Make them feel at home with food at ground level and a place to scurry to when they're feeling shy.

Nothing brightens Peggy's day more than being awakened from a nap by the KER-PLUNK of a bird slamming into a sunroom window.

Whatever their other life skills, looking both ways before crossing the road isn’t among them.

She loves going on walks, playing ball in a fenced-in yard and curling up at your feet to take a snooze.

Amanda nurses the pups and her own kittens.

As they reach adulthood, raccoons tend to become a lot less frolicsome, more intolerant of cuddling and downright mean.

Cute video alert: A poodle gets the works.

My vote’s for Midnight Louie.

The author is just hands down a real kitty person.

I thought I was over my “I want a puppy” obsession. And then I saw the photo of the adorable 4-month-old dingo puppies on our front page Saturday, “Zoo's dingo puppies say hello.”

Midnight Louie is my favorite!

He is my kind of guy.

They share a cat and taste in books.

Joe Grey & company are my second favorite, then Rita Mae Brown's group, then Lillian Jackson Braun's cats.

Ever been licked by a Russian Blue?

You must be human. Pity. You show a fine taste in appetizers – I mean, sidekicks. I'd love a yummy – er, faithful hamster sidekick like Rex.

I snuggle up to Sneaky Pie Brown, Pewter and Tee Tucker as well as Carole Nelson Douglas and Midnight Louie and Midnight Louise.

After Hurricane Peg blew through the Anderson household – shredding every roll of toilet paper and driving her big brothers batty with her stealth attacks – I had to take action. And when I'm stressed, I shop.

Scruffy keeps an eye on the world.

There’s a hashtag for that.

If your dog is a Siberian husky with the thickest coat known to dog kind, this may take three days and a bajillion “good boys.” Keep at it.

Bruiser is a doll baby!

Buffy loves to sprawl on her back and have her tummy rubbed.

Have you walked your dog today?

Zorro and I prefer Midnight Louie, Joe Grey or Mrs Murphy to curl up with.

I hope my Christopher Bigfoot is learning strategies from Midnight Louie.

a vote for ... Midnight Louie

I love to curl up with my boy Abner, and a Midnight Louie mystery by author Carole Nelson Douglas.

It scares me a bit to think that an activity that we thought was helping Denali could actually be hurting him.

My partners in crime ...

My favorite cat detectives are:

Midnight Louie is the favorite at our house. You can easily see why when you see my accomplices, Cisco and Pancho.

Rex has survived countless explosions and fires over the course of 15 novels (I recommend them all).

This is Max. He’s the clown who will bark and whine at the trash compactor, where noisy pop cans have parties that he’s not invited to.