April 15, 2008We have winners!We had five people share their stories of doggy misbehavior in our "Good Dog Gone Bad" contest. All five stories were entertaining, and I was really stuck choosing just two. So, since I happened to have five dog-related books here in my office, I decided everyone is a winner! I know. I am wimpy. I admit it and I am not ashamed. 
I wonder how much encouragement canine Katie needed from Amanda to destroy Amanda's future-husband's couch. Amanda wrote that after Katie de-stuffed the unattractive piece of furniture, "I was THRILLED. I hated that sofa anyway! I had nothing to do with it - I swear!" Uh-huh. Sure, Amanda. Anyway, you win the book "Before Your Dog Can Eat Your Homework..." by former "Seinfeld" star John O'Hurley. 
Demi the roaming Jack Russell’s pet mom, Laura, is awarded "The Dangerous Book of Dogs" by Rex and Sparky. Perhaps Demi can contribute a chapter if there would be a second edition. Finally, longtime loyal blog reader Kim takes home "Puppy Chow is Better than Prozac," a novel by Bruce Goldstein. Kim's story was about her childhood dog Molly who devoured Kim and her sister's unattended Easter candy. If all the winners could please send your mailing addresses to nona.nelson@roanoke.com, these books will be on their way to you this week. Thanks! March 28, 2008Good story about a bad dogIt's great to have a dog in your home. Except when it isn't. Journalist John Grogan's misadventures with a crazy Labrador retriever turned into the best-selling book "Marley and Me." Almost anyone who has a pooch in their heart and home has at least one "bad dog" story. And we here at The Happy Wag want to hear yours. 
Post a comment with your best "good dog gone bad" story, and you could win one of two books: "The Dog Behavior Answer Book" by Arden Moore, a noted pet behavior expert, or "Before Your Dog Can Eat Your Homework, First You Have to Do It" by actor and author John O'Hurley. Deadline to post your comment is April 13. March 21, 2008Spay Day photo winnersAlas, my picture of my two smiling hounds did not win the Spay Day photo contest sponsored by the U.S. Humane Society. But here's a link to the slideshow of all the winning snapshots, and they are beautiful. Enjoy! February 26, 2008Spay Day USA Photo ContestIn honor of Spay Day USA, the Humane Society of the United States is sponsoring a photo contest. Submit a digital photo of your pet along with a very short narrative about how this special sweetie has improved your life. When you submit your entry, you can make a list of up to 10 e-mail addresses of family, friends and co-workers who can be notified to vote for your pets. 
(This is not the photo I submitted of my pooches. I swear I am not soliciting votes here, just wanted to give you an example.) After your entry is accepted, you will get an e-mail with a URL you can forward to more friends and family to stump for votes. Only one vote per e-mail address is allowed, so no stuffing the ballot box. The entry with the best photo and story combination will be determined by a panel of celebrity judges that includes Patrick McDonnell, the creator of the daily newspaper cartoon, MUTTS, and dog trainer and author Tamar Geller. And what goodies await the grand prize winner? Prizes include a studio session with Amanda Jones, a nationally renowned and amazingly gifted pet photographer, a selection of Nature’s Miracle stain-removing products, a GPS pet locator, a shopping spree at the HSUS’s online store and, the best of all, a $5,000 grant to a non-profit organization that participates in Spay Day USA. Another 35 runners-up, as determined by the judges, will also get an assortment of prizes, and the 500 top vote-getters will also win a prize from Nature’s Miracle. Winners will be selected by March 19. If you enter, post a comment with your pet's photo URL. February 14, 2008Is your pup a Top Dog?This is from the CBS Web site: "Calling all talented dogs! CBS is looking for the most extraordinary teams of dogs and owners across the nation to compete for the title of "America's top dog." From purebreds to mutts, show dogs to stunt dogs, Pugs to Great Danes and agility dogs to dogs who dance the Tango - we want all types of talented canines. The winning team will walk away with bragging rights and a significant cash prize!" You can download the 18-page application here. Sorry for the late notice, but I just learned about this from a Dogster