Iams Home 4 the Holidays, one of the world’s largest pet adoption programs, kicked off its annual adoption drive earlier this fall in partnership with the renowned and well-respected Helen Woodward Animal Center, with the goal of finding homes for 1.5 million orphaned pets.

Now in its 13th year, the program, which runs from October 1, 2011 through January 3, 2012, has helped 5.8 million pets find loving homes across the globe.  This year, Iams and Helen Woodward Animal Center (HWAC) will again team up with more than 3,500 animal organizations worldwide to encourage pet adoption.

In addition, Iams is donating 5 million meals to animals in need at adoption and rescue centers through the “Bags 4 Bowls” program. Iams is aiming to give 5 million meals to homeless animals.

“Each year, as many as four million orphaned dogs and cats are euthanized due to shelter overcrowding – that is approximately one pet every eight seconds,” said Mike Arms, founder of the adoption drive and president of Helen Woodward Animal Center. “Since partnering with Iams on the adoption drive 13 years ago, we have really seen the benefit of what this program can do for orphaned animals, and the families who adopt.” (Arms, according to my personal interview with him, started the IAMS and HWAC partnership over a decade ago: in an effort to encourage families to adopt from a shelter or a rescue organization, he began an HWAC adoption drive, quickly bringing Iams on board to help raise awareness.)

***One way you – as a reader — can donate a meal to a pet is to visit Facebook.com/Iams and “LIKE” photos, videos and posts. For every like Iams gets, they’re donating a meal to a homeless animal.

Also new this year, are easy ways to get involved when you’re online socializing! You can customize adoption announcement cards to share with friends and family! To help an animal in need, simply select a template (from the Facebook page), upload a picture and information about your pet and then share! For every card shared, Iams will donate a meal to participating animal organizations!

As a participating blogger for the last few years, I have seen the benefit that Mike Arms described above. TONS and TONS of food has been given to animals in need, and millions of animals who would have otherwise gone unnoticed or perhaps ended up six feet under are now in loving homes. According to Arms, “the alternative (to adoption) is pet overpopulation in the shelters, not to mention the economic impact pet overpopulation is having during already tough financial times.”

While finding loving homes for orphaned pets is critical, the campaign is also designed to provide shelters and rescue centers with much needed food donations. Consumers can lend a hand by:

·         Visiting the Iams Facebook page and clicking to “Like” the page or various messages, photos, videos, etc. For each “Like” comment, photo posted, etc., Iams will donate meals.

·         Becoming a fan of the Iams Facebook page and creating a custom adoption announcement or holiday card to share the news of their new four legged family member or just send a season’s greeting to their family and friends. For each card created and shared, Iams will donate meals.

·         Purchasing specially-marked packages of Iams dog or cat food during the duration of the campaign. For every specially marked package sold, Iams will donate one bowl of food to a participating Home 4 the Holidays organization.

***Arms also told me during my interview with him that the easiest way for you, as readers, to get involved is to “Like” the Iams Facebook page (Facebook.com/Iams) to stay up on the latest adoption numbers, to learn other suggested easy ways to get involved, to get {and hence spread!!} details about pets available for adoption, learn about fun ways to donate meals to pets in need and for quick access to informative content and tips! So be sure PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE to check out IAMS on Facebook!

New to the program this year are campaign ambassadors, NASCAR driver, Ryan Newman, and his wife, Krissie. The Newmans, who founded the Ryan Newman Foundation to educate and encourage people to spay or neuter their pets and to adopt animals from shelters and rescue centers, have joined Iams in their mission to help animals in need this holiday season.

Iams Home 4 the Holidays strives to educate about the importance of adoption so that every pet adopted goes to a permanent, loving home. Those who adopt through the program receive an Iams adoption kit loaded with goodies, including important info about nutrition, training & proper care to ensure their relationship with the new animal starts off on the right paw!

Since its inception, this amazing program has seen almost six million pets find loving, forever homes… !

