Knight’s Announcement: “We’re Up For a Major Award in Pet Blogging”

I love the movie A Christmas Story and the scene where the grouchy dad lights up when he receives his “major award”–a risque leg lamp sporting fishnet stockings. It cracks me up every time. Well Knight and I have been nominated for a major award–not a leg lamp, but a shot at “Best Unconventional Pet Blog” in the Nose-to-Nose Pet Blogging and Social Media Awards sponsored by BlogPaws.

In case you’re wondering what is unconventional about this blog, it basically means we’re not a dog or cat blog. There are four finalists in our category and I’d say we’re all quite different. Besides this blog with my retired racehorse Knight and me, there’s another horse blog, a rat blog (I didn’t know such a blog genre existed!), and a chicken blog.

If you’re not familiar with BlogPaws check out the description from their website (which you MUST visit if you’re also a blogger–seriously, you’ll enhance your blogging skills and probably make some new online friends):

BlogPaws is a Social Media Company focused on teaching pet enthusiasts, pet bloggers and all pet parents how to use social media effectively and responsibly. Our dedicated team of professionals works year round to connect our bloggers and micro-bloggers to the brands they buy every day. Following our first amazing conference in 2010, we launched an online community site for pet bloggers, pet enthusiasts, pet people on Twitter and Facebook and brands eager to tap into a vibrant, vocal community of serious writers, bloggers, tweeters. It has since grown to over 3000 registered (approved) members, and continues to attract pet people from all over the world.

The benefits of being selected as a finalist are pretty cool.

First, I received a free pass to the BlogPaws Conference coming up June 23-25 in Phoenix. I am eager to attend various sessions ranging from The Secrets to Successful SEO: What to Say and How to Say It to Impactful Photography for Your Blogs and Rescues.

Second, I was coached to send out a press release to local media to share the news. And just today a newspaper editor responded back to me that she would like to run a piece since there are many equestrians in the community the paper serves and they’d find the story of a local ex-racehorse being up for a blogging award interesting!

Third, I received a pretty snazzy badge about Saddle Seeks Horse’s finalist status. You might have to scroll down and glance over to the right on my blog to see the badge.

I also read somewhere something a red carpet awards ceremony. I will have a chance to get glammed up–that’s always fun.

The awesomeness doesn’t stop. I’m pumped to go to Phoenix because the world’s best aunt and uncle live there. Yes, they’re mine and I’m biased. And my beloved Chicago pizzeria Lou Malnati’s just opened a store in Phoenix. It’s the first one outside of Chicago. And for this displaced Midwesterner living on the West Coast, I am so enamored with the butter crust and stringy cheese that I am already salivating. But I digress.

Back to the BlogPaws conference. . . I am looking forward to meeting like-minded animal lovers and their animals! Yes, pets are welcomed and encouraged at this social media conference. I will not be taking Knight for obvious reasons, but I’m toying with the idea (a BlogPaws idea) of creating a Flat Stanley version of Knight. If you don’t know Flat Stanley it’s okay. Basically I’m going to get a picture of Knight and somehow make it into a cardboard cutout and carry him around with me as a conversation starter. I would LOVE to make a life-size one, but that might be difficult to get on an airplane.

If you’re also a horse blogger and you have some free time coming up at the end of June, you should come on out to the conference too! We can learn blogging and social media best practices together. And if there’s time to sneak away from the conference, I’ll take you to Lou Malnati’s.

Your Turn: Have you been nominated/won any interesting awards? A leg lamp? An essay contest, blogging award, etc.? I once won a tub of potato salad playing Bingo. This is definitely much better. 

If you enjoyed/learned anything from this post, please subscribe. You can also follow my hunky Thoroughbred Knight and me along on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. And be sure to check out BlogPaws. I guarantee you will be inspired.