Each year, there are over 100,000 cats and dogs in need of adoption across Canada.* The Royale® Home for Every Pet Project raises awareness and funding for animal shelters across Canada to help find more shelter pets loving, fur-ever homes.
PURR-oudly supporting Canadian animal shelters from coast to coast.
Watch Pet Adoption Stories
Adopting a shelter animal brings so much joy to the lives of both the pet and its people. Watch some heartwarming adoption stories below.
Share the project
Meet Our 2022 Pet Ambassadors
Franklin won big when Penny Oleksiak decided to adopt him
Franklin won big when Penny Oleksiak – swimmer, World Champion, and Canada’s most decorated Olympian ever – brought him home after learning his parents could no longer care for him.
Penny says that knowing the unconditional love of her dogs is waiting for her when she comes home helps her to deal with the pressures of competing at an elite level. “They don’t care if I won or lost,” she says. “They are there to offer comfort if I need it.”
Since becoming a member of the Oleksiak household, Franklin has really made a splash. The gold medalist’s golden boy has enjoyed the newfound freedom of his beachside home.
“You can tell he’s in his happy place when he’s just able to roam free and do his thing.”
Meet Our 2022 Pet Ambassadors
Franklin won big when Penny Oleksiak decided to adopt him
Franklin won big when Penny Oleksiak – swimmer, World Champion, and Canada’s most decorated Olympian ever – brought him home after learning his parents could no longer care for him.
Penny says that knowing the unconditional love of her dogs is waiting for her when she comes home helps her to deal with the pressures of competing at an elite level. “They don’t care if I won or lost,” she says. “They are there to offer comfort if I need it.”
Since becoming a member of the Oleksiak household, Franklin has really made a splash. The gold medalist’s golden boy has enjoyed the newfound freedom of his beachside home.
“You can tell he’s in his happy place when he’s just able to roam free and do his thing.”
-993962d6d403e05845953d149561b731.png)
Ace found his perfect match in Kevin Wendt
Ace found his perfect match when Kevin Wendt – Bachelor in Paradise Canada fan favourite – chose him as his lifelong companion. For Kevin, it was love at first sight when he rescued Ace, but it took a little longer for his new partner to warm up to him.
“When we adopted Ace, he was a little timid with me. He wasn’t quite sure! But when he got home with all his toys and treats and dog bed laying out, it didn’t take long to go, ‘Okay, this is the place I want to be!’”
“I think my biggest takeaway from adopting is that there is a dog for everyone,” Kevin says. “Nothing beats a dog’s unconditional excitement and love. They are always just so happy you’re home. It does wonders for your mental health. We save their lives but, in a way, they save ours.”
Now these two fun-loving adventurers are living happily ever after.
-480a0ab9070f179b1c0b801c12098374.png)
Pearl had to be a pretty special kitty to catch the attention of Instagram supermom, Elizabeth Spence
With the Spence household already being home to three children and eight pets (five cats and four dogs – all rescues) taking on another animal wasn’t exactly on the agenda.
“We weren’t looking at the time, which always seems to be the case, but here we are!” says Elizabeth, explaining that her husband’s mother has just passed away from cancer and Pearl was found near her apartment building. “It felt right to bring her into the family,” says Elizabeth.
Despite juggling countless kids, pets, and priorities, Elizabeth couldn’t resist Pearl’s charms and this cultured cat has become the gem of the Spence household. “She’s becoming the ‘Mom’ of the group,” says Elizabeth, adding that her kids are very attached to Pearl and all their rescue animals.
“Kids love the rescuing aspect of having pets,” she says. “It teaches them compassion and going through the adoption process gives them a sense of purpose from day one.”
-7dac55d1166a25f4a3c26a2c1966c4eb.png)
CFL alumnus John Rush’s dog, Bonhomme, is an ambassador for the Canadian Animal Blood Bank
John Rush adopted gentle giant, Bone (full name ‘Bonhomme’) within five minutes of meeting him. But the loveable big guy wasn’t John’s first canine companion. “Pet adoption was a value instilled in me from a young age,” he says, adding, “I would encourage people to reframe their mindset on shelters. Each dog has a personality, emotions, feelings. These dogs are in shelters for no fault of their own. You can find amazing dogs in shelters… You change their lives, but they also change yours.”
Bone has certainly changed John’s life, joining him on a cross-country tour taking in five provinces and eight national parks while assisting him as an ambassador for the Canadian Animal Blood Bank and the Winnipeg Humane Society. Not bad for a 150lb dog whose legs didn’t work when John adopted him.
“Dogs give you a sense of purpose and add some structure to your day,” John says. “Knowing what they went through, the objective is to show them the world and a great life.” Bone is certainly living the good life now, sleeping upside down next to the front door; getting up on the bed and in the car with a little help from his friend; and hanging out with his “menace of a little sister” – fellow rescue dog, Bailey.
-dea2268c6ba3e319d62a63bb66e67b02.png)
Alexe Wolfe is known for training dogs but adopted cat Merida is her home’s feline queen.
Quebec-based animal trainer and Instagrammer, Alexe Wolfe, is best known for the gravity-defying tricks of her dogs, Stitch and Boo. But cool cat Merida is the true queen of Chez Wolfe, having been adopted by Alexe to help one of her other rescue cats – Mulan – to adapt to life with her other rescues (one dog and four cats in total – all from shelters).
As far back as she can remember, Alexe has had a passion for animals. This, along with a university degree in psychology, helped her to become a self-taught animal trainer. Even Merida has learned a trick or two. She can leap up onto Alexe’s shoulders and jump through a hoop.
When asked about the importance of adopting from animal shelters, Alexe says, “So many dogs and cats deserve a better life. Give them a second chance and see how much they can change in your life. An animal can give you a sense of completion and comfort. You need them as much as they need you. They have, each in their own way, a gift to make us feel not only surrounded and respected but loved unconditionally.”
-5111e600a03ad41c80e28a7f3f542079.png)
Shelter Support
As The Kitten Brand®, Royale® believes that everyone, including our four-legged friends, deserves to experience the joy of companionship. That’s why Royale® has brought back the Royale® Home for Every Pet Project, helping more animal shelters than ever before find forever homes for the 100,000+ cats and dogs in need of adoption every year across Canada.*
Now in its third year, the Royale® Home for Every Pet Project has shelter partners in every province across Canada, helping over 130 locations by generating awareness for their needs, contributing Royale® products, and raising funds for in-shelter improvements. In fact, on National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day, Royale® hosted a virtual fundraiser that generated over $300,000 in one weekend for our partner animal shelters across the country!
Royale® is continuing to raise funds and awareness for shelter animals in need of adoption across Canada. It is our goal that this awareness will benefit shelters nationwide by encouraging adoption, community volunteerism, and donations toward this incredibly important cause.
We are currently working on further initiatives that will continue to help organizations who share our mission of finding every pet a loving, fur-ever home. Check out the stories of pets who’ve already found their homes above, or to learn more about Royale® Home for Every Pet Project shelter partnerships, please contact us at:
All segments photographed before mandated social distancing protocols.
Stay up to date on everything Royale®!
Join the Royale® community and receive emails about new pet stories, tips, savings, contests, and more!
Want to know more about the Royale® Home for Every Pet Project? Check out our FAQs section HERE.