Letting the net name your puggle...

Most of like to name our own dogs. One person, however, decided to let complete strangers help in coming up for a name for a new puggle puppy.

Yahoo's 7Answers site features a person asking for input on naming a new puggle. But there is a catch. As strange as it might sound, they want to name the cute pup after the popular country music act, The Dixie Chicks.

Ever wonder what a stranger from cyberspace would name your puppy if you put that guideline down and left the door open for suggestions? Probably not, but it makes good reading.

Excerpt:

"I'm getting a male puppy tomorrow and want to name him after the Dixie Chicks. Random, yes. However, I'm having trouble coming up with what to call him. So far, I've come up with: Banjo, Dixie, Maines, Earl, Martie, and Cowboy. What are your thoughts or ideas? I'm also considering Atticus, but that's kind of a hard name for a little guy. THANKS!"

NOTE: It looks like some of the responses have been removed due to some criticism of purchasing a puggle in the first place. Odd things happen during odd discussions, I suppose.

Nice puggle overview...

Animaroo has a nice overview of the puggle dog breed that's worth a read from anyone who wants to learn some of the basics about these amazing animals.

In addition to providing a solid encapsulation of the breed, its appearance and tendencies, the article also notes that puggles became the most popular "designer dog" breed after the 2005 media attention that was paid to them.

Excerpt:

"Puggle owners praise the personality of the breed as its most valuable pet trait. They are playful animals and clown-like in disposition. They tend to have short bursts of energy, then quickly tire, take a short nap, then want to play again. These playful tendencies can make them slow to train, and may also manifest in hyperactivity (a trait common to both Beagles and Pugs)."

Check out the whole story here.

Building Link Popularity

Search engines are the #1 way people find your website. If you rank high for keywords related to your products or services, you can get a ton of potential customers. The trick, obviously, is figuring out how to get to the top of the search results.

The search engines utilize algorithms that consider numerous factors when ranking sites. One of the most important factors is the number of inbound links. Inbound links are perceived as votes of confidence from others for your site and the search engines reward those with a great deal of apparent authority in a subject, as evidenced by links, with better placement.

Many experts maintain that the sheer quantity of inbound links to your site is incredibly important in getting toward the top. Link popularity is a key to better search engine result placement.

There are many ways to increase the number of inbound links to your site. You can try to organize trades, come up with some sort of great link bait to encourage organic linkings, or you can take an easier, more efficient route. Blogitive will take the information you supply about your site and hand it over to as many bloggers as you can imagine. Those bloggers, in turn, will write about you and will link back to your site. Tons of inbound links in a hurry. Sounds good, huh?

Jake G. and his puggle, Boo Radley, act charitably...

Actor Jake Gyllenhaal is one of many celebrities who have fallen under the spell of puggles, the world's cutest dogs. His puggle is named Boo Radley and, by all accounts, the two are nearly inseparable.

They don't just spend time playing fetch and getting belly rubs, though. Jake and Boo are also philanthropic.

A recent fundraiser for the Mississippi Animal Rescue League featured an auction for celebrity-autographed wooden dog bones. The cut-outs, which also featured a paw print from the celebrity pup. The AP said:

"...some celebrities included personal messages or photos with the bones.

Gyllenhaal has often been photographed walking his dogs, Atticus, a German Shepherd, and Boo Radley, a puggle. The actor's autograph was accompanied by his dogs' paw prints, Nutt said."

Sounds like a great cause and a great collectible. Jake and Boo weren't the only big names involved. Dog owners ranging from John Travolta to James Caan participated with their pooches.

I read the AP report at The Cincinatti Enquirer. Feel free check it out here.

Lengthy puggle potty training discussion contains great insight...

If you have a puggle and are struggling to train him or her with respect to elimination, take heart. You are not alone.

