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Just because Thanksgiving is over doesn't mean we should stop counting our blessings. Here's a brief and incomplete list of people, places and things that the Roanoke Times pets blogger and columnist is grateful for, personally and professionally:

Gainful employment working with a staff of great people and a boss who is very supportive; Sarah Orrick and Star City Greyhound Adoptions; Hope, LaTonya, Carolyn and the other angels that help Saint Sarah rescue all those wonderful greyhounds; Kathy Perdue, Anne Marie Sweeney and the staff and volunteers at the Roanoke Valley SPCA; Molly Bell and all the good folks who devote endless volunteer hours to the League of Animal Protection; Lauren Ellerman, Amy Morgan, Christa Hall Stephens, Vickie McCormick and the rest of the Roanoke Dog Park supporters; NewVa Connects for trying to make a difference; the completely amazing Pooch Professor Katie Halsted and Six Wags Dog Park; Angels of Assisi for helping so many animals; Lindsey Nair for being supportive and inspirational with this blog and the print column; blog readers Kim, Deborah, Ed S., Michelle, Amy Hanek, Dana and all other daily visitors for faithfully reading here; blog commenters Clay and Erin for standing up to a bully on behalf of pit bulls; author Lorie Long; Bark magazine for making me smile every other month; Frosty Paws frozen dog treats for making my dogs smile once a week; Sands Woody at Trio Bar Bottle Bistro for hospitality for so many animal-related causes, Tidy Cat immediate odor control litter; Temptations cat treats; Best Friends Animal Sanctuary and the National Geographic channel show "Dogtown;" my wonderful neighbors Beth Hall, the Gray family and the Carter family; Matt the Scoop Group guy; the doctors and staff at Pet Health Clinic and all the amazing people at Virginia Tech veterinary medical school; St. Francis Service Dogs; Shanna Flowers and Heather Froeschl, two people who always make me smile at work; Science Diet Sensitive Stomach formula for making my dogs more pleasant to be around; a Dyson vacuum that makes my house more pleasant to be in; the FURminator that makes the Dyson's job a little easier; Weight Watchers for helping me find my balance this year; Starbucks coffee for helping me get out of bed; the beauty of the Roanoke Valley and of course, for my family: Phil, Laura, India, Thai, Dexter, Coral and little Stormy for the unlimited love and endless inspiration.

 Stormy has his own way of celebrating the holiday. I hope you enjoy yours. Happy Thanksgiving!

Ah, the big day approaches. The day a foodie like me savors with long-awaited glee and anticipation. The day I can throw caution to the wind and indulge in all the sinful comfort foods that make Thanksgiving my absolute favorite holiday.

Eh, maybe.

My family has been on a weight loss journey (Ugh, did I actually just type that cliche?) and we've dropped major pounds and multiple clothing sizes. Personally, I am down 46 pounds since the end of May (Weight loss not typical, your results may vary) and I am feeling pretty good about it.

So this Thanksgiving, a day I normally whip up enough entrees and side dishes to feed an infantry division and I typically use enough butter to drown Paula Deen, I am planning to cook smarter and make our feast less sinful. Still hearty, but definitely heart-healthier.

And what has any of this got to do with pets, you may be asking? Good question, but have patience. My point is forthcoming.

Part of the reason we've had so much success with dropping pounds these past six months is we are following an absurdly logical plan: Move more, eat less. And this plan can also be applied to pets to keep them happy, healthy and living more quality years (See, got there pretty quickly, didn't I?)

Here's a link to yesterday's Happy Wag print column, where I wrote about what nibbles and bits you should avoid feeding your critters this Thursday, mostly with an eye toward preventing pets' tummy aches or other maladies, like the canine equivalent of sword swallowing. Yikes!

One thing I didn't mention was what a difference a little activity can make, and not only on Thanksgiving.

Want to keep the critters out from under your feet in the kitchen? Have someone take them for a long walk while dinner is being prepared. Or wait until dinner is done and get the whole family outside for a brisk stroll or a game of fetch or Frisbee toss in the backyard. We plan to do a little hiking on a nice trail about a half-mile from our house.

By spiking your heart rate a little, you can burn off a few of the excess holiday calories, spend some quality time with your pets, and help them stay active and trim, too. Winner, winner, turkey dinner.

