Meet Jasmine, the rescue dog who has become a surrogate mother for the 50th time
31st December 2008

When Jasmine the abandoned greyhound arrived at a wildlife sanctuary shivering and desperate for food, she needed all the love in the world to nurse her back to full health.

Now it appears the kindness and patience shown to her has rubbed off - for the rescue dog has become a surrogate mother for the 50th time. Seven-year-old Jasmine is currently caring for tiny Bramble, an 11-week-old roe deer fawn found semi-conscious in a nearby field. She cuddles up to her to keep her warm, showers her with affection and makes sure nothing is matted in her fur. In short, the perfect foster mum.

But then again, she has had plenty of practice, having cared for five fox cubs, four badger cubs, 15 chicks, eight guinea pigs, two stray puppies and even 15 rabbits.

Jasmine was brought to the Nuneaton and Warwickshire Wildlife Sanctuary by the police in 2003, having been found dumped in a garden shed. She was cold, filthy and malnourished. It took a few weeks for her to fully trust staff at the centre but with tender loving care she was nursed back to full fitness. Five years on, Jasmine is now the one looking after stray waifs.

Geoff Grewcock, who runs the sanctuary, said: 'She simply dotes on the animals as if they were her on, it's incredible to see. She takes all the stress out of them and it helps them to not only feel close to her but to settle into their new surroundings. As soon as an animal is brought in, she walks over takes a sniff or two and then licks and cuddles them. It is quite amazing, particularly as she is a greyhound breed and they are usually quite aggressive, That is why they are used for racing.'

'Jasmine was abused when she was younger, the police brought her to us after discovering her whimpering in a garden shed. She was very nervous around us, she was caked in mud and dust and very thin. It took a while but gradually she got used to us and has been at the centre ever since. Having been neglected herself, it's a real surprise to she her show so much warmth and affection to other creatures. It's not just animals, she is great which children too, she is such a gentle, big-hearted dog.'

Bramble the fawn arrived at the centre two months ago after a dog walker came across her in a field dazed and confused. Until she is old enough to be released back into the wild, she will continue to be cared for by Jasmine.

Geoff added: 'They are inseparable at the moment, Bramble walks between her legs and they keep kissing each other. They walk together round the sanctuary. It's absolutely marvellous. It's a real treat to see them.

'But she is like that with all of our animals, even the rabbits which greyhounds usually chase down the track. I remember we had two puppies that had been abandoned by a nearby railway line, one was a Lakeland Terrier cross and another was a Jack Russell Doberman cross. They were tiny when they arrived at the centre and Jasmine approached them and grabbed one by the scruff of the neck in her mouth and put him on the settee. Then he fetched the other one and sat down with them, cuddling them.

'She has done the same with the fox and badger cubs, she licks the rabbits and guinea pigs and even lets the birds perch on the bridge of her nose.

'It's very touching. Her maternal instincts take over all the time.'

Happy family: Pictured from left to right are Toby, a stray Lakeland
dog; Bramble, an orphaned roe deer; Buster, a stray Jack Russell; a
dumped rabbit; Sky, an injured barn owl, and Jasmine

"Marley & Me" top dog at busy Christmas box office
By Dean Goodman
Mon Dec 29, 2008

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - It may have been a bleak Christmas for U.S. retailers but Hollywood enjoyed a bumper holiday as new films, led by the dog tale "Marley & Me" and awards contender "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," drew throngs of moviegoers to theaters across North America.

"Marley & Me" sold an estimated $37 million worth of tickets during the traditional three-day weekend beginning on Friday, distributor 20th Century Fox said on Sunday. Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson star in the adaptation of a bestseller about a couple and their Labrador retriever.

The movie about "life, love and family" -- according to Fox senior vice president of domestic distribution Bert Livingston -- played strongly with audiences of all ages seeking feel-good entertainment.

As with the four other new releases, "Marley & Me" opened on Thursday and earned $14.7 million -- a new Christmas Day record.

 

Movie review: 'Marley & Me' a sweet tearjerker
Walter Addiego, Chronicle staff writer
Thursday, December 25, 2008

Marley & Me: Comedy. Starring Owen Wilson, Jennifer Aniston and Eric Dane. Directed by David Frankel. (PG. 123 minutes. At Bay Area theaters.)
This love letter to man's best friend will make dog fanciers roll over and do tricks. It's so warmhearted, you'll want to run out and hug the nearest big, sloppy mutt.

And while you're watching it, have your handkerchief ready. Though partly a comedy about the joys and stresses of modern family life, "Marley & Me" is also a tearjerker.

The "Me" of the title is John Grogan, in real life a Philadelphia Inquirer columnist who often wrote about his wife and kids and Marley, the family's boisterous Labrador. Readers loved Marley's misadventures, so the columnist wrote a best-selling book, "Marley & Me: Life and Love With the World's Worst Dog."

