Blue Buffalo and Helen Woodward Launch World's Largest Pet Adoption Drive for Orphan Pets

Home 4 the Holidays Kicks Off with 100,000 pound Bi-Coastal Shelter Food Drop

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Oct 04, 2018, 09:37 ET

RANCHO SANTA FE, Calif., Oct. 4, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The 19^th Annual Blue Buffalo Home 4 the Holidays campaign is kicking off by providing an unprecedented number of holiday meals to orphan pets from coast to coast. Home 4 the Holidays is an annual, international, three‐month pet‐adoption drive dedicated to finding happy, loving homes for orphan pets.

The 19th Annual Blue Buffalo Home 4 the Holidays campaign is kicking off by providing an unprecedented number of holiday meals to orphan pets from coast to coast.

On Monday, October 8^th, Blue Buffalo, title sponsor of the world's largest adoption initiative, will supply nearly 100,000 pounds of dog and cat food to shelters across the country. Naturally Fresh is also backing the cause delivering 18 pallets of cat litter to be distributed to assist the San Diego region. The adoption campaign runs through January 2nd, 2018.

The campaign began 19 years ago when Helen Woodward Animal Center president and CEO Mike Arms noticed that a majority of rescue facilities were closing their doors during the holiday season – a primary time of year for family pet additions. With shelter doors closed, would-be adopters were resorting to shopping at pet stores or puppy mills for holiday pet purchases. Arms was aware that the staff at these businesses were rarely trained to assess the likelihood of a successful animal/family match, increasing the number of pets sent to shelters once the season was over.

The Home 4 the Holidays campaign encourages pet lovers to find their four-legged family members at a shelter rather than a pet store or backyard- breeder and since its inception has helped place more than 14 million pets from over 4,000 participating global rescue partners into forever homes.

Blue Buffalo has supported Helen Woodward Animal Center's holiday campaign since 2013. Last year, the campaign resulted in more than 1 million orphan dogs and cats united with loving families.

"Blue Buffalo believes pets truly become family members and we are proud to support pet adoption programs through the year," said Blue Buffalo Marketing Director Danielle Donegan. "The Home 4 the Holidays campaign is especially important to the animal shelter and rescue communities nationwide because it helps millions of orphan pets find forever homes."

Many animal welfare organizations often struggle with limited funding and many hungry mouths to feed, while juggling budgets with supply costs and medical expenses. The Monday Coast-to-Coast Blue Buffalo Food Drop takes a big bite out of that burden, enabling shelters can focus on matching pets with loving families.

Blue Buffalo is delivering two semi truckloads of foods each, to Helen Woodward Animal Center and the Center's newest rescue partner, Animal Haven Shelter in New York City. The much-needed holiday meals will be distributed to approximately 60 pet rescues through those locations.

"We are so grateful to Blue Buffalo," stated Helen Woodward Animal Center VP of Development Renee Resko. "They genuinely share our love of pets and share our commitment to trying to find ways to spread the message of adoption and help rescue organizations. We work with partner rescue organizations year-round and we see how dedicated they are to the animals. It means a lot that we're able to help facilitate this donation."

This year, the program aims to do even more to support participating rescue organizations. For the first time ever, Helen Woodward Animal Center is offering the choice of a rescue van or $25,000 to the group that submits the most innovative way their shelter promoted adoptions over the holidays.

There are many ways to get involved in the Blue Buffalo Home 4 the Holidays campaign including adopting and encouraging friends to adopt and then showing the world your newly adopted best friend by posting a photo at https://animalcenter.org/home-4-the-holidays/, or sharing on Twitter or Instagram with #IChoseToRescue and tagging @hwac and @bluebuffalo.

For more information about the campaign or to find participating local shelters and rescues groups, go to www.home4theholidays.org.

About Home 4 the Holidays (H4TH)
As one of the most successful pet adoption programs in the world, H4TH partners with thousands of animal organizations dedicated to finding forever homes for orphan pets. Founded by Helen Woodward Animal Center and in partnership with Blue Buffalo this year, the program began in 1999 with just 14 participating animal shelters in San Diego County. Since it began 19 years ago, partner organizations in the Home 4 the Holidays campaign have helped more than 13 million families experience the joy of pet adoption, including more than 1.3 million pet adoptions last year alone. For more information, please visit www.home4theholidays.org.

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 90,000 people and more than 10,000 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, the International Remember Me Thursday® campaign and The Business of Saving Lives Workshops, teaching the business of saving lives to animal welfare leaders from around the world. For more information, go to: www.animalcenter.org.

About Blue Buffalo
Blue Buffalo, based in Wilton, Conn., is the nation's leading natural pet food company, and provides natural foods and treats for dogs and cats under its BLUE Life Protection Formula, BLUE Wilderness, BLUE Basics, BLUE Freedom and BLUE Natural Veterinary Diet lines. Paying tribute to its founding mission, the Company, through the Blue Buffalo Foundation, is also a leading sponsor of pet cancer awareness and of critical studies of pet cancer, health, treatment and nutrition at top veterinary medical schools across the United States. For more information, visit www.BlueBuffalo.com.

CONTACT: 858-756-4117

SOURCE Helen Woodward Animal Center