And on a side note, just to give you a taste of the kind of place HWAC is, Mike Arms told me this:

“I consider HWAC to be the facility of the future, where we do more than just rescue and save pets. We have a therapeutic horseback riding program for the physically & mentally challenged, we have two hospitals: a small animal practice & a large equine hospital, we have a very large education center, where almost 1,500 children go to day camp and the theme is sharing the earth with animals, we have a boarding facility, Pet Encounter Therapy, and an AniMeals program, so we are here for all animals’ needs and to help our community. I do feel that the center is like family. We are all on the same page, doing what we can to enhance the well-being of animals and people.”

♥♥♥ It’s not often that you hear of an organization like this… maybe North Shore Animal League, ASPCA and two or three others have similar facilities, programs and goals… but also, more importantly, the LOVE, compassion, kindness, understanding and general good-warmheartedness…

♥♥ To learn more about how to get involved, including details about pets available for adoption, fun ways to donate meals and quick access to informative content and tips, visit http://www.facebook.com/Iams.

UPDATE: As of November 19th, IAMS DID IN FACT REACH IT’S GOAL of 6 MILLION! The badge on the right is our way of strutting our stuff! CONGRATS TO ALL INVOLVED IN REACHING THIS MILESTONE!

About Iams Home 4 the Holidays (IH4TH)

As one of the most successful pet adoption programs in the world, IH4TH partners with thousands of animal organizations dedicated to finding forever homes for orphaned pets. Founded by Helen Woodward Animal Center and supported by Iams, IH4TH began in 1999 with just 14 participating animal shelters in San Diego County. Since it began 13 years ago, IH4TH – along with more than 3,500 pet adoption centers – has helped 5.8 million families experience the joy of pet adoption, including nearly 1.1 million pet adoptions from 2010. For more information, please visitwww.facebook.com/iams.

About Helen Woodward Animal Center

Helen Woodward Animal Center is a private, non-profit organization where “people help animals and animals help people.” Founded in 1972 in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., the Center provides services for more than 57,000 people and thousands of animals annually through adoptions, educational and therapeutic programs both onsite and throughout the community.. Helen Woodward Animal Center is also the creator of the international Home 4 the Holidays pet adoption drive and the Animal Center Education Services program, teaching the business of saving lives to animal welfare leaders from around the world.

About P&G Pet Care

For more than 60 years, P&G Pet Care (NYSE:PG), the maker of Iams and Eukanuba, has enhanced the well-being of dogs and cats by providing world-class quality foods and pet care products. To learn more about Eukanuba® and Iams® Dog & Cat Foods or general pet care and nutrition information, call the Consumer Care Center at (800) 446-3075. You can also visit them online at www.iams.com or www.eukanuba.com.

(More to come on the launch of this year’s AWESOME program for IAMS Home 4 the Holidays — as always, in cahoots with the famous Helen Woodward Animal Center…)

But right now, I want to tell you about what else the big-hearted, generous and animal welfare-dedicated IAMS company has been up to…

Mike Arms and Various AHS Associates

Today, the IAMS Company and Mike Arms, president of Helen Woodward Animal Center and founder of the celebrated IAMS Home 4 the Holidays pet adoption program, presented what’s sure to become one of the most honorable achievements in the field of animal welfare in the future: the first annual Mike Arms/IAMS Hero Award.

It was presented today in recognition of the Austin Humane Society’s extraordinary relief effort in Texas’ nationally recognized Austin/Bastrop wildfires this past September.

The Austin Humane Society took the lead in coordinating the massive (and previously messy…as expected at first in any disaster…) disaster relief efforts for the animals displaced in the Austin/Bastrop counties as a result of the horrific wildfires.

The widespread disaster destroyed over 1,400 homes in the Central Texas area. The Austin Humane Society helped create a temporary triage unit in Austin and Bastrop, and provided much-needed food, refuge, and medical care for all displaced animals. Everyone is grateful for their dedicated service to enhancing the quality of life for animals and their families… some of whom, undoubtedly, went for days without knowing if their pets had gotten out or survived…

The shelter will be receiving a plaque for their wall and a check for $5,000.00 from IAMS. (In photo at left, (left-to-right) Mike Arms (Helen Woodward Animal Center), Frances Jonon (Executive Director, Austin Humane Society), Leslie Myrie (Iams), and Michel Brousset (Iams).)

