Pennsylvania rescue group makes good on its Michael Vick offer, donates 4 tons of food to Washington, D.C. shelter

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We told you last month that the Pennsylvania-based group Main Line Animal Rescue, best known for using a Chicago billboard to convince Oprah Winfrey to air an exposé about the cruelties dogs endure in puppy mills, is trying a new tactic in its battle on behalf of dogs.

Furious over the Philadelphia Eagles’ signing of convicted dogfighter Michael Vick, Main Line opted not for a billboard but for dog food: It offered to donate five bags of kibble to feed needy dogs in a Washington, D.C., shelter for each time Vick was sacked in the Eagles’ game against the Washington Redskins.

Turns out, the plan worked out even better than expected -- and that’s an understatement. Dog-food donations poured in from sources including a Pennsylvania pet store and even celebrity chef Rachael Ray, who offered up a supply of her own brand of dog food, Nutrish. Earlier this week, Main Line made good on its offer when volunteers delivered a whopping four tons of dog food to the Washington, D.C., Humane Society. (According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the humane society plans to share the bounty with other area rescue groups.)

‘Considering how little Vick’s being played, we couldn’t wait for him to be tackled,’ Main Line’s founder, Bill Smith, told the Inquirer. ‘So we thought we’d just go for it.’ Go for it they did -- and a lot of homeless Washington-area pets stand to benefit. That’s a lot more than we can say for most other stories involving Michael Vick!

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-- Lindsay Barnett