e-mail sent to me yesterday and the deadline to apply is tomorrow, Feb. 15. You will need to send non-returnable photos and videos of you and your dog. Apparently interviews for this show are going on through February and there will be a second interview scheduled, for those who make it through the first round, in March. Taping will be in April and May in Los Angeles for the chosen contestants. You have to be able to travel at your own expense to the first interview at a "to be determined" location. So if this is something you want to do, you have to do it quickly. If being a reality star is not your dream, but you want to share cute videos of you and your pets with the world at large, you can send them here to The Happy Wag and we'll do what we can to get them posted. Good luck! January 31, 2008Capture your Milk-Bone moments
Like to spend a lazy afternoon cuddled with your favorite canine? Do you and your pup ever do a little doggy dance together? Your pooch pucker up and plant a wet one right on your face? If you answered yes to any of these questions, get your cameras ready, photograph a special moment between you and your dog, and you could win big bucks for you and the title of Milk-Bone 100th Anniversary Spokesdog for your pup. Milk-Bone is looking for photos of memorable "Milk-Bone Moments" between dogs and their pet parents to celebrate 100 years of baking tasty dog snacks. You can enter your photo online at www.milk-bone.com, where 100 finalists will be chosen and America will vote for their favorite. The press release describes ideal entries as candid shots of those warm fuzzy moments we share every day with our dogs. I think they want the kind of photos that make you go "awwwwww." They also want a short essay describing your special moment and, of course, your special relationship with your pooch. The grand prize is a $100,000 contract to serve as the first ever Milk-Bone 100th Anniversary Spokesdog, plus a digital camera. I have no idea what that entails, but it sounds very cool. The other 99 finalists will also be awarded a digital camera. The contest opened today and the deadline to enter is Sept. 18, so you have plenty of time to snap an award-winning photo of you and your pooch. And if any of you loyal Happy Wag readers becomes a national finalist, let us know and we may cast our votes your way. December 18, 2007Winner of the photo contestIt was hard to make a choice with so many cute pooches all dressed up in Yuletide garb, but the judges have decided the winner of the first annual Happy Wag photo contest is...
This sweet little face is sure to melt Santa's heart. This year her stocking will include Funagle, a board game for people and pups. Congratulations to Plumm! Since it was such a tough competition, I feel compelled to award a few runners-up and honorable mentions with some nice dog-related books: Boomer (who one judge noted was the only dog to look happy in his Santa hat); Ms. Pebbles (who looked so unhappy she made us laugh); Harry (who looked very stately in his formal wear); and the trio of poodles, Andy, Abby and Angie (Triple A as I have come to call them, who had many friends post comments about what special dogs they are.) Each dog will get a book this Christmas that their pet parents can read. Triple A may be able to read the book themselves, I don't know. They type and spell perfectly. Thanks to everyone who sent in a photo. I hope Santa is very to good to all of you. December 17, 2007Last but not leastThis is Stinky, who staked out the best place in the house to wait for Santa. Stinky was the last entry in the holiday photo contest. A winner will be announced tomorrow. Thanks to everyone who sent in photos! 
December 11, 2007Aw, Mom! Do I have to wear this stuff???It doesn't look like Ms. Pebbles is too pleased with her Santa-style ruff and hat. 
Her pet mom, Michelle, wrote that she was laughing so hard when she took this photo that poor Ms. Pebbles must have thought her mom had lost her mind. Bailey and the bellBailey, a maltese/terrier mix, is described by his pet mom, Kelly, as "loveable and fun." This picture is just beautiful. 
And the cuties just keep coming...I am having a lot of fun with this photo contest, so I hope all you readers are as well. Here's Tucker and Rocky posing for their first Christmas picture. These West Highland terrier pups are 7 months old brothers and their pet mom describes them as "full of energy." 
