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NEW YORK (AP) — America's top cat is Russian — a Russian Blue, that is.

The 18-month-old from North Carolina won the Cat Fanciers' Association-Iams Championship at Madison Square Garden last Sunday night.

Named Runner, the feline was the first of his breed to nab the prize.

With a shiny, velvety gray coat and green eyes, Runner competed against hundreds of felines for the Best of the Best title.

The 12-pounder won 400 pounds of cat food — and a national appearance this past Monday morning on "Live with Regis and Kelly."

 It's a small picture, but then again, it's a small kitten. This photo was sent in by reader Brandi Robertson, who wrote that one of her new kitten's favorite toys is shoes.

The kitty, named Fried Rice, appears to be a moderate, straddling evenly between the left and the right.

Good kitty!

By FREDERIC J. FROMMER

CHANTILLY, Va. AP) — A black puppy decked out in a red, white and blue bandanna jumped out of his crate and wagged his tail at the airport Monday, three flights and two days after leaving Iraq en route to his new home with a U.S. soldier.

Army Spc. Gwen Beberg of Minneapolis says she couldn't have made it through her 13-month deployment without Ratchet, who she and another soldier rescued from a burning pile of trash in May. Ratchet, wearing a dog-bone-shaped collar with its name, will spend two nights in a kennel before flying to Minneapolis, where Beberg's parents will pick him up. Beberg is scheduled to return home next month.

"I'm very excited that Ratchet will be waiting for me when I get home from Iraq! Words can't describe it," Beberg said in an e-mail to friends and family. "I hope that Ratchet's story will inspire people to continue the efforts to bring more service members' animals home from Iraq and Afghanistan."

The dog was rescued by Baghdad Pups, run by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International. The group, which has now brought 63 animals to the U.S., says the effort both saves dogs and cats and helps soldiers who benefit from the bond with the animals.

The military bars troops from caring for pets on duty or taking them home, citing reasons such as health issues and difficulties in caring for the animals. The U.S. military has said the dog was free to leave but American troops could not be responsible for its transportation.

Baghdad Pups coordinator Terri Crisp, who brought the puppy back from Iraq, said animals adopted by soldiers help them get through difficult times.

"I hope Ratchet and his story will lead to some dialogue with the military," Crisp said as she stroked the puppy.

Ratchet flew on a charter flight to Kuwait, then flew commercial from Kuwait to Amsterdam and on to Washington. Eagan, Minn.-based Northwest Airlines picked up the cost of the last two legs.

Ratchet frolicked on a grassy patch outside the airport before heading off to Clocktower Animal Hospital in Herndon, Va., for a checkup and some shots.

"Your tail's wagging!" said Dr. Chris Carskaddan, the veterinarian, as he greeted the dog. "So cute."

Ratchet didn't bark at all, but let out a whimper during the shots. Afterward, Carskaddan declared the dog "extremely healthy."

(AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

There is yet another hurdle to clear in getting the city's approval to locate the proposed Roanoke Dog Park on one acre of land in Highland Park.

City Council will hear an appeal of the Architectural Review Board's approval of the location and design of the Dog Park at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23, in the council's chambers at the municipal building.

Dog park supporters are encouraged to attend and add their voices to the discussion. This is the chance, folks, to make a real difference in our community. 

I know there are many vocal supporters, and some vocal detractors, among the neighborhood residents, and since they are the folks most directly affected by this proposal they should indeed have a voice in this decision.

But this is a public park, open for use by anyone, so don't feel that because you are not a resident of Old Southwest that your opinion doesn't matter. If you support the fenced-in, off-leash park being located in Highland, show that support by attending this meeting.

Concerns about the dog park range from loss of green space to aggressive dog behavior to problems associated with noise and doggy waste.

But the green space won't be lost; it is one acre that will get the same care as the rest of the park. And dogs that exercise and learn to be social are far less likely to be aggressive than dogs with too much unspent energy and no contact with other people and pooches.

