PetSmart Charities
92
13
"Up" is the number of experts who agree that the nonprofit has had the most impact in the
field. "Down" is the number of experts who disagree that the nonprofit has had the most impact in field.
Headquarters Location: Phoenix, AZ
Founded: 1994
Mission: To improve the quality of life for all companion animals by creating and supporting programs that save the lives of homeless pets and promote healthy relationships between people and pets.
Summary
Stories
Expert Reviews
Leadership
From the Nonprofit
Leadership
Susana Della Maddalena.
Susana Della Maddalena joined PetSmart Charities, Inc. in July 2003 as vice president and executive director. She is responsible for ensuring the long-term growth and success of the organization's fundraising and grant-making programs to achieve the PetSmart Charities vision of a lifelong, loving home for every pet. Since 2003 she has successfully led the organization to more than $40 million…
See full bio.
Financial Data
Overhead Ratio:
14.42%
Total Revenue:
$30,625,006
From the Nonprofit
The nonprofit has not added any comments yet. If you are a representative of this nonprofit and would like to leave a comment, please email us at
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Contact Info
Website:
E-Mail:
info AT petsmartcharities.org
Phone:
800-423-7387
Facebook:
Address:
19601 N 27th Ave
Phoenix, AZ 85027, USA
Twitter:
Story:
We are the largest funder of animal-welfare efforts in North America. We have provided $134 million in grants and programs benefiting animal-welfare organizations and have helped save the lives of more than 4.5 million pets through our PetSmart Charities® Adoption Centers located inside every PetSmart® store. We have been able to accomplish this through the support of PetSmart, Inc. Since 1988, PetSmart, Inc.'s founders have made a conscious decision not to sell dogs and cats. Instead, they allocated space in their stores for pet adoption agencies to utilize to help address pet overpopulation.
Expert Reviews of PetSmart Charities
Evidence of Impact Summary:
PetSmart Charities is the largest grantmaker funding spay neuter programs and advancing adoption of homeless pets. Their focus is entirely on companion animals but the impact is profound. They have enabled 4 million adoptions to date and distributed $109 million in grants in their fifteen year history, primarily to local shelters.See expert comments.
Organization Strengths Summary:
PetSmart Charities applies tried and true business practices which are often absent in the nonprofit sector. Additionally, PetSmart Charities has made a practice of identifying and then hiring animal welfare professionals who have proven their creativity, leadership, and expertise. By funding small- and medium-sized organizations and working closely with organizations in the animal welfare field, they have maintained a strong understanding of and connection with this sector.See expert comments.
Areas for Improvement Summary:
According to experts, PetSmart Charities should better publicize the great work they do to the general public. Additionally, they should reevaluate the stringent nature of their grant requirements.See expert comments.
Expert Comments: Evidence of Impact
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Funding |
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They have very deep pockets. | ||
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PetSmart Charities is the largest grant maker funding spay neuter programs and advancing adoption of homeless pets. | ||
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Those little dollars that people donate when they check out at PetSmart stores add up to saving a lot of animals lives. I think that PetSmart Charities is one of the biggest unsung heroes in the national animal welfare stage. They quietly and efficiently deliver hundreds of thousands of dollars of desperately needed supplies to temporary emergency animal shelters that are set up to rescue animals from large-scale animal cruelty situations like puppy mills and hoarding cases, or to house pets displaced by disasters like tornadoes and fires. Their volunteers forego the emotional benefits of “touching the fur” to spend long days in difficult weather conditions assembling cages to make a temporary shelter. Additionally, PetSmart Charities provides small nonprofits with grants to enable them to do their work, as well as free webinar training. Their training topics are always top-notch and make an untold impact on the lives of animals throughout the country. | ||
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There commitment to the markets they serve is outstanding. They provide funding to assist with spay/neuter and other operations. | ||
Great Programs |
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They have been instrumental in funding start up and expansion of spay/neuter clinics and programs. Their focus on prevention has set an example for others to follow. They provide education and mentoring in addition to funds for these programs. They gather and share data from across the country. They now insist on targeting and programs they fund must be able to measure impact in terms of lives saved. | ||
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PetSmart supports proven programs that help end the killing of companion animals. | ||
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They are really leading the way in prompting spay and neuter and have done a great job getting money into the hands of those that can use it effectively. | ||
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PetSmart Charities has done an outstanding job of supporting pet adoption and spay/neuter. Kudos to them! | ||
Great Research |
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This organization has taken an active role to improve the welfare of companion animals. Using funds raised in the for-profit PetSmart stores, they have funded non-invasive research, sponsored large meetings of national leaders to discuss important issues (e.g., screening of potential adopters from animal shelters), and facilitated the development of national guidelines for topics including for high quality, high volume spay/neuter programs). | ||
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They are research-focused to some extent and aimed at developing data on best practices and replication at the local level. They have perhaps the least resources for impact but do a great job with what they have. | ||
Innovation |
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PetSmart Charities' funding is strong and their programming is innovative. | ||
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PSC is a leader of the pack in terms of defining new and innovative animal welfare funding strategies. It is a highly proficient fundraiser and provides some of the most generous extramural grants in the animal welfare industry. A focus on research and outcome assessments make PSC a leader in developing evidence-based funding decisions for maximum impact. | ||
Leader in their Field |
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They are pioneering the funding of excellent animal transport to address the issue of regional population differences and significantly save lives in high-population, high-euthanasia areas. This work has changed what animal sheltering looks like in many areas. | ||
Partnerships |
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PetSmart Charities Inc is a corporate grantmaking foundation that has developed a strategic approach to companion animal welfare (mostly equines, dogs and cats). They work well with other funders as partners and they are visionary. | ||
Raising Awareness |
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Their focus is entirely on companion animals but the impact is profound. The inclusion of an adoption center inside each of Petsmart's >1100 stores created a paradigm shift in getting adoptable pets exposed to a well targeted public, and made possible for far more rehoming to be done without brick and mortar shelters. They have enabled 4 million adoptions to date and distributed $109 million in grants in their fifteen year history, primarily to local shelters. And the have an extensive webinar series that is bringing education to local shelters at no cost. | ||
