Golden Beagle Award Official Contest Rules
No Purchase Necessary
1. Contest Period
The 2026 Golden Beagle Award Essay Contest (the “Contest”) begins 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time (“ET”) on June 8, 2026 and ends 11:59 p.m. ET on June 30, 2026 (“Contest Period”).
2. Eligibility
The Contest is open to animal shelters that operate as 501(c)(3) pet adoption facilities, whose principal place of business is in the 50 United States and the District of Columbia (“Entrant” or “Organization”). To avoid any ambiguity, Entrant is the animal shelter, not a person. An Entrant may register, enter, or authorize someone to register, enter and/or speak on behalf of Entrant and submit the entry materials on behalf of Entrant (the “Authorized Representative”). The Authorized Representative of each Entrant must be a legal resident of the 50 United States or District of Columbia and eighteen (18) years old and the age of majority in his/her/their state/jurisdiction of residence at the time of entry. Employees of MetLife Pet Insurance Solutions LLC (“MetLife” or the “Sponsor”), Don Jagoda Associates, Inc. (“Administrator”), their respective parents, subsidiaries, divisions, affiliates, suppliers, distributors and advertising, promotional and judging agencies (collectively the “Contest Entities”) and their immediate family members (spouses, parents, children, and siblings and their spouses) and household members of each (whether related or not), are not eligible to participate or win. Void where prohibited by law. All federal, state, and local laws and regulations apply. Eligibility to enter or win the Contest is not tied to the purchase or solicitation of any insurance products or the purchase or solicitation of any products sold by the Sponsor.
3. How to Enter
During the Contest Period, as an Authorized Representative on behalf of the Entrant, you may enter the Contest by visiting https://www.metlifepetinsurance.com/golden-beagle-award/ (the “Website”), completing the registration form and in 50 -500 words, describing a specific opportunity your Organization identified to improve its foster program and the results seen to date (“Entry”).
Entries must be in English. Entries submitted represent solely the views/opinions of the Authorized Representatives/Entrants and may not reflect the views/opinions of Sponsor in any manner.
No information regarding Entries, other than as otherwise set forth in these Official Rules, will be disclosed. Entries must be received during the Contest Period. Limit one (1) Entry per Entrant/Authorized Representative/email address during the Contest Period. Any attempt by any Entrant to obtain more than the stated number of Entries by using multiple/different email addresses, identities, registrations and logins, or any other methods will void such Entries and that Entrant may be disqualified. Use of any AI or automated or computer system to participate is prohibited and will result in disqualification. Normal Internet access and usage charges imposed by your online service may apply. Standard phone/data and usage rates may apply if entering via mobile device.
By submitting an Entry, Entrant/Authorized Representative agrees that the Entry conforms to the Entry Guidelines and Content Restrictions as defined below (collectively, the “Guidelines and Restrictions”) and that the Sponsor may disqualify them from the Contest if it believes, in its sole discretion, that Entrant’s Entry fails to conform to the Guidelines and Restrictions.
Entry Guidelines:
- The Entry must be in text format.
- Each essay must be in English and must be no shorter than fifty (50) words, without exceeding five hundred (500) words in length.
- Each Entrant/Authorized Representative must have permission from all individuals mentioned in the Entry (if any) to use their name and likeness in the Entry and to grant the rights set forth herein (and they must be 18+). If requested, the Entrant must be able to provide such permissions in a form acceptable to Sponsor.
Content Restrictions:
a. The Entry must not contain material that violates or infringes another’s rights, including but not limited to privacy, publicity or intellectual property rights, or that constitutes copyright infringement;
b. The Entry must be in keeping with image, or desired image of Sponsor, Administrator or any other person or party affiliated with the promotion and administration of this Contest or they may be disqualified, in Sponsor’s sole discretion;
c. The Entry may not contain any third-party materials (other than Sponsor-owned which Entrant/Authorized Representative has a limited license to use to incorporate into their Entry for this Contest), and may not contain any materials that violate or infringe (or may be at risk of infringing) any third-party rights, including without limitation copyright, trademark rights, privacy rights (including portrayal in a false light), publicity rights, or other intellectual property rights;
d. The Entry must be non-professional and the sole, original work of the Entrant/Authorized Representative and must not use any generative AI in any way including, but not limited to generating concepts.
e. The Entry must not include any complete customer names or any personal identifiers.
f. All components of Entry must be Entrant’s original idea (modification of a third party’s original work is not an original idea). The Entry may not copy or otherwise plagiarize any portion of the essays from any other source.
g. The Authorized Representative must own all rights in and to the Entry.
h. Content of Entry must be in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations and is not the subject of any actual or threatened litigation or claim
j. The Entry must not have been submitted previously in a promotion of any kind or previously exhibited or displayed publicly (i.e., disclosed beyond your immediate circle of friends and family) through any means.
