One non-profit animal rescue in Dartmouth has created a mobile pet food bank to make sure local pets have enough food to get them and their families through the coronavirus pandemic.

Odie’s Place Animal Rescue, a foster-based non-profit rescue organization, is bringing a new service to the local community: Buster's Mobile Pet Food Bank. 

The pet food bank is named after Odie’s Place president Brian Harrington and his wife Kerrie’s late pit bull Buster.

Buster — brother to Odie, for whom the organization is named — passed away at the age of seven due to lymphoma. 

Harrington hopes the mobile food bank will support families in need, including those who may be going through a similar health battle with their pet. 

While Harrington had the concept in the works prior to the arrival of Covid-19 in Massachusetts, he said, “I think with this epidemic going on [the need has] multiplied unfortunately.” 

This is not the first time Harrington has brought pet food to animals in need.

When Odie’s Place held a hurricane drive two years ago for Wayne County, North Carolina, Harrington took note of the local Humane Society’s food bank. 

“I was just motivated and inspired by the work they did,” he said. “They had a well-oiled system going, helping the public, feeding animals.”

Harrington purchased a 10-foot trailer to fill with donated dog, cat, puppy and kitten food, as well as cat litter. He is planning a three-month trial of the program with pop-up donation sites, and will distribute the food in low-income neighborhoods and elderly housing communities with pets in need.

There are currently three drop-off locations where community members can donate items: Ace Hardware in Dartmouth, Freestone’s City Grill in New Bedford, and Rocky’s Ace Hardware in Fairhaven. PetSmart in Bourne, which helped with the Odie’s Place hurricane drive last year, will be doing a collection drive next month for the food bank. 

Harrington noted, “It will really make a difference to a lot of pets that are in need right now.” 

As far as safety precautions, Harrington will pick up the donations wearing gloves. The food will be bagged in two-gallon bags for distribution and kept in the steel trailer, and Harrington plans to drop food off with no contact for at-risk communities. 

The food bank may also need volunteers once it is ready to distribute — although Covid-19 measures will likely delay the start of any volunteer program. 

Harrington has also created an Amazon wish list which allows community members to donate food online. It is available via a link on the website odiesplace.squarespace.com. 

“We always want to have enough,” he stressed. “My biggest fear is turning somebody away.”