IAMS gives out the Mike Arms/ IAMS Hero Award to a person or animal organization that exemplifies the commitment and passion for the lives of orphaned animals — similar to what Mike Arms has been doing for so many years. I encourage you to read his new blog, What Would Mike Say?

For the past 12 years, IAMS has joined forces with Mike Arms and the Helen Woodward Animal Center for the annual adoption campaign to help raise awareness of orphaned animals in shelters and rescues around the world. The program has created new ways to increase public awareness about orphaned animals, increase the number of pet adoptions, lower euthanasia rates, and set records for the number of people that are receiving humane education.

About Iams Home 4 the Holidays (IH4TH)

As one of the most successful pet adoption programs in the world, IH4TH partners with thousands of animal organizations dedicated to finding forever homes for orphaned pets. Founded by Helen Woodward Animal Center and supported by Iams, IH4TH began in 1999 with just 14 participating animal shelters in San Diego County. Since it began 13 years ago, IH4TH – along with more than 3,500 pet adoption centers – has helped 5.8 million families experience the joy of pet adoption, including nearly 1.1 million pet adoptions from 2010. For more information, please visitwww.facebook.com/iams.

About Helen Woodward Animal Center

Helen Woodward Animal Center is a private, non-profit organization where “people help animals and animals help people.” Founded in 1972 in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., the Center provides services for more than 57,000 people and thousands of animals annually through adoptions, educational and therapeutic programs both onsite and throughout the community.. Helen Woodward Animal Center is also the creator of the international Home 4 the Holidays pet adoption drive and the Animal Center Education Services program, teaching the business of saving lives to animal welfare leaders from around the world.

It’s time for the world-famous Surf Dog Surf -a-Thon, presented by Helen Woodward Animal Center and Eukanuba! The famed event spotlights real people and their extraordinary dogs surfing the coast of Southern California.

Buddy, the long-standing champ

Eukanuba and Helen Woodward Animal Center (HWAC) are teaming up to present the sixth annual Surf Dog Surf-A-Thon at the Dog Beach in Del Mar, Calif. Originally scheduled to take place on 9/11, the event will include a 9/11 anniversary tribute to military and search and rescue dogs, along with more than 80 dogs riding the waves to raise awareness and money for orphaned animals.

The surf competition will be judged by various celebrities, and there will be fun contests and more than 70 interactive vendor booths – so there’s something here for the entire family!

Late today, HWAC announced that the Surf Dog Surf-A-Thon has been rescheduled due to a sewage spill caused by the unprecedented county-wide power outage. The spill, which dumped 3.2 million gallons of sewage into Los Penasquitos Lagoon, has forced the closure of several beaches including Dog Beach in Del Mar.

The Surf Dog Surf-A-Thon will now be held on Sunday, September 25, 2011 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“We are really disappointed to have to postpone the Surf-A-Thon,” said Nedra Abramson, the event organizer. “The safety of both the pets and the people participating in this event is our biggest concern and there is no way the beach will be safe by Sunday.”

Last year's winners by weight class!

Owners and their pets will participate in 20-minute heats based on the dogs’ weight class. They will be judged on their ability to ride the waves, having fun and staying on their boards. There will be 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners for each weight class and the first place winner will move on to the finals. This event will help raise awareness and money for orphaned pets while promoting responsible pet ownership.

The Surf Dog Surf-A-Thon features more than 80 dogs, including internet sensations Ricochet, Nani, Dozer, and Buddy hitting the waves in four separate weight classes to raise awareness of and money for orphaned pets while promoting responsible pet ownership. The event also includes the Beach Bum Bikini Babe Canine Costume Contest; Doo the Dah, where people and pets in costume surf together to raise funds for Helen Woodward Animal Center; and the vendor booths, which are from some of the top brands of pet products and surf gear as well as other San Diego favorites including Eukanuba, Tagg, Playa Pup, Banfield Pet Hospitals, and more.

