New Jersey animal shelter wants to "neuter your ex" for Valentine's Day
BLACKWOOD, N.J. (CBS) - A New Jersey animal shelter is giving you a chance to help control the pet population and get back at your ex this Valentine's Day. It all started with a social media post.
Homeward Bound Pet Adoption Center's latest promotion is generating a lot of buzz. The Blackwood animal shelter is offering to "neuter your ex." For $50, the shelter is offering to name a feral cat after your ex and then spay or neuter it.
"It's absolutely taken off," Eric Schwartz, director of development for Homeward Bound Pet Adoption Center, said. "A group of us were in a meeting talking about some fun ways to raise money over Valentine's Day. We were discussing a petagram. A board member mentioned that an idea had come through a volunteer about 'neuter your ex.'"
"As we start talking about a tagline, 'Some things shouldn't breed,' I think it becomes so relatable to people," Schwartz added. "Because whether they want to talk about it openly or not, I think an image or a name comes into their mind. So it's just kind of taken off and we're certainly appreciative of the attention that it can bring to these animals."
So far, five cats have been named after some lucky - or not-so-lucky - exes with more calls coming in.
Staff members said they won't use full names - only first names and nicknames are allowed.
Schwartz said the shelter has gotten about 40 to 50 different names. He added he doesn't know if the exes have found out, but the people sending them in are having fun with it.
The promotion is part of the shelter's trap-neuter-return program. The shelter said the donations will go toward keeping its spay program running.
"Our spay and neuter and release program allows us to get some of these stray cats off the streets," Schwartz said. "Obviously, it's a cycle that needs to be broken or at least limited. And to keep these strays off the street is a big help."
You can find out more on Homeward Bound's Facebook page and in the post below.
By the way, Homeward Bound was once the home of Fishtopher, a cat whose Pet Finder profile went viral and led to hundreds of inquires from people seeking to adopt him.
Fishtopher now has a happy home in Maryland and has lost his tomcat cheeks - as seen in a viral post that stated "to be loved is to be changed." You can follow him on X @MrFishtopher or on Instagram @Mister.fishtopher.
