Dog lovers shouldn’t have all the fun! The Dumb Friends League invites people to celebrate their love of cats on Saturday, July 10, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at CatFest.

CatFest will highlight adoptable cats and kittens, as well as feature a purebred cat exhibition, demonstrations and vendor booths selling cat-related merchandise. The annual event also includes educational, veterinary and behavior information on cats, as well as contests, giveaways, and games and activities for children. Interested adopters can take home any cat, 1 to 5 years old, for $50 off on event day. Adoption fees are waived for all cats, 6 years or older, throughout the summer.

Admission is free, and the first 500 people will receive a free goodie bag, with more than $20 worth of cat-related items. The event will take place at Dumb Friends League Quebec Street shelter, located at 2080 S. Quebec St. in Denver. More than 2,000 cat lovers are expected to attend the summer event.

Leading up to the event there celebrate Independence Day with a new feline friend! As part of the “Cat Days of Summer” adoption campaign, the Dumb Friends League Buddy Center will host a special for cats from Thursday, July 1 through Friday, July 9. Adoption fees will be half off or waived for specific adult cats during the “Red, White & Blue” special.

Visit ddfl.org for more information.

Attend The Furry Animal Ball (FAB) on June 26, 2010, and help the SAGA Humane Society in San Pedro, Belize.

The whole of San Pedro thinks that SAGA Humane Society is FABulous and that is why tickets to the Furry Animal Ball (FAB) are selling like hotcakes. This gala event is the talk of the town as ladies and gents seek out the most FABulous outfits on Ambergris Caye to wear on the night.

FAB will be at the El Divino Restaurant, Banana Beach Resort at 6 p.m. with free cocktails and photographs available until 6:45 p.m. Dinner is at 7:30 p.m. with entertainment to follow. Tickets are $150 BZD

For tickets or more information please contact Sharon at Lime Bar & Gril – phone: 226 4152/628 2631 X or Grant Crimmins at Pelican Properties – phone 226 3234/610 3733 email:fothsbelize@gmail.com.

If you can’t attend you can learn more about SAGA Humane Society on its Facebook Fan Page.

Adoption Fees 50 percent off for all cats and dogs, 1 year and older, through April 18

Springtime may mean April showers and blossoming trees, but it also means that animal welfare agencies throughout the nation, including the League, will experience an influx of kittens and cats coming through their doors, in addition to adult dogs and other small animals.

To help more cats and dogs find homes, the League will offer half-off adoption fees for all pets, one year and older, at both shelter locations from April 12 through April 18 during regular adoption hours. Each pet’s adoption fee includes spay/neuter surgery, preliminary vaccinations, microchip ID implant and registration, collar and identification tag, and a free initial office visit with a participating veterinarian. Get all the love at half the price!

Interested adopters are encouraged to view adoptable pets online at www.ddfl.org or call (303) 751-5772 for more information. And you can visit the shelters at 2080 S. Quebec St., Denver, Colo. 80231 and Buddy Center, 4556 Castleton Ct., Castle Rock, Colo. 80109

On April 30, 2010, in North Hollywood, California, the Postal Service™ will issue a 44–cent, Animal Rescue: Adopt a Shelter Pet stamps special stamp in ten designs, designed by Derry Noyes of Washington, DC. The goal of the campaign is to educate Americans about the millions of shelter pets that need good homes.

The panel of 20 stamps with 10 animal images (5 dogs and 5 cats) is $8.80 and features the work of photographer Sally Andersen-Bruce who found these adopted pets in her hometown of New Milford, Connecticut. Each of these animals was given a good home thanks to animal rescue shelters and the families who adopted them.

As extra incentive to purchase the stamps, the Postal Service, together with Ellen DeGeneres and Halo: Purely for Pets will be donating a million meals to animal shelters around the country.

Learn more about StampsToTheRescue.com and pre-order your Adopt a Shelter Pet stamps.

And three years later 900 dogs have been adopted into loving home through the great work by Stacey and The Barking Lot’s volunteers. They rescue dogs from area shelters, humane societies and Mexico as they are at risk of being euthanized and/or abandoned and find them forever homes.

And Patti Cake, Stacey’s original foster dog is still with The Barking Lot residents as she couldn’t let her go.

LEARN MORE ABOUT The Barking Lot.

