Blog Posts by vetstreet.com

By Laura Cross, vetstreet.com

After watching all the dogs strut their stuff at the Westminster Dog Show, it's hard not to search for the nearest Pekingese breeder to find a dog like Best in Show winner Malachy. If canine lineage is important to you, then researching reputable breeders is the next logical step in your search for a pup that will fit in with your family and lifestyle. However, if you still want a purebred dog and aren't too concerned about show-worthy bloodlines, then you can adopt a pup on Petfinder.com. In fact, 25 percent of the thousands of dogs listed on Petfinder are purebreds.

SEE ALSO: Should Dogs and Cats Sleep in Your Bed?

Check out these seven breeds, representing the winners of the groups and Best in Show from across the country - all of whom need forever homes.

The winner of the Toy Group, GCH Palacegarden Malachy, or Malachy for short, is a Pekingese. If you found Malachy's cartoonish looks endearing, then Prince from

By Dr. Marty Becker, vetstreet.com

In the spirit of the great shockumentaries that are late-night cable favorites, I am going to expose veterinary medicine's heinous funny bone with a joke we call "Give your cat this medicine at home."

It starts out with a cat lover putting off the trip to the veterinarian with a sick cat in order to avoid the following chain of events: Cat hides under the couch; human attempts to extricate the cat and stuff him into a carrier; cat claws shred human flesh like a feline Freddy Krueger; cat finally womanhandled (man of the house nowhere to be found, so manhandled not a possibility) into the carrier. At this point, the pet owner makes a quick drive to the veterinary hospital, often while being serenaded with the unhappy sounds of a cat plotting revenge.

Related: Best Ways to Give a Cat a Pill

And now we find ourselves in the exam room. Let the show begin!

Out explodes the cat, hissing and raking the air with claws extended.

By Jennifer Paull, vetstreet.com u000a u000a u000a u000a If you ever spot a dog jumping onto a ski lift, don't worry, the high altitude isn't getting to you. You may have spotted a canine avalanche expert, an essential member of a search-and-rescue team. u000a u000a u000a These rescue dogs deploy to locate skiers, snowmobilers and other mountaineers (sometimes even other dogs ) who get caught in an avalanche. They can trace a buried victim far more quickly than human searchers, with the ability to sniff out people stuck under several feet of snow. u000a u000a u000a See Also: Photos of 6 New Breeds Debut at Westminster Dog Show u000a u000a u000a u000a And since victims have a good chance of survival if they're found within 15 minutes (barring other trauma), every second - and every sniff - counts. u000a u000a u000a Ski patrollers and community search-and-rescue volunteers train and handle these dedicated dogs. To be eligible for emergency response, both the dogs and their handlers must

By Kim Campbell Thornton, vetstreet.com

Westminster Kennel Club Best in Show winners typically bow out of their show careers after taking the prestigious prize and go on to produce puppies, become therapy dogs or just master the art of sofa lounging. Here's a look at how five past champs now spend their time.

See Also: Secret Lives of Westminster Show Dogs

2011 Winner: Hickory the Scottish Deerhound Has Babies and Chases Bears Hickory the Scottish Deerhound Has Babies and Chases Bears

Motherhood was the path taken by GCh. Foxcliffe Hickory Wind, the elegant Scottish Deerhound owned by Dr. R. Scott and Cecilia Dove of Virginia. After becoming the first in her breed to take Best in Show in the history of Westminster, Hickory has since produced nine puppies, who are currently four months old.

When she's not playing with her pups, Hickory runs for miles every day on the family farm, located in the foothills of Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. Although she's normally calm and serene, once outdoors, Hickory turns into a keen coursing dog,

By Kim Campbell Thornton, vetstreet.com

Behind the scenes in the show dog circuit, the lives of these canine competitors are filled with love, jealousy, controversy and luxury. Outside the ring, they promote charitable causes, chase squirrels, perform in music videos and lay down the law to fellow pets-except when they're kowtowing to the family cat, of course.

Vetstreet tracked down some owners and handlers of dogs bound for the 136 th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show at Madison Square Garden in New York City to learn more about the cream of the crop. Each of the seven canine groups vying for Best in Show honors is represented in this special look at the lives of show dogs. Here's what you might not know about some of Westminster's top contenders:

See Also: 6 Past Westminster 'Best in Show' Winners - Where Are They Now?

He has his own Facebook page and serves as the canine travel correspondent for Everyday Opera

By Nora Zelevansky, vetstreet.com

They say that beauty is skin deep.

Apparently, the same goes for cuteness, which is why the ASPCA's Meet Your Match pet pairing program - designed to match pet and human personalities - has been such a success.

Since 2008, when the Richmond Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals became one of the first organizations to try out the novel program, they've seen adoptions increase 20 percent and returns drop from 13 to 10 percent.

See Also: Top 10 Pet Names of 2011

Instead of bringing home the most adorable pooch or kitten to first catch their eye, soon-to-be pet owners who sign up for Meet Your Match are encouraged to choose based on compatibility.

Emily Weiss, Ph.D., CAAB, the ASPCA's vice president of shelter research and development, wrote her dissertation on how to select and train shelter dogs for service work, which eventually inspired the Meet Your Match

By Dr. Marty Becker, vetstreet.com

Q: We have a Labrador Retriever who is 10 months old. He has all his adult teeth, so he should no longer be teething. But he is incredibly destructive still - he chews up everything he can get hold of. What can we do?

A: Among veterinarians, there's a saying about Labradors: "Chew till they're two; shed till they're dead." Of course, every dog sheds his or her whole life - that's normal. In the same way, what you're dealing with now is also normal for many dogs. Retrievers, especially, are known for their love of chewing throughout their adolescence, along with the lifelong fondness many of them have for carrying items in their mouths. Carrying things back - retrieving - is, after all, the job they were developed to do.

See Also: Top 10 Pet Names of the Year

To get a handle on the chewing, your family needs to limit your dog's ability to get to those items you don't want chewed. While doing that, offer your dog lots of chew toys to

By Amy Sinatra Ayres, vetstreet.com

Last week, soap opera actor Nick Santino euthanized his beloved five-year-old Pit Bull, Rocco - a decision that he said was forced on him by his New York condo board, which has a policy that bans residents from owning the breed.

Just hours later, Santino took his own life, writing that he had "betrayed his best friend," reported the NY Post. "Rocco trusted me, and I failed him. He didn't deserve this."

See Also: Pit Bull Puppy Saves Owner's Life in House Fire

A board member told the newspaper that Santino's death had "nothing to do with the pet policy." Apparently, the dog had been grandfathered in and wasn't subject to the policy, but Santino claimed that he'd been harassed about the dog by members of the board.

Santino's actions of euthanizing a healthy dog and then committing suicide may be hard for many people to understand, but bans of so-called "dangerous breeds" often leave owners of healthy