Today, we managed to stage not one, but two book signings in Texas, despite the pervasive power of Hurricane Ike. Stop 1 had me dodging wind and rain in Carrollton, where I toured the Operation Kindness Animal Shelter and signed books to be donated to this no-kill place. Special thanks to Peggy for the shelter tour (love the cat play room) and talented pet photographer Margaret Bryant whose images definitely capture the true personalities of dogs, cats and other critters. From there, we drove to deep in the heart of Dallas to one of my favorite pet boutiques — the very trendy Petropolitan.

At The Petropolitan, you couldn’t detect that outside its walls, Mother Nature was having a rainy tantrum. Inside, the shop was filled with lots of pet lovers and an inspiring artist named Beverly Ann Moore. So, it was the Moore and Moore Show. She showcased her whimiscal drawings, greeting cards and t-shirts while I solved mysteries behind why Hersey likes to jump to greet and why Chou Chou sometimes has an oopsie in her crate. If you are in the Dallas area, please stop and “sniff” out the grrr-eat stuff at The Petropolitan and please tell co-owner Chris and the gang I said “paws up!”