Sure puppies and kitties are great, but it's the geriatric dogs and cats that really get to me. With their grey muzzles, cloudy eyes, random lumps and slow moves, these venerable animals are snoring monuments of loyalty and companionship. But not everyone loves a senior quadruped, and old dogs and cats all too often find themselves in shelters without a fawning public.

Happily, there are places like Pasado's Safe Haven's American Association of Retired Fidos and Felines that offer forever homes for the old, blind, arthritic and incontinent. Known as A.A.R.F.F., it includes a free-ranging dog and cat ranch on 28 wooded acres in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains.

Support the cause this weekend with a distinctly AARP-approved activity -- bowling. Fifteen A.A.R.F.F. ambassadors -- including a shaggy redhead named Roy, who was rescued from a shelter death row -- will co-host The Dog Bowl Sunday (April 6, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.) at Kenmore Lanes in Kenmore. Proceeds from individual and team bowling, sponsorships, a silent auction and a raffle will go a long way toward supporting A.A.R.F.F. throughout the year.

If providing for the happy retirement of deserving old dogs and cats isn't enough to get you to lace up your bowling shoes, how about raffle prizes, including a $1,000 Nordstrom shopping spree and a Crystal Mountain getaway? Plus, the top Dog Bowl pledge winner will take home a Nintendo Wii.

Check Pasado's website for more information, to register, buy raffle tickets (you don't even have to be present to win) or order a hip Dog Bowl T-shirt.

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