A good friend of my radio show plus a woman who has the biggest heart when it comes to helping animals is Alison Smith of the Triple H Miniature Horse Rescue ranch in Mandan ND. She has helped all kinds of animals. Besides miniature horses, including the regionally known Keifer horses, she’s taken in goats, and most recently a 2 year old dog who came out on the bad side of a battle with a porcupine. He was found with a face full of quills that would end up doing nerve damage to one eye. They gave the dog the name Atticus and after trying to find a good home for him, they decided to keep him.

With Alison’s devotion to help animals of all kinds she told me that at her rescue facility she gets calls every week from people who are looking for help for their cats and dogs. She says “Some pets who have homes still need help, for example if a family whose dad dies, and they have two dogs, they don’t want to take them to a shelter. They are already going through a hard time, they don’t need to be taking up room at a shelter but this family may need help for two or three months until they get back on their feet, with food. So that’s where we would come in. We are starting out heavy in the Bismarck area because that’s where I live but would like to expand it statewide. We want to keep people and their pets together.”

Alison is looking for donations of food but is proposing that various stores or outlets who sell pet food to offer donation bins at their stores. “We are looking for a way that people can buy the pet food and leave it at a bin in the store for pickup later.” When you think about it, it is a true win-win situation, because no one wants to give up a lifelong family pet to a shelter and hopefully they’ll get adopted out.

This pantry is for help with pet supplies too. Leashes, collars, pet toys would be welcome donations and not necessarily have to be new items. But food is the main concern. Atti’s Eats will accept cash donations to help purchase the food as well. Right now the pantry is for cats and dogs, but Alison said that maybe somewhere down the line, that could expand to other pets. Those pet owners who may be in need of help simply fill out a request form, they’ll go through your form, and if you qualify, you’ll receive the help you need for your pet.

If you or someone you know needs help as far as feeding pets or you would like to be part of the donation process to Atti’s Eats, check out the following websites: www.attiseats.com or Atti’s eats on facebook or www.hhhmhr.com. All will give you information on this very unique project.