Click √ on image for full review

The UnDog and the NonCat
By TERI KARUSH ROGERS
Published: December 26, 2008

IN a city awash in creature comforts for those who can still afford them, a few remain unattainable at any price. Some New Yorkers who yearn for the comfort of creatures — specifically, cats and dogs — find themselves stymied by their apartment buildings’ restrictions on pets.

NO DOG POLICIES led Tonia Misvaer, left, to two small parrots, Swami and Odin; Dylan Edwards-Gaherty, center, and Pounce, a rabbit that joined the family because their building prohibited dogs; and Morgan Dontanville, right, with Ajax, a chinchilla.

But just as city dwellers are accustomed to settling when it comes to real estate, many aspiring cat and dog owners turn to other species to satisfy their yen for a cuddle, companionship or wish to convey childhood lessons in responsibility.
A partial list of things that slither, hop, glide, swim or scurry beyond the purview of co-op boards, landlords and occasionally, the law, includes chinchillas, parrots, bearded dragons, tortoises, pythons, fancy mice, monkeys and ferrets, along with a more pedestrian assortment of gerbils, guinea pigs and goldfish.

Click √ on image for full article

Photos from left: Michael Nagle , Suzanne DeChillo, Robert Caplan for The New York Times

Dogfighting Making a Comeback in Afghanistan
By KIRK SEMPLE
Published: December 27, 2008

KABUL, Afghanistan — In a dingy butcher’s shop reeking of slaughter, a half-dozen sheep’s carcasses dangled from hooks, and two men spoke of dogs.

Dogfighting tournaments in Kabul draw thousands of men and boys as spectators.

Ad Featuring Singer Proves Bonanza for the A.S.P.C.A.
By STEPHANIE STROM
Published: December 25, 2008

Marie Bedford first saw what has become known as “The Ad” in nonprofit circles about a year and a half ago. “I saw it a couple of times and found I just had to respond,” Ms. Bedford, an actress living in Brooklyn, said. “It’s so moving.”

The television advertisement, for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, features heartbreaking photographs of dogs and cats scrolling across the screen while Sarah McLachlan, the Canadian singer-songwriter, croons the haunting song “Angel” in the background.

That simple pitch has raised roughly $30 million for the organization since the advertisements started running in early 2007, making it the A.S.P.C.A.’s most successful fund-raising effort — and a landmark in nonprofit fund-raising, where such amounts are virtually unimaginable for a single commercial. (The organization’s annual budget is $50 million.)

Ms. McLachlan appears only momentarily to ask viewers to share her support for the A.S.P.C.A.
“Sarah made it possible to do in two minutes what took 30 minutes before,” said Jo Sullivan, the organization’s senior vice president for development and communications, referring to the long-form use of celebrities in the past. “She literally has changed the way we fund-raise.”

Like Ms. Bedford, many of the roughly 200,000 new donors attracted to the organization through the advertisement are “annuity” donors who have pledged an average of $21 a month to the A.S.P.C.A., which charges their credit card or receives the money via an automatic electronic transfer from their bank.
The advertisement came about by accident.

The A.S.P.C.A. had been working with a Canadian firm, Eagle-Com Inc., which helps charities raise money using television and that had helped the A.S.P.C.A. create spots featuring celebrities like Jason Alexander of “Seinfeld,” Kevin Nealon from “Saturday Night Live” and Jennifer Coolidge, who played the manicurist in “Legally Blonde.” Those advertisements typically ran in the early hours of the morning, which was all the organization could afford.

Eagle-Com was working on a project for a small animal shelter in Vancouver, British Columbia, that Ms. McLachlan supported and asked if she might be interested in doing similar work for the A.S.P.C.A.

“She asked for information about our mission and programs and just got really excited,” Ms. Sullivan said. “People keep asking us how we cultivated her — did we send flowers, chocolates — but it really was just a happy accident.”

Donations from the McLachlan commercial enabled the A.S.P.C.A to buy prime-time slots on national networks like CNN, which in turn has generated more income. This holiday season, the A.S.P.C.A. rolled out another advertisement featuring Ms. McLachlan singing “Silent Night,” and it will release another McLachlan advertisement in January.

“I don’t want people to hear $30 million and not understand that we’ve grown tremendously with that increase in income,” Ms. Sullivan said.

For instance, over the last decade, the A.S.P.C.A. has increased its grants to support other animal welfare organizations by 900 percent. “A big chunk of that has come in the last three years because of this ad,” Ms. Sullivan said.

CINDY ADAMS
Dec. 22, 2008

I am in London for the weekend because my friends James and Charlene Nederlander gave me a lift in their plane.

