The dye is cast.

A total of 82 pets have been entered into the Humane Society of Pike County’s 2019 Pet Photo Contest.

The deadline for entry in the “petstigious” contest was midnight on Tuesday with dogs and cats leading the field and a variety of other pets in the mix. Vying for the opportunity to be the cover shot for the 2019 Pet Photo Calendar will also be a peacock, a calf and a goat, giving the contest a variety of sorts, said Donna Brockmann, president of the Humane Society of Pike County.

Brockmann expressed appreciation to all pet owners who entered their pets in the 11th Annual Pet Photo Contest.

“The focus of the HSPC is on reducing the number of unwanted and unloved animals by encouraging spaying and neutering family pets,” Brockmann said. “The Pet Photo Contest is the major fundraiser for our spay/neuter program so support of this contest is very important. We greatly appreciate all of those who entered their pets.”

And, equally important is each and every vote that is cast in the contest.

The votes that are cast are included in the fundraising efforts for the spay/neuter program.

“Each vote is only one dollar,” Brockmann said. “The pet with the most votes will be the cover pet. There will be 13 monthly winners and 52 weekly winners. That’s a lot of winners so we encourage everyone to vote for the pet of their choice and make it a winner.”

On Wednesday, the leaders of the pack were two dogs and a cat, an indication that the canines and up for a catfight to the finish.

The lead will change many times before the deadline at 5 p.m. Saturday, September 1.

Brockmann said the Pet Photo Contest is a lot of fun and watching the vote count change each day is exciting.

“There are several pet lovers that pick out a pet or pets and vote to make that pet or pets winners,” Brockmann said. “No one ever knows who is voting for their pet but it adds fun and mystery to the contest and shows support for the spay/neuter program.”

Brockmann said, in years past, the Pet Photo Contest has raised enough money to dedicated about $20,000 to the spay/neuter program. With that amount, the humane society will contribute $50 on each of 400 spay/neuter procedures.

“The best way to reduce the number of unwanted animals in the county is to have them spayed/neutered,” Brockmann said.

Votes for the animals in the 2019 Pet Photo Contest may be cast on-line at www.pikehumane.org. or on-site at Guynn’s Income Tax and Bookkeeping Service, Jinright’s Hillside Antiques, The Little Framery or Three Notch Antiques (formerly Troy Antiques), all in Troy. Votes may also be mailed to HSPC, P.O. Box 296, Troy, AL 36081. All contributions are tax deductible.