Daffy's Pet Food Bank to Use Mobile Units

Daffy's Pet Soup Kitchen is poised to serve even more pets and their owners, with the addition of mobile food centers.

Tom Wargo, the owner and founder of the Gwinnett County nonprofit, said it was always the plan to be in multiple cities, but the idea was mostly built on having stand-alone facilities. And, those facilities cost a lot money to run.

Now, Daffy's is moving toward a more mobile approach. The new model will cut down on pet owners having to drive many faraway miles to a Daffy's location -- one in Lawrenceville and one in Austell.

It also will cut down on the number of deliveries Daffy's does. Wargo, of Lilburn, also expects that Daffy's will be able to easily double the number of clients reached.

"People just can't afford to get to us," Wargo said, referencing the rising cost of gas. "It doesn't help being the biggest pet food bank in the country if people can't get to us."

Initially, 10-15 mobile units are planned for various counties. The first will likely be in Lawrenceville, and it is expected to be ready in a month, Wargo said.

Details are still being worked out, but Wargo said that at least two people will run each mobile center, and that the local community would play an integral part. Local businesses sign up to sponsor a unit for as little as $75 a month, with multiple businesses sponsoring one unit.

In turn, Daffy's will advertise the businesses on its website, social media and newsletters, among other ways. The money will go to helping pets and pet owners with various services, including vaccinations

"They're helping us out tremendously," Wargo said of sponsors, "so, we're going to be able to keep the food bank open an help out a lot of local people. "

While the mobile centers begin to flourish, Wargo hopes the main warehouse will be able to focus more on large shipments. And, all these changes together help Daffy's to avoid closure.

"If I go out business thousands of animals don't get feed and then end up going to pound or something," he said, "so we can't go out of business."

Want to know more information?

• Contact Daffy's Pet Soup Kitchen at Thesosclubofga@yahoo.com, or call 404-345-6821

See also:

• Barefoot Wine Honoring Daffy's Pet Soup Kitchen
• Greatest Person of the Day: Tom Wargo

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