Hosts, Presenters and Air Date Announced for 2018 American Humane Hero Dog Awards

Television and film star James Denton and model and animal advocate Beth Stern will return to host the 2018 American Humane Hero Dog Awards®, a star-studded annual celebration of heroes on both ends of the leash, honoring outstanding working dogs from around the country. The awards gala, sponsored by the Lois Pope LIFE Foundation and Zoetis Petcare (a U.S. business unit of Zoetis), will also feature Danielle Fishel, Carrie Ann Inaba, Naomi Judd, Bailee Madison, Debbie Matenopoulos, Cameron Mathison, Brandon McMillan, Denise Richards and Alison Sweeney as presenters. Additional celebrity participants and presenters will be announced in the coming weeks.

The 2018 American Humane Hero Dog Awards will take place on Saturday, September 29 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel and will be broadcast as a two-hour special nationwide on Wednesday, October 24 at 8:00PM ET/PT on Hallmark Channel.

The evening will honor seven canine finalists and will reveal which dog will be honored with the coveted 2018 American Hero Dog title. A combination of America's voting, which includes over one million public votes, and a panel of celebrity judges will determine which dog will be named the 2018 American Hero Dog. As previously announced, the category winners competing to be named the 2018 American Hero Dog include:

• LAW ENFORCEMENT/ARSON DOG OF THE YEAR (sponsored by K-9 Courage from Zoetis Petcare): "K-9 Flash" from Detroit, Michigan
• EMERGING HERO DOG OF THE YEAR: "Willow" from Las Vegas, Nevada
• GUIDE/HEARING DOG OF THE YEAR: "Frances" from Staten Island, New York
• MILITARY DOG OF THE YEAR (sponsored by K-9 Courage from Zoetis Petcare): "Sgt. Fieldy" from McAllen, Texas
• SEARCH AND RESCUE DOG OF THE YEAR: "Ruby" from East Greenwich, Rhode Island
• SERVICE DOG OF THE YEAR (sponsored by Modern Dog): "Roxy" from Canton, North Carolina
• THERAPY DOG OF THE YEAR (sponsored by Chicken Soup for the Soul Pet Food, the Official Pet Food of the 2018 Hero Dog Awards): "Chi" from Phoenix, Arizona

The judges for the 2018 Hero Dog Awards campaign represent a variety of celebrity dog lovers including Miranda Lambert, Kristin Chenoweth, Carson Kressley, Erik Estrada, Jamie Chung, Michelle Beadle, Danielle Fishel, Mark Steines and Carlos and Alexa PenaVega. Returning judges include Lisa Vanderpump, Adrienne Maloof, Bailee Madison, Carolyn Hennesy, Ashlan and Philippe Cousteau, Laura Nativo, Lorenzo Borghese and 2011 Arson Hero Dog winner Jerry Means.

For more information about the 2018 American Humane Hero Dog Awards® or to purchase tickets to the awards gala on Saturday, September 29, please visit www.herodogawards.org. For more information on sponsorship opportunities email Mari Harner at marih@americanhumane.org or call 1-800-227-4645.

About American Humane
American Humane is the country's first national humane organization, founded in 1877. For more information, please visit www.americanhumane.org.

About Lois Pope, The Lois Pope LIFE Foundation, Inc., and LIFE (Leaders in Furthering Education)
As one of America's leading philanthropists, Lois Pope has positively impacted the lives of individuals at the local, national and international levels. She has established three separate organizations dedicated to helping those in need. These organizations are the Lois Pope LIFE Foundation, Inc., Leaders In Furthering Education (LIFE), and the Disabled Veterans' LIFE Memorial Foundation. For more than 20 years she has been the driving force behind the Lois Pope LIFE Center at the University of Miami School of Medicine, The American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, and a groundbreaking new program with American Humane in Palm Beach County. Lois Pope has recently donated several Lois Pope Rescue Vehicles. Each rescue vehicle is a 50-foot long response unit, complete with a Ford F-350 truck and trailer, which is specifically designed and outfitted to provide an array of animal emergency services and cruelty responses within the region.

On October 5, 2014, Mrs. Pope saw the completion of a decades-long dream - the American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, which was dedicated by President Obama in Washington DC. It will stand in perpetuity as a reminder to the public and legislators of the courage and sacrifices of the four million-plus living disabled veterans and all those who died before them, as well as the need to be vigilant in assuring their support and understanding the human cost of war. Through her advocacy, October 5 every year will serve as a National Day of Honor for disabled veterans.

A mother and a grandmother, Lois has trained for and completed five New York City Marathons.

About Hallmark Channel
Hallmark Channel is Crown Media Family Networks' flagship 24-hour cable television network, distributed nationwide in high definition (HD) and standard definition (SD) to 88 million homes. As the country's leading destination for quality family entertainment, Hallmark CHANNEL delivers on the 100-year legacy of the Hallmark brand. In addition to its signature new, original movies, the network features an ambitious lineup of other new, original content, including scripted primetime series, such as "Good Witch," "When Calls the Heart" and "Chesapeake Shores"; annual specials including "Kitten Bowl" and "Hero Dog Awards"; and a daily, two-hour lifestyle show, "Home & Family." Additionally, Hallmark CHANNEL is the exclusive home to world premiere presentations of the acclaimed HALLMARK HALL OF FAME franchise. Dedicated to helping viewers celebrate life's special moments, Hallmark CHANNEL also offers annual holiday programming franchises, including "Countdown to Christmas," "Countdown to Valentine's Day," "Summer Nights," "Fall Harvest" and "Winterfest." Rounding out the network's diverse slate are some of television's most beloved comedies and series, including "The Golden Girls" and "Frasier."

Hallmark Cards, Inc. owns and operates Crown Media Family Networks.

For more information, please visit www.crownmediapress.com
To visit the network website, please visit www.hallmarkchannel.com
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Zoetis is the leading animal health company, dedicated to supporting its customers and their businesses. Building on more than 60 years of experience in animal health, Zoetis discovers, develops, manufactures and markets veterinary vaccines and medicines, complemented by diagnostic products, genetic tests, biodevices and a range of services. Zoetis serves veterinarians, livestock producers and people who raise and care for farm and companion animals with sales of its products in more than 100 countries. In 2017, the company generated annual revenue of $5.3 billion with approximately 9,000 employees. For more information, visit www.zoetis.com.

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