29 Hilarious Finalists From the Comedy Pet Photo Awards

Pets are our loving companions and offer moments of levity even when times are tough. Though it’s hard to say whether they understand humor, they certainly provide us with plenty. From cats stuck in stone walls to dogs stuck in cat doors, our domesticated animals give us something to live for—and occasionally laugh at.

The shortlist for The Comedy Pet Photo Awards is now live, and the winner will be announced on June 6. Here are the funniest finalists.

Yes, it’s a cat’s rear-end. I don’t know how the cat got in there; I don’t know how it plans to get out. But it’s a cat’s rear-end.

Those of us who keep dogs in our room have known this view—that is, if your dog is big enough to hop on the bed.

I don’t blame the cat for being so skeptical of the rubber duck. No rubber duck has any right looking that cool.

I can’t tell if the hamster is loving the sunshine or finds it painful. Either way, the photo is kind of funny.

This dog looks like a bat out of hell jumping through the snow.

A horse leaping with all its hoofs in the air. Honestly, I didn’t even know they could do that.

A kitten clatters into its fellow’s rump in a feline traffic jam.

Another shot that seems to suspend the pet from the surface of our planet. This poodle is moving differently.

Even pets express skepticism. Whatever you’re trying to sell this dog, it’s not buying it.

Flowers pretty up a room, or a front garden, or a tortoise’s tummy. The latter scenario is what is currently underway.

A cat peeks out from behind some tassels.

These cats are on guard duty. Don’t disrupt them.

A dog prepares for the arrival of a treat (orange, foreground) in its mouth (pink, background).

More cats on guard. For what, I couldn’t say. Perhaps a mouse, or a feline foe.

This donkey looks as if it’s laughing at its own joke, the wise-ass.

One thing pets and people have in common is curly hair. This windy-day self-portrait speaks for itself.

A cat (real) meets a cat (plushie). But the former seems confused about the nature of the latter.

If it fits, it sits, the saying goes. Here, a cat makes a happy home out of a kitchen bowl.

A dog makes an irked facial expression at the camera.

They’re sharing trade secrets about being cats, I guess.

Shelby, a cockapoo, looks desperately for a bubble. Look up Shelby.

Forget the Headless Horseman. This is...you got it.

The dog Raasta burying itself in the snow.

A cat-turned-trapeze-artist, getting some hangtime on a band.

Hector, a dog, finds that not all pet doors are for all pets. Sorry, buddy—cats only.

Two cats make ample use of a roll of toilet paper.

A dog leaping for a snowball in Toggenburg, Switzerland.

The 12-week-old Artie raises his paw.

A dog—Pepper the pointer—leaps in the air.