We usually cover very serious topics here on our blog, important stuff about helping homeless pets, rescuing dogs, cats and other creatures, ways volunteers and shelters are working hard to save lives… and then… there’s doggie-mail and kittie-mail. Step into the petcentric online gallery here: http://www.petcentric.com/Fun-Games/Doggie-Mail.aspx and you’ll see what we mean! It’s some very silly talking pets that invite you to customize your online message by either choosing one of the three dogs or three cats, or making it even more silly fun, uploading your dog or cat from your computer or Facebook.  Then you choose a painting from the gallery… well, I don’t want to give all the fun away! If you’re looking for a little diversion in your day, or a unique and creative way to add your voice to your pet’s photos and send out a birthday or other greeting to your friends or post a very important message on your Facebook page!

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This is just one of the many reasons why Adopt-a-Pet.com is so extremely proud to work with Purina. They are doing amazing things for the pets affected by Hurricane Sandy. Today they posted a photo of destroyed homes on their Purina ONE Facebook page along with this caption:  “Hurricane Sandy has taken a huge toll on the East Coast. Reports of deaths, extensive power outages and widespread damage are very distressing to hear. Many pets were also displaced as a result of the devastation. At Nestlé Purina, where pets are our passion, we want to do our part to help the four-legged victims of this disaster. As part of this effort, we’ve coordinated several donations of pet food, litter, and Purina Veterinary Diets FortiFlora® to animal welfare organizations, veterinary clinics, and hospitals in the affected areas. Our company is also making a donation of $20,000 to North Shore Animal League America, whose Emergency Response Team was on round-the-clock call throughout the storm with their Mobile Rescue Units to safely evacuate and care for animals in distress. They have organized an Emergency Pet Shelter in New York and are currently caring for more than 150 pets whose owners were directly affected by the devastation of Hurricane Sandy. We will also be making a contribution of $15,000 to PetSmart Charities, which has set up a temporary distribution center to hand out food, litter and supplies to animal welfare organizations across the entire northeastern United States. Many have been voicing their support and sympathy for the victims of this disaster. We appreciate your compassion and caring, and we will keep you posted on all Nestlé Purina PetCare efforts.”

From February 10th through February 14th, Adopt-a-Pet.com is holding the “Great American Pooch Smooch & Kitty Kiss” kiss-a-pawlooza! Spread the love of your pets to homeless pets by sharing your purr-fect and paw-some pet-kissing photos on the Adopt-a-Pet.com Facebook page here. For each pooch smooch or kitty kiss photo posted from February 10th through February 14th, 25¢ will be donated to Adopt-a-Pet.com’s Veterinary Care Fund grant program, originally funded with a donation from Purina Veterinary Diets®. The maximum donation is $5,000! Despite the name of the event, photos of all kinds of pets are welcome! Don’t have a pet of your own, or just want to give some extra kisses this Valentine’s Day? Consider visiting your an animal shelter or rescue (find your local shelters and rescues here) to give a smooch or two to some adoptable pets waiting for permanent homes. Or, better yet, make the relationship permanent and adopt!

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Aside from adorable pet videos, sometimes I think the internet was really invented for silly cat photos! Our friends over at Petcentric came up with the idea to post seven photos of cats sleeping and they are each cuter than the next, and that inspired us to go through the archives of our foster cat and kitten photos to find all the cute cat sleeping photos we’ve taken over the years too! Vallo, pictured at right, is one prime example. He would sleep like that with his belly up and a big kitty smile on his face all the time! There’s not much cuter than a happy sleeping kitten or cat, and they can get into some pretty silly positions when they sleep too! Petcentric adds, “On average, cats sleep 13–14 hours a day. Lucky for us, that gives us tons of time to observe their funny and unique sleeping habits. Here, we’ve uncovered seven sleepy cats. Look through quietly — we wouldn’t want to wake them!” Here’s the link to see Petcentric’s seven sleepy cats, and click the “more” link at the end of this paragraph to see the photos we picked to share with you here too. If you have a cute photo of your adopted cat or kitten sleeping, you can share it on our Facebook page here! You can share our photos with your friends easily too by clicking one of the icons below.

