WALLA WALLA, Wash. — Thousands of pounds of dog food traveled via semitruck from Tracy, California, to Walla Walla, Washington, for families in need of help taking care of their pets during the pandemic.

The Blue Mountain Humane Society received 30,800 pounds of dog food on April 6, from Greater Good Charities, a national nonprofit dedicated to protecting people, pets, and the planet, according to a release.

The J.M. Smucker Company donated the dog food to Seattle nonprofit Greater Good Charities, whose staff worked with the humane society for six months to determine how and where to distribute the food.

The 39 pallets of pet food will be distributed weekly to more than 1,100 local community members, according to the BMHS release.

The effort is part of a distribution plan that started in March 2020, in collaboration with Blue Mountain Action Council, to help low-income families take care of and keep their pets during the financially straining pandemic, the release stated.

“The two agencies are working together in an effort to feed all of our community members through a very difficult year,” Communications Coordinator Meghan Spracklen said.

The program has benefited 1,100-1,200 families weekly, she said. Each distribution contains 4 pounds of either dog or cat food or both, depending on the family.

The humane society is accepting donations of cat food or money to purchase cat food, she said.