Ten 10-year-old children joined the celebration, all surprised with dogs previously selected and adopted by their parents! To meet the fortunate families and their new best friends, CLICK HERE.

Thanks to the PETCO Foundation for sending each lucky pooch home with a brand-new training crate and to Merial for providing the families with a one-month supply of Frontline flea and tick prevention product.

The More the Merrier! Several families – each adopting a dog through Petfinder -- helped celebrate our 10th birthday on NBC’s Today Show.

“Little did I know that the best dog in the world was, at that moment, near death and trying desperately to find someone to help him.”

When Jennifer Blake of Fayetteville, North Carolina, returned from duty in Iraq in November, one of her first goals was to find a dog to adopt.

“Little did I know that the best dog in the world was, at that moment, near death and trying desperately to find someone to help him,” she says.

In his search for help, the emaciated two-year-old shepherd mix stumbled onto a stranger’s front porch. When the man examined the dog, he discovered a wire deeply embedded in the dog’s neck. In obvious pain, the pooch remained docile as the man lifted him and rushed him to the Hoke Raeford Humane Society in Raeford, N.C. A veterinarian removed the wire surgically, but it had already damaged the dog’s trachea. The poor creature also had a dent in his head where someone had smashed his skull.

With loving care, Hero, as they called him, began to gain weight, and the staff began taking him to adoption days. But two months passed, and no one adopted him. Depressed, Hero began to lose weight again.

But then the dog’s path crossed Jen Blake’s on Petfinder.com, where the shelter had posted his photo and story.

“He wasn’t much to look at,” Jen says. “He was still skin and bones, he had no neck hair from the surgery, and he looked so sad it made you want to cry, but something just drew me to him.”

Jen visited him several times and kept looking at his profile on Petfinder. “Finally, one afternoon in late January, I went to the Humane Society to bring him home,” she says.

Hero blossomed. “He is sweet and kind; he listens well, loves to cuddle up with people on the couch and is such a happy dog he does a ‘happy dance’ by kicking his legs up and squirming on his back with a big grin on his face every night before we go to sleep.”

His personality encouraged Jen to enroll him as a therapy dog, and he will soon be visiting hospitals and retirement homes.

“When people hear his story, they always tell me how lucky he was,” Jen says. “But I don’t think they realize that I am truly the lucky one to have found such a great dog, one who never lost his spirit. Though I renamed him Murphy, he will always be my Hero.”

Enter to Win!
We love to hear about heartwarming pet adoptions. Send us your story. Each month we’ll choose one lucky family to receive a six-month supply of FRONTLINE ® Plus or FRONTLINE Top Spot ® from our sponsor, Merial!

Imagine the impact a low-cost, easy-to administer sterilization procedure would have on the homeless pet population. Imagine preventing the needless killing of innocent, unwanted cats and dogs. You can help make it happen by signing the petition!
 
The Alliance for Contraception in Cats and Dogs is sponsoring a petition in order to demonstrate demand for nonsurgical sterilants for cats and dogs. Many people haven’t even considered the possibility of sterilizing dogs and cats without surgery, though various methods have been available for humans and wildlife for decades. But it will be possible. And that day won’t be far off if we can demonstrate the demand to pharmaceutical companies, scientists and funders.
 
An estimated five million cats and dogs die each year in US shelters alone. The situation in many other countries is even more desperate. By signing this petition you can help bring this tragedy to an end.

Licensed to Help!

Petfinder.com
License Plate Frame
$8.95

On the go and in the know! Spread the word about Petfinder.com to every highway and byway. Needy animals everywhere will thank you!

Sturdy corrosion-resistant molded PVC frame features "Petfinder.com" on the top in white and "Adopt a Homeless Pet" below in purple.

Plus, Your Purchase Feeds Shelter Pets!
With each purchase, The Animal Rescue Site will fund 14 bowls of food for shelter animals.

Purina's Animal Advice radio programs are now available as podcasts. Listen in as veterinarians and pet lovers like you discuss topics such as animal training, pet surgery, and behavioral theories. Find out more

Hurricane Katrina shone a spotlight on the need to plan for pet safety in times of disaster. But devastating storms are only one of many crises — along with fire, flooding, and spills of hazardous materials — that could threaten your pet. When disaster strikes, will you be ready? PETCO suggests several tips to help you care for or recover your pet in a crisis.

Disaster Kits
For example, every pet owner should have an emergency kit on hand. A well-stocked kit includes not only food and water, but also medications your pet needs regularly, vet records, recent photos of your pet, and more.

Disaster Plans
Preparedness also means knowing what you’ll do in the event of an emergency. If disaster struck today and you had to board your pet, do you know the nearest kennel or shelter? If you had to abandon your pet in your home, where should you leave him/her? Who would check on your pet if you couldn’t, and is he/she authorized to make care decisions in your absence?

Don’t wait until it’s too late. Learn more now about how you can be prepared if disaster strikes!

What better way to bring love and warmth into your home than by adopting a kitten or a cat? Merial, the maker of FRONTLINE® Plus, offers you a few tips on welcoming your new furry friend into your home.

• Cat-proof your home by putting poisonous products and plants out of reach.
• Set up a litter box in a quiet, low-traffic area.
• Cats must scratch, so make sure to provide a scratching post.

And remember, when it comes to flea protection, FRONTLINE is the #1 veterinarian-recommended flea and tick control product.