by Mimi Ausland, Freekibble.com

Hello again! This is Mimi Ausland. I am the 13 year old girl who started the two websites freekibble.com and freekibblekat.com to help feed hungry dogs and cats at our local animal shelter. Boy did it take off! Every month we are now feeding 13 shelters across the country. Part of the reason we are able to feed so many hungry dogs and cats is because I was lucky enough to be on t.v. shows including Ellen DeGeneres and Oprah Winfrey. Without them and all our very generous sponsors we would not have been able to generate the 1.8 million nutritious meals to homeless dogs and cats!

We are now starting to do some new things here at freekibble.com to raise even more food for homeless dogs and cats. One big thing we’re doing is an event called the Freekibble HI-5! On November 5th, we are donating 5 times the kibble (50 pieces), for each person that plays Bow-Wow Trivia. HALO Pets is sponsoring the event with no limit on the kibble! Our goal is to raise 5 million pieces of kibble on the 5th!

We want to get as many people as we can to go to the site – so we can raise a bunch of kibble! This is a HUGE opportunity to get more food to shelter pets. So, we would like to ask for your help in spreading the word. Please tell everyone you know to go to www.freekibble.com on Thursday, November 5th! You can also send the e-card (shown below). With your help, we can feed a lot of dogs – they all deserve to be fed a good meal!

My next goal for freekibble.com is to feed as many homeless animals as possible and help to get people inspired to do something good for the world.

Thank you so much!

MIMI

We’re glad our discount shelter buying program was helpful to the GWP Rescue. Here’s a guest blog post from Mary Murray, a volunteer leader at the shelter, about her experience on Tracie Hotchner’s Cat Chat Radio Show. Even though we donate 5 times more than the average company, we’re still saddened by how many donation requests we have to turn away. So a discount is the least we can do. Shelters can learn more about the Halo program (offering 30-40% discounts for shelters) by calling Halo at 800-426-4256, or emailing customers@halopets.com.

By Mary Murray, GWPRescue.com

What an amazing evening GWP Rescue, Inc had September 9th! Through Tracie Hotchner-radio personality and author of “The Dog Bible”, teamed us up with David Yaskulka from HALO, Purely for Pets, to discuss our rescue and the need for quality nutrition.

As our German Wirehaired Pointers come in from across the country from shelters and from facilities with horrendous conditions, we see some extreme cases of emaciation, anemia, heart worm disease, and digestive disorders. As of late, we have been faced with some very difficult cases. One being a wonderful Wirehair named Murray. He came to us as an extreme case of neglect at 38 lbs. and near death. Murray should have weighed at least 60-70 lbs.

As seven of ten of our GWP’s coming to our licensed facility and to our foster home network are in such bad shape, we were always searching for an affordable, nutritionally based diet. Most instances we had to cook for the dogs, and with the neglected pups we had just this past May, with various litters this was a tremendous undertaking. Time spent preparing meals could have been spent in more productive ways as most of the babies were too young to be without their mother.

As Tracie and I corresponded…..she so graciously offered to help our licensed facility meet with the Halo company on her show. What I did not expect was the incredible gift from the Halo company. David had quite a surprise for us! Not only are we able to get a tremendous discount for our shelter for our puppies and adult dogs as a public charity, but he offered us a $1000.00 gift of products to further enhance the health and well being of our animals..

What a magical night it was…connecting with a company that is passionate about animal health, a wonderful author that has the “Dog Bible’, a comprehensive guide for owners leaving no question unanswered. Thank you both so very much!

We will always remember the special moment and support of our animals by no fault of their own are abused and neglected. Their journey will be much easier now thanks to caring folks such as yourselves. Kudos to you both!

Mary Murray
GWPRescue.com

Here’s a press release from our friends at The Humane Society of Inverness!

FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE

The Humane Society of Inverness would like to thank Halo Purely for Pets, Freekibble.com, SAR rescue of Florida for organizing the transport, and Mimi Ausland for starting the Freekibble website.

On August 27th, all our rescue dogs ate Halo Spot Stew kibble for breakfast. 3000lbs of the high quality food was donated to our organization. This is enough dry kibble to last approx. a whole month! The human grade ingredients allow for a superior diet for all our rescues. Plus they think it tastes great! Thank you everyone that made this possible and please remember to visit the FREEKIBBLE.COM website.

Humane Society of Inverness
You can see all of our adoptable pets at: www.hsinverness.com

Ginger Morgan of 2 Dogs, 2000 Miles is fighting for a cure to canine cancer. We’ve been thrilled to help their journey any way they’ve asked. Now they’re asking us all to spread the word — and join September 18 if you can! Here’s a guest blog announcement.

By Ginger Morgan, 2 Dogs, 2,000 Miles

Join us for the First Canine Cancer Caucus in Washington, DC
September 18, 2009 11:00a.m. Lady Bird Johnson Park

With the rate of canine cancer at record proportions, thousands of dogs and their owners are being called upon to march on Washington, DC, September 18 to raise awareness of the issue of cancer in dogs and memorialize those who have succumbed to the disease.

This march is to bring awareness to this frightening disease and hopefully stimulate interest in the funding of canine oncology studies that will help not only dogs but also people.

After assembling at Lady Bird Johnson Park, participants will march across the Arlington Memorial Bridge and stop at the Reflecting Pool on the National Mall for a brief memorial service for those dogs lost to cancer. The march will then continue to the Old Folklife Festival Site, where Robinson will be joined by other speakers to discuss the canine cancer epidemic.

Dog owners interested in participating can look for updates about the march posted at www.2dogs2000miles.org or email dc@2dogs2000miles.org. Additional information about canine cancer and Robinson’s 2,000-mile walk are also available at the site.

2 Dogs 2000 Miles would like to thank Halo Pets for continuing to send Hudson and Murphy delicious food and treats along their journey.

Kim Barnett, a well-renowned dog trainer from England, had the opportunity to evaluate Halo Spot’s Stew after we made a significant donation to two shelters that benefit from her services – Adopt a Boxer Rescue, and Save Our Strays. Kim, lead behaviorist of Follow My Lead UK, believes that feeding a quality, natural diet improves behavior and strengthens the human/animal bond.

By Kim Barnett, Follow My Lead IACP

Working as a dog trainer and behaviour consultant for several rescue organizations as well as having private clients, I get to see a broad spectrum of dogs, many of whom are suffering from anxiety based issues to various forms of aggression, and everything in between. In as much as it’s possible with a rescue dog, we like to see them provided with the best possible nutrition for both physical and mental well being. Many rescue dogs have been fed poor diets, and due to either neglect or because they are strays, some have been fed little or nothing and are found literally with just days left to live. In these cases it’s clear to see why the most nutritious and easy to digest diet would help these dogs get back to physical health as fast as possible, but how does it help their mental health you might wonder.

Just as good quality food and a balanced diet helps a person to feel at their emotional best, the same is true of our pets. The old saying You are what you eat is as relevant to our dogs and cats as it is to ourselves. If I’m working with a behaviorally challenged dog, I find that good food, free of unnecessary preservatives and additives helps the dog to achieve emotional well being. Foods that are high in sugars or contain cheap grains and other carbohydrates will not help my anxious or hyperactive dog to be calm and may not give him the quality protein that he needs.

Click here to read complete story.