Ninety-five Animal Shelters Vie for Slots in ASPCA $100K Challenge

NEW YORK--The ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) today announced that 95 shelters spanning the nation from Hawaii to the U.S. Virgin Islands have been selected to compete in the qualifying heat of the 2011 ASPCA $100K Challenge. The contenders now must get their supporters to vote online from April 4-15, and the 50 shelters with the most votes will go on to compete for more than $300,000 in prize grants, including a grand prize of $100,000.

"The idea behind the qualifying heat is to inspire communities to support their local shelters," said Bert Troughton, vice president of community outreach for the ASPCA. "Casting a vote for your local shelter is a way of saying, 'We care about the animals in our community and want to help our local shelter save animals.' When people work together with their local shelters, more animals are saved, which has a positive impact on the entire community. Our contest provides added incentive because the public can both help save animals in their community and bring important grant dollars to their local organization."

During the 2011 ASPCA $100K Challenge, 50 animal shelters will compete to save at least 300 more animals--during the months of August, September, and October 2011--than they did over the same three-month period in 2010. The shelter with the biggest increase in animals saved will win a $100,000 grant for their shelter. The agency that gets the most community members involved in saving animals will win a $25,000 grant; and those organizations that do the best in their regions will be eligible for between $5,000 and $25,000 in grants.

Fans and supporters can vote for their favorite shelter daily from April 4-15; the 50 shelters with the most votes at the end of the qualifying heat will earn a spot in the ASPCA $100K Challenge. To vote, please visit www.votetosavelives.org.

The 95 shelters in the qualifying heat of the ASPCA $100K Challenge are:

• Decatur Animal Services in Decatur, Ala.
• Yavapai Humane Society in Prescott, Ariz.
• Humane Society of Southern Arizona in Tucson, Ariz.
• Ramona Humane Society, Inc. in San Jacinto, Calif.
• Animal Friends of the Valleys in Wildomar, Calif.
• Ventura County Animal Services in Camarillo, Calif.
• Santa Barbara County Animal Services in Santa Maria, Calif.
• Butte Humane Society in Chico, Calif.
• Valley Oak SPCA in Visalia, Calif.
• Town of Apple Valley Animal Services in Apple Valley, Calif.
• Riverside County Department of Animal Services in Riverside, Calif.
• SEAACA (Southeast Area Animal Control Authority) in Downey, Calif.
• City of Hesperia Animal Control in Hesperia, Calif.
• City of San Bernardino Animal Control in San Bernardino , Calif.
• Meriden Humane Society in Meriden, Conn.
• Washington Animal Rescue League in Washington, D.C.
• Washington Humane Society in Washington, D.C.
• Orange County Animal Services in Orlando, Fla.
• Animal Care and Protective Services in Jacksonville, Fla.
• Humane Society of Sarasota County, Inc. in Sarasota, Fla.
• Humane Society of Broward County in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
• Walton County Animal Services in DeFuniak Springs, Fla.
• Tri County Humane Society in Boca Raton, Fla.
• SPCA Tampa Bay in Largo, Fla.
• Cherokee County Animal Shelter in Canton, Ga.
• Humane Society of Greater Savannah in Savannah, Ga.
• Cobb County Animal Control in Marietta, Ga.
• Oahu SPCA in Kapolei, Hawaii
• Dubuque Regional Humane Society in Dubuque, Iowa
• Animal Rescue League of Iowa, Inc. in Des Moines, Iowa
• Idaho Humane Society in Boise, Idaho
• South Suburban Humane Society in Chicago Heights, Ill.
• Animal House Shelter, Inc. in Huntley, Ill.
• PAWS Chicago in Chicago Heights, Ill.
• Humane Society for Hamilton County in Noblesville, Ind.
• Indianapolis Animal Care and Control in Indianapolis, Ind.
• Kentucky Humane Society in Louisville, Ky.
• St. Tammany Parish Department of Animal Services in Lacombe, La.
• Lafayette Animal Control Center in Lafayette, La.
• Calcasieu Parish Animal Services in Lake Charles, La.
• Animal Shelter Inc. in Sterling, Mass.
• Animal Rescue League of Boston in Boston, Mass.
• Lowell Humane Society in Lowell, Mass.
• Dakin Pioneer Valley Humane Society in Springfield, Mass.
• Humane Society of Charles County in Waldorf, Md.
• Greater Androscoggin Humane Society in Lewiston, Maine
• Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland in Westbrook, Maine
• Humane Society of Huron Valley in Ann Arbor, Mich.
• SPCA of Southwest Michigan in Kalamazoo, Mich.
• City of Independence Animal Services in Independence, Mo.
• The Humane Society of South Mississippi in Gulfport, Miss.
• The Lewis & Clark Humane Society in Helena, Mont.
• Humane Society of Western Montana in Missoula, Mont.
• Brother Wolf Animal Rescue in Asheville, N.C.
• Gaston County Animal Control in Dallas, N.C.
• Pitt County Animal Shelter in Greenville, N.C.
• Burlington Animal Services in Haw River, N.C.
• New Hampshire SPCA in Stratham, N.H.
• Camden County Animal Shelter in Blackwood, N.J.
• Animal Welfare Association in Voorhees, N.J.
• Monmouth County SPCA in Eatontown. N.J.
• Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society in Santa Fe, N.M.
• The Animal Service Center of the Mesilla Valley in Las Cruces, N.M.
• SPCA of Northern Nevada in Reno, Nev.
• Nevada Humane Society in Reno, Nev.
• Rochester Animals Services in Rochester, N.Y.
• Pets Alive Animal Sanctuary in Middletown, N.Y.
• SPCA Cincinnati in Cincinnati, Ohio
• Pawsibilities, the Humane Society of Greater Akron in Twinsburg, Ohio
• Humane Society of Greater Dayton in Dayton, Ohio
• Toledo Area Humane Society in Toledo, Ohio
• Angels for Animals, Inc. in Canfield, Oho
• Edmond Animal Welfare in Edmond, Okla.
• Willamette Humane Society in Salem, Ore.
• Animal Rescue League of Western PA in Pittsburgh, Pa.
• Delaware County SPCA in Media, Pa.
• SPCA of Luzerne County in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
• PAWS (Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society) in Philadelphia, Pa.
• Greenville County Animal Care Services in Greenville, S.C.
• Paws to the Rescue Animal Shelter in Marion, S.C.
• Citizens for Animal Protection in Houston, Texas
• Austin Pets Alive! In Austin, Texas
• Houston Humane Society in Houston, Texas
• Animal Care Services of the City of San Antonio in San Antonio, Texas
• Humane Society of Williamson County in Leander, Texas
• Brownsville Animal Regulation and Care Center in Brownsville, Texas
• Galveston Island Humane Society in Galveston, Texas
• Roanoke Valley SPCA in Roanoke, Va.
• Peninsula SPCA in Newport News, Va.
• St. Croix Animal Welfare Center in Kingshill, U.S.V.I. (U.S. Virgin Islands)
• Kitsap Humane Society in Silverdale, Wash.
• Seattle Humane Society in Bellevue, Wash.
• Fond du Lac Humane Society, Inc. in Fond du Lac, Wis.
• Dane County Humane Society in Madison, Wis.
• Elmbrook Humane Society in Brookfield, Wis.

It has long been a priority of the ASPCA to create a country of humane communities - where there is no more euthanasia of homeless animals simply because of a lack of space or the resources to adequately care for them. The ASPCA $100K Challenge builds on that goal by inspiring shelters and their communities to innovate and act to save more animals. For more information about the 2011 ASPCA $100K Challenge, please visit http://challenge.aspcapro.org/.