Thank you to The Daily Golden for adding another star to our BLOG OF THE YEAR award. It is so kind of the Golden Tucker and his human, Shannon, to think of us here at the zoo. When you visit the very fun ‘The Daily Golden’ you will learn a lot about the beautiful breed.
Our Sofie is golden and we haven’t the heart to tell her that she will not be a Retriever when she grows up. Shhhhh!
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤ 
All year long I have seen blogs hopping. I have identified 4 days of the week for pet hops:
I am trying to figure out what a Blog Hop really is. From what I can tell it is a list of blog posts with a related theme all tied to each other. One blog acts as the host of the list of links, called a Linky, on their page. There sometimes are rules that must be followed on that page too. (Am I getting this right?) You add your info to the Linky and then repost the Linky on your blog to promote the hop. I think I like this idea. Do I have to go back to the first blog in the hop, or will any hopper blog do? Not totally sure yet, but I think I may try to be a bunny and hop on some of those days in my new year (remember yesterday was our first blogevarsary).
Sofie & Louise with a green carrot:
They are not bunnies but they do hop.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Oh Misaki, you are too kind, to grace us with the “Blog of the Year 2012” Award. It is a really different type of award and we really appreciate you thinking of us.
If you have not met Misaki yet, please check her blog out at The Misadventures of Misaki.
Misaki, The Great
The “Blog of the Year” award is a little different than some other awards that we have received in the past, because you accumulate stars. We think that is a neat idea. Here are the ‘rules’ for this award:
1 Select the blog(s) you think deserve the ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award
2 Write a blog post and tell us about the blog(s) you have chosen – there’s no minimum or maximum number of blogs required – and ‘present’ them with their award.
3 Please include a link back to this page ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award – http://thethoughtpalette.co.uk/our-awards/blog-of-the-year-2012-award/ and include these ‘rules’ in your post (please don’t alter the rules or the badges!)
4 Let the blog(s) you have chosen know that you have given them this award and share the ‘rules’ with them
5 You can now also join our Facebook group – click ‘like’ on this page ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award Facebook group and then you can share your blog with an even wider audience
6 As a winner of the award – please add a link back to the blog that presented you with the award – and then proudly display the award on your blog and sidebar … and start collecting stars…
Yes – that’s right – there are stars to collect!
Unlike other awards which you can only add to your blog once – this award is different!
When you begin you will receive the ‘1 star’ award – and every time you are given the award by another blog – you can add another star!
There are a total of 6 stars to collect.
Which means that you can check out your favourite blogs – and even if they have already been given the award by someone else – you can still bestow it on them again and help them to reach the maximum 6 stars!
For more information check the FAQ on The Thought Palette.
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Oh my DOG! I want to give this award to so many blog friends that I don’t know where to start. But, since this is an award that focuses on the year 2012, I am awarding it to all of you who have acknowledged DogDaz with an award this year. (I do hope I did not miss any of you.) This is the least I can do to say Thank You again. Please keep passing it on and keep the star shine going for many blog years to come.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Misaki
What a SWEET week.
It is with great pride that DogDaz accepts the Cupcake of our dreams from Misaki, the wonderdog of The Misadventures of Misaki. Misaki is an Alaskan Malamute who lives in the UK with her Mommy and Daddy. We are not sure how she got all the way from Alaska (USA) to England, but with all her adventures, maybe one day we will find out. Do go to her blog and thank her for us.
This Super Sweet Blogging Award makes our mouth water and we are sure that these Gluten-free/Dairy-free confections are just perfect for Mommy (virtual treats are always allergy free and wonderful to imagine).
Clowie
Then a few days later our friend Clowie, a Pyrenean Mountain Dog (frequently mistaken for a Polar Bear) honored us with another confection: the One Sweet Blog Award. Clowie is the absolutely amazing white giant who has the greatest adventures with her Bipeds (humans). She was born in England but moved to Spain and spends lots of time in the mountains that her breed is named after.
Luckily, there are no requirements for the One Sweet Blog Award other than linking back to the person who gave it to you (THANK YOU CLOWIE), but here are the rules for the Super Sweet Award 
1. Give credit to the person who chose to nominate you: Thank you so much Misaki, this was one of the sweetest awards we ever received.
2. Answer the ‘Super Sweet’ questions. See below
3. Nominate a “Baker’s Dozen (13) blogs.
Super Sweet Questions:
1. Cookies or Cake? It is definitely Cookies around her. People cookies and Dog cookies every night before bed.
2. Chocolate or Vanilla? Though chocolate is a very nice flavor, and a great sauce over ice cream, we love vanilla. Vanilla beans, vanilla syrup, we love vanilla!
