interweb shoutout: pious pets

I'm not a religious person, but after stumbling across a website that literally melds pets (or pictures of them, anyway) with the Christian faith, I just had to share. Known simply as Pious Pets, it's an online store where you can buy roughly index-card-sized likenesses of your cat, dog, or bird...on the head of a saint. Nothing is revealed about the artist(s), save for his/her/their belief that "a pet can be depicted as a saint due to their good natured attitute [sic]." But I guess that makes sense, considering that depending on your world view, you may see the cards as either hysterically cute or supremely sacrilegious! I personally fall into the former category, and I hope we will get to see more of these divine creatures soon. I mean, the Bombay Mother Teresa (get it?) and smooth collie "flying" nun are just priceless, but where are the Chartreux and Shiba Inu and keeshonden? Keep them coming, please! ∞

what's in your mix?

A couple of weeks ago, I had to make a trip out to the vet's for my cat. While there, I spied a brochure that I just had to pick up. Sporting the slogan "Because different breeds have different needs!" it advertised something called Wisdom Panel MX Mixed Breed Analysis. As you might guess, the company in question (the system is owned by one Mars Veterinary) offers a "scientific breakthrough for mixed breed dog owners." For between $135 and $175, Mutt owners take their dogs to the vet to get blood drawn, and the vet sends the sample to the folks at Mars Veterinary, who apparently have proprietary DNA information on 134 dog breeds recognized by the American Kennel Association. In a few weeks, the results are in, and *presto,* you now know your dog better than ever! In particular, the brochure says the system can help you get to know your mixed-breed's personality and/or help you understand what breed-specific health problems your dog might get.

Or so we're told. A couple of articles I found on the subject seem to indicate that no one's really tested how accurate the system is...which rung a familiar tune in my brain. A day or two after the vet visit, I happened to catch an episode of 60 Minutes in which reporter Lesley Stahl looked into the new business of tracing your ancestry through DNA. The upshot was that the few companies that do so-called "genetic genealogy" are great at marketing but not so amazing at giving people real information. What's more, it seems that this wasn't the first such report; Popular Science ran a piece essentially saying the same thing five years ago.

To be sure, it's a thought-provoking topic—at least enough to warrant a book on the subject! As someone who's interested in genealogy, I'll admit that the idea of tracing your roots beyond the ancestors you already know of is fascinating. But as someone who also has a science background, it gets hard to believe that we've come up with a reliable way to determine where all of your great great great great grandparents (all 64 of them) came from, as well as what ailments they had. And yes, that goes for Fido, too. &infin

spooky furry things

Why should humans have all the fun? These fuzzy felines certainly look like they're enjoying themselves (mostly...). These poor pooches? Not so much. It's pretty amazing how hot of a fad commercial pet costumes have become recently. I was shopping for my kitty this afternoon (who, incidentally, was far more interested in chewing her lion costume than wearing it) at Trixie and Peanut, probably the poshest pet store in the whole of NYC. While I was there, three chihuahas and some sort of terrier all showed up (with their humans) in full regalia; one was a knight, another was a player for the Yankees, another was a ladybug, and the last was a princess. It was a little unreal! But, hey, I was there to partake just as much as they were, so I guess I shouldn't talk... Anyway, happy Halloween to all you furry four-legged friends out there! May your trick-or-treat bags be filled with savory snacks, and may your costumes not catch on some appliance you aren't supposed to jump on anyway! ∞