Our second annual Best in Show Dog Show will be held Saturday, September 15th from 11:00 AM-1:00 PM in the CPL backyard. Which will be Canton's Top Dog? Why not yours?

To enter a dog in this event, print off, fill out, and return the waiver form by 6:00 PM Friday, September 14th. Bring your four-legged best friends and show them off in our contests for:

• Best Trick
• Best Costume
• Best Behaved
• Best Looking
• Best Largest
• Best Smallest
• Best in Show

Winners will receive prizes. There will be free hot dogs and pop. Dogs must be registered to be eligible, but humans can just show up!

The votes have been tallied, and we're pleased to announce that Teddy Carnival is the winning name in our Name the Fish contest! Thank you to everyone who participated in our contest, and congratulations to Maya K. for suggesting the name that received the most votes from library staff.

We are proud to announce the newest arrival to the library — our new baby fish! Now, we just need a little help naming him. Stop by the Children's Department to submit your name suggestion, or leave a comment on our Facebook page.

In Sunday's USA Weekend magazine, the cover story focused on how service dogs are trained to assist humans with tasks that were unimaginable a decade ago such as: detecting seizures and diabetic blood sugar spikes, providing calm and comfort to autistic children, helping veterans overcome PTSD, and much more. Interested in raising an assistance dog or volunteering? Contact Paws for a Cause to help.

The Detroit Kennel Dog Show will hold its annual benched competition this weekend, March 3 and March 4, at Cobo Center in downtown Detroit. Besides judging who will win Best in Show, there will be herding demonstrations, agility contests, the Rock-n-Roll K9 Performance Team, pet therapy dogs, and local canine celebrities.

Malachy, a 4-year old Pekinese took home the Best in Show prize at the 2012 Westminster Kennel Dog Show Tuesday night in New York City. He defeated a Dalmatian, German shepherd, Doberman Pinscher, Irish setter, a Kerry blue terrier and wire-haired dachshund to win the silver bowl. No prize money is awarded to the winner, but the prestige is plenty.

Hollywood will honor its on-screen canine performers in its brand-new awards show, The Golden Collar Awards Monday at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles. And the nominees are:

• Cosmo as Arthur in Beginners
• Uggie as Queenie in Water for Elephants
• Denver as Skeletor in 50/50
• Hummer as Dolce in Young Adult
• Uggie as The Dog in The Artist
• Maximilian as Blackie in Hugo

They are all winners, but my bet is on Uggie!

On Monday, February 13th, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, 2,000 of the finest purebreds will compete for the 136th Westminster Kennel Club Best in Show event. Watch all the drama unfold on Monday from 8:00-9:00 PM on the USA Network and from 9:00-11:00 PM on CNBC. The Best in Show competition will be televised live from 8:00-11:00 PM on the USA Network. May the best dog win and stay tuned for the newest book Show Dog to hit our shelves soon!

Tag-A-Long, a golden retriever, recently celebrated his 12th birthday. What's so unusual about that? He's a therapy dog. These special dogs help others who have challenges and bring joy to those in hospitals and nursing care centers. Want to learn more? Check out this book, Angel on a Leash.

Are you interested in adding a pet to your life? You don't have to rub meatballs on your feet like movie star George Clooney did! Consider adoption at your local animal rescue shelters such as Michigan Humane Society, Homeward Bound, Last Day Dog Rescue, Almost Home, Michigan Animal Rescue League, Dearborn Animal Rescue, and Last Chance Rescue. Check out our new book on caring for your four-legged friend(s):

In this online storytime, Miss Sandra and Miss Katie tell stories and sing songs all about monkeys.

America has a new top dog! Eira the Wire Fox Terrier won Best in Breed and Best in Show at the National Dog Show held in Philadelphia. Her show name is Steele Your Heart. She adds Champion and Grand Champion to her title. Eire means snow in Welsh. Next up is Westminster in February. If she wins, she'll be only the 3rd dog ever to win both championships in the same season.

What kind of dog do you wish you had? How fast does a Corvette really go? What does the inside of the human body look like? If you have ever asked yourselves these questions and more, then you should definitely visit the J600-699 collection in the Children's Section. This is the nonfiction collection that is chock full of cats, cars, pets, cooking, gardening, health, body parts, and so much more. See you in the stacks!

In this program aimed at adults, Karen Patterson, the Humane Educator for the Humane Society of Huron Valley, will discuss a bit about their mission as well as the great programs they offer to help the community and our pets. Some of the issues addressed will be overpopulation, cruelty and of course, pet adoption. Find out how we can all help to save some of our best friends on November 12 at Noon.

Have you registered for Best in Show Dog Show? Here are some of the great prizes you can win:

Which will be Canton's Top Dog? Why not yours?

1. Register your dog (starting Saturday, July 23) and
2. Fill out and return the waiver form by 9:00PM Friday, August 5th

Bring your four-legged best friends and show them off in our contests for:

• Best Costume
• Best Trick
• Best Behaved
• Best Looking
• Best Largest
• Best Smallest
• Best in Show

Winners will receive fabulous prizes.

Get American Kennel Club information and freebies from many local dog organizations. Meet Scoop the Newshound. Watch demonstrations from our Canton Police K-9 Unit and Canton's Pro K-9 Dog Trainer. Enjoy a free hot dog and pop. Don't miss Canton Public Library's event of the summer! No registration is required for people to attend — only dogs! See you on August 6 at 10 AM behind the library in tents.

As the final adventure in the Harry Potter film series unfolds, even man's best friend is in the spirit. Check out the library's Harry Potter display near the New Book shelf and mark your calendar for the Best in Show Dog Show event on Saturday, August 6th.