On the flight over, by the way, I told them that, when we returned, I was having a minister come to my home for a blessing of the animals. I wanted him to bless my Yorkies Jazzy and Juicy for the New Year. The Nederlanders also had a Yorkie so I asked: "Want to bring Cupcake?" Said Charlene: "No, Cupcake is in Palm Beach, where we are going when we get back."

Two seconds silence, then: "You think he could do it with a photo?"

Donna Karan to drop fur from her designs
22 December 2008

Thanks to the hard work of PETA's staff, members, and volunteers and after nearly a year of pressuring designer Donna Karan to drop fur from her designs--by protesting outside her boutiques, crashing her runway show, and exposing her cruel use of fur onlin--Donna Karan has announced that all her Fall 2009 lines will be fur-free and that she has "no plans" to use fur in the future.

Karan's turnaround came days after PETA launched its online campaign and after mega--fashion guru Tim Gunn sent Karan and designer Giorgio Armani a video that he narrated for PETA showing animals skinned alive for their fur and urged them to open their eyes to the violent and bloody fur industry.

While Donna Karan has followed in the footsteps of top designers--including Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, and Calvin Klein -- ARMANI { http://getactive.peta.org/ct/fdxCTNK164i8/ } still refuses to stop using fur. Armani claims that he "only" uses fur from rabbits who are butchered for meat.

Contact Armani to tell him that the cruelty depicted in this video on fur farms in both China and France show animals who are used for both fur and meat. Tell him that even if the meat of gentle rabbits killed for their fur is sold to be eaten, the rabbits endure the same suffering.

TOUGH TIMES PUT MORE PETS IN SHELTERS
December 22, 2008

More people are giving up their dogs and cats to animal shelters as the emotional bonds between people and pets get tested by hard economic times.

From the Malvern, Pa., man who turned his two dogs over in order to help pay for his mother's cancer treatments, to the New York woman who euthanized her cat rather than keeping it alive with expensive medications, economic anxieties make it difficult for some pet owners to justify spending $1,000 a year or more on pet food, veterinary services and other costs.

The population growth at animal shelters shows how the weak economy is also shrinking the pool of potential adopters. And it coincides with a drop-off in government funding and charitable donations. The effect has been cramped quarters for dogs and cats, a faster rate of shelters euthanizing animals and some shelters turning away people looking to surrender pets.

“No matter how little money and how few possesions you own,
having a Dog makes you rich." ~ LEWIS SABIN

2 Years Jail, No Pet for Lake Carmel Man Who Punched Puppy
Thursday, 18 December 2008

CARMEL, N.Y. (AP)  -- A man who admitted breaking a puppy's jaw has been sentenced to two years in prison and ordered never to keep any pets.

Putnam County Judge James Rooney imposed the sentence on 20-year-old Gerald Barrett of Lake Carmel after rejecting a more lenient plea bargain.

Barrett admitted in October that he punched his ex-girlfriend's 4-month-old pit bull, Cali, and then called the young woman from jail despite an order of protection. He pleaded guilty to animal cruelty and contempt.

Prosecutors had agreed to recommend six months in jail but Rooney said Dec. 4 that he found the pre-sentencing report disturbing. He told Barrett he could withdraw the plea, but he did not.

Wednesday's sentence includes a ban on keeping any animals other than farm animals.

Hero Dog Found in NJ, Chased Burglar from New City Home
Posted: Thursday, 18 December 2008

NEW CITY, N.Y. -- A 1-year-old pit bull mix has been found after she apparently chased an intruder from her family's New City home on Tuesday.

Kola - a sick 1-year-old black pit bull mix - was found in New Jersey, its owner Mitch Rosen said.

Yesterday a woman found Kola tied to a pole at a Costco and then took her to an animal shelter. Rosen later identified her and took her home.
   
Rosen said he and his wife entered their home around 2:30 p.m. Tuesday and noticed that a window was broken. They also noticed muddy footprints in the house and that Kola was gone.

It appears that the dog chased the intruder out of the house before anything was stolen from the New City home.

Rosen and his family rescued Kola earlier this year after she was seized from a dog-fighting ring in Yonkers.

TM & Copyright 2008 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO & EYE Logo TM & Copyright 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. TheAssociated Press contributed to this report.

BLOG
Joe Biden Buys One, Gets One Killed
Posted by Christine Doré
Dec. 12, 2008

I was extremely disappointed to read that Vice President-elect Joe Biden and his wife bought a dog from a breeder instead of adopting one from an animal shelter. Obviously he or his wife blanked on Ingrid's letter , which asked him to consider adopting and explained, "Every year, U.S. animal shelters are forced to euthanize millions of wonderful, deserving dogs and cats because of the lack of good homes."
Ugh. I'm sorely upset about this—not to mention worried that his supporters will now all run out and get purebred German shepherds. I mean, not only is it really out of touch with dog issues to buy a dog from a breeder—or plain cold-hearted—it's such a bad idea that one New Mexico county has just banned selling dogs from pet stores altogether . At least some Americans know what's up. So what's with our future vice president?

