Thousands of Dog Lovers Shine a Spotlight on Their Communities

Via PR Newswire - Pedigree Brand has announced the five communities moving forward in the Pedigree Feeding Project: Choose the Next Communities program.

In January 2013, Pedigree Brand asked dog lovers around the country to tell them which communities they wanted to benefit from the Pedigree Feeding Project, a program that supplies shelters in need with 100 percent of their core dog food needs, at absolutely no cost.

During the five-week nomination phase, dog lovers united to help Pedigree Brand identify the next communities. Thousands of nominations, representing hundreds of communities in each corner of the nation, were submitted. Pedigree Brand reviewed each heartfelt entry and narrowed down the field to five communities where the brand could make the biggest immediate difference:

Metro Detroit/Metro Flint, Michigan: There are numerous shelters and rescue groups in Detroit and Flint dedicated to helping dogs get off the streets and into loving homes, like Michigan Animal Rescue League, Friends of Dearborn Animal Shelter and Genesee County Animal Control. But with the Detroit area facing financial difficulties, resources in the community are incredibly limited.

Erie, Pennsylvania: Erie is a tight-knit community that takes caring for pets seriously. Managing both funding challenges and a steady increase in homeless pets, groups like The ANNA Shelter and The Humane Society of Northwest Pennsylvania have built an incredible reputation for caring for stray animals.

Jackson, Mississippi: Jackson has one of the highest rates of homeless pets in the state. Animal Rescue Fund of Mississippi, which opened its doors in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and the 40-year-old Mississippi Animal Rescue League, work around the clock to take pets off the street and place them in loving homes.

Jacksonville, Florida: Shelters in Jacksonville are seeing more and more homeless dogs come through their doors every day. Pet Rescue North specializes in helping handicapped, blind, and deaf dogs, while SAFE Animal Shelter continues its noble work as the longest standing shelter in Jacksonville.

Wausau, Wisconsin: The Humane Society of Marathon County in Wausau does so much to care for the homeless pets in their community that their resources are constantly spread thin. That's why local radio station Y106.5 rallied the community to nominate the shelter for the Pedigree Feeding Project. It worked!

Now, these five communities are again relying on the enthusiasm and participation of dog lovers across the nation. People can go to Facebook.com/Pedigree to watch a heart-felt message from Miranda Lambert, view photos and stories showcasing these five communities, and then cast their vote for the community that they would like Pedigree Brand to help.

Voting runs until noon (EDT) on April 12. The final two communities to officially join the Pedigree Feeding Project will be announced in mid-2013.