And the award goes to…

As you may know, I love awards shows.  Therefore, there could only be one theme to this week’s No Frown Friday: the Academy Awards!

  1. Your punny pet names are based on some of this year’s nominees:  Jesse Eisenbark, Colin Furth, Bark Ruffalo, Catalie Portman, and Helena Bone-ham Carter.
  2. Not sure the Oscars are for you?  There’s always the Dogscars instead.  What do you think are the best dog movies of all time? (You know I like to be inclusive, so here’s a quiz about movie cats and a movie filmed by cats.  Yup, you read that right.)
  3. Speaking of favorite dog movies and favorite dogs in movies, here are a few lists of dog movies to get you started.  Some of my favorites?  Best in Show, Lady and the Tramp, and The Fox and the Hound.  That’s by no means an exhaustive list of my favorites, however.  Put your thinking cap on and  tell me yours in the comments – I’ll meet you there!
  4. There have been some great movies featuring animals over the years.  How much do you know about them?  Take this quiz, and then learn more about animal stars, including shelter animals who ended up in show business.
  5. The American Humane Association makes sure that onscreen animals are kept safe and treated well.  AHA publishes some interesting behind the scenes stories on its website, like this one about the horses on the set of one of this year’s Best Picture nominees, True Grit.  AHA also publishes reviews regarding how each movie performs on AHA’s rating scale.  I looked up two more of this year’s Best Picture nominees, both of which received an outstanding rating: The Fighter and The Social Network.

So, which film do you think should win Best Picture?  I’m pulling for The King’s Speech – I promise it’s not just because there were Corgi cameos throughout.

Interesting note: apparently the AHA was very unhappy that The King’s Speech used its trademarked phrase, “No Animals Were Harmed” because the AHA was not involved in monitoring or rating this British production.  However, the issue was resolved – sounds like the real problem was use of the trademarked phrase, and all animals were treated humanely.

Serious interlude over… let the debate about the best dog movies ever begin!

 

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Count your blessings instead of sheep

We talked about holiday TV… now it’s time to talk about Christmas movies!  One of my absolute favorites has to be White Christmas.  (I also love Elf, It’s a Wonderful Life, and many more… to list them all could take a while.)  Today I thought I’d share one of my favorite songs from the movie:

Disclaimer: although I love this song, I don’t actually love snow.  Go figure.

So tell me… what is your favorite Christmas movie?

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May your days be terrier & bright

Christmas is fast approaching.  As a result, today’s No Frown Friday theme was an easy choice… enjoy some seasonal linkage:

  1. Instead of punny pet names, I’m just going to recommend you name your pet after one of Santa’s reindeer this week.  Why not?
  2. You know I love the Grinch’s dog, so I’m sure you’ll understand how much I love this quartet of real-life Maxes. (The antlers make me smile – Bella better watch out or she’s going to find herself in a reindog photo shoot.)
  3. Interested in doggie decorations? Check out some photos of the First Dog’s decorations.
  4. I’ve also got another Cute Math lesson for you: Santa suits + cute animals =  guaranteed holiday cheer.  These pets prove my point.  Still not convinced?  Your skepticism will melt away after you take a gander at these penguins.  (For bonus points, remember that elves are pretty cute too.)   
  5. Bella sure has been slacking off – apparently other dogs help out by wrapping Christmas presents.

Speaking of helpful dogs, Jesse the Jack Russell takes the cake:



(via The Dog Files)

Have a wonderful weekend – and if you decide to get your pet’s photo taken with Santa, here are some handy tips.  As you know, Bella doesn’t travel well, so no photos with Santa unless he makes a house call.  We’ll just have to live vicariously through you.

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The three amigos

No real theme today… unless “cute” counts as a theme:

  1. This week’s punny pet name is inspired by Breakfast at Tiffany’s: Collie Golightly (played by the beautiful and talented Pawdrey Hepburn).
  2. Recipe: 1 part puppy, 1 part Kong. Mix and enjoy the cute.
  3. I just stumbled across a collection of dogs dressed as Harry Potter.  Thank you, Internet. (Although it’s too late too include in my Harry Potter post, I’m still loving it.)

I don’t even know how to introduce the following video.  We’ve talked about odd couples before, but this trio may take the cake:

(via Jezebel)

Speaking of cute, I love that the news team captioned them “adoptive parents” and embraced the idea that these animals are family.

Speaking of becoming an adoptive pet parent, I want to direct you to a wonderful post from Rachel Lauren Photography.  It’s called “Before you buy that Christmas puppy…” and it should be required reading for anyone considering walking into a pet store.