k. The Entry must not contain content that is known by you to be false, inaccurate or misleading.
l. Any Entry deemed inappropriate or unsuitable, in Sponsor’s sole discretion, will be disqualified. Entries must not contain material that is inappropriate, indecent (including, but not limited to, nudity, or pornography), profane, obscene, hateful, tortious, defamatory, slanderous, libelous (including words or symbols that are widely considered offensive to individuals of a certain race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic group), violent, self-mutilating (e.g., relating to murder, the sales of weapons, cruelty, abuse, etc.), or illegal (e.g., underage drinking, substance abuse, computer hacking, etc.).
m. The Entry must not contain or depict material that promotes bigotry, racism, hatred or harm against any group or individual or promotes discrimination, including without limitation, discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age. The Entry must not contain or depict material that is threatening to any person, place, business, group, or world peace or contain words or symbols that are widely considered offensive to individuals of a certain race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic group.
n. The Entry must not contain any content that infringes or may infringe third party rights, including, without limitation, any copyright, name, trademark, trade secrets, logo, trade dress, or other personal or proprietary right of any person living or deceased (including but not limited to rights of privacy or publicity or portrayal in a false light) or entity or make reference to any commercial/corporate advertising (including but not limited to corporate logos, brand names, charities, slogans, political, or religious statements), or be otherwise objectionable. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, publicly displayed and publicly accessible Sponsor content, materials, or products are permitted to be displayed in Entries submitted for this Contest.
o. The Entry must not include any representation or mention of celebrities, athletes, musicians, or any other third-party, including organizations (public or private) unless Entrant is affiliated with the organization and is including it with permission. The Entry must not include any anti-social, political or religious groups, any commercial solicitation or promotional materials or name, address, phone number, or URL address. Entries must not contain advertisements, personal solicitations or commercial solicitations.
p. Entries must not reference any of Sponsor’s competitors.
4. Transfer of Rights
Submission of an Entry constitutes Entrant’s (and its Authorized Representative’s) consent to give Sponsor a royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, create derivative works from, and display such Entry in whole or in part, on a worldwide basis, and to incorporate it into other works, in any form, media (including the resource library) or technology now known or later developed, including for promotional or marketing purposes. If requested, Entrant/Authorized Representative may be required to execute any documentation that may be required for Sponsor or its designees to make use of the non-exclusive rights the Entrant/Authorized Representative is granting to use the Entry. Contest Entities are not responsible for lost, late, stolen, damaged, incomplete, invalid, un-intelligible, garbled, delayed or misdirected Entries, all of which will be void. In the event of a dispute regarding any Entry, the authorized account holder of the email address used to register will be deemed to be the Entrant/Authorized Representative. The "authorized account holder" is the natural person assigned an email address by an Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted address. Each potential winner may be required to show proof of being the authorized account holder in order to be officially declared the winner.
5. Nature of Relationship/Waiver of Equitable Relief
Each Authorized Representative/Entrant hereby acknowledges and agrees that the relationship between the Entrant and the Contest Entities is not a confidential, fiduciary, or other special relationship, and that the Authorized Representative/Entrant’s decision to submit an Entry (if applicable) to Sponsor for purposes of the Contest does not place the Contest Entities in a position that is any different from the position held by members of the general public with regard to elements of the Entry. Each Entrant understands and acknowledges that the Contest Entities have wide access to ideas, stories, designs, and other literary materials, and that new ideas are constantly being submitted to the Contest Entities or being developed by their own employees. Each Authorized Representative/Entrant also acknowledges that many ideas may be competitive with, similar or identical to the Entry and/or each other in theme, idea, plot, format or other respects. Each Entrant acknowledges and agrees that such Entrant will not be entitled to any compensation as a result of any Contest Entity’s use of any such similar or identical material. Each Authorized Representative/Entrant acknowledges and agrees that the Contest Entities do not now and shall not have in the future any duty or liability, direct or indirect, vicarious, contributory, or otherwise, with respect to the infringement or protection of the copyright in and to the Entry. Finally, each Authorized Representative/Entrant acknowledges that, with respect to any claim by Authorized Representative/Entrant relating to or arising out of a Contest Entity’s actual or alleged exploitation or use of any Entry or other material submitted in connection with the Contest, the damage, if any, thereby caused to the applicable Authorized Representative/Entrant will not be irreparable or otherwise sufficient to entitle such Authorized Representative/Entrant to seek injunctive or other equitable relief and Authorized Representative/Entrant’s rights and remedies in any such event shall be strictly limited to the right to recover damages, if any, in an action at law.