Dog Habitat Inc. is a group of volunteer dog lovers whose mission is to rescue, rehabilitate, and ultimately to re-home abandoned, stray and neglected dogs. Their goal is to open one of metropolitan New York City’s largest canine rescue facilities.

Dog Habitat Inc. is the in-house non-profit for Unleash Brooklyn and recently joined the prestigious Mayor’s Alliance for New York City’s Animals.

Dog Habitat Inc. works to raise the public’s awareness of the plight of homeless animals as well as realizing the benefits of adopting an animal in need.

All dogs are evaluated by a licensed dog training professional for temperament and personality. All dogs are examined, vaccinated, spayed or neutered, and receive any and all medical treatment from Dog Habitat’s Veterinary Clinic before they are placed in carefully screened homes.

Dog Habitat Inc. accept all dogs in need regardless of health, age or breed and partners with other rescue groups and animal shelters in order to assist adopters in finding their new best friend.

For more information visit www.doghabitat.org or you can contact us at rescue@doghabitat.org

The Dumb Friends League is partnering with VCA Animal Hospitals and the CATalyst Council on a campaign to get the word out about the new program. Letters being sent dog-only homes in the VCA database are written from the dog’s perspective. It’s a request from the family dog to be like other dogs in 40 percent of American homes that have cats in their families as well.

Through the Dog-Friendly Cat Program, families can bring their dogs in to meet with potential feline friends. Cats adopted are also spayed or neutered, microchipped and given their first round of vaccinations for no additional charge.

To find out more about the Dog-Friendly Cat Program, go to www.ddfl.org/dogfriendlycats.

If you would like more information about the process of introducing a cat into your dog-friendly home, check out this story in the Spring 2010 Issue of The American Dog Magazine, “Can You Bring a Cat Home …”

When you buy an animal from a pet store or a breeder, you’re responsible for a new member of the family! You’re also responsible for the death of an animal in an animal shelter who needed a home. If you want to bring an animal into your life, always adopt from an animal shelter.

Project Flying Chihuahua has been working on flying Chihuahuas out of California to other states after the story came out about the large number of these dogs in California shelters.

A group of 25 dogs has already arrived at the Humane Society for Greater Nashua in New Hampshire, thanks to “Grey’s Anatomy” actress Katherine Heigl, Kinder4Rescue in Studio City and American Airlines. Heigl’s foundation has paid the discounted airfare for all 68 dogs so far and new donors for more flights were being sought.

A group of 43 will leave for New Hampshire Monday or Tuesday, said Kathy Davis, interim general manager of Los Angeles Animal Services. The Nashua shelter found homes for the first 25 and had a waiting list of 100 people, Davis said.

Virgin America will be flying a group of Chihuahuas to New York City from San Francisco on Tuesday, said Gail Buchwald, senior vice president overseeing the ASPCA adoption center in New York City. They will be processed and should be available for adoption on Dec. 29.

In the last 12 months, animal shelters in the city of Los Angeles have taken in 4,700 Chihuahuas, 1,000 more than the 12 months before that. Los Angeles has over 300 Chihuahuas in its shelters now and are taking in about 340 a month. Chihuahuas make up 30 percent or more of the California shelter dog populations.

Gail Buchwald, senior vice president overseeing the ASPCA adoption center in New York City, says there has long been a severe shortage of small dogs in the east. Officials on both sides of the country are optimistic they can work out the imbalance.

The Chihuahua crisis in California developed as Hollywood featured the dogs in movies like “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” and “Legally Blonde,” they became constant companions to the rich and famous, backyard breeders saw a chance to make hundreds of dollars a dog and the recession forced some dog owners to abandon their pets.

Dairyland Greyhound Racetrack in Kenosha, Wisconsin, will be closing on December 31, 2009. 900 Greyhounds need to be adopted or they will be euthanized. Please help get the word out; there is only 6 weeks to get this task done. If you are interested in adopting a greyhound, please call the Dairyland Greyhound Adoption Group at 262-612-8256.

I know that Greyhound Pets of America Minnesota chapter will be getting a few of these dogs, and the number all depends on how many interested parties have put in adoption requests.

Greyhound Pets of America is a tax-exempt, non-profit corporation founded in 1987 for the purpose of finding homes for ex-racing greyhounds and educating the public on the suitability and availability of greyhounds as pets. Greyhound Pets of America is the largest non-profit greyhound adoption group, and since it opened its doors in 1987 has adopted over 65,000 greyhounds into loving homes.