Amelia’s adopters sent me this photo of her sleeping snuggled up with their dog.

Maggie Mae would sleep with her paw stretched across me in a kitty hug.

Valentino loved to sleep in sinks!

George was sleeping so soundly, he couldn’t be bothered to move when Alfred sat on him!

A shelter kitty curled up sleeping in a donut bed.

Kate’s adopters sent me this adorable photo of her sleeping!

Silly foster kitten sleeping in my camera bag!

Huckleberry another of my belly-up foster sleepers!

Victoria would sleep snuggled up with as many people or other kitties as possible.

The folks over at Purina® Pro Plan® and Tidy Cats® are gearing up to proudly sponsor another PetSmart Charities Adoption Weekend. From Friday through Sunday, September 13th-15th, you can make a love connection with an adoptable pet by stopping by a PetSmart location near you. Adoptable pets from shelters and rescues across North America will be ready to meet and greet with potential adopters all throughout this exciting three-day adoption weekend. (If you can’t make this event, there will be another one November 15th to 17th 2013 too!) For more information including the participation times of local animal-welfare agencies, contact your local PetSmart store and check out the event on Facebook.

Blogger Jessica Shyba created a viral phenomena with her amazing photos documenting her son and their newly adopted puppy snuggling during their naps together. Our friends over at Petcentric write, “Jessica’s eye for coo-worthy moments between her son, Beau, and sleeping dog, Theo, (and the rest of the family) have spawned an Instagram account that has exploded in popularity through the hashtag #theoandbeau.” Through Jessica’s artful photography, you and her 454,583 other followers can keep up with the puppy and baby as they grow up together. She’s also publishing her favorite photos as a book, available for pre-order now, and a portion of the proceeds will go to the Santa Cruz SPCA, where they rescued Theo. We think that makes these photos even cuter!

Shelter Me, the uplifting PBS film series about pets and the people who help them, is sharing a very special sneak peek of a new episode with us! In Episode 9, “The Art of Kindness,” Lights Down Low singer MAX hosts concerts at animal shelters to help promote adoption. In this clip, you’ll see the amazing work MAX is doing across the country and why he believes spreading the message of pet adoption is so important. Check it out here!

Be sure to tune in to PBS this summer to watch the full episode. You’ll meet a famous painting pooch named DogVinci who helps to teach kids about creativity and sells his paintings to raise money for animal shelters. The episode also highlights a senior dog adoption fair that helps give exposure to pups that are often overlooked. We can’t wait for you to see the entire episode! You can also watch past episodes online now.

Shelter Me is presented by the Petco Foundation and produced by Steven Latham Productions. Learn more about Shelter Me here.

Looking to adopt a pet of your own? Get started here! 

A dog’s dental health depends a lot on its breed and diet. But dogs can get gum disease from plaque on their teeth. And gum disease and tooth decay can start early in a pup’s life, so the sooner you attend to your dog’s teeth, the better.

Ideally, you should brush your pup’s teeth each day with a soft bristle brush and a special veterinary enzymatic toothpaste. This comes in flavors such as beef, so your dog will think of it as a treat. Simply push the skin back from your pup’s mouth and use a back-and-forth motion on the outside of your dog’s closed teeth. The pooch never even has to open his jaw!

If you have trouble, talk to your veterinarian. He or she may recommend an anti-plaque mouthwash or a bio-adhesive film instead.

