Is this really a fundraiser?
Yes! This is a photo contest
and a fundraiser. Every dollar donated = one vote and directly supports animals and communities in need.
Where does the money go?
All funds raised will go towards Veterinarians Without Borders (VWB) programs and services that are helping animals and communities that lack access to veterinary care including:
- Supporting remote communities in Canada and Alaska (US), to improve animal health through temporary veterinary clinics while working towards creating the conditions for long-term, community-led sustainable animal health services.
- Providing emergency response support to animals and communities in need following natural disasters like wildfires and other crises such as the war in Ukraine.
- Working in Africa and Asia to improve the living conditions of the most disadvantaged rural populations through veterinary and agricultural services, sustainable animal production and training of community animal health care workers where there is no veterinarian present.
VWB believes in a "one health approach" where healthy animals help build healthy communities and in turn healthy environments.
Will I get a tax receipt for my donation?
Yes, Canadian tax receipts are issued automatically by email for all donations of $5 or more. Tax receipts will be sent by email with the subject line "Thank you for your donation" from VWB Animals & Ales.
VWB/VSF Canada is a registered charity # 84146 9547 RR0001.
Is there a minimum amount I need to raise?
Nope! There's no fundraising minimum. Every dollar makes a difference.
I'm shy about asking for money — what do I say?
You're not asking for you, you're inviting others to help animals through your adorable pet. We've got message templates to make it easy. Download the free
Fundraising Toolkit to get started.
How long is this contest fundraiser on for?
The Contest Period starts at 9:00:00 AM (Pacific Time) on Monday, August 11, 2025 and closes at 7:00:00 PM (Pacific Time) on Monday, August 25, 2025.
Can I enter a pet who has passed away?
Yes, you can enter a beloved pet who has passed away. Here’s an example of a label created by Crossroads Brewing to honour the winner Mika:
Can I see some of the previous winners?
Yes, absolutely! You can check out the previous Animals & Ales winners
here.
2025 Animals & Ales Canada - Official Rules
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.
Sponsor: Veterinarians Without Borders North America/Vétérinaires Sans Frontières Amérique du Nord (VWB/VSF), 700 Industrial Ave #410, Ottawa, ON K1G 0Y9 Canada
Eligibility: The 2025 Animals & Ales Canada Photo Contest (“Contest”) is open to legal residents of Canada (except Quebec) who are at least 19 years of age at the time of entry. Employees, officers, directors, volunteers, agents, and board members of VWB/VSF, as well as their immediate family and household members are not eligible to enter. Any entries received from an ineligible participant, or which otherwise violate these Official Rules, will be disqualified. All federal, provincial, local and municipal regulations and laws apply. The Contest is void where prohibited or restricted by law. Sponsor reserves the right to modify these Official Rules at any time, subject to applicable laws. Contestants must be able to provide proof of age if requested.
Contest Period: The Contest opens at 9:00:00 AM (Pacific Time) on Monday, August 11, 2025. The Contest closes at 7:00:00 PM (Pacific Time) on Monday, August 25, 2025 (“Contest Period”). All entries must be submitted and received by Sponsor during the Contest Period.
How to Enter: To enter the Contest, you must create a GoGoPhoto Contest account and fill out the entry for the VWB/VSF Animals and Ales Canada Photo Contest via this link: https://www.vwb.org/site/animals-and-ales-canada during the Contest Period. It’s free to set up an account and enter the Contest. Follow the instructions provided to submit your entry with the brewery you wish to participate with (listed below). Limit 2 entries per person. Entries that exceed the limit and entries submitted by any other method will be disqualified. By submitting an entry to the Contest, participants acknowledge that they have read and agree to abide by these Official Rules and the decisions of Sponsor.
Photo Submissions: The photo(s) submitted must follow all the following requirements and rules to be eligible for participation in the Contest:
- Photos submitted must include only one animal (and no other animals or humans).
- The animal must be present in no less than 2/3 of the frame.
- At least 150 dpi, but 300 dpi preferred.
- Entrants represent and warrant that their photos are original and that they own all the rights, including copyright and other intellectual property rights, in the photos they provide.
- Entrants represent and warrant that photos they submit do not infringe upon or violate any third party right.
- Entrants may not use AI technologies to generate submitted images.
- The animal cannot appear in distress, in any inappropriate or offensive setting/context, or engaged in any inappropriate or offensive activities, in Sponsor’s sole discretion.
