BELLAIRE • MEMORIAL • RIVER OAKS • TANGLEWOOD • WEST UNIVERSITY

Fur a good cause

By Sophia Zisman, age 10 | January 27, 2024

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PAW-SITIVE IMPACT Sophia Zisman, a fifth grader at Horn Elementary, strives to help animals that were cast off by their owners or abandoned. For the last four years, she has raised money for shelter Citizens for Animal Protection. She hopes to become a veterinary surgeon one day.

Have you ever rescued a pet from a shelter? Before you buy from a breeder, check out your local shelter and save a pet in need. I’ve had rescue dogs my whole life (all 10 years) and they make great additions to the family and can be good companions for your kids. We’ve rescued from a few different shelters, but our latest fur-baby came from Citizens for Animal Protection (CAP). We fell in love with her the minute we saw her!

I started fundraising for CAP as a project during quarantine in 2020, but it became so much more. What started with selling slime kits and animal drawings, turned into no-sew blankets, homemade throw toys, and dog/cat treats. My love for pets and desire to raise even more money and awareness about CAP and other pet shelters help me come up with new ideas every year. I’ve already started sewing more dog toys and plan to be at the spring arts festival in Bellaire and am already planning to do my mitzvah project for CAP in 2026.

This year was my fourth year raising money for CAP. I decided to make homemade dog toys, and dog and cat treats to sell online, at the Bellaire Arts & Crafts Festival, and door to door in my neighborhood. Dogs around Houston approved, especially my dogs Mia and Maia! In the past, I’d raised a few hundred dollars, but this year I made my goal a little higher and managed to raise over $1,000, one $5 donation at a time.

You can help pets in need by adopting a pet from a shelter (sometimes they even have guinea pigs and rabbits), starting your own fundraiser, donating supplies and money to CAP (www.cap4pets.org), or making a donation to my annual fundraiser (e-mail my mom, Valerie Zisman, for more details: [email protected]).

My goal next year is to raise $1,500-2,000, and I plan to sell at a few open markets in the Houston area. I love animals and want to be a veterinary surgeon so I can help pets live longer, healthier lives!

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