KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (June 16, 2014) – PetSafe® Brand, a leading innovator in pet behavior and lifestyle solutions, has announced the 15 finalists in its fourth annual Bark for Your Park nationwide contest. More than 1,400 cities were nominated this year; one of which will win $100,000 towards building an off-leash dog park. Four runner-up cities, including the city with the highest percentage of votes per capita, will also win $25,000 each.
“We are overwhelmed by the response to this year’s ‘Bark for Your Park’ contest,” Randy Boyd, president and CEO of Radio Systems Corporation, makers of the PetSafe brand, said. “It’s amazing to see how people come together to help improve the lives of man’s best friend in their communities. We encourage everyone to get out there and ‘bark’ for their favorite park, and we wish each of the finalists the best of luck in this year’s contest.”
The 15 finalist cities were broken into three categories according to city size based on population: large, medium and small. The 2014 finalists for each category include:
Small
- Enfield, NH
- Manassas Park, VA
- Potsdam, NY
- Tehachapi, CA
- Waverly, IA
Medium
- Auburn, NY
- Beckley, WV
- Port Chester, NY
- Sanford, NC
- Sulphur Springs, TX
Large
- Carrollton, TX
- East Hartford, CT
- Hattiesburg, MS
- Springfield, IL
- Taylor, MI
This year, instead of developing a 2-minute video explaining why the city deserves a park, finalist cities are asked to create a 30-second video spot designed to get their community members to vote, and are encouraged to reach out to their local TV stations to have the video spot aired as a PSA. Finalists can earn seven extra votes and a chance to win FREE PetSafe products every Friday, June 20 - July 25 from noon to midnight when they complete PetSafe’s “7 Vote Sniff-Out.”
PetSafe is also providing the 15 finalists with a finalist kit, which includes yard signs, point of information stands and tear sheets, posters, stickers, window clings, and dog park committee t-shirts, plus lots of downloads at www.petsafe.net/barkforyourpark. All of the materials are designed to help communities spread the word. The finalist kits also include instructions for submitting a Public Service Announcement (PSA) video if the city would like to do so, and a standard PSA is also available for download.
The finalist city with the most votes will receive $100,000 to build a PetSafe dog park. In addition to the grand prize, PetSafe will also be giving four other finalist cities $25,000 each. The runner-up city in each small, medium, and large population category will win $25,000. The Bark from Your Heart city will have the highest percentage of votes to the city’s population, and will also win $25,000. The 2014 Bark for Your Park contest winners will be announced on August 7.
To vote for your favorite finalist, visit www.petsafe.net/barkforyourpark or check out PetSafe on Facebook.
About PetSafe Brand®
Headquartered in Knoxville, Tenn., PetSafe® brand is an industry brand leader in the development of innovative pet behavioral, containment and lifestyle product solutions and services. For more information, please visit www.petsafe.net or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.