Although puggles are CLEARLY the cutest and most spectacular pets of all time, they can be tricky to potty train. I stumbled upon this Yahoo! Answers page about puggle potty-training and thought I would pass it along to Puggle Palace readers.

The OP mentions the problems they've been having with training their puggle to go outside. They know what they are doing, as they have successfully trained other dogs in the past. They want to know if there is hope for successful training and are open to suggestions.

You might want to read the conversation just to learn more about puggles and their habits. Or, you might have a great hint to add to the discussion. Either way, you can check it out here.

Puggle owner's bane...The dirty carpet...

Having a pet puggle usually means needing an eventual carpet cleaning. Those cuties do have occasional accidents and even the most stain-resistant floor coverings eventually succumb to the stresses and messes of puggle ownership.

Although you could rent a do-it-yourself carpet cleaner, you will probably get better results by hiring a professional carpet service. Bringing in the big guns insures a cleaner carpet. The pros have better equipment, a greater selection of stain removal products and carpet treatments, and years of experience.

Compare and contrast these two options. You can spend a few bucks at your local grocery store to rent a carpet cleaner and to buy some cleaning products for it. You can then schlep that equipment home, spend the day scrubbing at your rugs and experience potentially mediocre results.

Alternatively, you can call someone like A-1 Carpet Services, Inc. This Arizona operation will come out with their commercial-grade gear, clean your carpet until it looks like new, and will even guarantee their work. A-1's been around for over fifty years and offers an amazing policy where they state that you will get the best carpet cleaning you've experienced or you won't have to pay a dime.

Better cleaning. Fewer hassles. A quality guarantee.

Obvious choice, puggle owners. If you need to clean the carpets, call a pro!

Philly Puggles fetching $425 per pup...

A recent listing at Philly.com features puggles for sale. The little cuties are available for $425.00 each. I am not vouching for the listing or the supplier, and the primary reason I am pointing out the ad is because it includes a super-adorable puggle picture I haven't seen before.

However, $425 does sound like a pretty good idea for those in the Philly area who want to add a puggle to their lives. That is certainly a lot less expensive than the going rate for puggles in the recent past and elsewhere. So, it could warrant some additional investigation. The ad, in part, proclaims:

"Puggle Pups, Cute as a button. We have fawn males & females and black females available. They are always up to date on shots & wormed. They always come with a health guarantee."

You can see the aforementioned picture of a cute little puggle pup and read the whole "puggles for sale" advertisement here, at Philly.com.

Virtual Puggles! Puggles hit the video game scene...

According to the folks at WorthPlaying, new add-on features for the popular "The Sims 2" video game include a pet package that allows "sims" to own, train and interact with pets that can be custom designed.

The article referencing this nifty video game intervention even mentions puggles by name. You can design and play with a virtual puggle now!

If you are a Sims fan or are just crazily intrigued by the idea of owning and raising your own digitized puggle instead of the real thing, you simply must check out this article about the game and the pet add-on.

I'll be honest, I have never played The Sims, although the idea has always been interesting. It's neat to see that the game becomes increasingly well-rounded and realistic with additions like this one.

It's even better that Sims will finally have a chance to stare at their own ultra-cute puggles!

Here is the original article, if you are interested.

Educating yourself via the 'net...

So, you think you know something about US-based colleges, huh? Here's one for you... Name the school headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota that has total student enrollment of around 16,000 and offers over 75 degree programs (both bachelors and graduate options)...

Give up? It's Capella University. Capella has been operating since 1993 and continues to offer its students from all around the US and the world an opportunity for a great online education. If you are considering a graduate degree in information technology, want to get your business degree online, or are looking for a good way to secure a four-year degree without the hassles of the traditional college experience, you might want to give Capella a ring (toll free) at 888-CAPELLA.

Capella University isn't just some shady online "school" that doesn't hold up under scrutiny. It's accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and boasts membership in the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. Distance learning is growing in popularity and Capella University has been, and remains, on the cutting edge of this exciting development.