For 53 years, the St. Tammany Humane Society has opened its doors to abused, neglected and orphaned animals throughout the area, sheltering more than 1,000 pets each year.

Now the agency is turning to the community for support.

“Our biggest volunteer need is for people who can walk the dogs or play with the animals,” said Executive Director Vaughn Maurice. “It may sound silly, but it’s really very important for their socialization and health.”

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In addition to exercise and play time, the needs at the shelter extend to cleaning, landscaping, general maintenance and administrative help. There are more than 90 dogs and over 40 cats housed at the group’s Harrison Road facility in Covington and more coming in every day. Maurice said animals are often dropped off in the middle of the night, such as a black Labrador retriever that was found tied up in front of the office one recent morning.

The dog chewed through the rope and was so frightened that kennel personnel couldn’t get close enough to bring it inside. The animal eventually ran off, and Maurice has no idea what happened to it.

For every story such as this one, there are twice as many happy endings. The shelter recently conducted its first-ever storm evacuation in advance of Hurricane Gustav, and a call was put out for emergency foster homes. Of the approximately 150 animals evacuated, 42 found homes with those foster families.

The shelter is a “no kill” facility, so animals brought in will either stay for the rest of their life or until a home is found. Needless to say, as St. Tammany’s human population grows, so does the number of residents at the shelter. Maurice hopes an online contest can help them get a brand new building.

Called the Shelter Makeover II, the contest is sponsored by Zootoo.com and will award up to $1 million to the shelter that accumulates the most points through online voting. Since the contest began Sept. 18, the St. Tammany shelter has moved swiftly up the ranks to second place, where it sits with nearly 40,000 points behind the Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City, N.J.

“I’m just amazed,” said Maurice. “When our little community beats out these big cities with millions of people, doesn’t that say something?”

Visitors to the Web site must register to vote for their shelter, and point accumulation will take place until March 13, 2009. After that, the top 20 shelters will be named semifinalists, and Zootoo representatives and advisors will visit each one to meet with staff and review the conditions. The list will then be narrowed down to 10 shelters and will be put to the public for a final vote.

The first runner-up will receive $50,000, while the second runner-up will collect $25,000. In addition, seven finalists will be awarded $10,000, and $5,000 each will go to the remaining 10 semifinalists. A prize of $10,000 will also go to the shelter that accumulates the most points during the first phase of the competition.

Maurice hopes the money will help jumpstart a capital campaign to build a brand new facility across the street from the agency’s current location.

“We’re at a point where we’re way beyond a makeover,” he said. “This is an awesome opportunity to get us started in the right direction.”

On the committee for the Pelican Bark Park, to be installed in Mandeville, Maurice would also like to see the existing property turned into a second dog park. The Bark Park will be the first of its kind in St. Tammany, and the area could certainly benefit from an additional location, he said.

The society’s annual fundraiser, “A Night with the Pawperazzi,” is scheduled for Nov. 8 at Tchefuncte Country Club.

For more information on volunteer opportunities, call the shelter at 892-7387. To vote in the Shelter Makeover II contest, go to www.zootoo.com/makeover. For more information on the Pelican Bark Park, see Friday’s St. Tammany News.