Stay safe and remember to include your pets in your emergency planning as well.

Don't you want us to be safe?

All of the following pictures were submitted by PETCO associates. Check out the captions below the pictures to see where that associate works.

Kota - photo by Roxanne from the PETCO store in Elmira, N.Y.

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and it’s time to celebrate the most significant relationship in your life: the one with your pet. That’s right, I said your pet. Is your pup not the one waiting for you and slobbering you with kisses the minute you get home? Isn’t it your cat who comes up on a rainy day and snuggles in just the right position on your lap?

I don’t have anything against significant others, I just think that it’s hard to find a human that is as loyal as a pet, so why not celebrate all your pet does for you on this Hallmark holiday? Pamper your pal with a spa package, a new snuggly sweater to stay warm all winter or a heart-shaped treat to reward that good behavior. You’ll be guaranteed more kisses and snuggles!

photo credits – Nikki Audet and Deena Crouch

“I love the snow!!! I love to eat it and do everything I can in it!!! Who needs LA… not me!”

“Sleeping on my bed in the living room… snoring loudly! This is the life.”

“I am getting ready to go to the store. I am going to get a sweater or jacket today. This place is so cold outside I shiver, and I don’t even stay out too long!”

“taking my third nap of the day.”

“So I am only down to bones for things to chew. I have destroyed my kong toys and everything else. Does anyone know of another toy for me to play with that I won’t potentially eat?”

“Just ate my bed in my crate… it’s a new move.”

These are some of the recent posts on Nico’s Facebook page – Nico’s own Facebook page.  Yes, that Nico – the deaf Dogo Argentino whose life was saved because people cared enough to post his sad photo on their Facebook pages and network him out of a cold jail cell in Los Angeles County only 6 months ago.  That initial Facebook outreach began Nico’s Journey to Rescue.  This journey

The following post comes from guest bloggers Don and Lillian Stokes, who are best-selling authors of multiple bird and nature guides. They are also the authors behind Stokes Birding Blog and sell some pretty awesome bird products at PETCO.

Keep an eye out for multiple posts on bird feeding this month, since February is National Wild Bird Feeding Month. National Wild Bird Feeding Month was created to encourage people to feed wild birds during what is typically the coldest month of the year; the snow on the ground hides the natural food supply, which causes food sources to become scarce.  This makes winter the most important time to provide an extra source of nutrition for our feathered friends.

Feeding birds in the winter months is very important. During the winter months their natural food sources are often scarce and they heavily rely on us filling our bird feeders with seed and suet. Birds do not store lots of fat on their bodies, so they need to restock their fuel supplies every day. They often cannot go more than 24 hours without eating in severe weather. Here are some easy tips for you to keep your backyard bird friends flocking year round.

All of the following pictures were submitted by PETCO associates. Check out the captions below the pictures to see where that associate works.

Small Animal Workshop - photo by Ayan from the PETCO store in Houston, Texas

… who is the top dog of them all?

I love when the American Kennel Club releases the official list of the most popular dog breeds in the country – and the 2009 list, just released yesterday, gives me a personal reason to smile.

German Shepherds are the second most popular dogs in the U.S.

While the faithful Lab Retriever is still holding tight to the number one spot (no surprise there; they’re definitely one of my favs, too), my personal favorite breed of all is finally giving the reigning pooch a run for its money. Coming in just behind

I just got my first Salt Water aquarium from a friend at work and I’m starting to set it all up. The aquarium had gotten “out of balance” (infested with creepy bristle worms) so I needed to completely empty the tank, throw out the substrate, sun bleach the rocks and start all over.

I’ve had fresh water tanks since I was a kid, but I’ve never had salt. It’s a whole different world, so I felt like I needed a lot of help and advice. Of course, I went to PETCO to buy all the things I needed. I bought new substrate (aka crushed coral sand), salt and a filter refill.

2010 PETCO Foundation Calendar Photo for January

This story comes from Chris Garcia. The picture of his adopted greyhound Harvey was selected for the month of January in the PETCO Foundation’s 2010 calendar.

I adopted Harvey on Dec. 23, 2008. After my fiancé,  Andrea, came back from a trip telling me all about this couple who had 2 ex-racing Greyhounds. For weeks she looked online and was dreaming about adopting one. At first I wanted nothing to do with it. She begged me to consider it and showed me all these great pictures. Eventually I started to consider

Hugh Jackman at PETCO Christmas Eve

I recently heard about PETCO getting a visit from Hugh Jackman when he came to our Union Square store in New York City. The entire store team had a great time helping him and his wife pick out new pets and supplies for their kids for Christmas. The team raved about how gracious they were, and how Hugh agreed to sign autographs and take pictures with anyone who asked.

Hearing about this exciting celebrity sighting made me wonder, what other celebs get their pet supplies at PETCO? It’s sometimes easy to forget that, even though they have glamorous lives with plenty to do, their pets still need to eat and play just like ours. So I did a quick Google search and I found out we have some pretty loyal shoppers in the celeb world – check out these shots from the past year:

• Jake Gyllenhaal
• Sophia Bush
• Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter (quick shout out – I LOVE Dexter!)
• Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz
• Nicole Ritchie
• Christina Aguilera