Dining and drinking wine will go toward a charitable cause for one weekend next month with Wine 4 Paws. Ten percent of all sales from over 75 businesses will go toward the Woods Humane Society from April 25 to 26.
Woods Humane Society is dedicated to supporting homeless animals. The donations help provide basic veterinary medical care, food, shelter, adoption services and counseling, according to Jamie Relth, Woods Humane Society’s director of development.
“It comes at a crucial time of the year when we are starting to see baby kittens and puppies needing shelter, and those animals require a lot of specialized care, foster care and medical care,” Relth said. “It takes a lot of funding for us to be able to help as many of the kittens and puppies as we can.”
Wine 4 Paws has raised over $700,000 for homeless animals since its start in 2009, according to the Wine 4 Paws website.
The Barton Family Estate has participated in Wine 4 Paws for many years, according to Mark Ruiz, Barton Family Estate distillery lead.
“For us, this is a great way to give back and protect our little ones, our little furry guys,” Ruiz said.
The Barton Family Estate sees a couple hundred people participating for the Wine 4 Paws weekend, Ruiz said. The winery offers a discount and wine proposal to customers.
The Woods Humane Society is an independent nonprofit organization that cares for animals that were surrendered from the local community or transferred from overcrowded shelters in California. They care for over 3,000 cats and dogs each year between their two facilities — one in San Luis Obispo and one in Atascadero.
As the weather becomes warmer, the organization sees a larger increase in kittens or pregnant cats that were found on the street or surrendered by their owners from accidental litters, Relth said.
The average medical care costs close to $500 per animal, including flea medication, microchips, updating their vaccines and receiving spay or neuter surgery, Relth said. Some animals require additional medical care, such as dental care or surgery for an injury, which costs more.
“It’s a great way to be a part of your community and essentially give back in ways that you usually wouldn’t,” Ruiz said. “So just a simple wine tasting and the proceeds help protect and keep the shelters going.”