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On your bark, get set, go! Seven speedy Chihuahuas from across the country will race for the title of America's Fastest Chihuahua during PETCO's Fifth Annual National Chihuahua Races - and the featherweight contenders promise a heated competition.

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The championship races take place at New York City's Riverside Park on Saturday, Aug. 29, at 1 p.m.

Two rival champs, Tiger from California and Maddy from New York, will face off once again for the national title. Tiger won in 2006, only to be unseated by Maddy in 2007. Tiger reclaimed his crown last year, outrunning Maddy by a fraction of a second. Now, Tiger prepares to defend his current reign with Maddy hot on his tail again - this time on Maddy's home turf.

Also in the field is Ivey from Illinois. Ivey is the daughter of Chalupa, who was a three-time regional winner and the first pup to win the national competition back in 2005. Now, Ivey is determined to follow in her mom's winning pawsteps and bring the title back into the family. Rookie racers Roo and Dallas, and two veteran racers, Charlie and Mimi, are also eager to make their marks on what will surely be a speedy contest - the qualifying times for the seven finalists averaged 1.95 seconds to cover the 35-foot course.

Nearly 1,000 Chihuahuas raced in front of more than 2,900 fans at seven regional competitions in a race across the country from the West Coast to the East Coast over three weekends in August. The seven finalists are:

  Boston                                 Chicago
  Roo, female, 3, from Portland,         Ivey, female, 6, from Burnham,
  Conn.                                  Ill.
  Pet Parent: Alyse Dunbar               Pet Parent: Alfonso Salinas III

  Dallas                                 Miami
  Charlie, male, 4, from Forth Worth,    Dallas, female, 7 months, from
  Texas                                  Miami
  Pet Parent: Karen Carrubba             Pet Parents: Dilcia Munoz and Ben
                                         Billman

  Orange County                          Philadelphia
  Mimi, female, 3, from Pico Rivera,     Maddy, female, 4, from Brooklyn,
  Calif.                                 N.Y.
  Pet Parent: Susana Rucobo              Pet Parents: Sue and Scott Hubbard

  San Francisco Bay Area
  Tiger, male, 5, from Rosamond,
  Calif.
  Pet Parent: Cathy Smith

The regional winners earned all-expense-paid trips to New York, courtesy of PETCO and JetBlue Airways. But only one will take home the coveted title of America's Fastest Chihuahua, a trophy, a $300 PETCO gift card and a year's supply of Royal Canin Chihuahua food.

"This event has always been about people having fun with their pets - and with the way the competition has shaped up this year, we're proving just how much fun it can be!" said PETCO Chief Marketing Officer Elisabeth Charles. "We're also using this year's coast-to-coast races as a way to show people how easy, safe and fulfilling it can be to be 'on the go' with our four-legged companions - or how to best arrange for their safe and comfortable care back home while away on vacation."

For more details on how to travel safely with or without your pet, visit PETCO.com/letsgo.

In partnership with the PETCO Foundation, the races also highlight PETCO's Think Adoption First philosophy to help find forever homes for abandoned Chihuahuas and other animals.

To learn more about the finalists and PETCO's National Chihuahua Races, visit PETCO.com/races .

About PETCO

PETCO is a privately held specialty retailer that provides products, services and advice that make it easier for our customers to be great pet parents. We operate more than 950 stores in 50 states and the District of Columbia, as well as a leading pet products and information destination at PETCO.com. Our nonprofit organization, The PETCO Foundation, has raised more than $50 million since its inception in 1999 to help promote and improve the welfare of companion animals. In conjunction with the foundation, we work with and support more than 6,200 local animal welfare groups across the country to help find homes for more than 200,000 adoptable animals every year.

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SOURCE: PETCO Animal Supplies