Eagle Pack® Natural Pet Food Sponsors 'The Last Great Race on Earth®'

TEWKSBURY, Mass. and ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Nov. 15, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- With more than 1,049 miles of the roughest, most beautiful terrain Mother Nature has to offer, "The Last Great Race on Earth" welcomes a new sponsor: Eagle Pack® Natural Pet Food, as the Official Dog Food of the 2011 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race®.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20101115/NE00667 )

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20101115/NE00667 )

The Iditarod Trail is the ideal backdrop to showcase Eagle Pack. The race pits human and canine against nature, and against wild Alaska at her best. It exemplifies the stamina and drive these canine athletes must have, demonstrating the Nutrition in Action™ that Eagle Pack delivers. As the Official Dog Food Sponsor, Eagle Pack will supply food along the trail, and will dedicate funds to the health and care of the Iditarod dogs.

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race runs from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska. Teams from all walks of life take to the icy snow each year to compete in this cold weather ultra-marathon. The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race is regarded as a symbolic link to the early history of the state, when mushers and sled dog teams were the only means by which to carry mail and supplies, including medicine, to the inland communities.  This trail is connected to many traditions commemorating the legacy of dog mushing.

To celebrate its new partnership with the Iditarod, Eagle Pack is sponsoring a sweepstakes to send one lucky winner and a guest to Alaska in March 2011 for this historic race. Those who want a chance to be a part of the tradition and see Eagle Pack's Nutrition in Action may enter to win at www.eaglepack.com/alaska. Entries will be accepted until January 21, 2011.

Eagle Pack has long sponsored five Iditarod mushers and their teams: Martin Buser, Hans Gatt, DeeDee Jonrowe, Aliy Zirkle and Karen Ramstead. For these mushers, the Iditarod is not just a sled dog race, but a venue in which unique men and women from all walks of life compete to meet personal goals.

"The commitment to the care and health of our dogs is proven by the support Eagle Pack gives to each of us," said DeeDee Jonrowe, Iditarod musher. "They have a long and rich heritage of conducting research and development to create their high quality formulas for superior natural nutrition."

The health and well-being of all the animals is a top priority as they travel the snowy course for more than two weeks. Dr. Al Townshend, Eagle Pack's staff veterinarian and a former recipient of the Iditarod's Golden Stethoscope Award for ultimate canine care giving, knows firsthand what mushers on the trail need to keep all the dogs in top shape. "Eagle Pack's high quality, performance-proven formula has been developed with canine athletes and quality breeders. This has helped us make better foods for all dogs, not just those that require exceptional nutrition, and resulted in our gaining an advanced understanding of a dog's true needs," he says.

For over 25 years, Eagle Pack has been delivering the right balance of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, antioxidants and omega fatty acids to dogs of all abilities. Owners can see these results in their pets' shiny coats, bright eyes, healthy skin and joints, strong immune systems and energetic spirits too. No matter what a dog's daily adventure brings, their owners can still provide their pets with the same high quality nutrition that the performance canine athletes eat.

While athletes from all over the world travel to Alaska to take part in this journey, anyone can take part right in the comfort of their own homes. By becoming an Iditarod Insider™, fans can follow the field through live streaming coverage of the start, restart, and finish, along with daily video on demand updates from the trail. Insider GPS Tracker keeps track of each team so you can see how fast they are traveling, how much distance there is between teams and view checkpoints along with current temperatures on the trail in real time. Visit http://insider.iditarod.com for more information and to sign up.

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Eagle Pack® – Nutrition in Action™

For over 25 years Eagle Pack, a proud member of the WellPet family of brands, has energized pets everywhere by providing them quality natural nutrition without fillers or artificial preservatives. Eagle Pack pet food delivers the right balance of proteins, fats, carbohydrates and omega fatty acids for results you can see in their shiny coats, bright eyes and energetic spirits. Eagle Pack's naturally tried, trusted and true formulas have been performance-proven with backyard ball catchers, show ring winners and Alaskan sled dog racers too. Pet owners can count on Eagle Pack's nutrient-rich foods to naturally fuel their pet's daily adventures, both big and small. Visit www.eaglepack.com to learn more.

Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race (www.iditarod.com), which has been described as the "Last Great Race on Earth," runs from Anchorage, in south central Alaska, to Nome on the western Bering Sea coast. Teams from all walks of life will cover 1,000 miles in hopes of becoming an Official Iditarod Finisher. To date, more people have climbed Mount Everest then have finished the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. The race celebrates the sled dogs and the mushers who were the primary source for transportation through communities along the Iditarod Trail. The Iditarod covers some of the roughest, most-extreme terrain Mother Nature has to offer. Jagged mountain ranges, frozen rivers, dense forests, desolate tundra and miles of windswept coast test mushers and their dogs against everything wild in the Alaskan frontier.

SOURCE Eagle Pack