Contest, TV Special to Honor Human-Animal Bond

A national search is on to celebrate the connection between people and their pets by letting pet owners get creative through photos and stories that capture their unique human-animal bond.

“Tale for the Pet Lover’s Heart” seeks the photo and story that best illustrates the ways that pets enrich the lives of their owners. The winning story will be announced Oct. 25, to coincide with the national premiere of “Four Plus Two: Tales for the Pet Lover’s Heart,” a one-hour TV special that will air on cable station WGN America.

The show features seven stories that spotlight the relationships between humans and their pets. Some of the vignettes include a story about the ways a dog training program is giving inmates at a women’s correctional facility a new “leash” on life, how a pet photographer captures the best out of her clients’ pets as well as her own two dogs, and an inside look at the relationship between a police officer and his K9 companion.

Additionally, a $100,000 donation will go to animal welfare organizations in need, courtesy of program sponsors Kroger and Nestle Purina. Pet owners can enter now through Oct. 5.

The contest features a prize portrait by award-winning, internationally acclaimed artist C.F. Payne.