Kennel To Couch Inc

K2C’s core program has a two-fold objective:

First, to reduce the amount of Pit Bulls being euthanized due to shelter overcrowding.

K2C focuses on the shelter’s hardest problems. With limited capacity, just one dog at a shelter for a year effectively locks down the percentage of real estate that they occupy for that amount of time. When this happens, it brings the shelters turnover to a grinding halt. When a shelter’s throughput is slowed, it also slows the shelters ability to generate revenue from adoption fees and hinders their ability to help additional dogs which may have been adopted faster. When shelters are full, it increases euthanasia rates and the risk is most critical for any dog that has occupied a kennel for too long.

K2C partner shelters commit to not euthanizing our sponsored Pit Bulls due to overcrowding, giving our Pit Bulls the time needed to get adopted. The K2C quantitative approach to sponsorship selection facilitates maximum volume for the shelter year-round, constantly promoting the adoption of the Pit Bull that will have the greatest effect on throughput, creating optimum turnover of the kennels. This approach has a compounding effect on the shelters ability to generate revenue from adoption fees and ensures that they can help as many dogs as possible because of consistently available kennel space. This system also dramatically lowers the dwell time of any one Pit Bull at the shelter, greatly reducing the mental and emotional impact of prolonged shelter life on the dog and risk of euthanasia.

Second, to break through stereotypes associated with Pit Bulls.

By teaming with nationally recognized training partners and providing the K2C Pibble Package to adopting families, K2C ensures that each Pit Bull adopted through us receives the support necessary to become a well-behaved ambassador for the breed. The trained Pit Bulls will ultimately change hearts and minds through their daily interaction with the public.

Our strategy for achieving our goal is through the implementation of our K2C Shelter Sponsorship which focuses on five focus areas:

1. Changing Hearts – K2C believes that one of the best ways to educate the public and change minds about the Pit Bulls is to simply get more Pit Bulls out of the shelters, properly trained (dogs and owners), creating public ambassadors for the breed. As more Pit Bulls are observed as loving family dogs, the more normalized the idea will become. K2C strives to see more and more people saying, “my neighbor has a pit bull and it is the sweetest thing”.

2. Changing Minds - Our website, blogging efforts, and social media presence not only focus on getting our sponsored pit bulls adopted, it serves as a platform to advocate for pit bulls and change people’s minds about the breed through educational posts and debunking pit bull myths. Our SEO and Domain Authority Strategy will ensure maximum outreach.

3. Maximizing Shelter Throughput - Our program takes a quantitative approach to maximizing our partner shelters’ turnover rates by focusing on Pit Bulls who have been there longest, and incentivizing families to adopt those Pit Bulls. This reduces dwell time for dogs in shelters, reduces the possibility of euthanasia, and creates space for other dogs that may be adopted more quickly.

4. Adoption Retention - The American Humane Society did a comprehensive study to understand how to maximize retention of adopted pets, ensuring they are not returned to the shelter. The study offered eight key findings related to dogs. By offering training and veterinary support at the point of adoption and in the immediate time following as the core of our sponsorship package, K2C addresses six key findings:
a. Offering support at the point of acquisition.
b. Reducing the barrier of ownership with veterinary/general expenses support.
c. Understanding that preparatory work (training) completed before adoption does not have a large effect on retention (K2C training is after adoption to enhance bond with new owner).
d. Implementing an intervention strategy within the first, critical weeks of adoption with professional help with our nationally certified training partners.
e. Providing behavioral support that focuses on solidifying the human-animal bond.
f. Providing an innovative strategy by implementing a post-adoption program that facilitates veterinary visits and cultivates a supportive relationship between adopters, shelter facilities, and the community partners that support us.

5. Engaging the Community – K2C partners with businesses and the community to provide our K2C Pibble Package which is constantly expanding. We are rapidly networking within Maryland to bring several corporate partners, board members, sponsors, and additional capabilities on board all in the spirit of Pit Bull advocacy. The larger the K2C operation grows, the more entrenched our mission becomes within the community that fosters it.

K2C is very active on social media with an aggressive content release schedule. The K2C website contains information on Pit Bull myths and facts and produces blog content to educate the public about the breed. These efforts serve to promote Pit Bulls in a positive light. K2C has a professionally implemented digital marketing and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy which is rapidly advancing K2C’s domain authority. This strategy ensures that K2C’s educational and stigma breaking efforts reach a maximum audience.

Using K2C social media platforms to run paid advertisements for our adoptable Pit Bulls serves a triple utility for K2C.
1. Reaching potential adopters
2. Raising awareness of the organization (driving donations, volunteer efforts, outreach)
3. Driving traffic to the website where we address breed stigma and educational information

Simply put, the quicker we can add additional shelters to our program, the faster we can expand our geographical footprint, and increase the amount of Pit Bull we sponsor. These additional sponsorships will allow us to increase the amount awareness and education initiatives in our community.

In our first few months of operations since the launch of our website on 29 May 2019, Kennel to Couch has achieved the following:

Developed and launched www.kenneltocouch.org with our partners at FifteenFOUR Studios (Baltimore)

Partnered with the Humane Society of Harford County, MD as our first sponsored Kennel

Solidified and partnered with the following community partners to provide "Pibble Package" benefits:
Sit Means Sit Baltimore - Free training assessment
Sit Means Sit Baltimore - Initial training
Sit Means Sit Baltimore - Training Equipment (if necessary)
Banfield Pet Hospital - Free exam and consultation
Embrace Pet Insurance - 5% stacking discount

Engaged in a very aggressive Social Media Strategy via Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Linkedin with over 6000 combined followers

Created and manages a growing Facebook community to assist dogs and people that are outside of the K2C network

Successfully obtained and engaged in a dynamic Google Ads campaign provided by the Google Grant

Began a campaign to add funds that will sustain expansions into additional shelters

MOST IMPORTANTLY - We have gotten our first dogs that we have sponsored adopted!