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I got an e-mail from a co-worker who said her veterinarian suggested she take her dachshund swimming as relief for arthritis. She wanted to know if either dog park had a pool.

Alas, they do not, I had to answer. And other than in Montgomery County, on the day before they drain it for the season, I am fairly certain dogs are not permitted in the public pools.

I confessed that I did not know enough about public swimming at the lake to offer any advice there, either. My husband's cousin has a rescued dachshund, a former puppy mill breeder, that enjoys a good swim in the lakes in her home state of Minnesota and at the family's summer house in Indiana, but I don't know if dogs are allowed on the lakefront here.

I can personally attest to the healing powers of water for creaky joints; I have severe arthritis in my knees so all my aerobic exercise happens in the pool.  It does wonders for strengthening muscles and you can get a vigorous workout with minimal impact.  

So where can a dog take a swim around here, folks?  Post a comment and let us know.

I spent a few hours this morning at the Star City Canine Training Club's agility trials at the Salem Civic Center. I took some photos but let's just say as an action photographer, I am a very good writer.

This photo is of Dancer, a flat-coated retriever from Harrisonburg. She was done competing for the day and was watching from the stands.

The headline of this blog post has a double meaning. There are plenty of pooches that cruise around the agility course in a very good time, but there is also plenty of good times to be had for the ones that, well, still need to practice a bit.

A perfectly executed run is a thing of beauty, and it epitomizes the concise communication between the dog and the handler. The hang time some of these dogs displayed as they sailed over the hurdles made me gasp. Air Jordan had nothing on a German short-haired pointer I watched glide over every obstacle with plenty of height and width to spare. Superdog looked like he could leap tall buildings in a single bound.

But I always smile when a dog gets a little off-course, maybe running through a tunnel one extra time or bouncing off the table a little too soon because he or she wants to run some more. Sure, there is some disappointment for the handler/pet parent, because hours upon hours of work is put into practicing for these events. But the dog is just having fun. There is sheer joy in these dogs as they fly over, through and around the obstacles.

And there is nothing more joyful than seeing a happy dog at play.

The trials continue today and end on Sunday. Admission is free and when they aren't competing, most owners/handlers are happy to answer questions about their dogs. But unless your dog is competing, they ask that your leave your four-legger at home.

The doggies take the field next week for the Star City Canine Training Club's AKC agility, obedience and rally trials at the Salem Civic Center.

The competition is scheduled for Feb. 13-15, starting at 8 a.m. and running through the mid-afternoon each day.

The event will feature dogs from across the Mid-Atlantic region.

Hours of practice and dedication are invested by the owners to get the canine athletes ready to compete.  Sports like agility, obedience and rally are a great way for people to spend quality time with their dogs, teaches the dogs and the owners discipline and patience, and helps to keep the pooches, and often the owners, in top physical condition.

Admission is free but please leave your non-competing pooch at home.

The kitties take the stage this weekend at the annual Star City Cat Fanciers "Cats in Coat" show at the Holiday Inn near the Roanoke Airport.

Felines from across the region will compete for honors including best in breed and of course, best in show. Shorthairs, longhairs, no hairs, you name it, you can see it. Whatever kind of kitty suits your fancy, the Fanciers have it.

If you like cats and have never been to a cat show before, you really should go. You will not see Fluffy strut her stuff around a ring like the doggies do at their shows. The more dignified felines interact with the judges one at a time, but there are always several rings going on simultaneously, so there is never a lull in the action.

The kitties are kept in carriers in conference rooms while they wait their turns to impress the judges, which allows fans the opportunity to look at the cats and their tricked-out mobile homes and chat with the servants who tote them around.

The servants, sometimes called the owners, are passionate about their felines and are usually happy to answer questions about their kitties, but they do have to listen for their call to be judged, so if they don't want to converse, it's nothing personal.

If your kitties are like mine, they do not really appreciate a lot of excess handling. Believe me, the show kitties have no problem with being patted down like suspect in custody. They are the most agreeable cats you will ever meet. Hardly any cat-titude at all.

This year the Roanoke Valley SCPA will also be at the show with adoptable kitties. So you can go to the show and go home with a purring  souvenir.

Show hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday. The hotel is located at 3315 Ordway Drive in Roanoke.

The Boston Globe reported this morning that Massachusetts will end greyhound racing by 2010 after voters passed a ballot question to ban the sport in yesterday's election.

Ballot Question #3 passed 56 percent to 44 percent, with two-thirds of all precincts reporting.

"We did it. We did it for the dogs," a victorious Carey Thiel, executive director of Grey2K SA, an advocacy group for greyhound protection, is quoted in the Globe article.

Not everyone was celebrating last night's vote.

"It's not a very pleasant thing right now. Some of these people have been here 40 years," George Carney, owner of the Raynham-Taunton Greyhound Park in Raynham, Mass., was quoted as he watched the election results with employees at the track. "Here's a company that did nothing wrong, paid their federal taxes on time, paid the town on time. The town is going to be a severe loser, and a lot of people here dedicated their life to the company."

Carney and other supporters of the industry said the vote puts the interests of dog before the interests of 1,000 people who will lose jobs when the commonwealth's two tracks close.

As most regular readers of this blog know, I have two retired racers sleeping on my couches even as I type this blog entry, so I feel I have a personal stake in the welfare of these dogs. One of my dogs came from Hollywood, Fla., and the other came from Cross Plains, W.V., so I do not have any personal knowledge of how dogs are treated in Massachusetts.

