Miley Cyrus is more than just a pretty face and a hot teen sensation.  She’s also a softie for her four-legged friends.

On Friday, July 25th, Miley joined NYC’s hometown hero, ASPCA Officer Annemarie Lucas, and ASPCA spokesdog DaVinci to launch Bolt Across America - a coast-to-coast fundraising event to promote the upcoming Disney animated film Bolt, which stars Cyrus and John Travolta.

Bolt Across America centers around four Bolt fans who will roll from city to city in a giant hamster ball, attempting amazing feats [from rolling through a car wash to watching a drive-in (roll-in) movie!] and raising money for the ASPCA. “The Bolters,” Raquel Baldwin, Ted Beam, Tiffany Phillips and Clayton Ferguson, will raise money for the ASPCA by encouraging people nationwide to pledge dollars via the ASPCA link found on the Bolt website: http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/bolt/. Those who donate will get a special inside-look at the Bolt Across America adventure, with videos and other bonus materials.

“In the movie, my character’s dog, Bolt, befriends a little hamster who gets around in a ball – so we’ve recruited four “Bolters” to make like hamsters and roll through cities coast to coast in a giant hamster ball to raise money for the ASPCA,” Cyrus said. “I have always been an animal lover and I am a huge believer in what the ASPCA does to help make a difference for animals in need.”

“The ASPCA is proud to be associated with the Bolt Across America tour, and we are excited to give people across the country another way to help animals in need,” said ASPCA President and CEO Ed Sayres.

The movie, which also stars the voices of Malcolm McDowell, Claire Holt, Diedrich Bader, Nick Swardson, Greg Germann, Susie Essman and Mark Walton, tells the tale of Bolt, a white German Shepherd who plays a superhero dog in a TV show along with his owner and co-star Penny (Cyrus). Having lived all his life on the set of a TV show, he begins to think that his superpowers are real. Bolt is accidentally separated from Penny when he is shipped to New York City. He then embarks on a cross-country journey through the real world to get back to Penny. Along the way, he meets up with two unlikely traveling companions – a jaded, abandoned housecat named Mittens (Essman) and a TV-obsessed hamster named Rhino (Walton).

Bolt eventually discovers that all of his powers are fake, but also realizes that he doesn’t need superpowers to be a hero.

The film opens in theaters nationwide November 26, 2008.

“The Bolters” are scheduled to roll through Boston next week and will hit Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Denver, and Phoenix, among others. The journey culminates in a roll down the red carpet at the film’s L.A. premiere November 19, 2008.

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About the ASPCA:

Founded in 1866, the ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) was the first humane organization established in the Americas, and today has more than one million supporters throughout North America. A not-for-profit corporation, the ASPCA’s mission is to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the United States. The ASPCA provides local and national leadership in animal-assisted therapy, animal behavior, animal poison control, anti-cruelty, humane education, legislative services, and shelter outreach. The New York City headquarters houses a full-service, accredited animal hospital, adoption center, and mobile clinic outreach program. The Humane Law Enforcement department enforces New York’s animal cruelty laws and is featured on the reality television series Animal Precinct on Animal Planet. For more information, please visit www.aspca.org.