MARKHAM, Ontario, Dec. 04, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Pet Valu, the leading Canadian specialty retailer of pet food and pet-related supplies, proudly announced today that its philanthropic program, Companions for Change, has received more than $4.3 million in monetary and product donations so far in 2025 for Canadian animal organizations.
“We’re very grateful to our devoted pet lovers, franchisees, corporate store teams and vendors whose generosity helped us surpass last year’s record-breaking results. Thanks to their ongoing support, the Companions for Change program has collected almost $37 million since 2010, one hundred per cent of which is distributed to Canadian animal rescues, shelters and charities,” says Tanbir Grover, Chief Marketing and Digital Officer at Pet Valu. “We’re very proud that we’re able to make a meaningful difference to hundreds of Canadian animal rescues, shelters and charities.”
As wildfires and floods displaced thousands of Canadians and their pets this year, the Companions for Change program stepped in to donate much needed pet essentials such as food, litter, bowls, collars, leashes and crates to animal organizations that were providing on-the-ground assistance to evacuated animals and their devoted pet lovers. Animal Food Bank, Canadian Disaster Animal Response Team (CDART), Steinbach Animal Rescue and the Ontario SPCA each received emergency donations. The Niagara SPCA received an emergency product donation to assist with an unexpected, larger than usual, cat intake.
With the goal of leveraging its scale to make meaningful impact, since 2018, Companions for Change sponsorships have been helping worthy Canadian animal organizations fund larger capital projects. In 2025, Pet Valu committed more than $450,000 to sponsorships, including three mobile units: a mobile vet clinic for Coastal Animal Rescue & Education (“CARE”) Network Society on Vancouver Island, a transport bus for Just Four Paws Rescue Society in lower mainland British Columbia, and a transport van for Restigouche County SPCA (“RC SPCA”) in New Brunswick.
Pet Valu is a longtime supporter and sponsor of Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides (“Dog Guides”). In May, it sponsored the Pet Valu Walk for Dog Guides, Dog Guides’ annual fundraising walk which helps the organization continue to raise, train and place Dog Guides for Canadians living with disabilities at no cost to them. The Companions for Change program also continued to sponsor Dog Guides Feeding Program, providing Performatrin Ultra® and Performatrin Prime® food and treats to approximately 200 puppies and dogs in training. Additionally, this year, the Companions for Change program is sponsoring over 20 additional Dog Guides teams.
“As a proudly Canadian, proudly local pet retailer with stores in hundreds of communities across Canada, we’ve seen firsthand how vital local animal organizations are for giving homeless pets a second chance,” says Grover. “In addition to providing donations, our stores work closely with animal rescues in their communities to help find forever homes for pets through in-store adoption events. Since 2010, we’ve helped find fur-ever homes for more than 53,000 homeless pets including over 1,500 this year.”
Donations raised through the Companions for Change program originate from multiple fundraising initiatives hosted by Pet Valu and its franchisees. These include Pet Appreciation Month in June and Companions for Change month in October, during which devoted pet lovers contribute by purchasing PAWS, making custom donations and rounding up their purchases at checkout. This year, Pet Appreciation Month raised over $2.3 million in monetary and product donations, its highest donations to date. Pet Valu and its franchisees also provide additional support by donating $1 per item on the sale of select Performatrin® and Fresh 4 Life® products in October. Devoted pet lovers who are looking for ways to help pets in need during the holiday season can pick up the annual Companions for Change “give-what-you-can” calendar from all Pet Valu stores, outside of Quebec, for a “give-what-you-can” donation. All proceeds go towards the Companions for Change program.
To learn more, please visit: petvalu.ca/companionsforchange or Companions for Change – YouTube.
About Pet Valu
Pet Valu is Canada’s leading retailer of pet food and pet-related supplies with over 800 corporate-owned or franchised locations across the country. For more than 45 years, Pet Valu has earned the trust and loyalty of pet parents by offering knowledgeable customer service, an extensive product offering and engaging in-store services. Through its local neighbourhood stores and digital platform, Pet Valu offers more than 10,000 competitively-priced products, including a broad assortment of exclusive, holistic and award-winning proprietary brands. The Company is headquartered in Markham, Ontario, and has distribution centres in Brampton, Ontario, Surrey, British Columbia and Calgary, Alberta. Its shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: PET). To learn more, please visit: www.petvalu.ca.
MEDIA CONTACT:
For more information or to schedule an interview, contact:
Katherine Clark
[email protected]
416-453-3288
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/835dcc69-ff2d-4dca-99c1-8e369ba60347
