Tilly is the March 22 calendar girl in the 365-Kittens-a-Year Calendar.

I am dubbing this week of March (March 16-22) as “Tilly Week” because if you own a “365 Kittens-a-Year Calendar,” you will see a photo of my cat Tilly in all of her cute, kitten glory on March 22. (Add about 5 years and 10 pounds to her calendar-winning photo and you’ve got what Tilly looks like these days.)

I am also dubbing this week “Tilly Week” for another reason. Tilly is one of the luckiest cats in this world. She was born into a family instead of out on the streets, and when she was about 12 weeks old, she came home to live with me. She’s never known what it’s like to sleep outside in the cold, forage for her own food and water, or fend off other animals. And the only diseases in Tilly’s living environment include the fear-of-vacuum-cleaners flu and the dangerous, highly contagious “too many hugs” epidemic. She’s one lucky, fat cat.

Tilly plays hide-and-seek in the shower curtain. Will this photo win?

But since not all cats are like Tilly, I am taking time during “Tilly Week” and honoring those other kitties (and doggies) out there that do not have good homes just yet. I have entered a (much more) recent photo of Tilly in the Bissell Most Valuable Pet Photo Contest, and if Tilly places in the top five, Bissell will give money to an animal rescue group of my choice.

Please celebrate “Tilly Week” with me by voting each day for Tilly’s picture! The voting takes place everyday from March 16-22. How convenient! Those are the dates of “Tilly Week”!!

If Tilly wins this week, she will be entered into the big contest for the five grand prizes, and if she wins one of the grand prizes, Homeward Trails Animal Rescue will receive much-needed money to help other kitties and doggies become as lucky as Tilly.

Thank you for voting, and please spread the word to other animal lovers out there! Happy Tilly Week!