The Mitzvah Fund, Inc

08/19/2025

🐾 Tonight, the Mitzvah Fund was proud to host a hybrid training with Emily Lewis, a certified Dog Behavior Consultant with Vermont Dog Behavior, on defensive handling of fractious and fearful dogs.

This session brings together veterinary and first responder professionals to strengthen best practices in safely managing the behaviors most often encountered when caring for sick, injured, or abused animals. By focusing on defensive handling, participants gain skills that reduce risk while improving compassionate outcomes for animals in crisis.

The Mitzvah Fund’s mission is to provide free, compassionate veterinary care to pets whose owners face financial hardship. Learn more at: www.themitzvahfund.org

Vermont Dog Behavior is dedicated to improving the lives of dogs and their families through education, training, and behavior support. Learn more at: www.vtdogbehavior.com

Together, we are working to keep both animals and professionals safer while strengthening care for our most vulnerable companions. 🐕💙

08/18/2025

🐶 Unleashed & Paw‑fect: Mitzvah at Lawson’s Finest Bark Park! 🐾

We had a pawsome time celebrating the grand opening of the new dog-friendly beer garden at Lawson’s Finest Liquids in Waitsfield! Their 750 sq ft fenced deck—right off the Mad River Path—is now a tail-wagging haven where pups can hydrate, socialize, and soak up the good vibes alongside their humans.

Why it matters:
The Mitzvah Fund is dedicated to nurturing the bond between people and their pets by providing free, compassionate veterinary care to those in need. Community events like this help us raise awareness—and critical funds—for vital pet health services.

We’re thrilled to share that the Mitzvah Fund will be the featured beneficiary of Lawson’s Finest Sunshine Fund from August 16–31!

This amazing program donates 100% of taproom cash contributions to local nonprofits working to make a difference in Vermont. When you visit Lawson’s during that time, your donation at the bar directly supports our mission to care for pets and the people who love them. Learn more at: lawsonsfinest.com/sunshine-fund-2025

📅 Here’s how you can get involved:

👉 Learn more about our mission: themitzvahfundvt.org

Huge thanks to Lawson’s Finest for creating such a joyful space for pups and their people—and to you, our incredible supporters, for helping us do more good every day.

08/17/2025

08/17/2025

🐾💛 Today’s the day!

Join us at Lawson’s Finest Liquids in Waitsfield starting right now as the Mitzvah Fund is the featured Sunshine Fund beneficiary! 🎉

🍻 Stop in, enjoy a pint, check out their new dog-friendly beer garden, and help support free, compassionate veterinary care for pets and their people across Vermont. Every taproom cash donation during this period goes directly to our mission!

📍 Lawson’s Finest Liquids, Waitsfield
🌞 Learn more: lawsonsfinest.com/sunshine-fund-2025

We’d love to see you here—come raise a glass and make a difference for Vermont’s furry friends! 🐶🐾

08/16/2025

Baby Huey is getting ready for his great unleashing at Bark Park at Lawsons Finest Liquids!! The dogs are exhausted just watching us!

Come join us tomorrow from 12-3 at Lawsons Finest Liquids Brewery at 155 Carroll St Waitsfield VT!

Bring your appetite, thirst and pup if they like other dogs. Fenced in area to run and play!

08/15/2025

Wanna know a secret? The Mitzvah Fund staff loves Cheetos White Cheddar Doodles! So does Lion. She was mad eating!

08/13/2025

Community community community! Our village is very special. The Mitzvah Fund works with many area rescues and shelters. We strive to make medical cases affordable for these groups so they take on the medically challenged animals and then we get to help fix them.

Potter’s Angels Rescue in East Montpelier takes on many local medical relinquishment’s. Together we work hard to fix these mostly senior dogs and cats.

Meet Trixie… 4 pounds of Mighty Mouse antics! She came to Potters Angels after her senior owner could no longer afford to care for her chronic urinary tract disease, incontinance and dental disease. She was incredibly thin and desperately needed a dental. Her bloodwork made us hold our horses and she needed months of liver support, antibiotics, and extensive urine cultures. Potters has hung in there with this girl for months of foster care including prescription diets, many medications and so so so many cat diapers! 😂

Her ultrasounds showed she might have a remnant uterine stump from her spay. We were also on the look out for a vaginal stricture or a diverticulum on her bladder (reservoir pouch on bladder wall that holds urine and infection.) Today was Trixie’s big day!

We had both Dr. Kayla and Dr. Connie and Deb on hand because she has so many congenital defects. 