Summer is in full swing! For many of us, that means barbecues, cookouts, beach bonfires, and other outdoor affairs. But what’s a lot of fun for humans can present dangers to our pets, so before your next big backyard bash, add these pet-safety pointers from our friends at Petcentric.com to your pre-party checklist – it just might save you a trip to the vet. The summer-party staples your pets should avoid start with the…

Picnic or Barbecue party. Most prepared human food isn’t good for pets the rest of the year either, but it’s especially important to keep little snouts out of the potato salad and other rich dishes. Pancreatitis, an all-too-common and sometimes fatal inflammation of the pancreas, can proceed from eating “greasy, spicy, fatty foods” – all mainstays of barbecues. And while you might follow the rules and not give your pets cookout food, your guests might not know better. Plus, parties can get chaotic, and many pets will take advantage of a busy backyard to perform a little quality control on the deviled eggs. So, while it might sound cold-hearted, your pet (and you) may have a better time if she’s in a cool air-conditioned room with a bowl of water, a little of her own kibble, and the door closed with a sign on it asking your party guests to let your furry friends have their own private party in peace.

The aftermath. Post-BBQ trash will likely contain bones, which are very harmful to pets, particularly cooked bones that splinter more easily. Bone fragments can pierce your dog’s palate and other soft internal tissues like his stomach or intestines. Garbage will likely also contain sloshed alcohol, Styrofoam plates, pointy plastic utensils, and human food that’s started to turn. Keep your dog away from barbecue refuse and make sure trash-can lids stay on tight.

Fire — and fire-starters. Anything you use to get the grill going – matches, lighters, lighter fluid – should be locked away. Matches contain phosphorus, which is poisonous if ingested, and the tiny amount on each match may not harm your pet, but better safe than sorry. Lighter fluid is dangerous across the board: eating it, inhaling its fumes, even getting it on the skin or fur. And we all know that dog whose tail knocks over glasses and sweeps shelves clean of picture frames. No one wants a tail to get toasted! Keeping pets secured safely inside is a good idea any time you have open flames as décor, whether it’s tiki torches, candles in paper bags, or a simple fire pit in the back yard. Most pets understand fire, but accidents (and tails, as we mentioned) happen.

Bug preventives. Citronella candles, bug coils, bug zappers, bug spray, insect oils, smudges – all these things can burn, zap, or poison your pet.

 If your pet is bothered by outdoor insects, ask your vet about a bug spray specifically formulated for pets. Human formulations should live in a secure cabinet.

Fun in the sun. This isn’t to say that your dogs shouldn’t enjoy your guests, or the summer sunshine – but you should keep an eye on both situations. For yard parties, using a tie-out or runner cable can let your dog enjoy the party without you having to worry about a pet slipping out of an open gate or door as guests come and go.

Sunscreen. Daylight parties probably mean strong sunshine, and pets can suffer the effects of too much sun exposure the same way we can. Ask your vet about a pet-safe sunscreen that will prevent skin cancer on delicate ears and elsewhere, and make sure your pet has enough water. Familiarize yourself with the signs of heat stroke in animals in case your pet gets overwhelmed by hot and/or humid weather.

Booze. Never give your pet alcohol, and make sure he’s not lapping out of glasses that contain it. It can affect your pet’s mental state and depress his respiration, and toying with a pet by giving him beer or other booze “as a joke” is putting your pet at risk and is not funny at all if you really care about your pets. Get rid of empties promptly, or keep your pet out of temptation’s way entirely by setting him up indoors.

Dogs eat entire chickens in seconds, and cats get out in a flash; it happens, and nobody’s perfect. If you think your pet has ingested something harmful or otherwise fallen afoul of your fiesta, call your vet or local animal hospital and ask what to do next.

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Our friend over at Petcentric just posted this short and sweet article on the signs your dog will use to show you and other humans their affection! They can’t pet us or give us belly rubs, but they can certainly communicate when they’re happy and how much they love us! Author Andrea explains the five signs her two dogs use to show their appreciation to her and her husband, and gives easy-to-understand examples. There’s the wag, the sniff, the lick, the sigh (that was a new one I hadn’t thought about before!), and the smile. You can read how dogs demonstrate these five signs in her full article here. Can you can identify which of the signs your dogs or dogs you meet display with you? Share this article and let your friends know by using the icons below!