From Shelter Photos to State Law: Frankfort Teen Wins National Award for Rescue Animal Campaign

For Immediate Release:
May 18, 2026

Contact:
Sara Groves 202-483-7382

In time for National Rescue Dog Day (May 20), a Hero to Animals Award is on its way from PETA Kids—part of PETA’s Youth Division—to 13-year-old Frankfort resident Ethan Branscum. Ethan led a successful, years-long campaign to designate rescue cats and dogs as Kentucky’s official companion animal, bringing statewide attention to the importance of adopting animals in need. Ethan and his mother are available for interviews.

Ethan’s animal adoption advocacy began at just six years old, when he started photographing animals at local shelters and posting their pictures online to help them find homes. After learning that Ohio had given rescue cats and dogs official state recognition, Ethan wrote to his state representative, asking Kentucky to do the same. What followed was seven years of committee hearings, letter-writing campaigns, and disappointments when the bill stalled session after session, but Ethan’s persistence paid off when Senate Bill 37 passed during the final moments of the 2026 legislative session, making animal adoption a celebrated part of Kentucky’s identity.

Ethan’s advice for young people looking to make an impact in their communities? “Know that there are going to be things that don’t work out—it doesn’t make it any less worth trying. If it helps even one animal or person, it’s worth it.”

Beyond the Capitol, Ethan runs Ethan’s Rescue Pet Project, distributing 60 to 100 bags of cat and dog food each month to help struggling families and unhoused individuals care for their animal companions. He’s also coordinated emergency relief for animals affected by natural disasters; raised funds to help relocate his local animal shelter out of a flood plain; and helped pass a local ordinance banning puppy and kitten sales in pet stores—an ordinance that was later named in his honor.

“Homeless animals across Kentucky have a true champion in Ethan, whose huge heart and remarkable persistence have changed laws, filled the bowls of companion animals in need, and rallied people to adopt, not shop,” says PETA Senior Vice President Colleen O’Brien. “PETA Kids celebrates him for proving that compassion and determination can move mountains and that age is no barrier when it comes to making the world a kinder place.”

With millions of homeless dogs and cats in the U.S., animal shelters have been overwhelmed for years. PETA reminds everyone to always adopt—never buy animals from breeders or pet stores—and to have companion animals spayed or neutered.

Ethan—who shares his home with two adopted canine companions, Hank and Dixie—is now teaching other kids how to advocate through his Junior Advocacy Program.

PETA Kids—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETAKids.com or follow PETA Kids on Facebook or Instagram.