The park will be open from dawn to dusk, so there won't be barking all night. And I am pretty sure people are more likely to clean up after their pooch with "mutt mitt" stations handy and the eyes of other dog park users watching. 

If you can't attend the meeting, let the council members, David Bowers, Sherman Lea, Gwen Mason, Alvin Nash, Anita Price, Court Rosen and David Trinkle, know where you stand by sending them letters or e-mails.

If you have an opinion about the park or want to share your experience with public dog parks in other areas, please post a comment. Even if you are not a supporter, this is a chance to build on the discussion.

Is there anything more fun than watching cats play?

I get pet-related product information in my e-mail several times a week. Some of it is interesting and some of it, well, not so much. This one from Fucini Productions caught my eye because I really wish my kitties liked to play with toys.  If they did, this looks like a pretty good one.

Called the ElastoMouse, the toy hangs from the door knob and features a "[p]lay-n-Squeak sound module that emits realistic mouse sounds as cats play with it, encouraging them to use their hunting instincts. In place of a streamlined mouse design, the ElastoMouse has stretchy arms that hook together, letting it hang easily. Stretchy legs are perfect for cats to pounce and bat."

According to the Web site, the toys are available at PetCo. I think if I were feline, this little toy would be a blast.

My cats, however, prefer to play with empty sacks, abandoned boxes, throw rugs, and, oddly enough, ice chips. Thai will come running to the kitchen if he hears us use the ice maker in the 'fridge.  If we have it on flaked ice, invariably some will miss the glass and hit the linoleum. Then he will have a grand old time batting it all over the floor until it melts.

Lately Thai also likes playing dog trainer.

The training sessions go something like this: Stormy will do his little play bow and "woof" at the kitty, and Thai will rumble like the engine of a stock car. Then Stormy will make a little move forward, and Thai will haul off and smack him on the snout.

Puppy retreats, and the cat looks smug in his schooling of the dog. The lessons go on throughout the day. Every now and then Stormy will catch Thai off guard and chase him up the stairs. Score one for the pup.

But if I spend money on tiny, herb-filled mice, feathers on sticks or balls that tinkle, Thai and India could not care less. Maybe they are just weird, maybe they find our zoo-like house to be stimulating enough. I don't know.

What are your kitty's play habits?

Reader Jennifer Wray of Roanoke sent in this picture of her kitty, Selena, who looks like she is ready to demand treats ( because cats do not beg, darling) and get into some mischief.

Wonder if she likes to unfurl rolls of toilet paper? That trick always amuses my kitties.

Have a great weekend folks!

Reader Duane Howard sent this lovely picture of his kitty C.J. enjoying the fresh fall weather.

If you snap a great shot of your critter, e-mail it to pets@roanoke.com and it will get posted here on the blog or maybe with the column in the newspaper.

I got some nice feeback from readers about the debut of The Happy Wag column on Monday.

My hubby, however, endured a little good-natured teasing from co-workers about not being able to mentally convert a quart to cups in the pre-dawn hours of a weekend morning while a smelly dog slobbered and whined.  They put a measuring cup on his desk.

We have it engrained in our memories now, thanks guys.

Anyway, I got a very nice e-mail from reader Carole Massart, who shared her own take on the de-skunking process:

Reader Ed Mullikin e-mailed me this note in defense of the tomato juice remedy:

"Sometime around 1960 we were living in upstate New York when our sport model boxer (His mother was a boxer and his father was a sport) encountered a skunk.  I asked a PhD Chemist friend of mine what to do.  He said something about an ethyl mercaptan and to use tomato juice.  All I know is that it WORKED but sleeping with a boxer type smelling of tomato juice on the floor beside you ain't no picnic either!"

By FREDERIC J. FROMMER – 1 hour ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — An animal rescue group left Baghdad on Wednesday without a puppy whose cause has been championed by thousands of people from around the world.

