1.NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR TO WIN. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR ODDS OF WINNING. ALL FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL AND MUNICIPAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS APPLY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED.

2. Eligibility. Subject to the additional restrictions below, Pet Star (the “Sweepstakes”) is open to residents of Green and Rock Counties in the State of Wisconsin, and Jo Daviess, Stephenson, Winnebago, Boone, McHenry, Carroll, Ogle, DeKalb, Whiteside, LaSalle, and Lee Counties in the state of Illinois, 13 years or older at the time of entry. Employees of Rockford Register Star (“Sponsor”), GateHouse Media, Inc., Meyer’s, The Refined Canine, Forest City Dog Training, Dogwood, Critter Concepts, Pet Gadgets, PetSmart, and each of their respective affiliated companies, and advertising and promotional agencies, and the immediate family members of, and any persons domiciled with, any such employees, are not eligible to enter or to win.

3.How to Enter.  The Sweepstakes will begin at 6:01 a.m. (C.S.T.) on February 21, 2008 and end at 12:00 p.m. (noon) (C.S.T.) on May 8, 2008 (the “Sweepstakes Period”).

The contest will consist of voting on submitted photos of pets. Voting begins at 6:01 a.m. (C.S.T.) on March 23, 2008 and end at 12:00 p.m. (noon) (C.S.T.) on May 8, 2008.

Enter by submitting a photo of your pet at the Pet Star page on www.rrstar.com and making a $10.00 volunteering donation to NIE or mail the entry, with or without the< donation, to Pet Star, Rockford Register Star, 99 E. State St., Rockford, IL 61104. Submit a color or black/white photo, minimum of 3” x 5” and no larger than 5”x7” along with completed entry form as originals or on CD or disk. NO floppy disks please. Only one (1) photo submitted per pet without a donation.

All photos must be hi-quality files (300 dpi). Disclaimer: if photos received are less than 300 dpi, the Rockford Register Star will not be responsible for quality of the photo. Include the pet’s name along with your name, address, phone number. This will be used as permission to publish the pet’s photo and name. Absolutely no photos will be returned. Copyrighted photos must be accompanied by photographer’s release. All entries for the contest must be received by 12:00 p.m. (noon), Thursday, March 10, 2008. There is no entry fee. All entries will be judged by the public. The Rockford Register Star reserves the rights to refuse any photograph they determine to be unacceptable. Pet photos will be displayed on www.rrstar.com and in the Rockford Register Star.

Readers can vote for their favorite pet photo by submitting a voting ballot along with a voluntary $1.00 donation to NIE ($1.00 = 1 vote) or “participants can vote for free.” When voting online, the minimum donation $5.00. Your computer must accept cookies, or any successor or similar technology, which may be used for the purpose of entry tracking. Ad blocking software on your computer needs to be disabled so that it doesn’t interfere with< processing your entry. When voting “for free” five (5) free votes per pet per day will be accepted. There will be no “free” votes allowed via online.

Voting ballots will be available in paper, online and at the Register Star’s front desk. They can be mailed to NIE Pet Star, Rockford Register Star, 99 E. State St., Rockford, IL 61104 or may be dropped off at the Rockford Register Star between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays. Voting ends at noon on April 4, April 17, April 28, May 8.

Sponsor will not be responsible for incomplete, lost, late, postage-due, misdirected or illegible entries or for failure to receive entries due to transmission failures or technical failures of any kind, including, without limitation, malfunctioning of any network, hardware or software, whether originating with sender or Sponsor. In the event of a dispute, all online entries will be deemed to have been submitted by the owner of the ISP account from which they were sent. For these purposes, an ISP account holder shall mean the natural person assigned to such ISP account by the Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization responsible for assigning ISP addresses for the domain associated with such ISP account. All entries become property of Sponsor and none will be returned. Any questions regarding the number of entries submitted or the owner of an ISP account shall be determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion, and Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any entries by persons determined to be tampering with or abusing any aspect of the Sweepstakes.

