Halloween Extravaganza and Special Edition Dog News!!!

Happy Halloween from the Den. Levi, Rocky, Erica and even little Chi-Chi all join me in wishing our readers a safe and happy day (and night).

Because my readers are very busy people doing important things, I've received very few pictures of dogs in costumes. Cindy L. of Manteno, IL, was kind enough to share pictures of her three kids, dressed up for a costume parade. That's Snoopy, at the top of the page. Not only does he genuinely look like a convict, but his expression seems to clearly denote that he's guilty of whatever he was charged with. Chances are he was mostly unhappy to be in a costume, but as was determined a few days ago, sometimes, very infrequently, but sometimes, it's all about us, and if dressing dogs up like truckers or ladybugs (Cindy L's Lucy, the trucker, and Sally, the ladybug. Or is she a dinosaur? An elk? Whatever, you just keep going, Cindy L. of Manteno!) tickles your fancy, than you ought to go right ahead and do it. Just not everyday or anything.

The kitty and dog, above, enchanted Christine M. of the Bay area, but, alas, they are not her creations. The Dogman feels, however, that if Christine just tried, she alone could costume half the dogs and cats in San Francisco! That's the Dogman challenge, accept it, if you dare!

Andrea K. of Southern California, sent me some delightful pictures of dogs with pumpkins carved to look like them. These are some great shots, and if anyone knows to whom credit should be attributed, I would love to do so.

And now, this weeks Dog news:

First, what we all want. More excellent pictures of pets in costumes! This guy has quite a page!

Here's a shocker. Pets are sometimes scared by Halloween. I once put a rubber monster mask on at K-Mart, and Karen's Seeing Eye Dog, Lyric, almost jumped out of her skin!

Web MD now gives pet advice. The Dogman prefers to avoid doctors and vets as much as possible, and here's a resource that can help us do that. Of course, but the Dogman and Levi are among the millions of uninsured Americans, but we remain grateful that we can at least get DYI medical care on the Internet. What a country!

Here's a story about how a service dog helps keep a kid with severe peanut allergies from dying! (The dog to the left is meant to be dressed as a peanut. Thematic continuity is all important in the Den.)

Keeping children with peanut allergies alive not enough for you? Check out this article about how dogs and cats help in the fight against breast cancer. And not just by being emotional support to patients, but by finding the damn stuff! Incredible.

Everyone knows about Snuggies, the infernal blanket with sleeves that's all over TV and Walgreen's and single ladies' shoulders. Somehow the creators of this monstrosity felt they hadn't taken enough money from the American people, so now, as many of you have already seen, they have Snuggies for dogs. Unlike a Halloween costume, this isn't cute. It's just sad.

OK, it's a little cute, but I still disapprove.

Using "America's Funniest Home Videos" as the barometer, it has been scientifically determined that dogs are funnier than cats! The Dogman feels that might be the truth, but he's never known a dog top enjoy subtle verbal humor. Dogs think it's funny when someone falls. Cats, on the other hand, virtually all enjoy Oscar Wilde, Tom Stoppard, and, indeed, any cerebral humor involving word play. But not puns. They'll scratch you up if you try a pun.

Here's a hard working dog who got too into his job. I hope worker's comp is available to this drug sniffing dog who OD'd on Meth. That can't be a pretty scene. I sure hope he's going to be alright. It's a shame he wasn't just sniffing for pot, or he'd be fine!

Finally, for those of us whose pets are getting older, the inevitable might be much farther off than we think. Read here about the world's oldest living dog!

Tomorrow, the Dogman will post his first piece of fiction, a short-short story called "The Dog and el Día de los Inocentes. I think it's some of my best work, and I hope you'll read it.