Don't forget those who help animals in this, the season of giving. While they may not be out ringing bells in front of stores this time of year, they need your help all the same.

It doesn't take much to help your local shelter, now or at any time of year. Gifts of time, services, or new or used goods are always welcome and can make a real difference in the lives of animals who aren't as lucky and loved as yours are. Here are a few suggestions:

-- Gifts of time. Not everyone is cut out to volunteer at the shelter -- some find it too depressing -- but fortunately that's not the only volunteer opportunity for an animal-lover with time to give. Fostering animals who need a little extra TLC is one way to help, but there are many more. If you're comfortable with public speaking, you could help with public-education programs, spreading the words of kindness and responsibility to schools or other groups. You could also work at fund-raisers, or work the phones to round up needed goods or services.

-- Gifts of services. If you have a business or a skill, chances are your shelter could use your help. Accountants, attorneys, writer/editors, graphic designers and contractors are among those who may find their expertise welcome at the shelter. Even if the shelter can't use your help directly, you could donate services to be raffled off to raise money. One of my friends is a photographer specializing in lovely hand-tinted portraits of pets, and she donates sittings and portraits to animal groups so they can raise money.

-- Gifts of goods. These don't need to be much, and all are appreciated. Old towels and newspapers are always in demand, as are items that can be used at thrift stores or used-book sales. Shelters also go through a lot of can openers, litter and animal food. Call and ask what is needed, or offer what you have. Your shelter will probably find a use for it.

As is always true when considering what to give, money is the welcome one-size-fits-all, no-need-to-return item on any list. Cash donations are always appreciated. If nothing else, consider the perfect gift for the animal-lover who has everything: a membership to your favorite shelter.

One of the best ways to help your shelter is to be sure you're not part of the problem of unwanted pets. Think, and think again, before introducing a pet into your family at this time of year, and don't give pets as gifts without being absolutely certain the recipient is as keen on the idea as you are. Above all, never buy a pet on impulse, no matter how cute, no matter how friendly, no matter that all you need do is pull out a credit card at the mall.

These caveats are especially true of puppies. Research carefully the breed or mix that will fit into your household, and take the time to find a reputable breeder, shelter or rescue group when it's time to pick your pup. Better still: Give a book now, along with the promise of a dog in the spring or summer. It's a lot easier to raise and train a puppy then, believe me. A great book for children who are dying for a puppy is the American Kennel Club's "Complete Dog Book for Kids" (Howell Book House; $22.95).

Pets on the Web: You just couldn't hope for anything better this holiday season than Elizabeth Cusulas' Dog Carols page (www.ddc.com/waggers/carols.html). The self-described "dogmama" to four cocker spaniels, Cusulas has rewritten holiday song lyrics to be more dog-focused. The results are very funny indeed, as evidenced in her version of "Shopping for the Doggies Once Again," sung to the tune of "Winter Wonderland": "Doggy toys, they're so nifty/You can never be thrifty/You spend all your cash/And then you must dash/Shopping for the doggies once again."

If you can't remember how the songs go, sound files are there to help you, or provide the instrumental background to your best singing effort. As Cusulas writes on the opening page: Point your muzzles to the sky and sing along!

Gina Spadafori is the award-winning author of "Dogs for Dummies" and "Cats for Dummies," and is the editorial director of the Veterinary Information Network Inc., an international online service for veterinary professionals. Write to her in care of this newspaper, or e-mail to Giori(at)aol.com.

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600

This week, a little petpourri ...

Pet Food vs. People Food: Do you include your pet in holiday festivities? If you do, you're not the only one. According to a recent survey conducted for Purina, nine out of 10 pet owners treat their pets like a member of the family. Nearly three-quarters of us consider our pets to be our best friend, and half feel guilty about leaving pets home alone.

When we do go out, we try to calm our guilty feelings by bringing home a doggie bag from the restaurant -- or so said 54 percent of the respondents.

Not surprisingly, Purina was especially interested in the feeding habits of these pampered pets, many of whom will share food from the holiday table. Turkey will be the No. 1 treat for these pets this holiday season, followed by ham. A few will even get cookies or candy -- even though 88 percent of those polled said they realized "people foods" can cause upset stomach in pets.

Actually, it's worse than that. Fatty or spicy foods can trigger a life-threatening case of pancreatitis in dogs, requiring a trip to the emergency clinic and a hefty holiday bill you weren't anticipating. In cats, the juice-saturated strings from holiday meats can prove too tempting to resist, but may need to be surgically removed in another lifesaving intervention.

Cookies or candies? Forget it! A big chunk of chocolate can be deadly to the small dog who eats it, and even a larger dog can get a bellyache. Foil or other food wrappings can also be dangerous if consumed. A touch of white-meat turkey won't hurt your pet, but it may not make him any easier to live with. The poll reports a list of problems related to poor eating habits, including begging (69 percent), sneaking food (52 percent) and diarrhea (40 percent).

All of which leads to Purina's self-serving but not incorrect conclusion: Your pets are better off being fed a complete and balanced pet food than they are sharing your meals.

There are more good foods on the market than ever before, in pet-supply stores, veterinary offices and even grocery stores. Choose a high-quality food, and leave the people food out of it.