About 5 minutes into general gas anesthesia we realized that something was not right. Her heart and blood pressure kept getting lower and lower. We realized that Trixie was intolerant of gas anesthesia! So thanks to the Barre Elks Club we had our brand new syringe pump and were able to keep her asleep with injectable anesthesia for a three hour surgery and dental.

We removed a uterine stump, did a huge dental with many extractions and then she took over an hour to breath on her own.

This is “the practice” of veterinary medicine but we would love to not have to practice so hard!!

I urge anyone that can to go to Potter’s Angels website and donate any amount towards dogs and cats like Trixie, Sprit, David, Zeke, Arthur and Chewey. Senior animals are incredibly important to many folks. These lives are worth saving!

https://www.pottersangelsrescue.

👉 Learn more and support our mission:
🔗 themitzvahfundvt.org

08/12/2025

🐾 Coming Soon: Mitzvah Fund + Lawson’s Finest = A Paw‑fect Pairing! 🐶

We’re thrilled to announce that the Mitzvah Fund will be the featured Sunshine Fund recipient at Lawson’s Finest Liquids from August 16–31! 🎉

What does that mean? For two whole weeks, 100% of taproom cash donations will go directly to support the Mitzvah Fund’s mission: providing free, compassionate veterinary care to pets whose owners are facing financial hardship. Every pint you enjoy and every dollar you drop in the taproom makes a difference for animals in need.

Plus, don’t miss your chance to check out Lawson’s brand-new dog-friendly beer garden—a 750 sq ft fenced deck right off the Mad River Path where pups can hydrate, relax, and mingle while you do the same. 🐕💦🍻

📍Where: Lawson’s Finest Liquids, 155 Carroll Road Waitsfield, VT
📆 When: August 16–31
🌞 Learn more: lawsonsfinest.com/sunshine-fund-2025

The grand opening…err…unleashing of Lawson's Finest Liquids Bark Park is happening on Sunday, August 17th from 12-3 PM. Join us there!

🐾 Can’t make it to the taproom? You can still support us online anytime at:

💛 themitzvahfundvt.org

Let’s raise a glass—and some funds—for Vermont’s furry companions in need. We can't wait to see you there!

08/10/2025

Thank you, Morrisville!

The Dog Days Out event at the Morrisville Dog Park was a tail-wagging success—and we couldn’t have done it without you! 🐕💛

From playful pups cooling off with pup-cups in the splash tent, to the on-site vaccine clinic helping keep dogs healthy, to four-legged friends up for adoption, it was a day full of connection, care, and community.

Thank you to everyone who came out with their pups to support pet wellness and celebrate the human–animal bond. Events like this help grow awareness—and support—for our mission to provide compassionate veterinary care across Vermont.

🌐 Learn more about our mission: www.themitzvahfundvt.org

08/09/2025

Coming Soon: Dog Days Out at the Morrisville Dog Park!

Mark your calendars!

Join us for Dog Days Out at the Morrisville Dog Park on Sunday, August 10th from 2–5 PM—an afternoon of tail wags, treats, and community fun for pups and their people! 🐶☀️

Here’s what’s happening:
💉 Vaccine clinic to keep your pups protected
🏡 Meet Potter’s Angels Rescue to learn about fostering and adoption
🐾 Cool-down tent with a doggy pool & tennis balls
📸 Photo booth for picture-pawfect memories
🍦 Pup Cup Station by Higher Elevation
🌭 Grilled hot dogs by Mackenzie Hot Dogs + Morrisville Fire Dept
🥤 Refreshments by Coca-Cola
🌿 Dog-friendly CBD treats from Sunset Lake CBD

This is a free, family-friendly event where we celebrate our furry friends and promote pet health and wellness. Come say hi, grab a treat, and learn more about how the Mitzvah Fund is supporting pets and their people across Vermont.

📍Where: Morrisville Dog Park
📆 When: Sunday, August 10 | 2–5 PM
🌐 Learn more: www.themitzvahfundvt.org

We can’t wait to see you there! 🐾💛

08/08/2025

Watching your once bouncy and energetic dog grow old and slow down can be heart-wrenching. Whereas you once headed out the door without a thought as to whether your dog could keep up, you now find yourself counting the cost of every activity. If you take a hike, play frisbee, or romp in the yard today, how stiff and sore will he be tomorrow? If this sounds like you, laser therapy for dogs may be a treatment to explore. Learn more here:
https://bit.ly/4op7fB1