6. Judging and Winner Determination
At the conclusion of the Contest Period, all Entries will be judged by a panel of qualified representatives selected by Sponsor based on the following judging criteria (“Judging Criteria”): Innovation (20%); Impact on Capacity for Care (25%); Measurable Results (25%); Replicability (15%); Community Engagement (10%); and Storytelling/Inspiration (5%), to determine the twenty-five (25) highest scoring Entries (“Finalists”). The Finalists will be re-judged based on the Judging Criteria by a different Sponsor-specified panel of judges to determine the potential winner. In the event of a tie, tied Entries will be re-judged based on Ease of Execution (60%) and Best Overall Concept (40%). By participating, Entrants/Authorized Representatives agree to the decisions of the Sponsor/Administrator/judges, which shall be final and binding in all respect to the Contest. Under no circumstance will information regarding judging be shared with Entrants/Authorized Representatives.
7. Winner Notification
The potential winning Authorized Representative of Entrant will be sent via email link, a Declaration of Eligibility, Liability & Publicity Release (where legal) and Assignment of Rights (“Declaration”) and will be required to complete, sign and return Declaration via email link within five (5) business days of being notified in order to be confirmed the winning Entrant. If the potential winning Authorized Representative fails to return the required documents within the required time period, or the winner notification is returned undeliverable, or in the event that a potential winning Entrant is disqualified for any reason, Sponsor will deem the next highest ranked Entry (“Alternate”) as outlined in Rule #6, as the winning Entrant. The potential winning Authorized Representative/Entrant may be subject to a background check at the sole discretion of Sponsor. Based on the results of the background check the potential winning Authorized Representative/Entrant may be disqualified: (a) if charged with or convicted of a felony or misdemeanor; (b) if Sponsor determines, in its sole discretion, that potential winning Authorized Representative/Entrant may reflect unfavorably on the Contest or Sponsor; (c) if the potential winning Authorized Representative/Entrant is not eligible to receive the prize based on the eligibility requirements set forth in these Official Rules. In such event, an Alternate will be determined. Potential winning Authorized Representative/Entrant is subject to verification by Sponsor and/or Administrator/judges, whose decisions are final and BINDING IN ALL MATTERS RELATED TO THE CONTEST.
8. Prize
One (1) Prize: $20,000 awarded in the form of a check to the winning Organization (“Winning Organization”). Authorized Representative of the Winning Organization (“Winner”) must participate in a recorded interview (virtually or physically) with the Sponsor at a Sponsor-specified date and time (“Interview”). Authorized Representative and Winning Organization understand that Sponsor may record, videotape and/or photograph the Interview and by accepting the prize, further understand that Sponsor may or may not use that Interview in any way they see fit as related to the Contest and its advertising. Authorized Representative must physically attend or virtually participate in the Winner announcement and prize award ceremony, during the Association for Animal Welfare Advancements Annual Conference, from October 26 – 29, 2026 in Chattanooga, Tennessee (“Event”). Event portion of prize has no retail value associated with it. If Winner chooses to physically attend the Event, his/her transportation to the Event is his/her responsibility and is not included with the prize. No transfer, substitution or cash equivalent for Event will be permitted, except at the sole discretion of the Sponsor due to prize unavailability for any reason, including but not limited to, cancellation, scheduling conflicts or an event of force majeure (including any pandemic); and, in such circumstance, that portion of prize will be forfeited and the Sponsor’s obligation to the Winner will be fulfilled, and no other additional compensation will be provided. No responsibility or liability is assumed for damages, losses or injury resulting from acceptance or use of prize. Any taxes related to the prize is the sole responsibility of the Winning Organization. A 1099 tax form will be submitted on the Winning Organization’s behalf for the actual value of the prize awarded. Prize is subject to verification of eligibility and compliance with these Official Rules.
Winning Organization’s social media accounts must also be aligned with Sponsor’s image and not deemed offensive, in their sole discretion or Winning Organization may be disqualified.
9. General Conditions
Each Entrant and Authorized Representative hereby agrees to indemnify and hold the Contest Entities harmless from and against any and all third-party claims, actions or proceedings of any kind and from any and all damages, liabilities, costs and expenses relating to or arising out of any breach or alleged breach of any of the warranties, representations or agreements of Entrant or Authorized Representative, as applicable, under these Official Rules. Sponsor reserves the right to cancel or modify the Contest for any reason, including (but not limited to) if, for any reason, the Contest is not capable of running as planned, including infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures, or any other causes beyond the control of the Sponsor which corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper conduct of the Contest. If such cancelation occurs, Sponsor reserves the right to determine the Finalists from among all eligible Entries submitted prior to cancellation, based on the Judging Criteria listed above.
