Bissell Pet Foundation sponsors Empty the Shelters in Northern California

On March 18, the Bissell Pet Foundation will host an Empty the Shelters event in Sacramento and Vallejo, and throughout Northern California.

For the event, the foundation will pay all adoption fees at more than 20 shelters and rescue organizations, and will provide a leash to all families who adopt dogs and a collar for all cat adoptees.

“The goal for Empty the Shelters is to encourage people to choose adoption first,” Cathy Bissell, founder of Bissell Pet Foundation, said in a press release. “Our hope is that hundreds of homeless pets will sleep well knowing the comfort of a new home and a loving family.”

In order to participate in the event, shelters had to partner with other local rescue organizations to refill their shelters once pets have been adopted. The goal is to not only provide pets with loving homes, but to reduce euthanization rates at overfull shelters throughout the region.

Bissell Pet Foundation ran three separate Empty the Shelter events throughout the U.S. in 2016, resulting in homes for more than 2,800 cats and dogs, the foundation said in the release.

Nationwide, around 2.7 million pets are euthanized each year, the foundation said.

Bissell Pet Foundation is a nonprofit organization that works to reduce the number of animals in shelters and to support organizations dedicated to the humane care and treatment of animals. It is supported by Bissell Homecare, a Michigan-based floor care and appliance brand that has been in business for 140 years.

For more information about Empty the Shelters, visit