2017 Grant Recipients Announced by PEDIGREE Foundation

337 Pet Shelters and Rescues Will Be Awarded Nearly $575,000 in Grants

FRANKLIN, Tenn. (November 28, 2017) – Since 2008, PEDIGREE Foundation has provided more than 5,000 grants to organizations that make a difference in improving the lives of dogs and finding them loving forever homes. This Giving Tuesday – a global day of giving back – PEDIGREE Foundation is pleased to continue supporting these organizations by awarding $574,978 in grants to 337 pet shelters and rescues.

“PEDIGREE Foundation is proud to support shelters and organizations that share our mission to help find loving homes for shelter dogs in need,” said Bo Segers, President of PEDIGREE Foundation Board of Directors. “This year, we’re continuing our efforts by supporting 337 shelters and rescue organizations as they work to make a positive impact on the lives of adoptable dogs and prospective pet parents.”

PEDIGREE Foundation has awarded more than $6.7 million to support the people and organizations that help dogs in need. This year’s grant recipients include:

Innovation Grants – Ranging from $10,000 – $25,000:

• Humane Society of Summit County (Twinsburg, OH) – $25,000 to create and launch the Play Yard Program, an innovative canine enrichment initiative, which will allow more dogs to play in small groups, allowing them to work through behavior enrichment and be showcased for adoption.
• Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) (Philadelphia, PA) – $15,000 to support its Lifeline to Rescue program, a comprehensive intake diversion effort in partnership with ACCT that offers newly homeless dogs immediate rescue placement at PAWS at the time they are surrendered.
• Ramapo-Bergen Animal Refuge, Inc. (Oakland, NJ) – $10,000 to supports its Paws-in-Hand program, an innovative approach to share the positive impact of adoptable pets with special needs children in the community. Dogs who are eligible for the program work with behaviorists as part of their community therapy visits with the goal of getting them adopted.
• SPCA (Dallas, TX) – $20,000 to provide a Foster Care program for shy and anxious animals with the goal of rehabilitating them through fostering for placement into permanent forever homes.

Program Development Grants – Ranging from $5,000 – $10,000:

• Animal Care of NYC (New York, NY) – $5,000 to provide advanced technology to showcase its animals up for adoption, specifically its larger mixed breed dogs, in a more inviting way through interactive touch screen kiosks.
• Animal Rescue, Inc. (New Freedom, PA) – $9,792 to expand its Senior Dog Rescue program, which supports abused, abandoned and senior puppy mill dogs and prepares them for adoption.
• Bassett Hounds Rescue of Southern California (Whittier, CA) – $10,000 to support its Hound Haul transfer program, saving these dogs from possible euthanasia at shelters they were located in.
• Berkeley East Bay Humane Society (Berkeley, CA) – $10,000 to support its medical program’s surgery packs, which support medically needy dogs from municipal shelters who are often at high risk for euthanasia.
• Delaware County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Media, PA) – $10,000 to support the expansion and renovation of its Adoption Center, which will improve the adoption experience for families.
• Golden Retriever Rescue of the Rockies (Arvada, CO) – $10,000 to renovate its Isolation/Treatment room to take in more dogs who may require this type of area for their safety.
• Honor Sanctuary, Inc. (Bradenton, FL) – $7,905 to develop a self-sustaining Behavior Training program by providing basic obedience training, making dogs more adoptable.
• Humane Society for Seattle-King Co. (Bellevue, WA) – $10,000 to continue its Life-Saver Rescue in-bound transfer program, relocating dogs form high occupancy shelters.
• Humane Society of Southeast Missouri (Cape Birardeau, MO) – $10,000 to complete an intensive care/isolation unit that will provide special house and care for sick/injured animals and reduce the spread of disease and the number of days a dog stays in the shelter before adoption.
• Humane Society of Tennessee Valley, Inc. (Knoxville, TN) – $10,000 for its spay/neuter and dental program and clinic, which will shorten adoption time and improve adoption numbers for dogs.
• Kentucky Humane Society (Louisville, KY) – $10,000 to expand its Saving Kentucky’s Shelter Dogs project by increasing the number of at-risk dog transfers from municipal shelters, placing them for adoption and empowering shelter partners to increase the number of dogs they save in their communities through behavioral support from KHS training support.
• Lawrence Humane Society, Inc. (Lawrence, KS) – $10,000 to support the construction of indoor dog meet-and-green rooms in their new shelter.
• Paris Animal Welfare Society, Inc. (Paris, KY) – $10,000 to support its Satellite Adoption Center program for dogs more difficult to adopt with reduced adoption fees and partnership locations to showcase adoptable dogs.
• PAWS Chicago (Chicago, IL) – $10,000 for its transport program to rescue and provide medical care for dogs at southern shelters so that they can become more adoptable.
• San Antonio Pets Alive (San Antonio, TX) – $10,000 to fund medical supplies and travel prep for the new wing of its Transport Program that focuses on air transport.
• Upper Peninsula Animal Welfare Shelter (Negaunee, MI) – $10,000 to support the building of its new state-of-the-art animal shelter.
• Vancouver Humane Society (Vancouver, WA) – $10,000 to support its Puppy Foster Care Project to train, equip and manage volunteers who provide foster care to young puppies who may need simple medical care, special feedings and behavioral socialization.
• Wisconsin Humane Society (Milwaukee, WI) – $10,000 to continue its Benchwarmers program, which provides increased marketing for dogs who have been in its shelters for more than 14 days and offers reduced adoption fees.
• Young at Heart Pet Rescue, Inc. (Palatine, IL) – $10,000 to enhance its Club Grand Paw Senior-to-Senior program that places older dogs with older adopters and provides reduced adoption fees plus care and oversight of their adoption through weekly home visits and phone calls with trained volunteers.

Operation Grants – $1,000

• 313 shelters and rescues across the country will receive unrestricted awards of $1,000 each to use for their greatest needs.

If you’d like to make a donation on this Giving Tuesday to help us help more dogs in 2018 through our grants program, please visit our website at www.pedigreefoundation.org.

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About PEDIGREE Foundation

Formed in 2008 by Mars Petcare, the makers of PEDIGREE(R) food for dogs, PEDIGREE Foundation is an independent 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to helping dogs in need find loving homes by supporting the good work of shelters and dog rescue organizations throughout the country. Through no fault of their own, more than four million dogs end up in shelters and rescue organizations every year, and nearly half of them never find a place to call home. For more information on how you can support the foundation, visit www.pedigreefoundation.org.

About Mars Petcare

Mars Petcare US is the U.S. operations of the world’s largest petcare company at the privately-held Mars, Incorporated. Mars Petcare US produces some of the world’s most beloved pet care brands, including PEDIGREE(R) Pet Food and Treats for Dogs, CESAR(R) Canine Cuisine, IAMS(TM) Pet Food, SHETA(R) Entrees for Dats, WHISKAS(R) Food for Cats, GREENIES(TM) Dental Chews and PILL POCKETS(TM) Treats, NUTRO(TM) Pet Food, EUKANUBA(TM) Pet Food and TEMPTATIONS(TM) Treats for Cats, as well as exclusive brands produced for some of the leading retailers in the U.S.. Headquartered in Franklin, Tenn., more than 3,700 Mars Petcare US Associates make, sell and distribute its high-quality pet food from 20 manufacturing facilities located in communities across the U.S.. For more information, please visit mars.com.

(C) 2017 Mars or Affiliates.