Keeping a (Glenn) Close eye on the competition
In the dog eat dog world of dog-blogging, we here at Mutts like to keep a close eye on the competition -- especially when the competition is named Close. Dog blogger (and five time Academy Award nominee) Glenn Close is the author of "Lively Licks," which appears on the website Fetchdog.com, a company owned mostly by her husband (biotechnology entrepreneur David Shaw) that sells high end dog products over the Internet.
Close, as pointed out in this Associated Press story, is a longtime lover of dogs and supporter of dog related causes -- despite the anti-animal bent of many of the characters she has portrayed.
It was Close, after all, who boiled a bunny in Fatal Attraction, plotted to skin dalmations in 101 Dalmatians and, in her role on the FX cable network's legal drama Damages, helped arrange the killing of a dog to get a witness to testify.
Those roles are "the opposite of how I am," says Close, who has had dogs throughout her life, including a rescued mutt from Tennessee who was her companion at William & Mary College and accompanied her when she went to New York to become an actress.
Close is the public face of Fetchdog, one of a burgeoning number of companies seeking a piece of the so-far mostly recession-proof pet spending pie (Americans spent $7.3 billion last year).
Fetchdog contributes a portion of its profits to charity.
In her blog, Close interviews celebrities about their dogs and allows them to pick a favorite dog-related cause. Mary Steenburgen and Ted Danson directed contributions to Little Angels Pug Rescue and Dan Zelman and Debra Messing selected Animal Rescue New Orleans.
(Photo by Associated Press)