Rosco's dressed for the occasionRosco is a 9-year-old pomerainian and poodle mix, a pomma-poo, who would count the days until Santa brings him new toys. But dogs can't count. So he will have to rely on his pet mom, Theresa, to do that for him. 
Naughty or nice?This is Daisy, a bearded collie, and I think she really belongs on the nice list, despite evidence to the contrary in this photo. 
Daisy's pet mom, Lori, wrote "I took this picture 3 years ago when she was a puppy. Daisy was into everything back then so we wanted to introduce her to our card recipients as a possible troublemaker, taking my daughter's slipper instead of retrieving it for her." December 9, 2007Santa BoomerBoomer looks happy and satisfied. I think there might not be any cookies left on the plate for Santa. 
Jackson's ready for ChristmasJackson' pet parents wrote that this photo was taken a couple of days after Thanksgiving, so this fellow got in the Christmas spirit as soon as the tree went up. 
December 7, 2007Family affair"Abby, Andy and Angie are 4 year old toy poodle litter siblings sporting their holiday attire," wrote their pet mom, Kathy. "They would like to wish all their family and friends a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!" 
I have no idea how she got them to sit that still, look that pretty, and pose for such great pictures. I am guessing bribery in the form of doggie cookies was involved, but maybe they just like having their pictures taken.
 Moose or elf?According to Plumm's pet mom, the 2-year-old Boston terrier could not decide if she wanted to be an elf or a moose this Christmas.
So she dressed up as one of Santa's helpers, then she tried to look like one of his reindeer.
 Personally, I think she should just be a sweet little dog. I'll bet she is very good at that. Roscoe and TeakwoodThis is Roscoe, a 4-year-old, 130 lb. St. Bernard mix, and at the other end of the photo, and size spectrum, is Teakwood, an 8 lb. Chihuahua mix who will celebrate her first birthday at Christmas. 
These two pups are good friends, but their pet mom says little Teakwood is definetly the boss. Alex in his Santa hatThis is Alex, taken Christmas 2005. 
Alex's pet mom, Deborah, wrote:"My best friend was Alex. He was 13 and went to the Rainbow Bridge on July 22, 2006. He was celebrating before his last Christmas in 2005. I was so happy to get these pictures. I will always love him...he was my pride and joy for so many years. I have a new puppy but to put a hat or something on her now...well let's just say the hat would be eaten within seconds. She's a sweetie....but still young! (She likes to try to eat everything...including the furniture!)" We lost a dog this year, and I treasure the pictures we have of her. I know it may seem silly to some people to take photos of pets but, at least in our case, the pooches and kitties become such a big part of the family, those pictures are priceless. Merry Christmas to you, Deborah. I hope you enjoy your new puppy (she'll stop chewing soon) and enjoy your memories of Alex. December 6, 2007All the pretty paperVinnie, a 9-year-old dachshund, loves to open presents. His pet parents say he always knows which ones are his, but I'll bet he wouldn't mind helping other people open theirs, too. 
Vinnie's pet dad says he is "such a ham (bratwurst?)..." 
December 5, 2007Baby's first ChristmasHere is Sparkles, another contestant in our holiday photo contest. She is a 9-month-old dachshund, who is celebrating her very first Christmas with her pet family this year. 
I just want to know if she got to eat that candy cane after the photo was taken. December 4, 2007Deck the pets out with cute costumes, fa la la la la...Get your pets ready for a Dickens of a Christmas pet costume contest on Friday, Dec. 21. 
Bring your pet, all decked out in his or her finest winter wear, to Wachovia Plaza at 6:30. There is no entry fee and you can pre-register at Downtown Roanoke's Web site.There is no entry fee. Prizes will be awarded for the most original, the cutest and the crowd favorite. So bring your cheering section and enjoy the holiday festivities. And if you take any great photos, e-mail them to me and we will post them here on the blog. November 30, 2007yet another contestantHere's the lovely Sasha trying to step into Santa's sleigh. She's an almost 2-year-old poodle/chihuahua mix. So would that be a Poohua or a Choodle? Anyway, she's awfully cute. 
