Celebrating the holidays should not be restricted to humans. Throughout the month of December, Operation Santa Paws encourages people to donate much-needed supplies to animal shelters across the country.  It begins on December 1 and runs through Christmas Eve, December 24.

The campaign was started by Justin Rudd in 2001 as a part of the Haute Dog Organization. The mission is to encourage people to donate treats and pet toys to the animals since many of them won’t get adopted before the New Year, and may have to spend days with little interaction from the public during the holidays. Giving them these gifts can make them feel loved during the quiet season.  Through the years, millions of people have donated and it has been a very successful event.

“Operation Santa Paws will still happen in 2020, but just a bit differently.  We’re asking individuals, businesses, etc. to collect items and take them directly to their favorite shelter or rescue.  There will be no gatherings.  Thanks for helping animals,” Rudd told The Armijo Signal.

You can celebrate by going out and buying one of the animals a toy or a treat to donate to either the SPCA at 2200 Peabody Road in Vacaville or Solano Animal Control at 2510 Clay Bank Road in Fairfield. Another way you can celebrate is by spreading the word on social media with #OperationSantaPaws so that more people can discover it and become involved.

While information about the 2020 celebration is not currently available, this is a good motivation to donate locally in a more casual fashion. Animals deserve to feel loved on the holidays, even if they don’t have a family.