During the awards ceremony honoring the top dogs of the day, Buddy, a 13-year-old Jack Russell Terrier from Ventura, whose picture is above left, will become the first inductee into the Surf Dog Hall of Fame!

For more information, check the Surf Dog website!

We all know that IAMS rocks, right?

Between their totally fun, user-friendly, pet-centric website, their amazing product lines – which are so healthy for our pets, and their amazing charitable donation programs countrywide, IAMS pretty much rocks!

(Naysayers – please don’t bother to comment because I’ve heard it all. If you think you know something about IAMS animal testing, I beg you, please email me and I will send you information on their LACK of harmful animal tests. I used to be one of you!)

So IAMS has – for a whopping 11 years – run the IAMS Home 4 the Holidays campaign.  

Practically untouched in terms of pet lives effected and food donations, last year alone the IAMS Home 4 the Holidays initiative placed 1.3 million homeless and abandoned animals in loving forever homes! WOW!

This year, the company, which is seriously generously dedicated to animal adoption, has set its sights even higher, and is aiming to save the lives of 1.5 million orphaned pets AND donate 5 million bowls of food to animal shelters in need!! Yes you read that right: FIVE MILLION bowls of food and one and a half million animals in forever homes…

Lofty goal? NAH! IAMS has a track record so impressive that I firmly believe, with the help of wonderful and kind animal welfare advocates like you readers, IAMS will meet their goal.

** And don’t forget: currently there are over 8 MILLION homeless animals in this country.

Important Home 4 the Holidays Campaign Details:

• IAMS Home 4 the Holidays runs from October 1, 2010 to January 4, 2011
• This year’s goal is to adopt 1.5 million pets
• 1.3 million pets were adopted last year alone
• There are 3,500 partner animal organizations (and 21 participating countries around the world)

** Information on how to get involved, how to find a participating shelter in your area and other important tips for new pet parents can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/iams or on IamsHome4theHolidays.com

Soooooo, what are we at ThoughtsFurPaws doing in honor of Home for the Holidays?

We’re having TWO AWESOME CONTESTS of course!! 

Everyone is encouraged to participate because the prizes we’re giving away are truly unparalled, and, more importantly, the difference you can make by participating in any way is bound to help hundreds of animals!

Here’s the ins and outs of the contests:

1. There are two contests being run simultaneously.

2. Contests start tomorrow, October 13 and run through December 30, 2010.

3. Winners will be announced on January 3, 2011.

The 1st contest details, rules, prizes **

1. I want to hear your very best, most heart-warming, tear-jerking rescue stories; whether you adopted from a shelter, saved a feral kitty, took in a neglected animal, or opened your home up to a furry four-legged friend in some other way, I want to know about it. *** Shelter workers: feel free to detail your daily work and how you think it affects the animals day to day.

2. Email all story entries to thoughtsfurpaws@gmail.com. *Please include: a picture of the pet, your contact information and a short bio about yourself (one paragraph), the age of your fur-baby, and any quirky, silly or other interesting personality traits or funny tidbits about your pet.

3. Please put “Rescue Story Contest” in the Subject Line of the email so I can file immediately.

4. All stories will be posted on ThoughtsFurPaws.com with the entrant’s name; TWO winners will be chosen by Administrator.

5. First place winner receives a $250 handheld Kodak video camera (the size of a cell phone) AND WILL HAVE THEIR STORY AND PICTURE POSTED ON THE OFFICIAL IAMS HOME 4 THE HOLIDAYS FACEBOOK PAGE (links above)!!

6. Second place winner receives a goodie bag with a $50 PetSmart gift card, and over $100 of toys, treats and “gear” for them AND their chosen animal: dog or cat.

