News contest seeks out the cutest and most heroic pets

IT's the contest that has set tails wagging across the city.

The bid to find Edinburgh's cutest and most heroic pets is well and truly under way.

We are seeking proud owners to send in their favourite photos of their pets to compete in our Pet Idol and Pet Hero competitions.

The winner of Pet Idol 2011 - who will be selected by readers - will receive a cash prize of 750.

Around 150 entries have already been submitted by owners who think their pets have what it takes to win.

The entries will be whittled down by judges and the Evening News will publish pictures of the finalists for readers to vote on. The separate category of Pet Hero will earn the winners' owner 250 plus the opportunity to met the dog training division of Lothian and Borders Police.

Pet Hero is designed to recognise and reward loyalty or bravery shown by a pet.

Finalists will be selected by a judging panel including Pc Rhona Meikle and Evening News editor Tom Little.

The Evening News is looking for stories such as the one we ran in June 2009 which told how a 14-month-old dog saved his owner's life by alerting him to a fire in his flat.

John Crossan had dozed off while cooking a late night snack in his Dumbiedykes Road home and his cooker burst into flames.

His pet dog, Jack, sniffed out the smoke and woke his owner by biting him on the nose and the two managed to escape.

Jack was described by firefighters as "a wee hero".

Paula Bushell, marketing manager at the Evening News, said: "Entries are flooding in and we've received some wonderful pictures and heart-warming stories already but we'd love more, so please keep the entries coming. The finalists supplements will be very cheery and I am sure will make everyone smile.

"Of course, all entrants are already idols in their owners' eyes.

"It's going to be a tough job for the public to decide which pet should be Edinburgh's award winner."

The closing date for entries is July 13 and photos of the finalists will be published in the Evening News in the following few weeks so readers can have their say. They will be split into three categories - all pets, cats and dogs.

So far, the competition has been dominated by cats and dogs so this is the ideal opportunity for owners to promote their guinea pigs, parrots, rabbits, snakes or hamsters.

Entries should include one photograph per pet, with a Pet Hero application also including a paragraph of no more than 200 words describing the pet's heroic act.

There are two ways to enter, with the easiest and preferred option being to do it online at www.edinburghnews.com/petidol.

Details and pictures can be submitted there, with images to be a minimum of 1MB and a maximum of 5MB.

Entries can also be submitted by post to Edinburgh's Pet Idol, Edinburgh Evening News, 108 Holyrood Road, Edinburgh, EH8 8AS.

The maximum photo size should be A4 and the smallest 6x4 inches.