Do You Know a Special Pet Worthy of the Title of 'Pet of the Year'?

— Nominate a pet for the 2024 Pet Partners Pet of the Year competition. —

BELLEVUE, Wash., Jan. 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Pet Partners, the nation's leading nonprofit serving people and communities in need through therapy animal interactions, is excited to announce the national search for its 2024 Pet of the Year. Now in its third year, this annual event is a six-week fundraising competition that takes place February 5 to March 18, 2024. If you think your pet can dazzle and motivate your friends, family, and community to give to a good cause, it's time to nominate them for Pet of the Year!

You don't need to have a registered therapy animal to compete, all pets are welcome! You can nominate your pet or someone else's. Some families choose to remember and celebrate the lives of their much-loved pets who have passed away by competing in their memory.

While being cute is a bonus for candidates, the 2024 title will go to the pet whose team raises the most funds during the competition. The winner will be crowned on March 19 in a virtual celebration streamed on Facebook Live. There are also some amazing prizes for the top fundraisers, including a professional photo shoot, media interviews, and lots of pet-focused products worth thousands of dollars.

"While the Pet of the Year title is something to boast about, the winner also claims bragging rights for raising critical funds that will provide more therapy animal visits to people in nursing homes and hospitals, college students during exams, nervous airport travelers, children learning to read, and much more," said C. Annie Peters, President & CEO of Pet Partners. "This competition helps increase awareness about the benefits of therapy dogs and other therapy animals and the powerful connection between humans and animals."

The 2023 winner was Rye Guy, an Australian Shepherd from Minnesota who is a registered Pet Partners therapy dog. Rye and his human Lindsey Wallace raised over $14,000 for Pet Partners. Rye took the title after surpassing nearly 90 other candidates from 32 states and three countries.

The Pet Partners Pet of the Year competition helps fund the education and registration of thousands of therapy animal teams that make millions of visits every year. Pet Partners' Therapy Animal Program is made up of therapy animal teams who bring comfort and joy to people in facility settings such as hospitals, nursing homes, schools, libraries, airports, and at workplace well-being events. For more information about Pet Partners Pet of the Year, visit petpartners.org/petoftheyear.

About Pet Partners
Pet Partners is the leader in the therapy animal field for registering volunteer teams. Since 1977, we have supported thousands of teams in making millions of meaningful visits across the country and around the world. Through the human-animal bond, we can improve the physical, social, and emotional lives of both the people and animals involved. Pet Partners supports volunteer teams by offering the highest quality preparation, an unmatched approach to evaluation and registration—for nine different types of animals—and a focus on connections. We elevate the importance of therapy animal visits, and our teams help build a healthier and happier world for us all. Whether or not you have a pet, learn more about sharing the human-animal bond by visiting petpartners.org.  

SOURCE Pet Partners