In anticipation of Adopt-a-Senior-Pet Month, the ASPCA asked members to send in their senior pet adoption stories, and here they are, in their gray-and-white glory, blurry-eyed and creaky, bowed but proud.

The joys of owning a senior pet are often overlooked as tiny kittens or jumping puppies usually grab everyone's attention at the shelter. As the human companion of two senior dogs, I can tell you that the companionship of a quiet, older pet can be very satisfying.

We often lie on the bed, spooned together, breathing together and being "in the now" in a way that would be impossible with a squirming youngster. These dogs know me -- and I, them -- in all my moods and states of low-energy or high. They delight simply by BEING with me. I don't need to amuse them. I just need to be me. (I have yet to meet a man who would be as happy as that, with "just me." LOL!)

On Friday Mars Petcare US announced a voluntary recall of all dry pet food products produced at its plant in Everson, Pa., between Feb. 18 and July 29, citing potential salmonella contamination.

Brands affected include Pedigree, Country Acres, Retriever, Doggy Bag, Members Mark, Natural, Ol' Roy, Special Kitty, Paws & Claws, Wegman's, Pet Pride, PMI Nutrition and Red Flannel.

To see if a product you purchased has been recalled, look for "17" as the first two digits of the second line on the UPC. For Pedigree products, look for "PAE" on the bottom line.

To see whether a product you purchased is subject to recall, you can also check the UPC code against the chart on the Mars Web site.

Pet owners who have questions about the recall should call 1-877-568-4463.

Read more about the recall.

Michael Killen and Jim Kreitzburg, the animators behind Taco Bell's talking Chihuahua and the California Cheese cows, created this moving PSA about the cruelty of dogfighting.

Killen says on his Web site that he'd been deeply affected by the Michael Vick case. He writes that he asked himself, "What if we did a commercial speaking from the perspective of the dogs?"

The resulting PSA doesn't contain graphic scenes, but it makes its point with the simple question: "Who's the animal?"

A new pet supply store called Living Ruff just opened across the street from my office in Silver Spring, MD.

Owners Jessica and Ron Simon's story reminded me  that adopting a homeless pet can very literally change your life, often in unexpected ways.

The dog, Bourbon, was a sick, emaciated Spitz mix found trapped under a couch in a house that had been marked "clear" by searchers weeks before.

Gravely ill, he was transported to Washington, D.C., where he was cared for by the Washington Animal Rescue League. Jessica and Ron learned about him and adopted him. Then they adopted another dog, Yogi. And then a cat. The "zoo" in their home helped them make some life-altering decisions.

New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof recently wrote about his experiences growing up on a farm and how they shaped how he feels about factory farming.

In my opinion, Kristof doesn't do a very persuasive job of revealing his caring, compassionate side. Quite the contrary: He seems to me to be a less compassionate person for his experiences.

If, as he says, he grew to admire some of the animals in his family's care, how could he go on to enjoy eating the animals he admired?

That a puppy on a leash or a kitten in one's arms is a magnet for the opposite sex is something we all seem to know, but not think much about. (Or maybe you do think about it more than I do?)

Well, officials in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, have thought about it -- a lot. And they've now banned the sale of dogs and cats, and made it illegal to walk dogs outside. According to the Associated Press:

[An official] said the ban was ordered because of what he called "the rising phenomenon of men using cats and dogs to make passes at women and pester families."

Now, the ban on walking dogs outside makes no sense to me, but the ban on selling pets may be in some ways a good thing.

Nikki Moustaki, author of Dogfessions, is a great friend of Petfinder. Now she and her Miniature Schnauzer, Pepper (with her at right), have set sail aboard the Queen Mary 2 for a trip to Europe to celebrate their 10 years together.

What a riot! In honor of Adopt-a-Shelter-Cat Month (June), the ASPCA had a contest to find the year's best cat photos.

Singer Michael Feinstein judged the hundreds of entries and came up with these adorable winners.

I recently moved from a house to a two-bedroom apartment, which I now share with two adopted kittens. I'm learning how to live in a close-packed community with lots of other people and their pets.

Here are some rules -- both unwritten and written -- that I've learned so far:

I'm so happy! At long last, I got to the tipping point in my debate about whether or not to adopt a cat and whether to adopt a kitten (or two?) or an adult cat.

This weekend, after much searching on Petfinder, I finally took the plunge and adopted two unrelated kittens. I had been meeting various kittens and cats at adoption fairs and through their foster moms, but there was something totally magical about these two kittens' online photos -- and then, too, my meet and greets with them.