Free Book Helps Families Introduce Pets and Babies

Parents can get valuable information, and also win prizes from Victoria Stilwell, star of Animal Planet's "It's Me or the Dog"

WASHINGTON, July 20, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A valuable book called Pet Meets Baby is available in a free download from American Humane Association (www.americanhumane.org/petmeetsbaby) to help families safely introduce a new baby or new child to a beloved pet, and a new pet to their children.

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Too often, young families relinquish a pet when the first baby comes, fearing harm to an infant. But there are ways to prepare the pet for a safe introduction to children, and a gentle transition in a family's attention when a new child takes center stage.

Pet Meets Baby can help keep families and pets together with practical tips for how to prepare the pet's possible re-location to another room; how to encourage careful first introductions; how to  understand when a pet becomes stressed; and what to do so that children and pets can grow up together and form strong bonds.

In addition to downloading a free booklet, American Humane Association invites readers to fill out a simple survey online to share how they integrated pets and children into their homes. People who fill out the short survey will automatically be entered into a sweepstakes to win one of several prize packages from Victoria Stilwell, the star of Animal Planet's "It's Me or The Dog," and a national ambassador for American Humane Association. The grand prize winner will receive a 30-minute private phone consultation with Ms. Stilwell to discuss her advice for particular pet challenges. Drawings for all prizes begin in August and continue through November. Entrants must be at least 18 and comply with rules posted on the website to be eligible for these prizes:

• August and September drawings for a $75 value Prize Package of a Victoria Stilwell "Positively" T-shirt; an autographed copy of the book, It's Me or the Dog: How to Have the Perfect Pet, by Victoria Stilwell, and an autographed photo of Victoria Stilwell.
• October drawing for a $140 value Deluxe Prize Package of a Victoria Stilwell "Positively" T-shirt; an autographed copy of the book, It's Me or the Dog: How to Have the Perfect Pet, by Victoria Stilwell; an autographed photo of Victoria Stilwell; and the "It's Me or the Dog: Season One" 4-disc DVD set.
• November drawing for a $375 value Grand Prize Package of a Victoria Stilwell "Positively" T-shirt; an autographed copy of the book, It's Me or the Dog: How to Have the Perfect Pet,  by Victoria Stilwell; an autographed photo of Victoria Stilwell; and a private 30-minute telephone consultation with Victoria Stilwell on pet behavior and training.

"Introducing a new baby to your family pet can be a beautiful thing," said Ms. Stilwell. "The bond that can develop between children and their pets is priceless if it is built on safe practices, mutual respect and love. Bringing home a new baby can be stressful for pets. If that process is not managed and successfully prepared for, the consequences can range from the mildly annoying to tragic. Pet Meets Baby is a great resource I recommend to my clients to make sure they know what to expect and how best to minimize the risks associated with introducing new family members – whether they have four legs or two."

American Humane Association encourages all pet owners to download as many free copies as they like at www.americanhumane.org/petmeetsbaby, or to order copies in packs of ten from Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/gp/browse.html?ie=UTF8&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&me=A3IGPBH789LMTX to distribute to PTA groups, friends, or veterinary clients. It's a great way to help American Humane Association strengthen the relationship between people and animals. Distribution of Pet Meets Baby is made possible through a grant to American Humane Association from The P&G Fund of The Greater Cincinnati Foundation.

About American Humane Association

For the last 134 years, American Humane Association has been at the forefront of major advances that protect children, pets, and farm animals from cruelty, abuse, disasters, and neglect. Today we're also leading the way in understanding human-animal relationships and how they can best benefit both. As the nation's voice for the protection of children and animals, American Humane Association reaches millions of people every day through groundbreaking research, education, training and services that span a wide network of organizations, agencies and businesses. You can help make a difference, too. Visit American Humane Association at www.americanhumane.org today.

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For Sweepstakes:  NO PURCHASE OR DONATION IS REQUIRED AND PURCHASE OR DONATION WILL NOT INCREASE THE ODDS OF WINNING. Entrants must be 18 or over and must reside in one of the 50 states of the United States or Washington, D.C. Sponsored by American Humane Association, which can be contacted at 1400 16th St. NW, St., Suite 360, Washington, D.C. 20036. Void where prohibited. Sweepstakes begins at 12:00:01 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on July 19, 2011 and ends at 11:59:01 a.m. ET on November 1, 2011. Odds of winning a prize will be determined by the number of eligible entries received during the entry period: between July 19, 2011 and November 1, 2011.  Official rules are located at http://www.americanhumane.org/assets/pdfs/animals/pet-meets-baby-rules.pdf

SOURCE American Humane Association