4.Winner Selection. One, (1) First Place Winner, One (1) Second Place Winner and One (1) Third Place Winner will be named. Runners up will be selected by the public by votes in the final round received by May 8, 2008. Winners will be selected on or about May 8, 2008.

5.Prizes and Odds:  First Prize: One (1) First Prize Winner will receive the opportunity for the 1st place pet to have his/her photo appear on the front of 2008 Pet Tales, Refined Sleigh Bed with mattress from Refined Canine, 8-week Obedience Training from Forest City Dog Training, 28 lb bag of Evo dog food, 2 bandannas, 1 large leash & collar from Dogwood, 3.5 gallon Critter Cooler from Critter Concepts, ScoopFree Automatic litter box & cap from Pet Gadgets, and various products from PetSmart (ARV: $692.09.) One (1) Second Place Winner will receive will receive 28 lb bag of Evo® Dog Food. 2 bandannas, 1 Medium leash and collar from Dogwood, Pet Vita Tabs® with Glucosamine from Critter Concepts, PetSafe® Micro I.D. Rescue Collar and cap from Pet Gadgets, and various products from PetSmart (ARV: $226.93.) One (1) Third Place Winner will receive 13 lb bag of Evo® Dog Food, 1 bandanna, 1 small leash & collar from Dogwood, Anti Itch Shampoo w/Tea Tree Oil from Critter Concepts, PetSafe® Micro I.D. Rescue Collar from Pet Gadgets, and various products from PetSmart (ARV: $172.70.)  

6.Winner Notification and Acceptance.  Winners will be notified through the winners ad in the Rockford Register Star and online at rrstar.com on May 8, 2008. Winners may waive their right to receive prizes. Prizes are nonassignable and nontransferable. No substitutions allowed by winner. Prizes and individual components of prize packages are subject to availability and Sponsor reserves the right to substitute prizes of equal or greater value. Winners are solely responsible for reporting and payment of any taxes on prizes. Winners may be required to complete an affidavit of eligibility/liability and publicity release (except where prohibited by law) which must be returned within ten (10) days of date of personal delivery or date of postmark. Failure to sign and return the affidavit or release within ten (10) days, or to comply with any term or condition of these Official Rules, may result in a winner’s disqualification, the forfeiture of his or her interest in the prize, and the award of the prize to a substitute winner. Except where prohibited, acceptance of any prize constitutes winner’s consent to the publication of his or her name, biographical information and likeness in any media for any commercial or promotional purpose, without limitation the Internet, or further compensation. Prizes not won and claimed by eligible winners in accordance with these Official Rules will not be awarded and will remain the property of Sponsor.           

7.Participation.  By participating, entrants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify persons found tampering with or otherwise abusing any aspect of this Sweepstakes as solely determined by Sponsor. In the event the Sweepstakes is compromised by a virus, nonauthorized human intervention, tampering or other causes beyond the reasonable control of Sponsor which corrupts or impairs the administration, security, fairness or proper operation of the Sweepstakes, Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion to suspend, modify or terminate the Sweepstakes. Should the Sweepstakes be terminated prior to the stated expiration date, Sponsor reserves the right to award prizes based on the entries received before the termination date.

8.Construction. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of these rules shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any other provision. In the event that any such provision is determined to be invalid or otherwise unenforceable, these rules shall be construed in accordance with their terms as if the invalid or unenforceable provision was not contained therein.

9.Sponsor.  Pet Star is sponsored by Rockford Register Star. The decisions of Sponsor regarding the selection of winners and all other aspects of the Sweepstakes shall be final and binding in all respects. Sponsor will not be responsible for typographical, printing or other inadvertent errors in these Official Rules or in other materials relating to the Sweepstakes. For a list of winners (available after May 8, 2008) or a copy of these Official Rules, visit www.rrstar.com or send a long, self-addressed, stamped envelope to “Winners List/Official Rules” (as applicable), Pet Star, Rockford Register Star, 99 E. State St., Rockford, IL 61104. If you have any questions regarding this Sweepstakes, please contact Beatrice Ricotta.