Dog Chow Visible Impact Award finalists announced

Claudia/stock.adobe.com

Purina Dog Chow is joining forces with actor and singer Anthony Ramos to honor service dogs during Service Dog Awareness Month by celebrating the finalists of its Dog Chow Visible Impact Award. This award recognizes the impact service dogs have on military veterans suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

"Partnering with Dog Chow for this year's Service Dog Salute program is a privilege beyond words. The unwavering loyalty and support that service dogs provide to our military veterans is nothing short of remarkable," said Ramos, in an organizational release.¹ "I am honored to help shine a light on the powerful impact service dogs have on the lives of those who served our country."

According to the release,¹ Purina Dog Chow is inviting the public to vote on which finalist they think should win the 2023 Visible Impact Award. Voting is open now until October 13, 2023, and Purina Dog Chow will donate $5 to the Association of Service Dog Providers for Military Veterans (ASDPMV) until it reaches $75,000. The funding will help ASDPMV be able to train more PTSD service dogs.

The 2023 finalists are:²

• Bobby from Pawsitive Teams who excels at walking surveillance and morning mind reset.
• Eagle from K9s for Warriors whose standout skills are standing pressure therapy “hug” and backside surveillance.
• Huey from Operation Freedom Paws with migraine detection and family intervention alerts being his standout skills.
• Maverick from K9 Partners for Patriots whose skills include panic-preventing lap lays and nightmare interruption.
• Phelan from Tails of Valor and Paws of Honor whose special skills are walking push anger de-escalation and nightmare interruption.

The winning dog will receive a cash prize of $10,000 and the organization that trained the dog will win $25,000. To vote as well as learn more about Purina Dog Chow and their work with PTSD service dogs, you can visit DogChow.com/service.

References

1. Purina Dog Chow Teams Up with Actor Anthony Ramos to Honor Outstanding PTSD Service Dogs. News release. Purina Dog Chow. September 5, 2023. Accessed September 5, 2023. https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/news-releases/purina-dog-chow-teams-up-with-actor-anthony-ramos-to-honor-outstanding-ptsd-service-dogs-301918011.html
2. Purina dog chow PTSD. Purina Dog Chow. Accessed September 5, 2023. https://www.dogchowveterans.com/