Is It Finally Time For Your Pet to Start Tweeting?

They may not talk IRL (in real life), but pets have plenty to say on the popular social networking site Twitter.

"Anipals," as pets on Twitter are sometimes called, have carved out an entire universe in which they, with a little help from their owners, hold monthly parties to raise money for rescue groups, give shout-outs to ailing animals, trade pictures and chronicle the day-to-day meanderings of their keepers.

Of all the critters on Twitter -- and there are an estimated 69,000 pet profiles -- cats command the largest followings. (Perhaps, as one cat owner told the New York Times' Bits Blog, cats simply have more to say.) Sockington, a Persian cat in Waltham, Mass. remains the most popular non-human on Twitter, with his own blog and more than 1.5 million Twitter followers, more than Wyclef Jean or Dr. Sanjay Gupta. And Romeo the Cat has gotten his army of more than 8,000 followers to give $32,000 to various animal rescue groups.

Dogs, ferrets, birds and other creatures also have a place on Twitter. FrugalDougal, a cairn terrier who lives in England, is the online director of the PawPawty, an international monthly get-together that occurs solely on Twitter to raise money for animal charities. Created by FrugalDougal's owner, Lynn Haigh, the events feature "bark tenders" who mix up special virtual cocktails (flavored milk for the youngsters, adult drinks like Pina Catladas and pawjitos for the older anipals) and anipal "sekurity" to keep out spammers. Attendees are encouraged to donate to a chosen charity. In the first year, the parties raised $25,000.

For the newbie who wants to put their pet on Twitter, there are lists of other pets on Twitter, etiquette tips such as "How to Be a Good Dog on Twitter in 8 Easy Steps", a PawPawty primer and a whole online newspaper written by anipals.

Atlanta event planner Denise Quashie is holding a conference and expo this summer to teach pet owners the language of anipals and discuss how they can leverage their pets' characters on Twitter to make money for charity or profit. BarkWorld Expo, to be held from Aug. 20 to 22 at Atlantic Station, will also feature some of the human faces behind the anipals.

Quashie said she registered her Shih Tzu-Yorkie mix Frankie on Twitter in November on a lark. The next day, she discovered Frankie already had 60 followers and his new friends were throwing around expressions like BOL ("Bark Out Loud" -- because dogs don't laugh, they bark), sending her dog "pee-mail" and inviting him to virtual birthday Pawties.

"A lot of these pet owners, at the end of their day, they just want to come home and do something fun, and this is how they spend their evening -- Tweeting for their pets," Quashie said. "They are utilizing social media in a way that many people don't even know about."

Quashie knew there were others like her who needed an introduction to this new world. As Frankie, tells it on the BarkWorldExpo site:

"Trying to get my mom to translate my barks and gestures to tweets and having her constantly test out new pet related products was, well, quite exhausting for a little guy like myself," he said. "I decided us anipal tweeters needed a forum where our humans can network, trade tips, learn new ways to perfect our Social Media skills and learn about products and services available to us."

Tags: anipals, frougal dougal, FrougalDougal, pawpawties, romeo the cat, sockington, twitter