Offering the present of a better tomorrow to dogs and cats in need, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, the Petco Foundation and the talk show host’s natural pet food company Halo, Purely for Pets has announced the grand prize winner of the Petco Foundation’s Holiday Wishes Grant Campaign.
Garnering a $100,000 grant, The Pet Rescue Center in Mission Viejo, California was chosen as the grand prize winner for relaying the story of Sammy– a Pit Bull once used as a bait dog. Healed of his injuries, which included a 3-4 inch laceration at the bottom of his chin and damage to his ears, Sammy helped an injured puppy receive a new lease on life through a blood transfusion before he embarked on a new chapter in his own life by becoming a part of a forever family.
Sammy’s pet parent tells the courageous canine’s adoption tale in the following video:
The Pet Rescue Center works with the communities of California, shelters, veterinarians and animal rescue groups to help homeless companion animals. The group provides a veterinary supervised temporary sanctuary for pets while they work to find adoptive families; offers educational resources; sponsors medical treatments and stocks a Pet Pantry that provides free pet food and cat litter for seniors and unemployed pet guardians to help keep their pets in their homes.
In all, more than 4,500 applications ware sent in to the Holiday Wishes Campaign, prompting the Petco Foundation to increase the overall grant money awarded from $250,000 to $500,000. The following 33 groups can look forward to helping more animals in 2014 thanks to the gift of a grant. To find out more, visit www.petco.com/holidaywishes.
Grand Prize $100,000 Winner:
· The Pet Rescue Center (Mission Viejo, Calif.) in honor of
Sammy
Second Place $50,000 Winners:
· Saint Francis Animal Center (Georgetown, South Carolina) in
honor of Hope, a puppy saved by a high school baseball team after an
apparent stabbing
· Community Animal Welfare Society (Salt Lake City, Utah) in
honor of Phoenix, a cat saved during the recent wildfires.
Third Place $25,000 Winners:
· Mohawk & Hudson River Human Society (Menands, New York)
· Humane Society of Redmond (Redmond, Oregon)
· Richmond Animal League (Richmond, Virginia)
· Cleveland Animal Protective League (Cleveland, Ohio)
· San Antonio Pets Alive! (San Antonio, Texas)
Fourth Place $10,000 Winners:
· Animal Refugee Response
· Friends of DeKalb Animals Inc.
· Human Society/SPCA of Nelson County Inc.
· Terre Haute Humane Society
· National Mill Dog Rescue Network
· Wright Way Rescue
· Tail Wagger’s 1990
· Crash Landing Inc.
· Caring Hands Humane Society
· Humane Society of Northeast Iowa
Fifth Place $5,000 Winners:
· Last Hope Animal Rescue, Inc.
· Pal Rescue & Adoption Inc.
· Animal Welfare Association
· Greenville County Animal Care
· Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society
· Hancock County Animal Shelter
· REZQ Dogs
· South County Cats
· Maddie & Friends Inc.
· Second Chance Thoroughbreds, Inc.
· Catpaws (Helen Sanders Cat Protection and Welfare Society)
· Chako Pit Bull Rescue
· Burbank Animal Shelter
· Lifeline Animal Project
· Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue & Adoption, Inc.
Photo Credit: HALO