Wayyyyy back on January 1st I sent an email to my clients with a moment of appreciation for them/you, a nerdy 2023 recap, and a loose plan looking forward to 2024. If you don’t recall or didn’t receive it, I added it to my blog here so feel free to check it out!

Since we’re 3 months into 2024, I wanted to circle back to one of my goals for the year: increasing my donation contributions. I’ve always felt it important to donate not only my time but also money to worthy causes. In fact, it’s also one of The Comfy Pets’ values as a business.

To ensure I accomplish this goal, I chose twelve organizations that hold a special place either in my heart or my client’s hearts, and decided to donate a % of my earnings each month to one of those twelve organizations.

Below is a spotlight of the month’s donation recipients thus far and a short blurb on why I chose that particular organization.

January: St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center (Madison, NJ)

Starting the year with St. Hubert’s seemed to be the most fitting because it’s probably my very first official glimpse into the pet industry and opened my eyes to so many job opportunities I hadn’t known about prior. For six years between my middle school and high school years, I volunteered as one of their kids’ camp counselors (Critter Camp) and then was promoted to Head Counselor. This was by far one of my favorite jobs because I got to learn about and observe all types of animals doing different activities, everything from exotic animals, service dogs, agility dogs, and so much more. It was also a unique look into how my passion for 3 worlds collided: animals, teaching, and kids.

February: Territorio de Zaguates / Land of the Strays (Costa Rica)

As some of you may know, I’m half Costa Rican (my mother was born and partially raised there). My entire family still lives there so it’s very much a part of who I am. I chose this organization as the next donation recipient because, although Costa Rica is a popular tourist destination filled with so much beauty, it’s also home to a LOT of stray animals. If you’ve ever visited the mountains, beaches, or cities, I’m sure you’ve noticed dogs and cats scattered about in all kinds of physical conditions. You can’t escape it; it’s part of the culture. Although it’s been an issue since before I was born, organizations like this one have greatly helped reduce the number of strays by taking them in and finding loving homes. Like many businesses and organizations, I know they struggled in 2020 with the pandemic and had to close the property from visitors (aka potential adoptee families and donors) but they seem to be doing better now!

If you’d like to learn more about them, they were also featured in the Netflix series called “Dogs” (season 1, episode 5).

March: Home for Good Dog Rescue (Berkeley Heights, NJ)

Another role I’ve been lucky to experience is being a Foster Dog Mom through HFGDR. In 2017, I decided to volunteer my time and home by taking in pups that were up for adoption. In a span of about 3 months, I fostered 11 wonderful pups (see photos above for 4 of them: Sarge, Daisy, Toby, and Boseley). It was a very difficult and rewarding time for me. The pups were oftentimes rescued from stressful situations so we never knew what their temperament and personality would be like. It was also a test of my patience and flexibility because I never knew how long I would have with each pup. It could be anywhere from a few hours to 2-3 weeks at a time. However, my favorite part was seeing them slowly open up to me and getting more comfy each moment we spent together. The hardest part was of course saying goodbye when they did finally get adopted…many tears were shed

I hope you enjoyed this trip down memory lane as much as I did! I’m a pretty sentimental and nostalgic person, but it’s also important to look back on previous experiences and see how they led you to where you are in present day.

Stay Comfy,

Tanya