It was a makeover that nearly 1,000 shelters wanted, and only one—Stray Rescue—got it. Zootoo.com recently announced it would offer a makeover worth up to $1 million to give the St. Louis, Mo., animal shelter an overhaul.
Zootoo.com—a website devoted to pets—announced its first Shelter Makeover contest winner Wednesday in USA Today and on FOX TV's The Morning Show with Mike and Juliette.
The finalists and other prize winners were announced at Animal Care Expo 2008 in Orlando, Fla., last week. The Humane Society of Ohio Valley was first runner-up and won a $20,000 cash prize; Jefferson County SPCA of Watertown, N.Y., was second runner-up and won a $10,000 cash prize. Seventeen other shelters were awarded $6,000 each by Zootoo.com last week.
In all, 974 shelters from across the country signed up beginning in October 2007 to participate in the contest. In turn, thousands of pet lovers logged onto Zootoo.com and selected which shelter they supported, then reviewed and rated pet-related items to increase that shelter's chances of winning.
The top 20 shelters with the highest points that also met the guidelines were eligible for the $1 million makeover.
The St. Louis shelter was started by Randy Grim in 1998 with the sole purpose of saving dogs abandoned or dumped to survive by living on the city streets. Stray Rescue has grown rapidly and now operates 10 programs for the benefit of animals.
To learn more about the winning shelter, the makeover contest and Zootoo.com, visit the Shelter Makeover contest website.