3. What is your favorite sweet treat? Now this is hard. I used to love M&M candies, plain or peanut. Pretty much anything M&M. But I am not allowed to eat them anymore. So, I would say my favorite sweet treat now a days is a Tofutti’s Marry Me ice cream bar. “Find full-bodied vanilla made with organic sugar partnered with rich, deep organic chocolate coating.”
4. When do you crave sweet things the most? I always want cookies when I am having my evening tea, but I crave sweets the most when I am stressed (who doesn’t?)
5. If you had a sweet nickname, what would it be? I call Lulu ‘Brownie,’ because she has this beautiful dark brown black coat. Sofie is my ‘Gummy Bear,’ because she is so chubby cute you want to squeeze her.
Now to name the BAKER’S DOZEN NOMINEES:
I am going to start with a food fight and throw the cupcake at
(1) Clowie and the Sweet award at (2) Misaki – because you both are sooooooooooo sweet.
(3) whatimeant2say
(4) 400daystil40
(5) bumpyroadtobubba
(6) Cupcake Speaks
(7) The (mis)Adventures of Sage
(8) Misty Shores Chesapeakes
(9) Long Life Cats & Dogs
(10) My Three Moogies
(11) RumpyDog
(12) Savannah’s Paw Tracks
(13) jmgoyder
FOOD FIGHT!!!!!!!!!! Choose your confection and start throwing.
Late Breaking News: Our new friend Savannah’s Paw Tracks threw a One Sweet Blog Award at us today at the same time as we were posting. I love a food fight!!! Thanks
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
I was out wondering the blogroll and I came upon Lulu’s brother from another mother, Doggy. Don’t they look like they would be great virtual friends. So I am taking Louise to the virtual dog park and I am hoping that Doggy will be there to play. If you haven’t seen Doggy’s virtual home it has a new look and maybe he really needs a good run after his human spent so much time cleaning and reorganizing.
Happy Louise
Does your dog have a virtual twin? I challenge you to do the following:
Happy Doggy
1. Find another blog dog (or cat, or guinea pig, rabbit, OK any ‘pet’) and clip a picture from their page that looks like your fluffy love.
2. Post the 2 pictures side by side, like I did here.
3. Comment back to DogDaz on your post, so that I know your fluffy has enter the virtual dog park.
4. Have fun playing (but do remember to pick up any garbage before you leave).
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
I am not sure what this means, but it seems that while I was away on business last week, Noël’s blogging increased my blog traffic significantly. I have been worrying about how low my readership was getting. My daily traffic rates have been steadily declining all year, but my recent absence appears to have caused a positive spike. What does this mean? Should DOGDaz become CATDaz? Should I let Noël or the other cats run the zoo more often? Should I go on more business trips?
The blog traffic has been a mystery to me. As you know, I write DogDaz because I love to rant and rave about my animals and this gives me a way to have a positive start to my day and have some fun and feedback. Blogging is such a personal thing. I definitely find that it has become a major part of my life this past year (next month will be a year since I started). Writing my little posts and thinking about the animals, their role in my life and my role in theirs, gives me great peace and happiness. This new dimension, created through social media, provides an outlet that I find not only cathartic but addicting. I will need to go back and see what it is about the Noël posts that made people read us that day. Maybe it was the feline tone; the self-centered smugness of her highness, Queen Noël, the Christmas Cat; or maybe, it was just one of those statistical blips that happens in the blogosphere.
What makes you read us one day more than another?
Feedback greatly welcome – I am always trying to entertain and improve.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
The dogs don’t really know what worldwide reach is. Actually, they do not like to travel further than the dog park on the other side of town. But, I know what a very large world we live in. The other day I discovered another level to the statistics page of the WordPress dashboard. It showed me all the places in the world that people have looked at DogDaz blog from. I was over whelmed and over joyed. How amazing to me the internet is. That my little zoo can make it to the homes and hearts of people in so many countries. Thank you all for coming by the zoo and taking a moment of your time to check us out, and many of you for returning time and time again. Last Christmas, my daughter Peanut bought me this really cool world map that you are suppose to scratch off each country that you have been to. Those of you that have read DogDaz for a while know that I travel on business to some wonderful places, yet, there are so many more that I hope to visit someday. Though I may not physically make it around to each land, I know that virtually I have touched the people, which, in many ways, at least to me, is more important. Well, tomorrow I get on a plane once again for the week. So off I go. I am wondering what animal to leave in charge this week? Not Sofie, because all she does is whine and complain and drive everyone insane; Louise is being very anxious and prancey lately, so I worry it would be to stressful for her; Kitty is a hot mess and will just hide under the coffee table all week; Nine is a bully; Muffin can hardly make it up the steps anymore and everyone pushes him around; Stella is too young… I guess by default it comes back to Noël once again. Ok, Noey you are in charge of the blog. Do good posts. I will be watching.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
What an incredible week to receive multiple awards! We received this really HOT award called the “Blog on Fire” Award for our sweet friend Taylor and her Mom, Jessica, at “I Adopted A Dog – Now What?”
