It’s all paws on deck as two animal welfare organizations are joining forces to educate the public and help eliminate animal cruelty while holding abusers accountable.
Show Your Soft Side, Inc. (SYSS) is the public service campaign created to debunk the notion among young people that hurting animals makes one seem tough. The Maryland Animal Cruelty and Animal Fighting Task Force (MACAFTF) is a nonprofit organization that supports law enforcement officials in stopping animal cruelty and helps hold animal abusers accountable for their crimes.
The two organizations have partnered informally before. Since the inception of SYSS, it has worked closely with MACAFTF to sponsor annual trainings and administer the Soft Side Anti-Cruelty Reward Fund. The two nonprofits have entered into a formal agreement so the Maryland task force is an independent program of Show Your Soft Side.
The Baltimore-based Show Your Soft Side has recruited over 250 celebrity ambassadors nationwide, including athletes, actors, and musicians to act as ambassadors for the message that compassion toward animals is a show of strength. Many programs have emerged from the award-winning campaign, including medical funds for abused dogs and injured street cats, resources for humane educators and teachers, food distributions for people and animals in need, and the aforementioned anti-cruelty reward fund.
MACAFTF founder April Doherty has been investigating animal cruelty cases for nearly two decades and was one of the earliest law enforcement officials photographed for the Show Your Soft Side campaign.
“This Agreement solidifies our long-term collaboration and creates efficiencies,” said Show Your Soft Side co-founder Caroline Griffin, and “enables us to use our platform to support law enforcement in combating animal cruelty in Maryland.”
SYSS and MACAFTF will be co-hosting the annual Animal Abuse Leadership Summit on Dec. 8, 2023. The summit provides training for police officers, animal control, veterinarians, prosecutors and animal advocates on animal abuse investigation, forensics and prosecution.
The summit will take place in Hunt Valley, at the Baltimore County Ag Center and Farm Park. Registration costs $20 and includes an all-day training, breakfast, and lunch. For more information on the summit, or to register, please click this link.
