North Texas Dogs & Cats To Appear On Texas Lottery Scratch Tickets

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AUSTIN (CBSDFW.COM) – Three cats and one dog from the Metroplex are among the winning six dogs and six cats to be featured on the Texas Lottery's upcoming scratch ticket game, Cats vs. Dogs.

Stella, a special needs English bulldog owned by Paige Sills of Ovilla,

Texas Lottery

Markus, a cat owned by Peggy Wyrostek of Arlington,

Markus - Texas Lottery

Fangsy a cat owned by Jennifer Frye of Dallas

Fangsy - Texas Lottery

and Allie a rescued Maine Coon cat owned by Jeff Henderson of Dallas,

Allie - Texas Lottery

along with eight other winners, were the top vote getters in the Texas Lottery's Facebook photo contest.

More than 1,700 dogs and cats were entered in the contest.

"I was very excited to receive the email announcing Stella as a winner," said Sills. "I entered Stella in hopes that she could win and possibly help others like her have a chance at life by sharing her story.

Stella beat the odds by overcoming Swimmer Puppy Syndrome.

A lot of puppies with this condition aren't given a chance.

Because of Stella's story she has helped make others aware of special needs and they in turn have adopted special needs dogs that were in need of homes."

From Nov. 2 to Nov. 16, the Texas Lottery asked Texans, age 18 and older, to upload a photo of their dog or cat to the Texas Lottery's official Facebook page for a chance to win a spot on the scratch ticket. From Nov. 19 to Nov. 25, visitors to the Texas Lottery Facebook page voted for their favorite dog or cat and the six cat photos and six dog photos receiving the most Facebook likes won the opportunity to have their photo featured on the game.

Upon learning that her cat was a winner, Peggy Wyrostek said, "I must have screamed out loud I was that excited!" Wysrotek adds, "Markus brings so much joy to our everyday life. He is unlike any kitty that I have seen. I just knew that he was meant to be a star!"