The Combined Federal Campaign’s cause of the week is animal welfare.
According to 2019 statistics from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals:
• About 6.3 million companion animals entered U.S. shelters.
• Around 920,000 didn’t make it out alive.
While those numbers are a big improvement from 2011 — when the figures were 7.2 million and 2.6 million, respectively — there is still lots of work to be done.
Pets and companion animals are only a small part of what falls under the umbrella of animal welfare, which also includes how farm and laboratory animals are treated, marine and wildlife conservation, and humane education, cruelty prevention and other topics.
If you are unsure of where to focus your giving in this category, the website for the campaign, also known as the CFC, makes it easy:
• Under “CFC Giving System” on the homepage, choose the “Online Charity Search” link.
• You will be brought to the “Find a Charity” page. The second field shown will be “Select a Specific Category.” Choose “Animal-Related.”
The Combined Federal Campaign is the federal government’s workplace charity drive. The latest campaign began Sept. 1 and runs through Jan. 14.
Participation in the CFC is voluntary.
The GiveCFC.org website has more information.