You are receiving this message from Petfinder because you registered to receive monthly emails. Unsubscribe at any time by following this hyperlink   IN THIS ISSUE Note from Our Founder Happy Tail Treats, Tips & Tidbits Sponsor Spotlight Vote Foundation News

Note from Our Founder Dear Friends, The pressure's building! More pets are being relinquished or abandoned. Adoptions are down. Shelters are crowded. All this stems from the country's economic woes. If you're staying afloat (and I hope you are), you can help relieve the pressure. Consider fostering a pet. Leilah, who sent in our featured happy tail, has fostered 10 dogs so far. Also read James Huskins' happy tail called "Why We Foster." The hardest part of fostering is letting go once your little rascal finds a permanent home. But there are intrinsic rewards. Try it! Take Care, Betsy Co-founder Petfinder.com

Happy Tail: Dixie and the Doxie From Leilah A., Silver Springs, FL: We found our sweetie Dixie through a search on Petfinder that led us to Suncoast Basset Rescue. Dixie is our third Basset and she is so loving and sweet. She was obviously abused in her earlier life but settled right in with us and her new companion--a Doxie named Weasel. For the life of me, I will never understand animal abuse. Since my experience with pet rescue, I have become very active in fostering dogs. Read the full story. Adopted from Suncoast Basset Rescue, Gainesville, FL.

Read more Happy Tails Do You Have a Happy Tail? Send us your Petfinder pet's happy ending story. It will be entered in our monthly Happy Tail drawing, and you may win a Man's Best Friend Fun Pack and a baseball cap from our friends at The Animal Rescue Site.

Treats, Tips & Tidbits CELEBRATING PEOPLE IN ACTION National Volunteer Week is April 19-25. Consider this a virtual pat on the back to all those who keep things humming. If you haven't yet volunteered, register in the Petfinder volunteer database. BOLT This totally awesome adventure, starring Bolt, the coolest action hero on Earth, and Rhino, his faithful partner and right-hand hamster, is now available on Disney Blu-Ray and DVD For more treats, check out the BOLT Web site.

HERE'S WHAT YOU SAID Last month we asked: What is your favorite pet health tip? Mostly you recommended giving pets good food and healthier treats (carrots, for instance). Some of you avoid prescription drugs and choose natural products to alleviate your pet's aches and pains. Elaine L. keeps her cats off of her synthetic carpets to avoid toxic chemicals. Her cats relax on cotton quilts and pads instead. John K. believes his dog Arnie had seizures from over-immunization and that a titer test to determine the level of antibodies in Arnie's blood might have prevented them. Read more about vaccinations. His dog Mervie developed infections because he was not neutered. "The message is...they should be neutered as early as possible," he says. Ashlee D. says, "I'm fond of the tip, 'If your dog is overweight, you're not getting enough exercise!'" If your dog has hot spots, Max M. says his vet allergist recommends Head and Shoulders shampoo. It contains zinc pyrithione which inhibits the growth of fungi, yeast, mold and bacteria. "When I shampoo him, I don't wash off all the soap suds, thus leaving a little more on his coat!" Always consult your pet's vet about treatments and remedies. TELL US Does your pet have any special traits? Tell us about your pet's quirky behavior, and we'll report back next month.

COMIC RELIEF We honor cartoonists on May 5, Cartoonist's Day, because they help us see the lighter side. Here are some sweet characters on Petfinder that need homes. BLONDIE Oklahoma ZIGGY California LINUS New Jersey BEETLE BAILEY Florida GROOMER HAS IT Sassier, snippier and more cutthroat than before: Groomer Has It is back for season two! Watch it on Animal Planet, Saturdays at 9PM e/p.

2009 SHELTER+ CHALLENGE IS HERE Vote daily at The Animal Rescue Site to help one shelter or rescue group win $20,000! There are chances to win $1,000-$5,000 prizes, too. Visit the site daily to see how the votes are stacking up. You can start spreading the word! Send one of our Shelter+ Challenge e-cards: You can send it to up to 20 people at a time, asking them to click and vote daily.

Sponsor Spotlight BISSELL BISSELL is Going Green! BISSELL is getting a little greener every day! Click here to check our their many earth friendlier products and sustainable design initiatives. PETCO Free Shipping! Get free shipping on your online order of $50 or more at PETCO.com. Enter "spring" in the promotion code box at checkout. (Restrictions apply, expires 4/28/2009.) MERIAL Save Up to $5! FRONTLINE® Plus is the vet's #1 choice* in flea and tick protection for dogs and cats. FRONTLINE kills fleas and ticks fast...and lasts. *Vet dispensed; MDI data Ask your veterinarian if HEARTGARD® Plus (ivermectin/pyrantel) is right for your dog and save up to $5 on a 12-pack purchase. Visit www.HEARTGARD.com for details.

Foundation News POWER TO THE PAWS Thanks to the Petfinder.com Foundation and Merial, the maker of HEARTGARD® (ivermectin) and FRONTLINE® brand products, and its Paws to Save Pets™ program, over $1,000,000 worth of Honda generators are being distributed to pet adoption groups across the country. The grant is part of the Petfinder.com Foundation's Power to the Paws program, a disaster preparedness initiative launched earlier this year to encourage animal welfare organizations to have well-thought-out disaster plans. You can help a pet in need through our Sponsor a Pet program. Find out more.

The Petfinder.com Foundation is a public charity created to assist Petfinder shelters and rescue groups through problem solving, fundraising, and relief in times of stress or disaster. Petfinder provides a searchable database of animals that need homes from over 12,500 animal shelters and adoption agencies across the USA, Canada and Mexico, free ads for lost, found, adoptable and wanted pets, pet-related message boards, a library of pet information, and pet-related content for kids. Since its inception, Petfinder has helped find homes for more than 12 million pets. Privacy Policy Petfinder is part of: Discovery Communications, LLC. One Discovery Place Silver Spring, MD 20910 © 2008 Discovery Communications, LLC.