But the group said the U.S. military had cleared the dog to leave and was hopeful to get it out of the country as soon as Sunday.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International says the military finally agreed to allow the dog, Ratchet, to leave the country, but only 30 minutes before the flight out, too late for the dog to make it. SPCA's Operation Baghdad Pups flight left with six other dogs bound for the U.S.

The military responded that it did not hold the dog or order it to stay put at a U.S. military base.
Army Spc. Gwen Beberg, 28, of Minneapolis, adopted Ratchet after she and another soldier rescued the puppy from a burning pile of trash in May. But Defense Department rules prohibit U.S. troops who are deployed from caring for pets in theater or taking them home.

Baghdad Pups tried to collect Ratchet two weeks ago, but said a U.S. commander had intercepted a military convoy carrying the dog to Baghdad and sent it back to Beberg's former base. More than 45,000 people have signed an online petition urging the Army to let the puppy come to the U.S.

Baghdad Pups has brought more than 50 cats and dogs to the U.S. to be with their owners. The group says it is both rescuing animals who face abuse in Iraq, as well as helping soldiers who benefit from the bond developed with the animals.

Beberg, who plans to return to the U.S. next month, was ecstatic about the news that her dog was cleared to leave.

"I am thrilled that Ratchet is going home!!" she wrote in an e-mail to the SPCA and others Wednesday, adding that she planned to do a "victory dance" on Sunday.

Maj. Daniel Elliott, a spokesman for U.S. forces south of Baghdad, said in a statement Wednesday that the military had no control of the dog.

"Our military working dogs carry rank and are afforded many of the rights and privileges of their fellow soldiers," he said. "Ratchet is a wild dog indigenous to Iraq. A stray, befriended by a soldier. As such, we do not control him, nor can we 'order' him not to leave" the base.

Elliott added that there was nothing preventing SPCA from picking up the dog.

Besides the thousands of petition signers, Ratchet had champions such as Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison, as well as both of the state's senators, Democrat Amy Klobuchar and Republican Norm Coleman, all of whom wrote letters to the military asking them to review the case.

On the Net:
Ratchet petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/clemency-for-ratchet
Baghdad Pups site: http://www.baghdadpups.com

By FREDERIC J. FROMMER

WASHINGTON (AP) — More than 10,000 people have signed an online petition urging the Army to let an Iraqi puppy come home with a Minnesota soldier, who fears that "Ratchet" could be killed if left behind.

"I just want my puppy home," Sgt. Gwen Beberg of Minneapolis wrote to her mother in an e-mail Sunday from Iraq, soon after she was separated from the dog following a transfer. "I miss my dog horribly." Beberg, 28, is scheduled to return to the U.S. next month.

Ratchet's defenders are ratcheting up their efforts to save him. On Monday, the program coordinator for Operation Baghdad Pups, which is run by Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International, left for a trip to the Middle East to try to get the puppy to the U.S.

And last week, Beberg's congressman, Democrat Keith Ellison, wrote to the Army urging it to review the case.

Beberg and another soldier rescued the puppy from a burning pile of trash back in May. Defense Department rules prohibit soldiers in the U.S. Central Command, which includes Iraq, from adopting pets, but exceptions have been made. Operation Baghdad Pups says it has gotten 50 dogs and six cats transferred to the U.S. in the last eight months.

"I'm coping reasonably well because I refuse to believe that Ratchet has been hurt," Beberg wrote in the e-mail to her mother, Patricia Beberg. "If I find out that he was killed though — well, we just won't entertain that possibility."

The mother said her daughter sent another e-mail saying that she confirmed that the dog was still alive and doing OK.

Operation Baghdad Pups' program coordinator, Terri Crisp, is scheduled to arrive in Baghdad on Wednesday. Crisp said the adopted dogs left behind face death on Iraqi streets.

She said Iraqis view dogs and cats as nuisances and carriers of disease, and U.S. soldiers have rescued many of them from abuse.

• Ratchet petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/clemency-for-ratchet