And those table scraps? Well, I guess I should advise you to not feed them to your pets. And there are definitely some that should be avoided at all costs. But who am I kidding?

Joy Bauer, the nutritionist in the "Today Show," said yesterday morning that if you cut the crust off the rim of a slice of pie, you can save 100 calories. Thanks, skinny lady! Now I can fit pie into the menu and my pooches will be thrilled when those pumpkin- and pecan-laced pie crusts end up in their bowls.

Hey, after all, it is Thanksgiving.

Grab the leash, we need to go for another hike.

So a couple of dogs, a chicken and a CEO walk into the Virginia attorney general's office...

No joke. A crew of animal welfare-supporters came to Bob McDonnell's office in Richmond this morning to give him a  personal "atta boy" for being among the winners of the 2008 Humane Law Enforcement Award, presented by The Humane Society of the United States.

According to a press release from McDonnell's office, Robin Robertson Starr, the Richmond SPCA's chief executive officer brought Waggles, the RSPCA's “spokesdog," their live doggie mascot, Nemo, and a volunteer in a chicken costume with her to congratulate the attorney general.

(That's McDonnell and Nemo in the photo.)

McDonnell was recognized for his part in passing tougher animal fighting laws during the 2008 session of the General Assembly.  That legislation, sponsored by Senator Tommy Norment (R-Williamsburg) and Delegate Morgan Griffith (R-Salem), significantly strengthened Virginia’s animal fighting laws.

The legislation:

• Provides that the fighting of any animals is a Class 1 misdemeanor, while dog fighting remains a Class 6 felony. (Editor's note: Spontaneous scuffles in the barnyard are specifically excluded. Guy who called me to argue this point this last year? Please don't ask me again. Thanks.)
• Makes possession of any materials intended to enhance the ability of animals to fight, allowing a minor to become involved in animal fighting, or wagering on animal fighting a Class 6 felony.
• Mandates that animals involved in any such cases may be forfeited to the locality in order to receive humane care. Owners may post bond to retain ownership interest and repossess the animals if the court issues a finding of not guilty.
• Allows law enforcement officers to conduct searches at any time upon the issuance of warrants. Law enforcement officers were often limited to conducting searches during the day, greatly limiting their ability to stop animal fighting operations. (Editor's note:This proves common sense make it into real legislation, at least occasionally.)

McDonnell's office was one of five recipients nationwide of the award. The others were San Bernardino County, Calif.; Hickman County, Tenn.; Pima County, Ariz.; and Prentiss County, Miss.

Congrats to the A.G. and his staff.   Job well done.

(Photo courtesy of the Virginia Attorney General's Office.)

The dog in an idiling van got a little impatient waiting for the driver to return, so he decided to bring the car around, onto the sidewalk and right up to the window of a Long Island coffee shop.

The pooch, a 50-pound mutt named Bentley, was waiting in Bryan Maher's van last Wednesday while Maher stopped at Cool Beanz coffee shop.

"I ran inside the coffee house to sign up for open-mike night, and I left my car running because it's cold outside and I didn't want my dog to freeze," said Maher, 60, is quoted in the New York Daily News report. "The next thing I knew, I looked up to see my van coming at me in the window, with Bentley in the driver's seat grinning at me."

No one, including Bentley, a boxer/shar pei mix,  was injured in the crash. The window of the shop was cracked, some patio furniture was damaged and a mirror was broken on the van.

The cafe's owner, Patricia McCarthy, seemed to hold no grudge about the mishap.

"Aw, Bentley was wagging his tail afterward," said McCarthy. "He really is a sweet dog."

Maher said he has learned his lesson.

"This is the first and last time I'll ever put the car in park," he said. "He's a smart dog - obviously, he can drive a van."

(Photo from nydailynews.com)

The Humane Society of the United States today released the results of an eight-month investigation into Petland, Inc. and said the main source of the dogs sold in the country's largest chain of puppy-selling pet stores are puppy mills.

According to Petland's Web site, there are 140 Petland-franchised stores in the United States, including the one here in Roanoke. The company is based in Ohio.

The Humane Society alleges that many of puppies sold in Petland stores are purchased from puppy mills or from brokers that buy from puppy mills. The animal welfare organization disputes the claim on Petland's Web site that they screen the breeders that are the sources of the puppies they sell.

