My Fire Hydrant

TOMORROW is National Hairball Awareness Day!

Don’t forget to enter your kittie in the “Who’s Your Favorite Furball Contest” going on right now to help raise money for Kitten Rescue of Los Angeles! The winner gets a free FURminator deShedding tool and will also have a photo featured at http://www.peoplepets.com/.

I’ve just been informed that Friday (April 24) is National Hairball Awareness Day! So I wondered, who came up with the brilliant idea to recognize Hairballs? Near as I can tell, it was the National Museum of Health & Medicine.

In fact, I came across their press release that says “…From April 25 – May 4, the Museum will offer a temporary exhibition of nine hairballs (also called “trichobezoars”) from the Museum’s collection of 24 veterinary and 3 human specimens. The exhibition will inform the visitor about the myths and realities of these medical curiosities…”

You can even visit their virtual hairball exhibit!

I think my favorite hairbal from the virtual exhibit is this trichobezoar from a human which is courtesy of the Department of Radiology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology.

Can you say EUWWWWWWWW!!??!

If you are anywhere near Washington D.C., I think this is one of those “must see” exhibits. (Or, maybe not.)

If you’re not near D.C., you can still have a great time celebrating National Hairball Awareness Day, and do a good deed for kitties. My buddy Romeo and his buddy FURminator, Inc are sponsoring the “Who’s Your Favorite Furball?” contest.

The winner of the contest gets a free FURminator DeShedding Tool (Romeo demonstrates on our left) and will also see their beloved furball featured on People Pets and many popular pet blogs across the Internet (including this one!).

Everyone who enters also gets the satisfaction of doing a good deed for Romeo’s April FURPOWER beneficiary, Kitten Rescue of Los Angeles.

Here’s what you do:

1. Visit Romeo The Cat and click on the FirstGiving link to donate $1 (or more if you choose!) to Romeo’s FURPOWER beneficiary of the month, Kitten Rescue of Los Angeles.

2. Submit your favorite, funniest, furriest furball photo (cats only, please!) via email to Romeo at RomeoTheCat dot com and tell Romeo how winning a FURminator deShedding Tool will change your life (and your furball’s life!). Make sure to include the following information:

~ Your Favorite Furball’s name
~ How winning a FURminator deShedding Tool will change your life (and your furball’s life!)
~ Your name
~ Your email address
~ What name you used with your FirstGiving donation

Entries must be submitted by 9 p.m. EST Thursday, April 23, 2009.

3. A Favorite Furball gallery will be posted on Romeo The Cat leading up to the big announcement.

4. The winner will be selected via a random drawing.

5. The winner will be announced on Romeo The Cat, People Pets, and participating blogs at 12 p.m. EST Friday, April 24, 2009.

Contest parameters:
~ Contest is only open to cats (sorry doggies!)
~ Entrants must be located in the U.S. or Canada
~ Entries must be submitted by 9:00 p.m. EST on Thursday, April 23, 2009
~ Entrants agree to allow their photo to be posted on participating blogs

If you have additional questions, please contact Romeo at RomeoTheCat dot com.

Good luck! And let the coughing begin!

As I was surfing this morning, I came across Ten Peeves that Dogs Have About Humans (read this, it’s very funny!), posted by Laura over at My Favorite People are Dogs. Coincidentally, yesterday I was going through some old paperwork and came across some quotes I’ve been collecting. Thanks, Laura, for inspiring me to post!

The average dog is a nicer person than the average person.
-Andy Rooney

We give dogs the time we can spare, space we can spare and love we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. It’s the best deal man has ever made.
-M. Acklam

I wonder if other dogs think poodles are members of a weird religious cult.
-Rita Rudner

A dog teaches a boy fidelity, perseverance, and to turn around three times before lying down.
-Robert Benchley

Anybody who doesn’t know what soap tastes like never washed a dog.
-Franklin P. Jones

If I have any beliefs about immortality, it is that certain dogs I have known will go to heaven, and very, very few persons.
-James Thurber

If your dog is fat, you aren’t getting enough exercise.
-Unknown

My dog is worried about the economy because Alpo is up to $3.00 a can. That’s almost $21.00 in dog money.
-Joe Weinstein

Ever consider what our dogs must think of us? I mean, here we come back from a grocery store with the most amazing haul — chicken, pork, half a cow. They must think we’re the greatest hunters on earth!
-Anne Tyler

Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea.
-Robert A. Heinlein

If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you; that is the principal difference between a dog and a man.
-Mark Twain

You can say any foolish thing to a dog, and the dog will give you a look that says, ‘Wow, you’re right! I never would’ve thought of that!’
- Dave Barry

Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.
-Roger Caras

If you think dogs can’t count, try putting three dog biscuits in your pocket and then give him only two of them.
-Phil Pastoret

My goal in life is to be as good of a person as my dog already thinks I am.
-Anonymous

The reason a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail instead of his tongue.
-Anonymous

Don’t accept your dog’s admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful.
-Ann Landers

If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.
-Will Rogers

There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face.
-Ben Williams

A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.
-Josh Billings

The reason a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail instead of his tongue.
-Anonymous

Whatever you celebrate, Bailey asked me to wish everyone a very Merry Merry and Happy Happy!!!

Years ago, there was a wonderful screen saver on my Apple computer that simulated a fish aquarium. Back then, it was new and a nice thing to stare at when trying to relax.

So today, a friend sent me a new “aquarium.” It’s a puppy cam focused on six Shiba Inu puppies in their crate. The puppies are (of course) adorable (was there ever any doubt?). But the really interesting thing is the number of people logging on to view them–next to the video window is a chat window that never stops moving. I think I’m going to leave it on all day. I love the sound of puppies!

[3/24/09--this blog post was edited. The Puppy Cam no longer operates, and was replaced with Google ads. So I removed it from the post.]

As I was surfing the blogs I came across Barking for Barack. I wish I’d found this one sooner! Seems to be written by a quite wonderful Corgador named Wally.

In today’s entry, Wally points out that Barney, the current White House resident, bit a reporter today. Poor Barney! I bet he’s just about ready to leave his current digs and head back to normal life.