EASEL Animal Rescue League launched more than eight years ago as a grass-roots, all-volunteer effort to reduce the number of unwanted animals killed in Mercer County.

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EASEL Animal Rescue League (Facebook)
EASEL Animal Rescue League (Facebook)
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In that span, the non-profit has grown tremendously, helping hundreds of unwanted, abused and abandoned dogs, cats and horses each year, while also controlling the animal population.

Christopher Ridorfino, Operations Director, said the numbers keep trending upward.

"In 2013, we had over 400 animals get adopted, over 300 cats and over 80 dogs," he said. "We're showing like a 30 percent increase of our adoptions year to year, so we're continuing to grow and continuing to help the area."

EASEL has a network of over 100 volunteers, who work to identify stray animals around Mercer County. The group then takes care of the animals, gets them spade or neutered, and has them vetted. They partner with the Ewing Animal Shelter on their efforts.

Once the animals are safely handled and taken care of, the work begins to find owners to adopt them.

"If they're adoptable, then we try to find them all homes," Ridorfino said.

EASEL regularly holds events around the area to get the word on pet adoption and raise money for their programs.

They have two major events on the horizon.

EASEL's Touchdown-n-Tails (Facebook)
EASEL's Touchdown-n-Tails (Facebook)
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The non-profit has partnered with the Trenton Freedom indoor football team to hold the Touchdown-n-Tails event on Saturday, April 19, at the Sun National Bank Center. Tables will be set up in the concourse of the arena with information about their programs and services. Donations will be accepted for canned and dry cat and dog food and treats. Most importantly, though, there will be dog and cats available for adoption during the game.

Tickets are only $13, with a portion of the sales going towards EASEL's programs.

On Friday, May 2, they host Coach Bag Bingo at the West Trenton Ballroom in Ewing. Doors open for the event a 6:00 p.m. There will be light refreshments, 50/50, door prizes and bonus prizes. It's one of the most popular fundraisers for EASEL each year.

The events, along with a heavy presence on social media, are all part of EASEL's efforts to keep the word circulating for their cause

"We all obviously care about the animals, so we want to make sure they have the best chance of survival and finding homes," Ridorfino explained.

Find out the very latest on the group by visiting the EASEL website and checking them out on Facebook and Twitter.

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