National Puppy Mill Project Needs Your Help ......Mark Your Calendars for September 27

ACTION ALERT: 2015 National Puppy Mill Awareness Day (PMAD) êê MARK YOUR CALENDARS AND SAVE THE DATE! êê
Sunday, September 27, 2015 is National Puppy Mill Awareness Day
Help end puppy mills and their cruelty—hold a PMAD in your city/town! There are many ways you can raise awareness—find one that works for you! Here are a few ideas:

• If you already know of an event taking place in your town that day see if you can join forces.
  
• Hold a pet store protest.
  
• Plan a pet walk.
  
• Lead a “March”.
  
• Ask pet-friendly businesses in your town to hold a PMAD promotion
  offering discounts.
  
• Hold an adoption event with a rescue.
  
• Hold an educational event at a local library.
  
• Organize a walk.
  Any event will work, large or small. Raising awareness is the point! Here is how to start planning your event!
  ê Are there any related events already scheduled this day that could tie in to or incorporate Puppy Mill Awareness Day? An adoption event, peaceful protest, dog festival, dog walk, etc. Check local ordinances to see if permits are needed for the additional large groups that will attend.
  ê Hold a peaceful protest in front of a pet store that sells puppies. Find out what the laws are regarding where you can be in proximity to the store (contact your local law enforcement).

ê Hold the event in a city park or other public space nearby which is easily accessible by the public and with ample parking (you may need an event permit; check with your local Park/Recreation District). Do you know of a local band or entertainer that would donate their time and talent to the event? Honor a local leader or organization for their support of animal welfare and consumer protection. Anything that will attract positive public and media attention to the cause!
ê Lead a march/walk down a main street (in Chicago, we walk down Michigan Avenue), or from a pet store to a park. Invite rescue groups and shelters to participate, as well as veterinarians, vet hospitals/emergency clinics/specialty clinics. You may need a permit and will need to alert your local police department to see if you need a police escort or additional police presence, and possibly alert business owners along the route. Have posters and signs made for the event to pass out to your team to carry and be sure to use our National logo for your posters and put your town on it (contact NPMP for branding/logo information). Encourage participants to make and bring their own signs as well.
Ask some of the pet-friendly businesses in the area to offer a special PMAD discount/promotion. Might they offer to donate water and snacks (health bars, cookies, healthy dog treats, etc.) to participants for after the walk? Will they sponsor the walk by providing goods/services in exchange for free advertising/exposure?
Invite a local celebrity/well-known animal welfare advocate to emcee the march/walk. Or secure a legislator that supports our mission and have them do a short speech to kick off the march/walk. Contact your Mayor, Village President, Councilman, Senator, etc.
ê Hold an adoption event with local rescue groups and shelters. Have them bring adoptable dogs and rescued puppy mill dogs (for their safety, only those that are well-behaved and used to crowds).
ê Hold an educational event to share the message. Have a local veterinarian give out information on pet care, and speak about the common medical issues seen in puppy mill/pet store puppies.

ê Organize a pet walk. Encourage people to bring their dogs, children, and friends (but only those that are well-behaved and used to crowds— this applies to all three—we do not want any negative publicity) to all activities.
To help promote your event, have t-shirts printed with the NPMP logo + ‘Puppy Mill Awareness Day 2015 (your city/town)’ on the front. Print ‘#WipeOutPuppyMills’ on the back. You can add your own PMAD logo and sponsor logos if you would like. Contact us for the NPMP logo or suggestions.
Don’t forget to take lots of pictures!
BE CREATIVE! Again, any event, large or small, dedicated to raising awareness of the existence of puppy mills, is the goal.
Be sure to let National Puppy Mill Project know what you will be doing so we can add you to our press and social media campaigns.
How to ‘get the word out’ about your event:
Identify free/low cost advertising outlets: local radio stations, local cable TV channels, college radio stations, etc.
Have posters, flyers and postcards printed (ask for a non-profit discount or sponsorship opportunity) and place them around the city to promote your event. Think community bulletin boards in local coffee shops/restaurants, college campus student centers, public kiosks, etc. Be sure to use our National logo for your printed material and put your town on it (contact NPMP for branding/logo information).
Hold a news conference with elected officials to raise public awareness of the existence of puppy mills and their connection to pet stores selling puppies and the problem of pet overpopulation.
Invite elected officials to visit a local rescue or shelter to showcase the wide variety of pets available for adoption and to promote pet adoption over ‘shopping’.

Ask your mayor or other elected official to send a letter/memorandum to all city employees about Puppy Mill Awareness Day. Ask your local leadership to issue a proclamation recognizing Puppy Mill Awareness Day.
Submit an editorial or letter to the local newspaper.
Encourage your newspaper or schools to sponsor essay or other contests.
Contact the press and let them know about the event. We can help you write a press release about your event to send to local media outlets.
Please share your ideas with others! Together, our voices WILL be heard and puppy mill cruelty WILL end!
Have you already scheduled your Puppy Mill Awareness Day event? That’s great! Please let us know the date, time and location and we will include it in National Puppy Mill Project’s advertising, press releases, social media campaign, website, etc.
Questions? Suggestions? Successes? Challenges? Contact other NPMP members in your area or e-mail info@nationalpuppymillproject.org.
THANK YOU!