BLUE BUFFALO HOME 4 THE HOLIDAYS CAMPAIGN CELEBRATES 10 MILLION ADOPTIONS SINCE THE PROGRAM'S INCEPTION!

RANCHO SANTA FE, Calif., Jan. 28, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hot on the heels of Blue Buffalo announcing the 1 millionth adoption of the 2014/2015 Blue Buffalo Home 4 the Holidays campaign, Helen Woodward Animal Center announces another milestone. In partnership with the philanthropic pet food company, the "largest pet adoption drive on the planet" celebrates finding a forever home for its 10 millionth pet since the program's inception. That special pet is a dog named Brewster, who made quite an impression on the hearts of the ICare Dog Rescue located in Corona, California, and everyone who heard his story. Brewster's record-setting adoption will be celebrated at Helen Woodward Animal Center's The Business of Saving Lives Conference on Thursday, February 5th at 8:15am at the Wyndham San Diego Bayside Hotel. Blue Buffalo will be there to present a year's supply of dog food to Brewster's adopting family and a $1,000 check and 2,500 pounds of pet food to ICare Dog Rescue at this special ceremony.

Brewster had been found, roaming free, on a rural road in Southern California. A skeletal 5 pounds, covered in scabs, with damaged teeth, he was starving and fighting a losing battle with the bigger stray dogs in the area who roughed him up on a regular basis. ICARE Dog Rescue took in the brown and white Chihuahua and provided him with a loving foster parent, Dana Stark, who cared for him throughout months of surgeries and medical treatments.

Remarkably, throughout his own healing, Brewster's focus rested elsewhere. As Stark's mother-in-law's health failed, Brewster took to regularly visiting her. As she went in and out of the hospital and eventually into a rehab facility, he seemed to sense just what she needed and would lie quietly in her lap or snuggle up beside her in bed. During his visits he would grace all of the residents with licks and tail wags, providing much needed joy and love to patients who had lost limbs, suffered strokes, or lost the ability to speak. When Stark's mother-in-law passed away, Brewster seemed to know that his job was done and it was time to find his own forever family. Only a week, later, as though it had been fated, Brewster met the Cunningham family at a Petsmart Adoption event in Anaheim, California.

The Cunningham family had recently suffered the death of their beloved dog named Marshall and it wasn't only the human family members who were mourning his loss. Their rescue Chihuahua named Jack had stopped eating and was notably depressed. Brewster came into the lives of the family and once again showed off his therapeutic gifts. As if by instinct, Brewster took it upon himself to help Jack, often jumping into bed to sit beside him, lying right beside him "in the sunny spot" and "prancing beside him" on their walks together.

"I have been really thinking of getting him Certified as a Therapy Dog," stated Carolyn Cunningham. "He just is perfect for that and has so much love to give. I love the idea of him helping to brighten someone's week the way he brightens my every day."

More families bring home new pets during the holiday season than any other time of year. With so many homeless pets across the country, Helen Woodward Animal Center spearheaded Home 4 the Holidays in partnership with Blue Buffalo, boasting an international coalition of over 4,000 pet adoption agencies, facilities and rescue‐groups, dedicated to finding happy, loving homes for orphan pets. The stories of these successful adoptions filter in from around the world for the end-of-campaign "Heart-Warming Story Contest." Brewster's adoption not only stood out amongst these stories, but it also happened to fall right in the heart of the program's 10 millionth record-setting week.

"This program is incredibly special to me," said Helen Woodward Animal Center President and CEO Mike Arms. "During this time each year, I have the opportunity to hear very personal adoption stories from our amazing partners doing life-saving work around the world. I'm very proud of ICare Dog Rescue and the dedication they showed to putting such a deserving dog into a great home. It's exciting to know that there have been over 10 million stories like this since the campaign began."

Helen Woodward Animal Center is located at 6461 El Apajo Road in Rancho Santa Fe. For more information about the Center, log on to www.animalcenter.org. For more information on the Blue Buffalo Home 4 the Holidays Campaign, log on to www.home4theholidays.org.

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About Home 4 the Holidays (H4TH)

As one of the most successful pet adoption programs in the world, H4TH partners with thousands of animal organizations dedicated to finding forever homes for orphan pets. Founded by Helen Woodward Animal Center and supported this year by Blue Buffalo, the program began in 1999 with just 14 participating animal shelters in San Diego County. Since it began 16 years ago, Home 4 the Holidays has helped more than 10 million families experience the joy of pet adoption, including more than 1.3 million pet adoptions this year alone. For more information, please visit www.home4theholidays.org.

About Helen Woodward Animal Center

Helen Woodward Animal Center is a private, non-profit organization where "people help animals and animals help people." Founded in 1972 in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., the Center provides services for more than 57,000 people and thousands of animals annually through adoptions, educational and therapeutic programs both onsite and throughout the community. Helen Woodward Animal Center is also the creator of the international Blue Buffalo Home 4 the Holidays pet adoption drive, the International Remember Me Thursday™ campaign and The Business of Saving Lives Workshops, teaching the business of saving lives to animal welfare leaders from around the world. For more information go to: www.animalcenter.org. About Blue Buffalo

Blue Buffalo, located in Wilton, CT, is the nation's leading natural pet food company, and provides natural dog food, natural cat food and treats under its BLUE Life Protection Formula, BLUE Wilderness, BLUE Basics and BLUE Freedom lines. Paying tribute to its founding mission, the company, through the Blue Buffalo Foundation for Cancer Research, is also a leading sponsor of pet cancer awareness and of critical studies of pet cancer, health, treatment and nutrition at top veterinary medical schools across the United States. For more information about Blue Buffalo, visit the company's website at www.BlueBuffalo.com.

Photos accompanying this release are available at: http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=30364 http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=30365

CONTACT: Jessica Gercke
         PR Manager
         Helen Woodward Animal Center
         (858) 756-4117 x 335

Source: Helen Woodward Animal Center

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