- Please ensure that the photo is sharp and in focus with a clean background, with no third-party products, artwork, logos, names, photographs, or recognizable landmarks or locations in the photo.
- Contest entrants retain copyright to their submitted photos but grant VWB/VSF and participating breweries: Persephone Brewing Company (BC) and Leduc Brewing Company (AB), a perpetual, non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to use, modify, reproduce, distribute, and display the submitted photos, and to create and use derivative works based on submitted photos, on a worldwide basis, for promotional and fundraising purposes, including but not limited to, publication in print and online materials and social media, without notice or compensation.
VWB/VSF reserves the right to disqualify any entry based on objectionable, inappropriate, offensive or prohibited content. In this scenario, donations collected will be refunded, if requested, by the donors.
Public Voting: During the Contest Period, members of the public will have an opportunity to vote on each photo submitted for entry in the online Contest. Each $1 donation to Sponsor during the Contest Period equals 1 vote. Minimum $5 donation. Contest entrants are encouraged to share their Contest link with their networks, family, and friends to encourage them to vote. Votes may only be cast during the Contest Period.
Fundraising Incentives: In addition to the Prizes for the top vote-getters discussed below in these Official Rules, Sponsor will offer incentives to all eligible participants that raise in excess of certain amounts during the Contest Period. Eligible participants who:
- Raise between $250-$499 CAD – Receive an Animals & Ales can koozie (ARV: $5 CAD)
- Raise between $500-$749 CAD – Receive an Animals & Ales tote bag (ARV: $15 CAD)
- Raise between $750-$999 CAD – Receive a collapsible dog bowl (ARV: $15 CAD) and a $25 PetSmart gift card (ARV: $25 CAD)
- Raise between $1,000-$3,499 CAD – Receive two Animals & Ales beer glasses with custom coasters (ARV: $70 CAD)
- Raise over $3,500 CAD – Receive a custom swag bundle: includes brewery merch, a pet bandana, branded ballcap, and a featured shout-out on social media (ARV: $175 CAD)
Odds of Winning: The chances of winning will depend on the number of qualifying entries received by Sponsor and the number of public votes made and received during the Contest Period.
Winners and Notifications: At the end of the Contest Period, Sponsor will select one first, one second and one third place winner for each participating brewery. The 2 participating breweries are: Persephone Brewing Company (BC) and Leduc Brewing Company (AB). Winners will be determined according to how many votes they receive and how much they raise in their individual Contest fundraisers for the selected brewery. All donations to VWB/VSF must be made online through GoGoPhoto Contest and directly to your Contest entry to be counted towards your Contest fundraising total.
The entrant with the most votes per brewery partner during the Contest Period will be selected as the first-place winner for that brewery. The entrant with the second highest number of votes per brewery partner will be selected as the second-place winner. The entrant with the third highest number of votes per brewery partner will be selected as the third-place winner. In the case of a tie, the Sponsor will select the winners in a random drawing between the top vote-getting entrants for each brewery.
Winners will be notified by email on or about August 26, 2025. All winners must sign and return an affidavit of eligibility and publicity release provided by Sponsor and must also provide a selection of 2-3 photos of their pet by August 28, 2025. Photos must meet the image quality requirements described in the photo submission section above. Sponsor will have sole discretion as to which photograph shall appear on the custom beer label. The winners will also be contacted directly by VWB/VSF using the email address provided at the time of entry to make arrangements for submitting required photos. If appropriate photos are not provided by the deadline, VWB/VSF will offer the winning place to the next eligible contestant.
The bottles/cans with the winners’ custom beer labels will only be available for pick-up at the brewery, post-event. VWB/VSF will communicate with winners when the bottles/cans are available.
The first, second and third place winners for each brewery will be posted to website on or about August 26, 2025.
Prizes: Six (6) Prizes will be awarded. The top three (3) fundraisers for each brewery participating in the VWB/VSF Animals & Ales Canada Photo Contest will win the following:
- First place winner: (1) Pet’s photograph featured on a specially released beer; (2) A 4-6 pack of their specially labeled beer (ARV $37 CAD); (3) A framed canvas print of the custom beer label (ARV $140 CAD)
- Second place winner: (1) Pet’s photograph featured on a specially released beer; (2) A 4-6 pack of their specially labeled beer (ARV $37 CAD); (3) A set of coasters (ARV $36 CAD).