November 28, 2007First photo for contestHere's the first entry for the Christmas photo contest. This is Samson, a 3-year-old miniature schnauzer, who is pretty adorable as he waits for Santa Paws. 
If you tried to e-mail me your photo and got a "bounce back" message, it's because my e-mail box was full of work-related messages and attachments! Bah humbug! I quickly deleted all that stuff so now I can receive lots of pictures of cute pets celebrating the holidays. We are all about setting the right priorities here at The Happy Wag. Keep 'em coming. November 12, 2007Share a story, win a prizeMy dog can tell time. As each weekday fades into evening, he knows its time for his family to make their journeys home. He keeps watch in our front window, peers at the driveway, and waits for the cars to pull in. He frantically runs between the kitchen door and the front window until we emerge from the garage, and then he does his happy dance. It happens every day, and it never fails to make me smile. Nothing can make a lousy day fade into memory like coming home to family. Share a story about your pet and win a hardbound copy of "Dog Days," a book by photographer Gandee Vasan. The book is "...a collection of pooch portraits showcasing a spectrum of emotions that every dog lover will recognize and enjoy." Post a comment by Friday and let us know what your dog or cat does to make you laugh, cry, smile or even scream. Hey, you know they are not always angels, but sometimes the "arrggggghhh" moments turn into treasured memories. And you can't stay mad at someone that sweet, now can you? Best story wins this beautiful book. 
October 30, 2007Win a trip to the DogCatemy Awards!Want to impress America with your talented pet and win a trip to a celebrity gala in New York? Then get your video camera ready and record your dancing dog or singing cat to enter the first annual DogCatemy Amateur Petflix online contest, "My Pet's Got Talent" . North Shore Animal League America, a non-profit, no-kill animal shelter in New York, is sponsoring the contest searching for the nation's most talented pet. Deadline to enter is Wednesday, Oct. 31 at midnight, so there is no time to waste. Entrants should upload their 30-second to 3-minute video on YouTube and then submit their entry to North Shore Animal League America. Ten finalists will be chosen and the winner will be selected by a popular vote on the league’s Web site. The grand prize filmmaker, a companion and the talented pooch or kitty will be flown to New York City and will walk the red carpet at the DogCatemy Awards ceremony on Nov. 29, where the winning video will be viewed along with celebrity pet films.
October 26, 2007Remember Sunday is Howl-O-WeenIt should be a spooky-good time Sunday at Howl-O-Ween in downtown Roanoke. If you plan to dress your pooch for the costume contest this weekend or for Halloween and want to share your creative process, post a comment. Where are the best costumes for dogs in the Roanoke and New River Valleys and are there still any good ones left? 
October 5, 2007Bark for the cameraWhile looking through the snapshots of your summer vacation, keep an eye out for any stunning photos of your traveling pet. AAA, the travel specialists, are looking for the perfect pooch to grace the cover of the 2008 edition of “Traveling with your Pet: The AAA Pet Book,” scheduled for release next spring. 
In addition to the honor of being the cover model for the national travel guide, the first-place winner will receive a $250 AAA Visa gift card, five complimentary copies of the book and a year’s supply of Milk Bones dog snacks. In my case, that would be a valuable prize; my Dexter does love him some Milk Bones! A second-place photo will be chosen for the book’s spine, and the winner will get a $100 AAA Visa gift card and two copies of the book. According to the AAA Web site, the winning photo should be a candid shot of your pet enjoying time away from home. Nobody likes a phony, so refrain from entering any staged shots. And no studio photos with your little Fluffy in a beret and the Eiffel Tower in the background, please. For official rules and instructions on how to enter, click here. Deadline is Nov. 30.
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