If it weren't bad enough that Biden chose to buy from a breeder, we are now trying to confirm the accuracy of a report that was sent to us alleging that he bought his dog from a known puppy mill operator ! An anti–puppy mill activist who claims to have firsthand knowledge of this particular breeder's operation writes, "When I was there, she had dogs living outside in [I]gloos and a large side building wrapped in blue plastic … the barking was deafening … her inspection report states approximately 100 breeding dogs … she sold more than 275 dogs in 2006 … it was a stupid move on Biden's part … a puppy mill, for sure." Wow, Biden—if this is true, you've left us speechless.

Well, we decided to remind Mr. Biden and his home state of Delaware that every time someone buys a dog from a breeder, a dog in an animal shelter is killed. We will be running the following PSA on every station we can in Delaware:

Mr. Biden may have let us down, but we're still pinning our hopes on President-elect Obama , who said, "[a] lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me."

POST A COMMENT >>> http://blog.peta.org/archives/2008/12/joe_biden_buys.php?c=weekly_enews

Awwww! Joe Biden gets a new puppy
The Vice President-elect's grandchildren will pick out a name
Dec. 14, 2008

POTTSTOWN, Pa. - You could say the incoming Democratic administration is already going to the dogs.
Vice President-elect Joe Biden has picked out a 3-month-old male German shepherd from a suburban Philadelphia kennel to bring with him to Washington.

Biden, riding deep with seven black Secret Service vehicles, rolled up to German Shepherd breeder Linda Brown’s home in Chester County, Penn. on Saturday and rolled out having chosen the nation's Second Dog.

President-elect Barack Obama's children will also be getting a dog when they move to Washington.

Jill Biden promised her hubby that if he and Obama won the election they too would buy a dog.

Biden's pup, from Jolindy's German shepherd kennel in Spring City, will be trained and housebroken over the next several weeks and delivered after the inauguration.
The owner of the kennel says Biden told her his grandchildren will get to pick a name.

Mark Tobin, who coordinates the K-9 division for police in Biden's home county of New Castle, Del., will do the training.

Apparently, Biden had Tobin scout out breeder Linda Brown beforehand. Brown said Tobin called her up, came to her house to check her out, and told her she had “beautiful dogs.” And, that’s pretty much how it all began.

Brown says the Vice President-elect will be relieved to find his new puppy isn't a political beast. The puppy he chose is "very even-tempered" she said, and will make a nice family dog.

ASPCA Arrests Bronx Man for Cruelty to St. Bernard Mix
December 12, 2008

On November 20, ASPCA Humane Law Enforcement agents arrested Bronx resident Cedric Flemming for neglecting his seven-year-old female dog, Precious. Flemming, 28, was charged with one count of misdemeanor animal cruelty, punishable by up to one year in jail and a $2,000 fine.

Back in October, when responding to a complaint, ASPCA Special Agent John De La Torre first discovered the emaciated St. Bernard mix, about ten blocks north of Yankee Stadium. Agent De La Torre seized the dog and brought her to the ASPCA’s Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital, where she was treated for starvation and neglect. Under the care of our veterinarians, Precious’s gaunt 65-pound frame soon bulked up by 45 percent—after just one month at the ASPCA, she weighed in at a healthy 94 pounds. “When she first came in, Precious looked like a walking skeleton,” remembers Trish McMillan, ASPCA Senior Manager, Animal Behavior. “She’s now looking a million times better. You wouldn’t believe she’s the same dog!”

Ready to move on to a happier chapter of her life, this sweet girl is now available for adoption at the ASPCA’s 92nd Street Adoption Center. “Precious is a snuggly couch potato!” says McMillan. “She can be a bit shy at first, but she warms up to new people quickly—especially for cookies. Her ideal home would be a quiet one where she’ll be allowed on the furniture for frequent petting and belly rubs. This is an affectionate, low-maintenance dog who will lie around and cause no trouble.”

If you know of an animal whose health is being compromised by neglect, please report it. In New York City, contact the ASPCA's anonymous tip line at (877) THE-ASPCA. Visit our Report Cruelty FAQ to learn how to report cruelty elsewhere.

The upscale Beverly Center Mall in Los Angeles announced it will terminate the lease of the Hollywood pet store institution, Pet Love. 
Wed, December 10, 2008

Since last July, Best Friends staff and members like you have been at the Beverly Center educating potential customers that those cute puppies at Pet Love really come from cruel puppy mills.  

The goal of the Puppy-Store-Free-LA campaign is to convince stores to offer homeless pets for adoption rather than sell dogs from puppy mills. We’ve already seen two pets stores shut down, and now we have the biggest victory we could have hoped for. Pet Love, a store that sells to the Hollywood elite, is shutting its doors.