Strong Evaluation |
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PetSmart Charities has had tremendous impact by focusing on giving organizations the information they need to succeed and by funding targeted programs for which effect can be measured. They discover and then share best practices through conferences, mentoring, webinars, and other resources to help small- and medium-sized organizations be most effective. They focus their grantmaking on models that have proven to be effective and/or that can make a strong case for the promise of their programs. They measure success and then if those new or existing models prove effective, they help other organizations implement them. | ||
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Their recent changes in funding strategy to more outcome-based expectations vs. process goals will be a certain boost to the progress toward reducing pet overpopulation. Initially, their changes were difficult to integrate for many organizations; however, PetSmart has continued, through their webinar series, to educate their potential funding recipients regarding outcome measurements. This education, with or without receipt of funding, will improve the operations of animal shelters' sterilization programs. | ||
Training |
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They disseminate important training to shelters through webinars. Through the development and modeling of responsible animal transport programs. | ||
Expert Comments: Organization Strengths
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Solid Educational Services |
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PetSmart Charities has good spay & neuter focus, education and emergency services. | ||
Effective Management of Resources |
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PetSmart Charities has great leadership that effectively manages their finances. | ||
Strong Staff |
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They do all this wonderful work with few staff and a great corps of volunteers. They are wonderful to work with. | ||
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They seem committed to actually making change and they have a knowledge staff. | ||
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The top officers and staff are wonderful to work with. | ||
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They have a strong team of animal welfare professionals on their team, many of whom have experience in shelters or in other areas of animal welfare practice, so their grantmaking and initiatives are well-informed. | ||
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Their local presence helps make a direct connect with non profits and individuals. Store personnel are corporate but many represent the PetSmart Charities mission with skill and sincerity. They have strong fundraising strengths with in-store mechanisms to raise dollars. This helps the invest in quality staff and personnel at reasonable costs compared to revenue. Unique ability to support disaster work with product. | ||
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PetSmart Charities has made a practice of identifying and then hiring animal welfare professionals who have proven their creativity, leadership, and expertise. By funding small- and medium-sized organizations and working closely with organizations in the animal welfare field, they have maintained a strong understanding of and connection with this sector. | ||
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They have a wealth of very experienced people. They are very strategic in their approach. They understand the sheltering and animal welfare at a big picture level as well as at an operational level. | ||
Effective Business Practices |
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They are one of the largest funders for programs of prevention in the country. They apply tried and true business practices which are often absent in our field. | ||
Financial Stability |
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PetSmart Charities is well run and has developed a stable funding stream. | ||
Clear Vision |
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PetSmart Charities has vision, focus, an openness to innovation, and great leadership. | ||
Effective Grant Making |
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PetSmart Charities is a key player in grant making. They are looking to take big short term efforts to see if real change can be effected in selected locations. | ||
Expert Comments: Areas for Improvement
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Foundation Professionals (F)
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Researchers and Faculty (R)
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Nonprofit Senior Staff (N)
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Other (consultants, journalists, policy makers) (O)
Less Stringent Grant Requirements |
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They need to not be so cookie cutter-ish. They need more flexibility especially to help the small fries. | ||
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They have unnecessarily stringent grant requirements. | ||
Cumbersome Processes |
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I have heard complaints that their application and reporting process are too difficult. I find the level of detail for applications and follow up reports is high but would expect that considering the high level of gifts and their focus on impact producing programs. | ||
Get Less Involved in Programs |
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They try to get into running programs rather than simply identifying and supporting good programs. | ||
More Collaborative |
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They need stronger leadership leveraging collaboration among other national non-profits to create a safety net across the U.S. to further reduce euthanasia. They have a unique opportunity to advance visionary initiatives that they do not, because of risk aversion. | ||
Leadership Stability |
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There has been a lot of change in the executive leadership of the organization over the past several years; a few years of stability could help make the organization even stronger. A resource-oriented newsletter targeted toward grantees and other animal welfare professionals and advocates could be helpful. | ||
Better Marketing |
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Some of the goals that they set for potential grantees are unattainable, making the acquisition of grants unattainable. They should better publicize the great work they do to the general public. | ||
Not Well Thought Out Strategy for Spay/Neuter and Decrease Euthanasia Initiatives |
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I fear they are becoming too focused on the bean counters and that is hampering their efforts. | ||
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Their approach and implementation for targeted spay/neuter has not been well thought out and remains a challenge. | ||
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PetSmart appears to want to decrease euthanasia in cities but has no direct support for groups who are actively decreasing euthanasia by working with animals already at a shelter and safely removing them from death row. | ||
Provide More Funding |
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For a long time PetSmart Charities provided both funding and leadership for small rescue groups and shelters. However in recent years they seem to be less about funding needed programs than they are about getting the PetSmart label and logo in public venues. There is a lot of grumbling by small rescue groups about the change in focus. | ||
Leadership
Susana Della Maddalena
Vice President & Executive Director
Vice President & Executive Director
From the Nonprofit
The nonprofit has not added any comments yet. If you are a representative of this nonprofit and would like to leave a comment, please email us at
feedback@myphilanthropedia.org
with your request.