Happy Friday, folks… say hi to your puppy for me.

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So… now what?

Peanuts
(via Peanuts)

I think Snoopy’s predicament above accurately represents how I feel the day after a big holiday. Planning, preparation, anticipation… and then it’s over, just like that.  I made some yummy cranberry sauce muffins this morning to help fill the void.  Now I need a new project…

In the meantime, it’s time for this week’s No Frown Friday:

  1. Your punny pet names for the week reveal that I still haven’t accepted the fact that Thanksgiving is over: Myles Foodish and William Labford.  (For my fellow pun lovers, you simply must read last Sunday’s Pearls Before Swine. Can you figure it out?)
  2. Want to see something amazingly adorable? Check out these photos of dogs dressed as turkeys.  All will seem right with the world after you do.
  3. Don’t eat too many leftovers… or else this might be your fate.  (Not sure what to do with all of those leftovers?  Serious Eats has some ideas.)
  4. Did you cook a turkey yesterday? I hope that you weren’t the one that asked these stupid questions of the Butterball hotline.

Speaking of turkey, this puppy would really appreciate it if you could send some her way:



(For more videos of dogs who want turkey, go here.)

Anyway, I’m finally going to see the new Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows tomorrow.  I know… after my recent Potter-themed post, I bet you thought I’d be first in line on opening day.  Unfortunately, things have just been too busy.  In honor of my pending movie trip, I made my own butterbeer to go with dessert last  night – it was a hit (and unlike Universal Studios, I offered an alcoholic version as well). 

As I write this post, the peace talks between Roscoe and Bella have reached a new level – they’re both sleeping on the couch at the same time (dreaming of turkey, no doubt).  Expect some photos and a recap after Bella’s hostessing duties are done.

Hope you had a wonderful holiday!

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Chamber of Treats

If you’re like me, you’ve been counting down the days until you can see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.  It’s just around the corner now – November 19.  With that in mind, today’s No Frown Friday is dedicated to my favorite wizards:

  1. As always, we begin with punny pet names: Hairy Plotthound, Grrr-mione Granger, and Ron Fleasley. (Of course, they study at Dogwarts with headmaster Albus Puppledore and were placed into Gryffindor by the Sorting Cat.)
  2. If you’d prefer a non-punny name, you can find inspiration in the books. (Even more available here.)
  3. There are some gorgeous Harry Potter cakes on display at Cake Wrecks – enjoy the eye candy.  (Eye confections?)
  4. Thinking of throwing a Harry Potter-themed party?  Check out these cool party ideas – for that extra something, you could also ask your dog to dress as Fang or Hedwig.
  5. Speaking of the animal stars of these films, check out this quiz about the wild stars of Oscar-nominated films.

Have you ever watched the Starz Bunnies version of Harry Potter?  I present to you the crew’s first five years at Hogwarts:

Want more?  Go watch Part II.  After that, have some fun with these Sorting Hat Out-Takes.

Have a woofy wizarding weekend!  (One option? Get your pup his own invisibility cloak.)

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Happy Howl-o-ween!

Dog eat Doug
(From Dog eat Doug – want more? Two more great Halloween strips here and here.)
Trick or treat!  It’s a Halloween-themed No Frown Friday, just for you:
  1. We begin, as always, with punny pet names: Ichabark Crane and The Great Pupkin.
  2. Speaking of names, this dog’s name is Boo, and he’s adorable.  Perfect for Halloween weekend, right?
  3. You must check out this collection of awesome canine costumes from the Annual Tompkins Square Park Halloween Dog Parade in New York.  Trust me.  (If that doesn’t satisfy your costume needs, check out the entrants in FIDO Friendly’s costume contest and then find out what Winston the cat is wearing this year.)
  4. Do you have a jack-o-lantern this year?  You could make one of these ambitious fantasy pumpkins.  Or perhaps you can create a tribute to your favorite dog breed using one of these stencils.  (If you’re not feeling up to pumpkin carving, you could always pick up one of these cakes.  Or maybe not…)
  5. Stuck with a cone of shame this holiday season?  Follow the example of Noodles the Pug and make it into an awesome Halloween costume.

Whatever your plans for the weekend, I hope it’s a wonderful one.  If nothing else, I plan to schedule a showing of my two favorite Halloween specials –It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and Garfield in Disguise (though I think it’s now called Garfield’s Halloween Adventure).  It’s an annual tradition. I even have the book version of the Garfield special (in addition to tons of other Garfield books… was something of a childhood obsession).

With that in mind, I want to share this inspired video combining scenes from the Garfield special with the theme from Halloween:

That music can make anything scary.

