Jill Rappaport, with some of her rescue family

There’s a new challenge in town, and it’s done doggystyle! ALS brilliantly created the Ice Bucket Challenge to increase awareness and raise funds for the disease. Now, inspired by what ALS has accomplished for those afflicted, animal activist, TODAY show/NBC Nightly News correspondent and best-selling author, Jill Rappaport, decided to put her own sweet spin on drawing attention to animal adoption. Meet the newest viral, cause-worthy campaign to storm social media, and take note, it does involve a creamy pie in the face.

Jill Rappaport’s Pies 4 Paws Challenge goes like this: you challenge someone to take a pie in the face for shelter pets; approximately 8 million of them living in dire need of homes. If accepted, they agree to share their compromising but, hopefully, fun photo or video on social media, raising awareness about the importance of adopting from a local shelter, and encouraging donations to the ASPCA. In turn, they nominate three more challengers and so on.

Jill, taking one for the team

Jill & Georgina: Yum, that was good!

Launched one week ago at the Hampton Classic ASPCA ADOPTION DAY event, when both Georgina Bloomberg and Rappaport each took a pie from the other, the Pies 4 Paws Challenge is already taking off. Celebrities like TODAY show’s special correspondent, Meredith Viera, who’s launching her much-anticipated, new daytime show on Monday, is also an early challenger. Shown on video with her dog, Jasper, they both took some pie for the cause from Viera’s daughter, Lily. After wiping the excess pie from her eyes, Vieira nominated animal lovers Matt Lauer, Howard and Beth Stern, and Betty White. Explained Jill, “If we can raise millions for ALS, I can only hope and pray to do it for animals in need. It’s a double win – getting the message of donating out there with the important message of adoption. And what a sweet way to do it-by taking a pie in the face.”  Here’s that video:

But, it’s not only dog and cat enthusiast being challenged. “One of my first nominees was Metro, who I call ‘the retired racehorse who turned into Rembrandt,'” Jill explained  “Metro was just featured in People Magazine, and he was a story I did on the Today show. He’s become a national sensation and is the perfect example of why this cause is so important. We all know what happens to retired racehorses, and Ron Krajewski, who rescued Metro, saw that Metro had a lot more life in him.” For those unenlightened of Metro’s special gifts, he paints. That’s right, he is a painting horse and not of the house kind. And, he’s pretty darn good!

The truly amazing, Metro Meteor, the Rembrandt of the racetrack

At every appearance, interview, stop since launching the Pies 4 Paws Challenge, Rappaport has taken every opportunity to get more and more people onboard. Here in New York, longtime news anchor, Ernie Anastos, a big supporter of Jill’s cause, was taken a bit by surprise when, during their interview the other day, she challenged him on-air to take a pie. After an initial protest (the guy was in the middle of his newscast), he was a great sport when Jill did the deed! Next up? Matt Lauer, the Sterns and the lovely Ms. Betty White…you’ve been served!  Learn more about the Challenge on Jill’s FB page. Stay tuned for more on this great cause.

Would you take Jill’s Pies 4 Paws Challenge? Tell me what unusual thing you’ve done to raise awareness about shelter adoptions!