The Ultimate Guides to Dog and Cat Products: The Purina survey also revealed that 13 percent of us will be giving our pets gifts this holiday season, a figure that to my mind seemed low. If your dog is on your gift list, however, a new book will help make the shopping easier -- and fun.

"The Whole Dog Catalog" (Three Rivers Press; $19.95) is a guide to every imaginable product for dog and dog-lover, from the simplest bowls to the most elaborate dwellings (could your dog live without a $4,500 doghouse made to look like a thatched-roof cottage?). Clothes for dog and dog-lover both, tags, toys, fine art and jewelry -- it's all in this remarkable and enjoyable book. My favorites: lifelike breed doorstops, dog sculptures and "pup tent" dog beds.

Author John Avalon Reed drops plenty of interesting dog facts into the book, too. His previous book, "The Whole Kitty Catalog," fills the same niche for cat-lovers. Either book would make a perfect gift for an animal-lover.

Pets on the Web: "We really enjoyed watching your cat eat," writes one fan. "I am in love with your kitty!" comments another. "You must have been busy yesterday getting rid of your slob reputation. Your kitchen looks nice."

These comments and many more are on Eric Max Francis' site, The CatCam (http://www.catcam.com), where a fixed camera under a table sends a constant flow of images to the Web. You can see his kitchen, from a cat's-eye view. Sometimes, you can see his cats, Beowulf and Ebi. The flash of a tail ... the hint of a leg ... oh, the suspense! If you can't stand it anymore, you can review the last day's worth of images. Empty room. Cat. Empty. Empty. Empty. Cat. Darkness.

"I trust I would not be the first person to point out that this CatCam business is very silly," comments another fan. "I love it."

Me, too. And the cats, when they do show up, are very cute.

Gina Spadafori is the award-winning author of "Dogs for Dummies" and "Cats for Dummies," and is the editorial director of the Veterinary Information Network Inc., an international online service for veterinary professionals. Write to her in care of this newspaper, or e-mail to Giori(at)aol.com.

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600

When you are among people who love animals, you are among friends.

Although I've always known this, the point was reinforced on the road in Georgia, first in the big city of Atlanta, where the world's largest cat show came for three days in November, and then in the small town of Thomasville, where I spent time with friends and their four cats, four dogs and a cockatiel.

Some 3,000 miles from home and I couldn't have been happier.

In Atlanta, I rode up and down elevators with luggage that meowed, as the world's top pedigreed cats made their way from the hotel to compete at the Cat Fanciers' Association International show. An Abyssinian named Tinbats Morgan's Passing, owned by Reg and Lynn Martin of Chatsworth, Calif., topped nearly 1,300 other cats at the show. But for most of the cat-lovers who came, the name of the winner wasn't really the point of the exercise.

The show was really a celebration of the feline, with cats about as varied as cats can get. Patched cats and solids, ticked coats and tabbies, long-haired and short, slender and chunky, each as breathtakingly beautiful as the next, and all with fur that begged to be touched (torture for the cat-lover, because petting the cats is not allowed at this show -- or any other). Eyes of many colors and shapes glistened with good health and, occasionally, ill temper. (These are cats, after all, and cats aren't all that enthusiastic about noise, crowds and strangers.)

Solace could be found among the vendors of the Georgia World Congress Center in what had to be the best collection of goods for cats and their people ever assembled. Toys, jewelry, books, beds -- anything you could imagine, times four. A cat-lover would have a hard time escaping with her line of credit intact, and I managed to only because the car rental agency had already put its claim on it.

This is one fine cat show, and if you're anywhere near Kansas City, Mo., when it moves there next November, you shouldn't miss it. Even if you won't be allowed to pet the cats.

How hard is it to survive without those pats? I know, exactly. By the time I got to Thomasville, four hours from Atlanta by car (and nearly to Florida), I was vibrating from the strain and in need of a major fur fix.

A tiny tabby named Robocat was happy to help, as were a trio of handsome retrievers by the names of Sundance, Calypso and Lucky. My friends Peg and Joe love animals and laughter, and on the wide porch of their old house we shared plenty of both, as the worst of my withdrawal pains started to ease with every touch of my fingers on warm fur.

Robo's purr could be heard a block away, carried on a cool South Georgia breeze, and if I had been physically able to do the same, you could have heard my satisfied rumble all the way back home in California.

Were it not for missing my own dogs, I might never have gone home.

Pets on the Web: While dogs have been enthusiastic in their pursuit of airborne discs from the moment the first Frisbee came out of the package, the creation of the sport traces back to a single dog, a whippet named Ashley. The slender beastie and his owner slipped on to the field during a nationally televised football game a couple of decades ago and put on a show that brought roars from the crowd. They were shooed from the field that day, but were invited back so many times afterward that Ashley became a media star. The dog is long gone, of course, but his fellow Frisbee hounds now compete in a series of regional events leading up to a national championship in a sport that's still a kick for all involved.

If you think your dog has flying-disk potential, take a peek at the Web site of the National Capital Air Canines group (motto: "Where the Fur Comes to Fly"). The site (http://www.discdog.com) is comprehensive and well-organized, with many links to other related Web pages.

Gina Spadafori is the award-winning author of "Dogs for Dummies" and "Cats for Dummies," and is the editorial director of the Veterinary Information Network Inc., an international online service for veterinary professionals. Write to her in care of this newspaper, or e-mail to Giori(at)aol.com.

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600