6th Annual Great Harvest Bread Company's Animal Kneads Day

Animal Kneads Day is Animal Care & Control's largest annual fundraiser with all proceeds benefiting our Free Public Spay & Neuter Fund. The event is held at Great Harvest Bread Company with 16 local vendors participated along with 16 businesses in the shopping center. During the month of August, Great Harvest Bread Company opens on a Sunday, which is not a regular business day, and the owners and staff donate their time and the ingredients to make hundreds of loaves of bread. Charlotte-Mecklenburg is one of the top 10 fastest-growing US metro areas, and as the Charlotte area continues to grow, so does its animal population. There are an estimated 400,000 cats and dogs living in the metro area, and many of these animals are stray. As a municipal shelter, Animal Care & Control cannot turn away any animal, regardless of the shelter's capacity. Last year alone, due to severe overpopulation of unwanted animals, the shelter had to euthanize 12,632 cats and dogs (in FY09), many of which would have been adoptable. To help reduce the number of animals coming into the shelter, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Animal Care & Control Division (CMPD-ACCD) instituted a Free Public Spay & Neuter Assistance Program. This program is funded solely through donations and grants, which makes Animal Kneads Day our most important annual fundraiser.