NEW YORK — Hill’s Pet Nutrition announced May 26 it has partnered with The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement to donate $400,000 in grants to benefit United States animal shelters facing COVID-19 impacts.

The pet food company has also donated 450,000 lbs of pet nutrition products to impacted shelters over the last eight weeks, said Jesper Nordengaard, president of Hill’s Pet Nutrition.

"Hill's has a long history of supporting animal shelters through our Food, Shelter & Love program and Disaster Relief Network… but, the financial impact shelters have felt as a result of the pandemic means we must do more,” Nordengaard said. "Our strong relationship with the association, coupled with their deep connections within the animal welfare community, creates a natural partnership that will allow us to quickly distribute this assistance to shelters that need it most."

Hill’s will provide financial assistance to animal shelters to support adoption and foster programs, in-shelter veterinary care, veterinary care for fostered animals, operational expenses and community support.

"Hill's Pet Nutrition has long been one of the largest corporate supporters of the animal welfare movement, supporting local sheltering organizations as well as The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement for many years,” said Jim Tedford, president and chief executive officer of The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement. "We are so proud of our strong partnership and we're extremely excited to work with Hill's to get resources into the hands of shelters in need. For some organizations, these grants will quite literally help keep them afloat during this crisis."

Grant applications will be accepted May 26 through June 2. Funds will be distributed no later than August 31, 2020. To learn more and apply for these grants, shelters can visit https://www.hillspet.com/about-us/community-support/hills-response-to-covid19.

Read about other pet industry companies giving back to support people impacted by COVID-19.