Thursday, October 9, 2008

Iams Home 4 the Holidays



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Iams Home for the Holidays has set a goal to place 1 million orphaned animals into happy and loving homes during this year's holiday season from October 1, 2008 to January 5, 2009.

Award-winning actress and pet parent Felicity Huffman has teamed up with Iams Home for the Holidays to help raise awareness for the millions of homeless dogs and cats throughout North America.

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- Celebrating its 10th Anniversary, Iams Home for the Holidays is among the world's most successful pet adoption programs and includes nearly 3,000 partner animal organizations from around the world that are dedicated to helping raise awareness about the importance of pet adoption and educating people considering a new pet.

- Since it began in 1999, Iams Home for the Holidays has helped place more than 2 million pets into happy homes. Last year alone, Iams Home for the Holidays helped nearly 500,000 families experience the joy of pet adoption.

- Every cat, dog, puppy or kitten that is adopted during Iams Home 4 the Holidays will go home with an Iams Adoption Starter Kit.

- Founded by the Helen Woodward Animal Center and supported by Iams, Iams Home for the Holidays began in 1999 with just 14 participating animal shelters in San Diego County. Today there are nearly 3,000 shelters in 15 countries around the world helping orphaned animals find loving homes and families.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Veterinary Emergency Funding Mission



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"Have you had a crisis with your pet that required you to seek emergency veterinary care? Have you been in the awful situation of not having the money to pay for it? Sadly, many pet owners cannot afford the treatment that their animal needs. Some of you had no one to turn to and were forced to choose inadequate care or even euthanasia. We want to hear your story. No pet should be denied emergency care because an owner has fallen on hard times. Let us hear from you, to help kick-start the birth of the Veterinary Emergency Funding Mission. Help us meet our target
start-up date of January 1, 2009."

"Lack of sufficient funds can leave an owner faced with euthanasia for a beloved companion. The Veterinary Emergency Funding Mission (VEFM) helps locate these funds."

Monday, October 6, 2008

Beverly Hills Chihuahua



"With these kinds of movies, it's been my experience, at least, that people always love seeing the dogs," said Mike Alexander, the head trainer and animal coordinator of Birds & Animals Unlimited, a handler whose work has been instrumental to several films and television productions over the past 20 years.The red carpet trip marks yet another amazing step for Rusco, the dog who plays Papi in "Beverly Hills Chihuahua." In an @ The Movies interview Wednesday, Alexander said his new canine star is the one who almost got away.That's because Rusco was at an animal shelter when Alexander found a photo of what believed could be the dog he was looking for. The problem was, after months of searching, the esteemed animal trainer as behind such hits as "A Night at the Museum" and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" (he helped orchestrate the film's elaborate squirrel scene) found himself racing against the clock.

"Because there are so many potential dogs to cast out there, it's hard for us to review every single source every single day," Alexander said. "We had one, small picture that I was able share with Disney, and when we got around to calling the shelter, they said, 'Well, he's been here for about two weeks, and that's about as long as they stay here, and we don't reserve him over the phone.' By then, it was about 2 or 3 in the afternoon and I got in my car and rushed down to the shelter, but since it was so far away, I had traffic to deal with."Unfortunately, Alexander arrived at the Moreno Valley Animal Shelter about 60 miles from Los Angeles just a little too late."When I got down there they were just closing the doors and wouldn't let me in," Alexander recalled. "So I went back the next morning and Rusco was still there. So after spending a little time for him, I knew right away, that this was going to be Papi."