- Third place winner: (1) Pet’s photograph featured on a specially released beer; (2) A 4-6 pack of their specially labeled beer (ARV $37 CAD).
Total ARV of all prizes: $574 CAD. All federal, provincial, local and municipal regulations and laws apply. No transfer, assignment, cash redemption, or substitution of any prize is permitted, except by Sponsor due to prize availability and then with a prize or equal or greater value. Prizes exclude transportation, delivery pick-up, handling, and taxes, which are winner’s responsibility.
To claim a prize, each winner must correctly answer a skill-testing question. The skill-testing question will be asked via email or phone upon prize notification. The question will be: What is 15 * 5 + 42. If the winner cannot correctly answer the skill-testing question, they will forfeit their prize and an alternative winner will be selected.
Winners must sign an affidavit of eligibility and publicity release and acknowledge and give permission to VWB/VSF, and the participating breweries to use the winner’s entry, including without limitation, winner’s name, story, and photos of the animal entered in the contest in online and print publications, promotions, and materials, in all media.
Taxes, Expenses, and Legal Compliance: Winners are responsible for any taxes associated with their prizes and any expenses associated with pick-up, receipt, and acceptance of the prize, and must ensure compliance with all applicable laws and regulations.
Disclaimers and Limitations: By participating in the Animals & Ales Canada Photo Contest, you agree to release Veterinarians Without Borders North America/Vétérinaires Sans Frontières Amérique du Nord (VWB/VSF) from liability and waive your right to sue VWB/VSF, their employees, volunteers or partners from any and all claims, damages or losses incurred.
VWB/VSF reserves the right to modify or cancel the Contest at any time for any reason, in accordance with applicable laws.
Sponsor is not responsible for lost, misdirected, late, unsent, incomplete, illegible or unintelligible entries or for inaccurate or incomplete entries, regardless of cause, including without limitation, due to human, mechanical or technical error. Participant must notify Sponsor of any changed contact information within the Contest Period to remain eligible to win based on participant’s entry. Any disputes regarding eligibility or the ownership of an e-mail account will be determined by Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual found to be: (1) tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Contest; (2) acting in violation of these Official Rules or applicable laws; or (3) acting with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other person. Any use of artificial intelligence or similar technologies, robotic, automatic, programmed, or similar methods is prohibited, and any such entries will be disqualified and void.
Limitation of Liability and Dispute Resolution: Participants hereby release Sponsor, Veterinarians Without Borders North America/Vétérinaires Sans Frontières Amérique du Nord (VWB/VSF), and their promotion partners (including the participating breweries), together with their respective subsidiaries, affiliates, advertising and promotion agencies, partners, representatives, agents, successors, assigns, employees, officers, and directors, and volunteers, from any liability related to participation in the Contest, including without limitation, any claim of injury, damage, loss or liability to person or property, due in whole or part, directly or indirectly, to the acceptance, possession, use or misuse of any Entry, submission, prize or participation in this Contest. Once a prize has been distributed, participants understand that there can be no claims for liability made against the above-referenced parties.
Except where prohibited, the winner accepting a prize agrees that: (a) all issues and questions concerning these Official Rules shall be governed by Ontario law without giving effect to any principles of conflicts of law of any jurisdiction; (b) any and all disputes, claims, and causes of action at law or in equity arising out of or relating to this Contest or any prize awarded shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action and filed only in the courts situated in Ontario, and participant hereby consents and submits to the personal jurisdiction of such courts for the purposes of litigating any such disputes, claims or causes of action; (c) any and all claims, judgments, and awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred and in no event shall include attorneys' fees; and (d) under no circumstances will any participant be permitted to obtain awards for, and participants hereby waive all rights to claim, damages other than actual out-of-pocket expenses, including without limitation, punitive, incidental, special, and consequential damages, rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased, and any other damages.
Privacy: Information submitted by participants in the Contest will be treated in accordance with the terms of VWB/VSF’s privacy policy: https://www.vwb.org/site/policies. Sponsor is not responsible for and does not control the use of participant information by the participating breweries or GoGoPhoto Contest, which have their own privacy policies and practices.
Veterinarians Without Borders North America/Vétérinaires Sans Frontières Amérique du Nord (VWB/VSF) is a registered Canadian charity. Charitable Registration Number: 84146 9547 RR0001.
For more information about the Contest, please contact us at fundraising@vwb.org.