Just like any other industry that involves animals, there are people who do as much as they can to take care of their dogs, and there are people who don't. So I do not villify everyone associated with the sport and everyone who works at a track. These are people just trying to make a legal living.

I think the issue really came down to voters believing that, no matter how well-cared-for some of the dogs are, racing greyhounds are treated like livestock in an industry from puppyhood until they are no longer useful, which means thousands of them are euthanized, and not always in the most humane way.

And that's just not how most people see the role of dogs in American life. 

What do you think? Is the sport of greyhound racing cruel? Should the ecomonic needs of people outweigh the risks and hardships endured by the dogs?

What a great weekend for sports. Besides all those basketball games, which left me with a wadded-up, tear-stained bracket thanks to Purdue, UConn and Duke, there were also athletes in action at Hollins University.

Until Sunday, I had only seen dog agility events on Animal Planet. A real event, like the one hosted by the Star City Canine Training Club this weekend, are truly amazing and, like most sports, so much better in person.

I apologize now to any contestants I may have distracted with flash photography (I hit a button quite by mistake.) And even without the cooperation of the sun or any visible talent as a photographer, I managed to snap a few nice shots. To see more, click here.

Uno is the little beagle that could, overcoming a long drought for hounds and winning the title of Best in Show at the 132nd Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.

He is like the Eli Manning of pooches.

From what I could see on the live televised event, the little scenthound roo-led the ring like a rock star as he howled his way into the hearts of the Madison Square Garden crowd, getting the longest and loudest crowd reaction.

[Note to self: try to get travel to the Westminster show for live, on-the-scene coverage of the event added to next year's blogger travel budget. Ha. Sometimes the jokes here are just for me.]

Uno topped Deuce, an Australian shepherd, a gorgeous Weimaraner, two Continental-cut poodles, a silky Sealyham terrier and a beautiful Akita to take the title.

I was glad to see so many popular pets in the Best in Show ring. Drive through any neighborhood and you will see Aussie shepherds, Weimaraners and, of course, beagles, running around backyards.

This year, the everyday dog had his day.

One other Westminster story of note: Patty Hearst, the infamous heiress who dominated headlines in the 1970s when she was kidnapped, showed her French bulldog and won a ribbon at the show.

(AP Photo/Pete Kramer)

Uno, a 15-inch beagle, took top honors in the Hound Group at last night's Westminster Kennel Club show.

A beagle has never won a Westminster Best in Show title, so little Uno is a real underdog.

At my house, we were of course cheering for the greyhound, but alas, she didn't even make the short list. But as far as I am concerned, the two best greyhounds in America were sleeping on our couches while we watched the show.

I do like seeing the unusual breeds, like the Bedlington terrier, which looks suspiciously like a dog in sheep's clothing to me. Of course, real dogs often do not resembled the perfectly coiffed canines of the show ring. My brother- and sister-in-law have a Lhasa Apso who they keep neatly cut and looks nothing like the long-haired dog you will see in tonight's Toy group. And I don't know anyone who actually keeps their pet poodle in a Continental cut.

What are your thoughts about the dog show? Love it? Hate it? Rant and rave right here.

There is at least one dog show staged most weekends somewhere in America, and you can watch reruns of dog shows every Saturday morning on Animal Planet (a guilty pleasure, I completely confess.) But my dear, when it comes to real prestige, honor and tradition, there is only one.

The 132 annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show starts today.

You can draw the parallel to other iconic events in sports and pop culture: It's like the Kentucky Derby, the Indianapolis 500, the Oscars, the Bryant Park Fashion Week for purebred show dogs and the people who pamper them. Show here and you have reached the summit.

And only one of 2,500 dogs of 169 breeds and varieties will be named Best in Show.

The Hound, Terrier, Non-Sporting and Herding breeds and varieties will be judged today, with the breed champs vying for the group title tonight.

The Sporting, Working, and Toy breeds and varieties will be judged on Tuesday, with group finalists competing on Tuesday evening. The Best In Show will named from the group champions on Tuesday evening.

Tonight's group competitions will be televised live on USA Network at 8 p.m. and continued on CNBC from 9 until 11 p.m. Tuesdays' groups and the Best In Show competition will be televised live Tuesday on USA Network at 8 p.m.

Four breeds will be making their Westminster debut this year: the Tibetan Mastiff in the Working group, the Swedish Vallhund and the Beauceron in the Herding group, and the Plott in the Hound group.

Here in Southwest Virginia, you are most likely to run into a Plott hound, as they make great hunting dogs. The Swedish Vallhund reminds me of a Corgi dressed up like a German Shepherd Dog. The Beauceron sports that Doberman/ Rottie sleek, athletic style.

But the Tibetan Mastiff, the puppy pictured here, looks like the kind of pooch you want to be your best buddy on a cold winter night, a firm but fluffy cuddle pal.

Sit and stay tuned.

I got a book in the mail last week about schutzhund, a sport for dogs. According to the book's preface, schutzhund means "protection dog," and was originally designed as a breed test for German shepherd dogs.

Participants in this sport earn titles by demonstrating skills in police service work that include tracking, obedience and protection. It's like a martial arts for dogs, and earning a "schutzhund" title is similar to earning a black belt.

While most of the dogs featured in this book are German shepherds, the original schutzhunds, there are a few other breeds of dogs like rottweilers, giant schnauzers and pit bulls who participate in these trials.

Anyone have any experience with this sport? If so post a comment and maybe this beautifully photographed book will find its way to you.