Hey Nashville, Here’s Your Chance to Make Your Pet Famous!
Think your dog or cat has star power? Enter Nashville Humane's annual Adoption Ale Photo Contest for a chance to see your pet featured on a limited-edition TailGate Brewery can while helping support animals in need. Image: Nashville Humane Association
There are plenty of ways to support your local animal shelter. You can donate. You can volunteer. You can foster. And if you’re anything like me, you can “accidentally” come home with another dog.
I’ve adopted three dogs from Nashville Humane Association (NHA) in the past few years, and each one has brought something different to our family. They make us laugh, test our patience (a moment of silence for the corners of my office coffee table), and remind us daily that shelter pets have an incredible way of becoming the heart of our homes.
Somewhere between the muddy paw prints, the couch cuddles, and the thousands of photos on my iPhone, my pups have earned celebrity status in my eyes. And thanks to Nashville Humane and TailGate Brewery, they just might have the chance to prove it this summer!
PS. Get ready for lots of cute dog photos…
NHA and TailGate’s beloved annual Adoption Ale Photo Contest is back for its fifth year, giving local dogs and cats the chance to become the faces of TailGate Brewery’s limited-edition Adoption Ale while raising money to support Nashville Humane’s lifesaving work. This year’s contest is especially meaningful, as Nashville Humane celebrates its 80th anniversary and Adoption Ale marks five years of bringing together pet lovers, craft beer fans, and one very adorable fundraising tradition.
Even better? Every dollar raised helps animals in our community.
Here’s How It Works
Beginning July 9, pet owners can submit a favorite photo of their dog or cat to the Adoption Ale Photo Contest. Entering costs $20, with every dollar benefiting Nashville Humane.
Submissions remain open through July 23, after which the real campaigning begins.
From July 24 through August 14, friends, family members, neighbors, coworkers, and anyone else charmed by an especially photogenic pet can cast votes. Each vote is just $1, with all proceeds supporting Nashville Humane’s mission.
When voting ends, the dog with the most votes will earn the title of Top Dog, while the cat with the most votes will be crowned Top Cat. Those winners will be announced on social media on August 18.
But that’s not the end of the story.
Two additional pets will be selected as judges’ choices, meaning every animal entered has a chance to appear on this year’s can, regardless of the final vote count.
The official beer can design will be unveiled during a celebration at TailGate Brewery Headquarters on September 12, complete with the release of the newest Adoption Ale, a dog show, and adoptable dogs from Nashville Humane looking for families of their own. You’ll also be able to find Adoption Ale at TailGate Brewery taprooms and during Nashville Humane’s annual Dog Day Festival at Centennial Park this fall.
As fun as it is to imagine your pet becoming Nashville’s next local celebrity, the real winners are the thousands of animals Nashville Humane helps every year.
Since opening its doors in 1946, Nashville Humane has grown into far more than an adoption center. The independent, gift-supported nonprofit provides shelter and medical care for animals, low-cost spay-and-neuter services, vaccinations, foster support, a pet food bank, humane education, and resources that help keep pets with the families who love them.
Each year, the organization helps more than 3,000 pets find loving homes while maintaining an incredible 99% annual save rate.
As someone whose family includes three Nashville Humane alums, I can tell you those numbers become deeply personal once you’ve experienced what adoption can mean.
Every dog that walks through those doors has a story. Some arrive as strays. Others are surrendered through circumstances completely beyond their control. What Nashville Humane gives them is a second chance and, eventually, a family that can’t imagine life without them.
Mine certainly can’t.
Ready to Enter?
Whether your cat has perfected the art of looking mildly judgmental, your senior rescue has a smile that melts hearts, or your puppy has mastered the irresistible head tilt, this is their chance to shine.
More importantly, it’s an opportunity to help thousands of other animals find the same happy ending.
So, submit your favorite photo. Rally your friends. Bribe your relatives with promises of puppy pictures. Vote early, vote often, and enjoy every minute of watching Nashville collectively lose its mind over oodles of adorable fur babies.
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Jenna von Oy Bratcher
Jenna von Oy Bratcher is StyleBlueprint's Editorial Operations Manager and Lead Content Editor. The East Coast native moved to Nashville almost two decades ago, by way of Los Angeles. She is a lover of dogs, strong coffee, traveling, and exploring the local restaurant scene bite by bite.