The Humane Society said their investigators visited 21 Petland stores and 35 breeders and brokers who supplied the pups sold in Petland stores. They said investigators also reviewed interstate import records of an additional 322 breeders, USDA reports and more than 17,000 individual dogs linked to Petland stores.

The organization said the investigation revealed:

• Despite claims on the corporate Web site and from store management that the company knows its breeders and deals only with those with high standards of care, many of the puppies sold in Petland stores came from large commercial breeders in Missouri and other Midwestern states.
• "Appalling conditions" were found at many of the 35 breeding operations linked to Petland that the Humane Society visited, including dogs kept in dirty, cramped cages without adequate veterinary care and human socialization.
• Many of Petland's breeders that are registered with U.S. Department of Agriculture had been cited by the USDA for serious violations of basic animal welfare standards.

There is no reply to the charges on Petland's Web site, where the news archives stop in 2006. 

"People have a right to know exactly what they are buying, but the real victims are the breeding dogs confined to a life in a cage for as long as people are duped into buying their puppies." Stephanie Shain, director of the Humane Society's Stop Puppy Mills campaign, is quoted in the news release.

When The Happy Wag column runs on Monday in The Roanoke Times, there will be a call to readers to submit pictures of their pets all decked out for the holidays. We did this last year here on the blog and it was a lot of fun, so hopefully we will get some nice snapshots of pooches and kitties enjoying the season.

All will be posted here on the blog and a few will find their way into the print edition of The Roanoke Times.

Over at Petfinder.com, they are looking for a very specific type of holiday photo. They are asking folks to send in pictures of their pets in holiday sweaters, similar to the ones that were, er, popular in the 80's and 90's. You know. The ones that made you look like you were a walking Christmas tree?

I was just talking about ugly sweaters yesterday here in the office. Last winter I talked my hubby into parting with all his "Cosby Show"-era sweaters. Ah, good times for those of you who remember those multi-colored fashion staples of the Huxtable family.

But the 80s are over, baby, time to move on.

I bought Dexter a blue sweater during his first winter with us. It was pretty ugly, as I recall, with a mock turtle neck and a Fair Isle-type pattern around the chest. I'd show you a picture, but he chewed it off the same day I brought it home.

But I digress.

Petfinder would like to see your pets wearing a holiday themed sweater. The best one, or worst one depending on how you look at it, will be featured on an e-card offered at the Web site.

So if you have a picture of your pooch in a sweater, like this poor little dude here, click here to submit it to Petfinder.

And by all means, share it with us too by e-mailing it to pets@roanoke.com.

(Photo from Petfinder.com)

How do you keep an eye on a litter of adorable puppies?

Make them stars on the Internet.

A San Francisco couple set up streaming video so they could watch their six Shiba Inu puppies play, sleep and bascially be absurdly cute all day while they are at work.

And the rest of us can get in on the fun too.

Pictured here in a stock photo. Shiba Inus are an AKC breed, very handsome dogs, similar to an Akita and native of Japan.

Click here to see Puppy Cam, which you can conveniently keep open all day in a pop-up window on your computer. The pups may not contribute to your productivity, but they will relieve daily stress.

You may want to turn the sound down on your computer. The little pooches do squeak, yip and bark sporadically, and thus can blow your cover if you have a boss that, well, let's just say isn't a fan of puppy voyeurism on the clock.

Me? I am not too worried. My boss sent me the link. She may not appreciate it, however, if I count this as training hours.

This photo was sent to the Your Community e-mail box by Donna Brillhart.

Donna wrote, "My son put Pee-Wee on his daughter's bike and he just sit there 4 or 5 minutes until my grandaughter made him get off. It was really funny. Pee-Wee belongs to Ralph Brillhart of Blacksburg."

By Laurence Hammack
  981-3239

Winesett was the chief dog warden in Carroll County for a 10-year term that ended in the late 1980s. He said he recently got back into the dog business, building a kennel next to his home and selling dogs through newspaper ads.

"I've been raising dogs for many, many years, and I feel like I'm fairly well versed in it," he said.

However, a search warrant used by Virginia State Police on Thursday to seize the dogs described their living conditions as "deplorable." Read more »