Taylor is just the cutest 1 year-old Scottish terrier/dachshund mix with a personality all her own. She was adopted at a Bay Area shelter this past June by her Mommy and Daddy. We enjoy following their antics and seeing what wonderful adventures they have.
I really appreciate that other bloggers find DogDaz enjoyable, and think it is so exciting when someone says we are HOT, especially on FIRE. We like that a lot! Thank you sooooo much for thinking of us.
This award requires me to share 8 unusual tidbits about either myself or my pet. So, here I go:
1. Louise and I seem to bonk heads a lot. She will be jumping up while I am leaning down. We both look at each other and go ‘Not Again?’
2. Sofie whimpers in her sleep. It is so sad, but she is still sleeping.
3. Both dogs snore and sometimes it can get very noisy.
4. I feel kind of lost if I am home and the dogs are not with me.
5. For years Louise did not know that I did not lock her kennel door at night. But one night she figured it out and about 4 AM she started poking me to wake up and play. Now whenever I forget to lock it at night, she will sneak out and poke me.
6. Sofie will do any silly antics she can to not go to bed, even though she is really tired. She lies down right in front of her kennel and rolls on her back and says ‘I’m so cute! Do I really have to go to bed?’ This is an every night thing. She cracks me up!
7. Noel, the Christmas cat, hates to be picked up. I force her to submit to the pick up and she cries until I turn her over and hold her like a baby, and then she falls asleep in my arms. Anyone else who tries this will loss an arm (just warning you) but it ‘our’ thing.
8. I would much rather blog and play with the dogs all day than work – I guess I know what I will do when I retire (if ever that happens).
The next thing is to pass this award to 8 blogs (in no particular order), who each display humor, class, and positivity with every post:
2. Rumpydog
8. Something Wagging This Way Comes
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Cool beans! The Guinea Piggies at Hutch A Good Life gave us a “Wonderful Team Member Readership” Award. That is so special. And silly me, I would have missed it because I never realized that I was not seeing all my notifications that people left on the blog until today. I have a year of comments that I never addressed (oh my!). Sorry about that folks, I will try to be a more wonderful team member. I love all you bloggy friends and I do feel like a member of a team. Thank you so much to my sweet piggy friends, Nibbles, Nutty, Buddy & Basil – you pigs are the best!
1. The Nominee of the Wonderful Team member Readership Award shall display the logo on his/her post/page and/or sidebar. Done below
2. The Nominee shall nominate 14 readers they appreciate over a period of 7 days (1 week) – this can be done at any rate during the week. It can be ALL on one day or a few on one day and a few on another day, etc. Oh Wow! Here we go! I hope you do not think this is a cop-out but since we are a virtual team of bloggers, if you are reading this and you blog, consider yourself nominated. You know in your heart if you are a team player and you are welcome to stake claim to the award. All I ask is that you let me know in a comment back to this post so that I can read your blog if I don’t already. 
3. The Nominee shall name his or her Wonderful Team Member Readership Award nominees on a post or on posts during the 7 day (1 week) period. Done
4. The Nominee shall make these rules, or amended rules keeping to the spirit of the Wonderful Team Member Readership Award, known to each reader s/he nominates. Done
5. The Nominee must finish this sentence and post: ”A Great reader is…” …someone who comes back time and time again, through good posts and bad, and shares their life experience with us, opening up new worlds every day and sharing life’s daily adventures in living. We really are a virtual team of blog friends.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
We are so excited. Mommy was trying to find a better way to let all our friends and family on Facebook (a social media network that connects people to people and stuff like that), know what was going on at the zoo. Not everyone has the time to read the blog or the know how to even get here. So she made us our own page that we can use. If any of our blog friends want to follow us there too, we think all you have to do is press the button that Mommy but on the menu to the right —->
This is another way for us to stay connected and also to tell our stories to a wider group of friends. You don’t have to join us there, we are not leaving WordPress. We love it here. We just were playing in cyberspace and thought it might be a good way to channel a lot of the animal and nature feeds to a wider group of humans.
You know Lulu is kind of shy, and Mommy told her she needs to start making more friends, so this was what she came up with.
Let us know what you think! – Sofie Bear aka Cyber Princess
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
DogDaz Zoo 