SHORTY TAKES THE SHOW ON THE ROAD IN A NEW SEASON OF "PIT BOSS"

-- Premiering January 5, Shorty Brings New People Into His Fold and Depends On Old Team Members to Step Up --

(New York, New York) - Shorty Rossi is the PIT BOSS. A little person with a big attitude, Shorty spent 10 years in prison for gang-related activities and vowed to turn his life around after his release. Since then, he's built his life around his two passions: entertainment and pit bulls. He runs a Hollywood talent agency for little people and a pit bull rescue with a mission to save and protect the maligned breed he holds close to his heart. On Saturday, January 5 at 9 PM (ET/PT), an all-new season of PIT BOSS premieres and viewers will find that at Shorty's Rescue and Shortywood Productions change doesn't come easy!

Past seasons of PIT BOSS have followed Shorty and his employees and fellow little people Ronald, Sebastian and Ashley as they join forces to save the pit bull breed one dog at a time. Knowing full well what it's like to be judged, the foursome has taken on the gargantuan task with passion. This season begins with Shorty taking his mission and his trusty sidekick Hercules on the road to meet and greet fans across the country, educating them about pit bulls. As the season continues, the drama only grows when Ashley considers opportunities outside Shortywood and Shorty adds a new assistant to the fold - Christian, a shy little person who has to learn to meld with the rest of the team.

When Shorty leaves Ashley in charge at Shortywood Productions, Ronald and Sebastian are not fully cooperating and think the responsibility has completely gone to her head. Shorty returns to disarray, but what will he do about all the internal angst? Then, when Shorty thinks of partnering with a local kennel to help save more pit bulls in need the staff rebels again, realizing it is going to require a ton of additional work. Will this be the final straw that drives the PIT BOSS team apart forever?

PIT BOSS is produced for Animal Planet by Intuitive Entertainment. Mechelle Collins and Kevin Dill are executive producers for Intuitive Entertainment. For Animal Planet, executive producer is Erin Wanner and supervising producer is Vaibhav Bhatt.

Animal Planet Media (APM), a multi-media business unit of Discovery Communications, is the world's only entertainment brand that immerses viewers in the full range of life in the animal kingdom with rich, deep content via multiple platforms and offers animal lovers and pet owners access to a centralized online, television and mobile community for immersive, engaging, high-quality entertainment, information and enrichment. APM consists of the Animal Planet television network, available in more than 96 million homes in the US; online assets www.animalplanet.com, the ultimate online destination for all things animal; the 24/7 broadband channel, Animal Planet Beyond; Petfinder.com, the #1 pet-related Web property globally that facilitates pet adoption; and other media platforms including a robust Video-on-Demand (VOD) service; mobile content; and merchandising extensions.