Dan's Papers - April 3, 2009 -

Community Web sites are the latest craze and there is no denying that they will be here for some time. Even if you are not a conscientious member, and by that I mean, you devote at least some part of your day to reporting what you are thinking, where you are going, what you are doing and so on, you probably check in to see what everyone else is thinking and doing. It must be true that pictures are worth a thousand words because there are tons of them on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Plaxo and the like. It's a place for friends to share and to share friends. So why not include our best friends? Our dogs, cats, birds and whatever other creatures you've opened your heart, your life and your home to.

Yes, you can definitely put your dog on these Web sites for people. In fact, there are specific areas to share photos, profile info and stories, like the Dogbook section of Facebook. You can create a Dog Park and select yourself or one of your dogs to be the administrator of the Dog Park and invite people and their dogs. I admit I'm not completely clear on what this is all about as I have not tried it and probably will pass on this one, but if anyone reading this can e-mail me with how it works and what the purpose is I would be happy to consider giving it a whirl. This is one of those times that I want to say, "I couldn't make this stuff up," but somehow I guess I wish I did!

YouTube is another place to put all your greatest animal photo-ops and celebrated heart warming moments, out there for the public to see. It's a little less personal, as you may know, but it's that "15 seconds" in the spotlight that some of us crave.

However, the thing that all of these sites have in common when it comes to our "best friends" is that the canine, feline, rodent and reptile extensions of our families take a back seat to the human persuasion.

After a bit of investigating, I came up with some wannabe Facebook sites for pets and even though they're still social networks, but for people with pets, they offer the chance to become that stage mom you always wanted to be. You can actually register a profile for your special Fluffy, Buddy, Daisy and of course Murphy on...(no joke) cuteashell.com.

Here your pet can have his or her own profile with photos, invite friends, have a store, which is where your pet will rate products and, of course, where you can shop. The Thunderdome is where your pet can compete for cutest in his or her category and win prizes. There are services like grooming and veterinarians, adoptions centers and rescues for viewing and you can add a service if you have one to offer. I did check out other Web sites, devoted mostly to dogs, and each one has its own redeeming quality and something to offer but how many of these can you join and keep up with. In case you want to peruse them yourself and decide which one is right for you and your pet, here are some that you might like: United Dogs, Dogster, Vivapets, Cute Overload and Hot or Not for pets.

These social networking websites and cyber-playgrounds for dogs and other pets give rise to and validate the importance of the family pet in our society.