Dog Expert Cesar Millan Joins Animal Shelters and Rescue Organizations Across the Globe for the 18th Annual Pet Adoptathon®

Over 300,000 Pets Saved to Date Through This Annual Event

PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y., April 11, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- North Shore Animal League America – Home of the Mutt-i-gree®  and the world's largest no-kill rescue and adoption organization – announced that over 2,500 shelters in 50 states, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and six countries will join together for Pet Adoptathon Month in May.  Cesar Millan, internationally renowned dog expert and host of The Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan on Nat Geo WILD, will serve as national spokesperson for this life-saving event sponsored by Purina ONE®.

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North Shore Animal League America will kick off the event at Pet Adoptathon Headquarters in New York at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 5th and remain open for 36 straight hours.  Thousands of participating shelters will host weekend Pet Adoptathon events promoting the benefits of shelter pet adoptions and showcasing the many beautiful and healthy animals that are available. Pet Adoptathon activities will run through the month of May nationwide in an effort to raise awareness for shelter animals and save more lives.  Since its inception in 1995, Pet Adoptathon events have taken place all over the world, helping find permanent and loving homes for over 300,000 animals.

To promote shelter pets and animal welfare to the next generation, Millan partnered with the Animal League and Yale University School of the 21st Century to develop the Mutt-i-grees Curriculum, which is currently in over 900 schools in 39 states and in Canada. Cesar's Millan Foundation funds the Curriculum, which highlights the unique characteristics of shelter pets and builds on the affinity between children and animals to provide a unique context in which to teach compassion, empathy and social responsibility. 

"My vision is for a life-long healthy relationship between dogs and people, and supporting the rescue, rehabilitation and adoption of homeless animals through events like Pet Adoptathon is a vital piece of making that happen," said Millan.  "With the Mutt-i-grees Curriculum, we are increasing awareness of shelter animals while supporting the development of calm, confident and caring children who can make a difference in the lives of people, animals and the environment."

Pet Adoptathon promotes the adoption of shelter pets, known as Mutt-i-grees®.  An estimated 8 million - 10 million dogs, cats, puppies and kittens enter United States shelters annually, and tragically over 4 million of these precious animals are euthanized.  Millions of lives can be saved when potential pet parents make the choice to adopt a pet from a shelter or rescue group, instead of purchasing a pet from a pet store. 

Pet Adoptathon is possible thanks to the support of Presenting Sponsor Purina ONE®, and Supporting Sponsors Nat Geo WILD and the Mutt-i-grees Curriculum.  For more information on Pet Adoptathon Month or to find a participating shelter near you, please visit www.AnimalLeague.org. 

About North Shore Animal League America
North Shore Animal League America - Home of the Mutt-i-gree® - headquartered in Port Washington, NY, is the world's largest no-kill animal rescue and adoption organization. The Animal League reaches across the country to rescue, nurture and adopt 20,000 pets into happy and loving homes each year. Over the past decade, the Animal League saved over 200,000 lives and has saved over 1,000,000 animals since its inception. "Like" us at Facebook.com/TheAnimalLeague, follow us at Twitter.com/AnimalLeague. To learn more about animal rescue and welfare, visit www.AnimalLeague.org.

About Nestle Purina PetCare Company
Purina ONE is manufactured by Nestle Purina PetCare Company, one of the leading global players in the pet care industry.  Nestle Purina promotes responsible pet care, humane education, community involvement and the positive bond between people and their pets. The North American headquarters for Nestle Purina PetCare is located at Checkerboard Square in St. Louis, Missouri, where Ralston Purina was founded more than a century ago. The company is part of the Swiss-based Nestle S.A. – the world's largest food company.

About Nat Geo WILD
For more than 30 years, National Geographic has been the leader in wildlife programming.  The networks Nat Geo WILD and Nat Geo WILD HD, launched in 2010, offer intimate encounters with nature's ferocious fighters and gentle creatures of land, sea and air that draw upon the cutting-edge work of the many explorers, filmmakers and scientists of the National Geographic Society.  Part of the National Geographic Channels US, based in Washington, D.C., the networks are a joint venture between National Geographic and Fox Cable Networks.  In 2001, National Geographic Channel (NGC) debuted, and 10 years later, Spanish-language network Nat Geo Mundo was unveiled.  The Channels have carriage with all of the nation's major cable, telco and satellite television providers, with Nat Geo WILD currently available in 54 million U.S. homes.  Globally, Nat Geo WILD is available in more than 96 million homes in 90 countries and 28 languages.  For more information, visit www.natgeowild.com.

About the Millan Foundation
On Valentine's Day 2007, Cesar Millan officially established the Millan Foundation with the mission to create and deliver community humane education programs and promote animal welfare by supporting the rescue, rehabilitation, and rehoming of abused and abandoned dogs. Since its inception, the Millan Foundation has been creating lifelong healthy relationships between dogs and people through a series of grants to non-profit animal shelters and rescues, community education programs including The Mutt-i-grees Curriculum, spay and neuter campaigns and emergency animal rescue through the Daddy's Emergency Animal Rescue (DEAR) Fund. For more information visit www.millanfoundation.org.

About The American Mutt-i-grees Curriculum
The Mutt-i-grees Curriculum is an innovative program that builds on the affinity between children and animals, providing a unique context to teach compassion, empathy and social responsibility.  Developed by the Yale School of the 21st Century in collaboration with North Shore Animal League America, and graciously funded by the Millan Foundation, the Curriculum highlights the unique characteristics and desirability of shelter dogs, known as Mutt-i-grees. 

Devera Lynn
Phone: 516.883.7633
Cell: 516.474.5332
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE North Shore Animal League America