BUFFALO, NY. (WIVB)– “That big smile on his face, it changes your whole mood.” said Jason Dust.
Dust’s service dog Sven, along with a semi-blind cat named Jameson, are using their furry faces to help other pets like them find homes.
On Sunday, the Ten Lives Club, the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter, and Resurgence Brewing Company celebrated a launch of two new brews: Sven’s Session IPA and Jameson’s Summer Ale, a part of the second-annual “Resurgence to the Rescue” contest.
Sweet Buffalo: Sven and Jameson are this year’s winners of the Resurgence summer beer can contest
The launch comes from a fundraiser that hundreds of pet owners took part in, raising $1 for every vote on a pet. The animals with the most votes were picked to be the faces of the two new beers.
Sven, the two-year-old Rottweiler, has won for the second year in a row. Dust said he wanted to help bring awareness of local organization that help pets find their forever homes.
“If we can raise money to make sure these animals are taken care of and find homes, then I would do it every year.” said Dust.
Jameson, a one-year-old rescue cat, had the most votes amongst cats. His owner, Sarah Palkowski, is excited to see him bring awareness for other animals just like him.
“Being able to see him on there, even being perfectly imperfect, it shows that shelter cats really deserve a good home.” Palkowski said. “Adopted cats and rescue cats have so much love to give, and when they’ve finally found it, they’re going to go above and beyond.”
The contest raised over $100,000 for the two animal shelters. Additionally, a portion of the proceeds from each can purchased will go to the Ten Lives Club and the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter.
Organizers encourage people to purchase the 6-pack throughout the summer and scan the QR codes on the cans to learn more about how they can help the organizations, which are always looking for donations, volunteers and to help find pets homes.
For more information on how to help the Ten Lives Club, click here. For more information on how to help the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter, click here.