The iconic store has sold tens of thousands of unfixed dogs in the 15 years they have been in business, adding to the thousands of animals that clog area shelters and where many thousands die annually. But thanks to you, tireless efforts from countless volunteers, and the Best Friends Puppy Mill Campaign staff, the store will no longer be a part of the perpetual cycle of abuse.

This is only the beginning. The closing of such a giant in the pet store industry in LA, like Pet Love, is a huge victory, but we cannot stop now.

MEMBERSHIP APPEAL
√ Click on Image

News Alert
December 5, 2008

Thinking of Getting a Puppy This Holiday Season?
Watch This Video First √

It’s the picture-perfect scene: Sweet little Suzy, just turned three, toddles downstairs to find a new puppy with a big red bow. And with the latest charismatic canine movies— Beverly Hills Chihuahua and Marley & Me —hitting the big screen, purebred Chihuahuas and Labrador retrievers are bound to be on kids’ lists this holiday season.

Unfortunately, while the giver may have the best intentions, that cute little pooch most likely came from a substandard commercial breeding operation, commonly known as a puppy mill . And with the holiday season upon us, puppy scammers are on the prowl, hoping to lure shoppers with endearing photos and phony promises.

If you’re thinking of surprising the family with a new pet for the holidays, we’re all for it—if you do it the right way! To help you out, ASPCA President Ed Sayres and Officer Annemarie Lucas, ASPCA Humane Law Enforcement’s Supervisory Special Investigator, have prepared a special video message with tips for determining if a pet really is the best gift—and if so, where to find your furry bundle of joy. (Here’s a not-so-subtle hint: your local shelter or rescue group!)

P.S. Know someone who’s planning to give a pup as a present?
Please ask them to watch the video , too!

Fight Animal Cruelty √

PUPPY MILLS: What Is a Puppy Mill? • Laws Protecting Dogs & Consumers • Where We Stand • Puppy Mill Timeline • 10 Ways You Can Help Fight Puppy Mills • Puppy Mill Scams & Cons • Our Rescue Efforts • Puppy Mill Glossary

Dogfighting Subculture Is Taking Hold in Texas Texas Department of Public Safety
An investigation into dogfights in East Texas took 17 months, and led to the seizing of 187 pit bulls and 55 indictments.
By JAMES C. McKINLEY Jr.
Published: December 6, 2008

HOUSTON — The two undercover agents were miles from any town, deep in the East Texas countryside, following a car carrying three dogfighting fanatics and a female pit bull known for ripping off the genitals of other dogs. A car trailed the officers with two burly armed guards, hired to protect the dog and a $40,000 wager.

When the owners of the opposing dog, a crew from Louisiana, got cold feet and took off, the men in the undercover agents’ party reacted with fury, offering to chase them down and kill them. The owner of the female pit bull, an American living in Mexico, was merciful. He decided to take the opposing dog and let the men live, the officers said.

Over 17 months, the agents from the Texas state police penetrated a murky and dangerous subculture in East Texas, a world where petty criminals, drug dealers and a few people with ordinary jobs shared a passion for watching pit bulls tear each other apart in a 12-foot-square pit.

Investigators found that dogfighting was on the rise in Texas and was much more widespread than they had expected. The ring broken up here had links to dogfighting organizations in other states and in Mexico, suggesting an extensive underground network of people devoted to the activity, investigators said.

Besides a cadre of older, well-established dogfighters, officials said, the sport has begun to attract a growing following among young people from hardscrabble neighborhoods in Texas, where gangs, drug dealing and hip-hop culture make up the backdrop.

The investigation here led to the indictments of 55 people and the seizing of 187 pit bulls, breaking up what officials described as one of the largest dogfighting rings in the country.

“It’s like the Saturday night poker game for hardened criminals,” said one of the undercover agents, Sgt. C. T. Manning, describing the tense atmosphere at the fights.

In between screaming obscenities at the animals locked in combat, Sergeant Manning said, the participants smoked marijuana, popped pills, made side deals about things like selling cocaine and fencing stolen property, and, always, talked about dogs.

Click √ on image above for full article

Making history!
by David Dickson
December 5, 2008

Okay, all you scholastic types. Picture this academic situation: You've crammed all semester long for the final exam. The big day arrives. But, right before the instructor tells you to pick up your pencil, you sit down on a chair full of thumbtacks while hundreds of fire ants come spilling out of your desk to nibble on your arms. Think it'd be easy to concentrate? Oscar the Vicktory dog didn't think so either. Thank goodness he had another chance!

Oscar has been going through the Canine Good Citizen (CGC) classes at Best Friends. These classes teach dogs good manners, which helps them find homes and stay there. For Oscar, though, the stakes were higher. He is one of the 22 dogs who came to Best Friends after being seized from the property of former NFL quarterback Michael Vick.

