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The Orvis Company: Dog Photo Contest Leads to Orvis / Eukanuba Partnership to Help Find Cure for Canine Cancer

^{Published on 2009-07-28 11:46:10, Last Modified on 2009-07-28 11:46:22 - Market Wire}
 

MANCHESTER, VT--(Marketwire - July 28, 2009) - When [ The Orvis Company ] encouraged its customers to submit photos of their dogs in a contest to be on the cover of the Orvis Dog Book catalog, they had no idea that the contest would be so popular, and they certainly didn't know it would result in an effort to help cure canine cancer.

"We received more than 5,600 entries," said James Hathaway, Communications Manager for the Company. "But one photo, and the letter that came with it, really stood out."

The photo was of an older golden retriever named Dylan swimming with a tennis ball in his mouth. The letter that accompanied the entry explained that Dylan was a [ canine cancer ] survivor.

"The photo itself was perfect for our cover," said Hathaway "but the story behind it, Dylan's story of survival, was enough to make us think, 'Maybe the Orvis Cover Dog Photo Contest should be about more than photography."

With that in mind, the folks at Orvis teamed up with [ Eukanuba ] Pet Food to help find a cure for canine cancer and incorporated this goal into the 2010 photo contest. By voting online for the photo submissions, customers can make donations to the Morris Animal Foundation's Cure Canine Cancer Initiative. The partnership between Orvis and Eukanuba will match their donation.

"[ Eukanuba Pet Foods ] is proud to be a part of this campaign with two of our partners, Morris Animal Foundation and Orvis," said David Minifie, [ Eukanuba Pet Food ] Associate Marketing Director. "We're proud to lend our support to this worthy cause, canine cancer research."

"We are delighted to have Orvis and Eukanuba as partners in the fight against canine cancer," said Patricia N. Olson, DVM, PhD, president/CEO of [ Morris Animal Foundation ]. "This disease takes the lives of far too many beloved dogs. With more people and organizations supporting research into prevention and treatments, we increase our chances of curing this disease."

Enter your dog in the 2010 Orvis Cover Dog™ Photo Contest, vote for your favorite dog photo, and view a YouTube video of highlights from the 2009 contest at [ www.orvis.com/coverdog ].

About The Orvis Company

Founded in 1856, and the recognized world leader in [ fly fishing gear ], operates a chain of [ retail stores ] in the U.S. and England, runs a world-class [ fly fishing vacations ] service and numerous [ fly fishing schools ] around the country, and introduced the [ dog bed ] to North America. Orvis donates five percent of pre-tax profits each year to [ conservation efforts ]. You can read more about Orvis on their website at [ www.orvis.com ].

About P&G Pet Care

For more than 60 years, Procter & Gamble Pet Care (NYSE: [ PG ]), the maker of Iams and Eukanuba, has enhanced the well-being of dogs and cats by providing world-class quality foods and pet-care products. To learn more about Eukanuba or general pet care and nutrition information, call the Eukanuba Pet Experts at (800) 423-6036. You can also visit us on the Web at [ www.eukanuba.com ] or [ www.iams.com ].