SEATTLE, June 03, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today GreaterGood.org and Jackson Galaxy announce the top three winners of the 2nd annual Cat Pawsitive National High-Five Day Contest and the grand prize winner for the best feline high-five is a creative music video featuring high-fiving shelter cats (Charlie, Tracer, Aven, Rocky, and PJ) from Oshkosh Area Humane Society in Oshkosh, Wis. The ensemble of shelter cats wins a $5,000 grant for the Wisconsin shelter that will help to launch a new animal behavioral department, and an invite to celebrity cat Lil BUB’s Birthday Party.
The feline runner-ups for the 2nd Annual Cat Pawsitive National High-Five Day Contest, their prizes and the animal welfare organizations that will benefit follow:
- Second Place: Pip (Ocean City, Md.) formerly a feral cat turned feline volunteer now performs animal therapy on a regular basis at nursing homes, developmental centers, veteran's homes and assisted living facilities awards BARCS (Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter) in Baltimore, Md. is prize grant in the amount of $3,000.
- Third Place: Lime (Tamarac, Fla.), an adopted blind shelter cat who was rescued from being tossed away into a dumpster as a young kitten, dazzled voters with her high-five technique as well as spinning and sitting on command. Lime awards her prize grant in the amount of $2,000 to Honor Animal Rescue in Bradenton, Fla.
"I was blown away by the volume of submissions from around the country for this year's contest, and it's truly remarkable to see the ripple effect of the life-changing Cat Pawsitive program in action," said Jackson Galaxy. "With a high five, animal lovers all over showed how cool cats are, and raising awareness through contests like this help us get one step closer to our ultimate goal of clearing the shelters."
The annual contest that celebrates the success of The Jackson Galaxy Project’s life-saving Cat Pawsitive initiative received more than 250 video submissions with creative feline high-fives and 54,000 votes from the public. This year’s contest is in partnership with The Petco Foundation, The Animal Rescue Site and Lil BUB.
Cat Pawsitive is a life-saving program for shelter and rescue cats that aims to increase feline adoption rates by instructing shelter/rescue staff and volunteers how to implement positive reinforcement training for cats, that includes teaching them to high-five. Jackson Galaxy, star of the television show “My Cat from Hell” on Animal Planet, NY Times best-selling author and founder of JGP, developed the Cat Pawsitive program with a team of feline behavior experts in an effort to enrich the lives of cats in shelters and rescues to improve their wellbeing and adoptability.
To date, 106 animal welfare organizations have graduated from the Cat Pawsitive programs, resulting in more than 1,000 homeless cats being adopted into forever loving homes. Contest participants can download step-by-step instructions to teach the feline high-five and review the complete contest terms and conditions at felinehighfive.com.
From April 18 (National High-Five Day) until May 16, cat lovers were invited to share their most creative feline high-five videos at FelineHighFive.com. Jackson Galaxy and Lil BUB handpicked the top 25 High-Five entries for the public to vote on from May 20 – June 2.
About The Jackson Galaxy Project
The Jackson Galaxy Project is a Signature Program of GreaterGood.org, a public 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Founded in 2014 by leading animal advocate and cat wellness consultant, Jackson Galaxy, host and executive producer of Animal Planet's long running hit show “My Cat From Hell” and New York Times best-selling author, The Jackson Galaxy Project seeks to improve the lives of animals at risk and help the people who care for them through innovative programs that educate, inspire and empower staff, rescuers and adopters to continually raise the bar for animals at risk and reduce the number of animals that end up in shelters. For more information, visit TheJacksonGalaxyProject.org.
About GreaterGood.org
GreaterGood.org is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that works to improve the health and well-being of people, pets, and the planet. Over the last 11 years, GreaterGood.org has given over $175 million in cash and in-kind grants to over 3,000 charitable partners worldwide. To learn more, visit GreaterGood.org or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
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