The courts had very specific requirements regarding these dogs, one of which dealt directly with Oscar's big day. Nine out of the 22, Oscar included, were required to pass their CGC tests with a perfect score before they could ever live in a foster home. One of Oscar's caregivers, Carissa Hendricks, was determined to help him succeed. She attended the classes every week and then worked with him on the behaviors as often as possible. Oscar's biggest issues were loose-leash walking, becoming too afraid at loud noises, and being confident around strangers.

Over the weeks, Carissa watched Oscar overcome his problem areas one by one. She felt sure he would pass his test with flying colors. Then he hit one little setback. Right before the big test, they plowed an area of land for the testing ground. In doing so, they unearthed a whole bunch of goatheads, nasty little weeds sharp enough to puncture car tires.

During his final practice, Oscar stepped on a bunch of those nasty little things. No fun! But that really wasn't the worst of it. When he had to sit and stay for that part of the routine, he sat unknowingly on a pile of red ants. Ouch! The poor guy, he was squirming and twisting in a hurry.

Safe to say, that wasn't exactly his shining moment. He took a week to heal up and regain his focus before the big day (which they held at a different location). But once the main test came, boy was he ready. And guess what? He passed! A perfect score! Oscar is the first of all the Vicktory dogs to pass his CGC exam and he couldn't be more proud.

This big loveable lug is officially now eligible to join a foster home once the right person comes along. Congrats, Oscar and Carissa! Glad that even the ants couldn't slow you down.

Photo by Molly Wald

California: Dogfighting Arrests
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: December 2, 2008

The police in Los Angeles said they made two arrests and rescued 17 dogs in the breakup of a dogfighting operation. They said the outfit was a major player in the illegal training and breeding of dogs for fighting. Of the 17 dogs, many were scarred and injured, and all were suffering from severe dermatitis.

Fox, Meet Your Enemy (But No Need to Worry)
November 28, 2008

In northern Maryland, Thanksgiving means it' time for the annualGreenspring Valley Hunt Club outing. It is described as a fox chase, not a fox hunt, but otherwise is in keeping with traditions going back for generations.

The day began with the blesing of the houndsthat drew more than 125 Dogs and more than 50 horses. Then te hunt -- er chase -- was on.

Photo: Mycah Albert for The New York Times

He is the show’s busiest-ever Best in Show titlist.

He was the first one to be celebrated as a champion by President Bush in the White House Rose Garden last May and still wears the red, white and blue collar that Laura Bush gave him.

He has thrown out — O.K., he fetched — the first pitch before major league games at Busch Stadium in St. Louis and Miller Park in Milwaukee.

His home state of Illinois declared a March day in his honor (and the lieutenant governor connected Uno to Abe Lincoln’s dog).

Shari Belafonte swept him off a table and walked him on the red carpet at a Hollywood fund-raiser. He has met the family of Charles M. Schulz, the “Peanuts” creator who sired Snoopy, Uno’s ink-on-paper beagle forebear.

About all he has not done since winning the Westminster at Madison Square Garden and retiring from competition is to sire any puppies.

PHOTO CREDITS
Top left - Lisa Rose/Associated Press:
Uno, the first beagle to win best in show at Westminster, with Snoopy at Knott’s Berry Farm in California in March.
Bottom right - Donna Ward/Getty Images: Uno “signing” autographs.

Click √ on Snoopy image for full story

Weird but True
Lukas I. Alpert
November 27, 2008

This guy picked the wrong species to mess with.

An Ohio K-9 cop chased dow and bit a suspectwanted on dogfighting charges. As the man ran, the police pooch grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him to the ground, where two-legged officers finished making the arrest.

November 26, 2008

Sometimes man's best friend is not so friendly.

An Oregon man was shot in the behindwhen his pet pooch jumped into his boat and accidentally triggered his 12-gauge shotgun.

Matthew Marcum said Drake is a good Dog and he's not angry over the pain in his butt.

Motive in Japanese Stabbings: A Dead Dog
By MARTIN FACKLER
Published: November 24, 2008

TOKYO — The Japanese police say the motive in last week’s stabbing deaths of a former health

On Monday, the police arrested a 46-year-old unemployed man, Takeshi Koizumi, after he turned himself in for the killings. He was carrying a blood-stained knife.

The police had been investigating whether the killings, which shocked this low-crime nation, were motivated by recent scandals involving tens of millions of lost pension records, which are administered by the ministry.

But Mr. Koizumi told police that he was angry at the ministry because, decades ago, animal control agents had put to sleep a stray dog that he had befriended as a child.

Takeshi Koizumi, seen on November 23 while in police custody.
Koizumi who admitted murdering a former top bureaucrat has
said he planned to attack as many as 10 people because of the
death of his dog, officials said Tuesday.

