe they have medical issues, maybe they got some anxiety …
“We do our best to get them into a foster home and then adopted, Workley added. “That’s our goal.
Workley commented on how initiatives like Subaru’s are extremely helpful.
“Even if we don’t get adoptions out of this, we get the word out,” she insisted. “The dogs get a lot of good socialization, and they are exposed to the environment.”
And Subaru of Cherry Hill, Workley says, has been “so generous.”
“Every time we come, they are so kind, and everyone of course loves the dogs and loves the cats,” she remarked. “It feels like we’re royalty here. It’s a really great company.”
The initiative also gave Friends’ members a chance to promote October’s Pitbull Awareness Month.
“Pitbulls have such a terrible reputation,” Workley said. “But they really are not. They are love bugs.”
Caryn Vlassenko currently fosters Krampus, a Pitbull breed.
“If we were home right now, we would be cuddling,” she said.
With fosters, Workley said, the program can offer potential adopters photos and details of how they are with their temporary families.
For more information about the Friends of the Burlington County Animal Shelter, visit friendsofbcas.org. For more information about the Subaru Loves Pets initiative at Subaru of Cherry Hill, visit www.subaruofcherryhill.com.
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