It’s a national contest and one that all the MaxFund dogs and cats would like you to enter.
Because if you help, the MaxFund Animal Adoption Center, a no-kill shelter in the heart of Denver, will get a $1 million makeover.
Just go to the group’s website, , and imagine how the MaxFund’s current canine residents — Suma, Bravo, Ted, Lucy, Charlie, Skittles, Emma, Cindy and Moe, among others — could benefit.
The MaxFund cats — that’s Cookie, Sonya, Joy, Hans, Stitch and Naomi, to name a few — would purr with joy.
The million-dollar makeover is being sponsored by .
So far, the MaxFund Animal Adoption Center, one of 900 shelters in the country vying for the grand prize, has done well, bouncing between fifth and sixth place in the rankings on the Zootoo website.
Lori Moss, executive director of the MaxFund Animal Adoption Center, says winning the prize would help the Denver shelter at 1025 Galapago St. enormously.
“Since we are a no-kill shelter, winning would be huge,” said Moss. “We are a very small shelter. We’d be able to take in more animals. It would be a better place for them to be until they are adopted.”
The Zootoo website touts the contest as a way for citizens to become heavily involved in community affairs and to help animals.
Zootoo says that many pet shelters lack the financial resources to provide a proper place for pets. The sponsors say that by raising awareness and community support, they can help pet shelters.
The Zootoo website tells visitors how they can support and win points for the shelter of their choice.
Currently in the No. 5 spot, the MaxFund has nearly 315,000 points — not far behind the three shelters immediately in front of it. But it is a ways behind the Washington Area Humane Society, which has more than a million points and is in first place.
There are 62 days left in the competition, however, and Moss believes the MaxFund can win with the support of Denverites and Coloradans.
The MaxFund no-kill shelter was established in 1988 and named after Max, a dog hit by a car. A young woman felt pity and took him to a local Denver vet, Dr. Bill Suro, and his wife, Nanci Suro, the animal hospital manager.
A fish bowl was placed on the front desk for donations to help with Max’s hospitalization, which required five surgeries and eight weeks of recuperation. The sign on the fish bowl read, “The Max Fund.”
Despite all the pain and discomfort from the surgeries and a long period of therapy and rehabilitation, Max never “lost his amazing attitude,” veterinarians said. He was so loved that one of the vets, John Joseph, adopted him.
In that spirit, Moss wants to make the MaxFund shelter so much better.
“We can house 80 dogs and 150 cats,” said Moss. “We have a very clean shelter, but we have to work hard to keep it that way. We use every inch of our shelter. There is no fluff at the shelter.”
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