Ex-NFL player Vick allowed dogs to savage family pets: report

November 22, 2008

RICHMOND, Virginia — Jailed ex-National Football League star Michael Vick allowed his fighting dogs to savage family pets, a federal government agency has said in a report.

Vick drowned dogs that did not perform well in a five-gallon pail of water, according to a report released by US Department of Agriculture on Friday.

The 17-page report also said Vick and his three partners, Quanis Phillips, Purnell Peace and Tony Taylor, "thought it was funny" to watch their trained pitbulls kill family pets and other dogs.

"They drowned approximately three dogs by putting the dogs' heads in a five-gallon bucket of water."

Vick is back in the state of Virginia to answer state dogfighting charges, and is being held in protective custody at a Richmond, Virginia area jail until a hearing on Tuesday.

The former all-star quarterback with the Atlanta Falcons arrived on Thursday from Kansas, where he is serving a two-year sentence for a dogfighting conspiracy conviction.

Vick, who was once the highest paid player in the NFL, is scheduled to be released in July 2009.

------------------------------------------------

In Virginia facing state dogfighting charges, Vick's involvement revealed
By Kelly Naqi
November 22, 2008

Suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick placed family pet dogs into a ring and his trained pit bulls "caused major injuries" to the pets at Bad Newz Kennels, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture report released on Friday.

The 17-page report, prepared by the USDA's inspector general-investigations division, provided some new details on Vick's participation in Bad Newz Kennels, the dogfighting operation financed by Vick and formed along with his friends Tony Taylor, Purnell Peace and Quanis Phillips.

Michael Vick is isolated at the Riverside Regional Jail in Virginia to avoid disruptions.

The report, dated Aug. 28, 2008, says "Vick, Peace and Phillips thought it was funny to watch the pit bull dogs belonging to Bad Newz Kennels injure or kill the other dogs." The report has names and phrases redacted in order to protect the anonymity of certain individuals who cooperated with investigators.The report also states in mid-April of 2007, Vick, Peace and Phillips hung approximately three dogs that did not perform well in a "rolling session," which indicates the readiness of a dog to fight. According to the report, the three men hung the dogs "by placing a nylon cord over a 2 X 4 that was nailed to two trees located next to the big shed. They also drowned approximately three dogs by putting the dogs' heads in a five gallon bucket of water."

Vick initially told authorities "while he assisted Phillips and Peace in the killing of the dogs, he did not actually kill the dogs" but "helped Phillips toss several dogs to the side," according to the report.

However, the report says Vick took back that statement when he failed a polygraph test. "Vick failed the examination as it related to the killing of the dogs in April 2007. Ultimately, Vick recanted his previous statement wherein he said he was not actually involved in the killing of six to eight dogs. ... Vick admitted taking part in the actual hanging of the dogs." Vick, the report says, paid someone whose name was redacted $100 to dig two graves for the dog carcasses. "Based on past circumstances," the report says, "Phillips and Peace did not like [Vick] to do any type of work that could injure him and jeopardize his NFL contract." When the person who dug the graves refused to bury the animals, the report says, Vick, Peace and Phillips buried the dogs themselves.

Vick is serving a 23 month sentence in a minimum security federal prison camp in Leavenworth, Kan., on a conspiracy charge relating to the interstate dogfighting operation he helped run on a property he owned in Surry County, Virginia. Vick is scheduled to be released on July 20, 2009.

Vick is currently being held in protective custody at Riverside Regional Jail in Hopewell, Va., until his hearing on Tuesday in Surry County Circuit Court to plead guilty to two state charges related to dogfighting. The state charges -- one count of torturing and killing dogs and one count of promoting dogfighting -- each carry a maximum prison term of five years. But under the terms of his plea agreement, Vick is expected to receive a three-year suspended prison term and a $2,500 fine (which would be suspended if he pays court costs and maintains good behavior for four years).

By resolving the pending state charges, Vick would qualify to participate in the Federal Bureau of Prisons re-entry program, which could enable him to serve part of the remainder of his federal sentence in a halfway house.
According to the Bureau of Prisons, in 2007, for inmates who qualified, the average length of their time served at a halfway house was three months.

Vick, who was once the NFL's highest paid player, has been washing pots and pans for 12 cents an hour, according to Falcons owner Arthur Blank, who has said he's kept in touch with Vick through written correspondence. Blank said Vick also told him he's passing the time and staying in shape by playing quarterback for both sides during prison football games. Vick, 28, is still under contract with the Falcons.

National Football League Commissioner Roger Goodell suspended Vick indefinitely without pay on Aug. 24, 2007, and has said he will review the status of Vick's suspension following the conclusion of Vick's legal proceedings.