10. Limitations of Liability
Contest Entities are not responsible for: (1) any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by Entrant/Authorized Representative, printing, typographical or other errors or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Contest; (2) for technical, hardware, software or telephone malfunctions of any kind, lost or unavailable network connections, or failed, incorrect, incomplete, inaccurate, garbled or delayed electronic communications caused by the user or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Contest or by any human error which may occur in the processing of the Entries in the Contest or for any liability for damage to any computer system resulting from participation in, accessing or downloading information in connection with the Contest; (3) unauthorized human intervention in any part of the Entry process or the Contest; (4) printing, typographical, technical, computer, network or human error which may occur in the administration of the Contest, the uploading, the processing or judging of Entries, the announcement of the prize or in any Contest-related materials; (5) late, lost, undeliverable, damaged or stolen mail; or (6) any injury or damage to persons or property which may be caused, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from Entrant’s/Authorized Representative’s participation in the Contest, Interview or Event or receipt or use or misuse of prize (including any activity related thereto). Contest Entities are not responsible for misdirected or undeliverable Entries or for any technical problems, malfunctions of computer systems, servers, providers, hardware/software, lost or unavailable network connections or failed, incomplete, garbled or delayed computer transmission or any combination thereof. Contest Entities are not responsible for any unauthorized third-party use of any Entry. If there are any discrepancies between printed or other promotional materials and the Official Rules, these Official rules will govern and control. The Sponsor reserves the right at its sole discretion to disqualify any individual that tampers or attempts to tamper with the Entry process or the operation of the Contest or Website; violates the Official Rules; or acts in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner, or with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other person. Any attempt by any person to deliberately undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest may be a violation of criminal and civil law, and, should such an attempt be made, Sponsor reserves the right to seek damages from any such person to the fullest extent permitted by law. Sponsor's failure to enforce any term of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision. By entering, Entrants and Authorized Representatives agree to the possibility of being contacted by Sponsor at a later date (unrelated to Contest) and may be asked to participate in future publicity events, in their sole discretion.
11. Jurisdiction
The Contest shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of New York applicable to promotions fully carried out within New York. Except where prohibited by law, any and all claims, judgments and awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred, including costs associated with entering this Contest but in no event attorneys' and/or experts’ fees; and Winner hereby waives all rights to claim punitive, incidental and consequential damages and any other damages (including attorneys’ fees), other than for actual out-of-pocket expenses, and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased. The Winner acknowledges that no other party nor any agent or attorney of any other party has made any promise, representation or warranty whatsoever, express or implied, not contained herein concerning the subject matter hereof, to induce the winner to execute any document and Winner acknowledges that they have not executed any document in reliance on any such promise, representation or warranty not contained herein. Any waiver by the Sponsor and its affiliates of any term of any document in a particular instance shall not be a waiver of such term for the future. Winner agrees that the invalidity or enforceability of any part of any document shall in no way affect the validity or enforceability of any of the remainder of that document.
12. Dispute Resolution and No Class Relief
Any claim, cause of action or proceeding arising out of or relating to any Contest shall be resolved by mandatory, binding arbitration in accordance with the Commercial Arbitration Rules of the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) as supplemented by AAA’s Supplementary Procedures for Consumer-Related Disputes. The Federal Arbitration Act, and not any state law concerning arbitration, shall apply. The arbitration award shall be final and exclusive, and the prevailing party in the arbitration may file an action in court to confirm and to enforce the arbitration award. Winners/Entrants irrevocably waive any rights to seek and/or obtain injunctive or other equitable relief. Should either party pursue any other judicial or administrative action with respect to any matter included within the scope of this binding arbitration provision, the responding party will be may seek recovery of costs, expenses and attorneys’ fees incurred as a result of such action. Further, any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with a Contest, or prize awarded, will be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action. If a court determines that a public injunctive relief claim may proceed notwithstanding the “No Class Actions” provision, and that determination is not reversed on appeal, then the public injunctive relief claim will be decided by a court, and any individual claims will be arbitrated. The parties will ask the court to stay the public injunctive relief claim until the other claims have been finally concluded.
13. Privacy Policy
The personal information collected through this Contest is subject to the Sponsor’s Privacy Policy, located at https://www.metlife.com/about-us/privacy-policy/online-privacy-policy/. By entering this Contest, Entrants/Authorized Representatives agree to the use of their personal information as described in the above Privacy Policy.
14. Winning Organization
For the name of the winning Organization, available after August 31, 2026, for a period of at least 30 days, send a stamped, self-addressed envelope to: 2026 Golden Beagle Award Essay Contest Winner, PO Box 7760, Dept. OPS, P.O Box 7760, Melville, NY 11775-7760.
15. Sponsor/Administrator
The Sponsor of the Contest is MetLife Pet Insurance Solutions LLC, 400 Missouri Avenue, #105, Jeffersonville, IN 47130. The Administrator of the Contest is Don Jagoda Associates, Inc., 100 Marcus Dr., Melville, NY 11747.