Have a fantastic Halloween (and remember to keep your pets safe)!

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Meow Mix Monday

Apparently, when I think of Mondays, I think of cats.  (See Exhibit 1 & Exhibit 2.)  How many Monday cat posts before I just give in and make Meow Mix Monday a regular feature?  We shall see.  In any event, here’s today’s entry in this occasional series…

I think this cat just discovered he was on a feline version of The Truman Show:


Not enough to fight away the Monday blues?  This clip of an adorable kitten attacking his mirror image should do it.

Happy Monday… hang in there.  (I couldn’t resist.)

 

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In the mood for food

It’s been pretty dreary and rainy lately, and that’s got me thinking about comfort food.  So… today’s No Frown Friday is food-related.  (And pet-related, of course.)

  1. Your punny pet names for the week are inspired by famous chefs: Tom Colickio, Barko DiSpirito and Woofgang Puck. (Cat Cora needed no alterations.  My favorite chef?  The Swedish Chef, of course.)
  2. Check out this dog named Dumpling… eating a dumpling.  Very meta.
  3. Quick math lesson: tiny kitten + tiny hat + tiny ice cream come = awesome commercial. (Congratulations! Simply by reading the preceding sentence, you’ve passed Cute Math 101.)
  4. Remember when Bella ate ice cream?
  5. Cats and dogs eating popsicles and peanut butter. (Serious Eats really has all of your needs covered when it comes to cute animals eating.)

Hmmm… not a lot of healthy foods in that list above.  Might I recommend you stop by Gardening with Wyatt?  The gorgeous photos of Wyatt the dog and the yummy food from his garden will inspire you to get that diet back on track.  In addition to eating better, you’ll need to hit the treadmill:

No, not like that! Try it this way:


(via Cute Overload)

Seriously though, if your pet is overweight, that’s not a good thing.  Bella’s had her battles with weight in the past, but on our vet’s advice we reduced the amount we were feeding her.  These days she’s slim and trim.  (Don’t get me wrong… she still licks the empty bowl – repeatedly – and looks at me forlornly when she finishes her meal.  She’s like a canine Oliver Twist.)

Given her druthers, I’m sure Bella would eat until she couldn’t move.  Luckily, our dogs have us to exercise self-control on their behalf – they can only eat what we feed them.  (Unlike humans – the blame for that extra cookie is all mine.) Hope you have a happy and healthy weekend!

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Through a Dog’s Eyes

Ugh. Yesterday, I had to take a sick day.  It was absolutely zero fun.  The one bright spot was getting to catch up on my DVR.

One of the programs I watched was called Through a Dog’s Eyes.  It’s a wonderful documentary that aired on PBS in April (and again in September), and it follows a group of people as they visit Canine Assistants to meet their service dogs for the first time.  Canine Assistants is a group that breeds, trains, and places service dogs with people who have physical disabilities, seizure disorders, and other needs.  (Canine Assistants provides the dogs free to the recipients through donations and sponsorships.)  The stories of the recipients are moving and interesting – and it gives a whole new perspective on the human-canine bond.

Here’s a preview for the show – if you missed it on PBS, you can watch the entire program on the PBS website.  (Bonus: it’s narrated by Neil Patrick Harris.)

Learn more, after the jump.


PBS has a wealth of useful information and great links on its page dedicated to the program. (There are even outtakes, training tips and a section simply called “More Puppies” – talk about knowing your audience.)

The founding of Canine Assistants is a great story.  Jennifer Arnold was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at the age of sixteen.  Jennifer’s father suggested she get a service dog.  An organization denied her application, which provided the inspiration for Jennifer to found Canine Assistants.  (The organization is truly a family affair.)

Jennifer’s training philosophy is also a great one – it’s based on the idea that the dogs want to please their people, and it’s about positive reinforcement rather than domination.  (I’m sure our friends at Never Shock a Puppy would approve.)  The program also briefly touches upon the science behind the dog-human bond.  (Through the PBS site, I found a link to the Family Dog Project, which is dedicated to researching this bond.  Interesting stuff.)

Paw Nation is doing a series of posts about another recipient who is getting a dog from Canine Assistants.  The first post appeared earlier this month – I’m looking forward to reading more.  (You can also read an interview with the After-care Coordinator for Canine Assistants.)

If you’d like to learn more about Canine Assistants, visit them here.  I’m also considering picking up Jennifer’s book (also called Through a Dog’s Eyes)… after the documentary, I’m sure it will be good!

Have you seen the documentary?  What did you think?

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