On top of all the other advice on how to help your pet cope with the heat, the folks at FURminator offer this:

Regularly "deshedding" your dog, in addition to keeping your house a lot cleaner, can make him or her (or your cat or horse for that matter) a little more comfortable during the dog days of summer.

Among the 67 percent of U.S. households that own a pet, shedding is the top complaint -- and some of the most popular breeds, FURminator says, are also the most prolific shedders (German Shepherd, Golden Retriever, Beagle, Shih Tzu, Labrador Retriever).

The company says its product -- available at Petco, Petsmart and most pet retailers, as well as through the company's web site, furminator.com -- reduces shedding up to 90 percent, and also lessens the amount of airborne allergens.

I've had one for about six months now and both Ace and I love it -- I for the shed hair that ends up somewhere other than my house; Ace for the good scratching it gives him. He looks forward to his weekly FURminations. They are a pricey tool, but they're guaranteed for life.

If there were a Good Muttskeeping Seal of Approval, the FURminator -- founded in 2002 by the husband and wife team of David and Angela Porter -- would get one. More recently the company has begun offering a line of pet products that ranges from treats to shampoos.

The company put together a list of summertime tips for dog owners, the first of which, as you might guess, is to buy a FURminator.

Removing a dog's undercoat cools him off and is a healthier alternative than shaving, which it says can expose them to harmful ultraviolet rays. It also recommends never leaving your dog in a parked car, making frequent stops when traveling, keeping them on a steady diet and well-hydrated, avoiding exercising during the hottest times of day and keeping an eye out for fleas and ticks.

In addition to sending me copious amounts of information, FURminator also sent me a FURminator, and because I already had one, I'm putting the brand new one (large, a $70 value) up for grabs.

It will go to the first person who correctly posts (in the form of a comment on this entry) the answers to these seven questions. All the answers can found in the Mutts blog -- in the entries, the archives, or through the other features on this page. (Tip: make use of our search function.)