Time is running out to enter the Star Tribune Halloween Pet Costume Contest

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

It's already October, and the deadline for the second annual Star Tribune Halloween Pet Costume Contest is just over a week away.

Now is the time to bust out the sewing machine and create a costume that will win your pet a coveted Star Tribune dog tag plus a spot in the pages of the Star Tribune as the best dressed four-legged trick-or-treater in town. Here's how:

E-mail your best high-­resolution photo of your pet in a costume to petcontest@startribune.com by 9 a.m. on Oct. 14.

Be sure to include contact information and feel free to add comments on the costume concept, creative challenges and willingness of your pet to be a model.

We'll pick winners in these categories:

Minnesota-inspired: Can your corgi dress up as a can of Spam, a gray duck or a hot dish casserole?

Scary: We're looking for ghostly greyhounds, zombie gerbils or maybe a cat as a psycho clown.

Anything goes: Surprise us.

The rules: You can enter multiple pets, multiple costumes and multiple categories as long as it's your pet wearing the costume and it's your photograph. (For best results, try shooting your costumed pet with a neutral background. No Photoshopping.)

Our panel of judges will award prizes for first, second and third place in each category, plus best in show. By entering a photograph, you give the Star Tribune the right to publish it on any of our platforms in perpetuity.