The 2nd contest details, rules, prizes**

1. I want to see who can raise the most money.

-A pertinent part of the Home 4 the Holidays campaign is the Bags for Bowls initiative. New this year; IAMS is aiming to give 5 million meals to homeless animals!!  One way you can help donate a meal to a pet is to follow the Adoption Angels’ stories on Facebook.com/Iams and “LIKE” photos, videos and posts. For every like youreceive, IAMS will donate a meal to a homeless animal. Another way you can help donate meals is through the second contest… -

2. After you raise funds, they should be sent to the PayPal account of thoughtsfurpaws@gmail.com. And yes – you all will have to trust me on this one. I do plan to post bi-weekly updates about funds added, who is in the lead and who is in second and third places, and finally, how much money total is in the PayPay account at the end of each week.

3. At the end of the contest, all the funds collected by our awesome readers will be sent to one (or two, depending on how much is raised) of the shelters in the Home 4 the Holidays program. I will consult with winners so they can have a say in which shelter receives the money (probably one in their home state.)

An IAMS adoption!

4. PLEASE DO NOT FEEL PRESSURE TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS CONTEST. I do realize that the entire country is in financial straits right now, especially since I live in Cleveland, which is one of the hardest-hit cities in terms of the jobless and the unemployment rate. So — even if you can only donate $12, you know what? That’s 12 bowls of food that we can then give to the Home 4 the Holidays program, and that’s 12 bellies that we’ll fill!

5. USE YOUR IMAGINATIONS ON THIS ONE! (Points for creativity will also be given, as will a prize for the most inventive money-raising idea!) Have a lemonade stand with the kids, do a bake sale, car wash, or something else!

6. Email me at thoughtsfurpaws@gmail.com to set up a date and time to make your PayPal transactions. I will be keeping a log of daily/weekly donations.

7. Please email me and use “PayPal Donation for IAMS” in the subject line.

Home 4 the Holidays Dogs for Adoption Playing!

8. Whomever raises the most money will win: a $250 hand-held video camera (cell phone size again!), AND EITHER 1. a full-size ergonomic Furminator OR 2. a $50 PetSmart (or Petco – or whatever you want) gift card – winner’s choice!

So I truly hope that my fantastic readers can get pumped up about helping out the animals this holiday season. Again, I know

Kitties for Adoption Through Home 4 the Holidays

we are in a financial crisis right now so do not feel pressured to enter the second contest.

YOU SHOULD ALSO KNOW THAT I WILL PERSONALLY MATCH THE FIRST PLACE WINNER’S FINAL AMOUNT. So if the first place winner sends $300 to the PayPal account, I will match it. And don’t worry, I will show you all records of all transactions in the PayPal account.

So get pumped up everyone because I sure am! And stay tuned for all kinds of fantastic and useful information on pet adoption, charity, tips for adopting a pet or helping an orphaned animal; information on why to adopt, a how-to on selecting the right pet for you,  information on why families should adopt not shop, tips on how entire families can get involved in the animal welfare movement through volunteerism, and informaion on teaching children about helping animals, PLUS ALL KINDS OF OTHER COOL POSTS!!

Also, you’ll get to read about my cool one-on-one interview with Mike Arms, Chairman of the famous Helen Woodward Animal

Mike Arms, Helen Woodward Animal Center

Center, who is truly an inspiration TO ME and one of the most forward-thinking brilliant men I’ve ever met, plus you’ll read “Testimonials” from participating animal organizations and people who have adopted a pet through the program in various areas (if anyone wants to hear a story from a particular area please send me an email and I’ll be sure to get a line in on your county).

So HAVE FUN everyone, SEND ME THOSE AWESOME RESCUE STORIES, and BAKE AWAY TO RAISE MONEY FOR OUR FURRY FRIENDS WHO HAVE NO VOICE and GET NO CHOICE!!

** The contests running on ThoughtsFurPaws.com through January are solely for ThoughtsFurPaws and have no affiliation with IAMS and/or Proctor and Gamble. All prizes are purchased and presented to winners by the Administrator, JL Smith, and all contests are sole proprietary of the blog ThoughtsFurPaws.com.

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