Just how much do you love your pet? Enough to take on a shark that is about to eat him? That's exactly what a Florida man did last Friday. To read more about how he saved his 14-pound Rat Terrier Jake from a five-foot shark, go to msn.com or follow this link:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26956958/?gt1=43001

All Souls Parish will be blessing pets when the church celebrates the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi this Saturday, October 4th at 10am. Dogs, cats, rabbits, iguanas, horses, cows, donkeys, snakes; any and all animals that are leashed or caged are welcome to come to the blessing in the church's parking lot. The church is located at 3280 West 1st Street here in Sanford. For more information, contact Mary Lou Fess at (407) 322-3795.

For a list of churches that are hosting pet blessings this weekend, go to: www.AmericanCatholic.org and do a search for "pet blessings" under the article search section at the top right of the

page.

Welcome to *Petcetera,* The Sanford Herald's new blog about pets. I'm a lifelong animal lover and the proud parent of two crazy Rat Terriers, Quinn and Fred. Quinn came from Ratbones Rescues, and Fred came from the SPCA right here in Sanford. The handsome devil you see pictured here is Quinn, and as you can see from his photo, he thinks it is ok for a boy to wear a dress.

I'll be sharing pet news, announcements, and fun facts in this blog. If you are a Sanford or Lake Mary rescue group that has a wonderful pet in dire need of a home, you may contact me and I'll try to fit the pet's profile and photo in my blog. It is a sad fact that in this country that we euthanize approximately five million adoptable dogs and cats every year. The only way to stop all the killing is to spay and neuter, and I'll be mentioning that a lot here in this blog.

If you see pet news happening in Sanford or Lake Mary, shoot me an email. If you're an animal lover who works with cats, dogs, or other pets, I'd love to hear from you as well. You can reach me at LisaGirard24@gmail.com.