Dress for success
Does your dog love his Ironman costume? Would your cat make a good Fred Flinstone lookalike? Now's the time to check it out. We're seeking entries for the Star Tribune Halloween Pet Costume Contest.
You can enter multiple pets, multiple costumes and send multiple photos as long as it's your pet wearing the costume and your photograph. (For best results, try shooting your costumed pet with a neutral background. No Photoshopping.)
E-mail your photos to petcontest@startribune.com by midnight Oct. 20. Be sure to include contact information and feel free to add comments on the costume concept, creative challenges and willingness of your pet to be a model.
By entering photography, you give the Star Tribune the right to publish it on any of our platforms in perpetuity.
Photos of the top entries will be published in the Star Tribune on Oct. 30. The winning pets will receive special commemorative dog tags.
Lizards need dentists, too
When Rex's owners noticed he wasn't eating and drinking much and seemed lethargic, they were worried. An examination by specialist veterinarians found that Rex had severe inflammation inside his mouth, receding gums and a large amount of tartar buildup. A course of antibiotics and anti-inflammatories, plus two months of supportive care and changes to his home care, helped improve his health enough that he could undergo dental cleaning. Rex isn't a dog, but a 5-year-old bearded dragon, and he was treated by veterinarians David Guzman and Paula Rodriguez of the Companion Exotic Animal Medicine and Surgery Service at the University of California, Davis. Bearded dragons are among the lizards with acrodont dentition, meaning their teeth have no roots or pockets and are fused to the jawbone. Rex recovered well and now flashes his healthy pearly whites.