Vick's lawyers, the NFL and the Falcons were not immediately available for comment.

Dog Drives Van into L.I. Coffee House
Thursday, 20 November 2008

ST. JAMES, N.Y. (AP)  -- A dog left inside a running van put the vehicle in drive, causing it to crash into a Long Island coffee house.
  
Suffolk County police say no one was injured in the incident, which damaged the glass window and some patio furniture at Cool Beanz coffee shop in St. James.
   
Police say a 60-year-old Port Jefferson resident left the van running while he went into the shop. His dog, Bentley, somehow knocked the controls and it rolled into the building, smashing some patio furniture and damaging the storefront window, police said.

No one was hurt.

It's not immediately clear if cops ticketed Bentley for driving without a license.

==================================

Conn. Woman Will Go to Trial in Death of Starved Dog
Thursday, 20 November 2008

BRISTOL, Conn. (AP)  -- After being denied probation, a Plymouth woman accused of starving her 4-year-old dog to death is headed to trial.
   
Thirty-one-year-old Jessica Watson, who lives in the Terryville section of Plymouth, faces one count of animal cruelty after allegedly refusing food and water over a three-week span to the dog, Gizmo, a pit bull.
   
Watson was arrested on Feb. 17.
   
A Bristol Superior Court judge has denied her application for accelerated rehabilitation, which would have led to erasing the charge from her record.
   
Watson's former neighbors discovered the dog on Jan. 17 in the back of a garage bay attached to the apartment Watson was living in at the time.
   
Officials confirmed that the pit bull died of starvation.

Banker Pleads Guilty To Killing Landlord's Terrier
Thursday, 20 November 2008

NEW YORK (AP)  -- A banker who was accused of stomping and beating his landlord's Boston terrier to death pleaded guilty Wednesday to misdemeanor animal cruelty charges.
   
Tafik Habib, 40, pleaded guilty to ``overdriving, torturing and injuring'' an animal, a violation of the state's agricultural law. He admitted to the court he kicked the 15-pound, nearly 3-year-old dog and beat her with an umbrella.
   
The terrier, named Sasha, had a litter of 7-week-old puppies. Her owner, Elefterios Bonaros, wept profusely as Habib pleaded guilty to killing the dog on Jan. 10 in Bonaros' Upper West Side Manhattan apartment.
   
Habib's plea deal requires him to do 175 hours of community service at an AIDS hospice, pay $160 court costs, and spend six days in jail.
   
State Supreme Court Justice Carol Berkman told Habib, ``I happen to be an animal lover myself,'' and warned that she would give him more jail time if he does not successfully complete the community service.
   
Habib faced up to a year in jail if he had been convicted after trial.
   
Earl Ward, Habib's lawyer, said his client moved temporarily from an unidentified city in Florida to Manhattan for job-related reasons and rented a room in Bonaros' apartment.
   
Bonaros said his tenant let him know quickly that he did not like dogs.
   
``He said they were useless and served no purpose,'' the distraught Bonaros said.
   
Bonaros, 51, said he left home for 20 minutes while Habib was out. ``When I got back I knew something was wrong because the dogs didn't come to meet me,'' he said in the courthouse lobby.
   
Bonaros said he found Sasha inside, covered with a towel. ``He had smashed her head and face with his foot,'' he said as he began sobbing again.
   
He said Sasha's mate, Rocky, died months later of a broken heart.
   
A large, burly man and retired travel agency owner, Bonaros said he considered attacking Habib but didn't do it.
   
The puppies were not injured. Two of them, Sashita named for her mother and Gizmo, still live with Bonaros; siblings Snowball and Sparky were adopted.

Bonaros also has two of Sasha's offspring from a previous litter, Petey and Bam Bam.

More than a 100 animals perish in pet shop fire
BY DORIAN BLOCK AND LEO STANDORA
Thursday, November 20th 2008

More than 100 frantic birds, reptiles and small animals died trapped in their cages Wednesday when fire raged through a Bronx pet shop.

The blazing end to Stephanie and Amanda's Pet Center on Southern Blvd., a favorite attraction for kids in their Morrisania neighborhood, sent its owner home in tears when he realized almost all was lost.

"He couldn't take it. He just couldn't stay and watch what was happening," said 52-year-old Joel Rivera, who manages the shop for his cousin, David Rivera.

"He's been here 30 years and all of a sudden, it's all gone. His business, the animals, all gone. Maybe we can start all over again," he said, wiping away tears with the back of his hand.

A dry cleaner and a photo shop next to the pet shop also burned down, and a nearby five-story apartment building was evacuated but sustained only minor damage. No one in the buildings was injured.

Rivera said many of the 140 firefighters summoned to the three-alarm blaze risked their lives to save as many of the doomed creatures - parrots, parakeets, rabbits, guinea pigs, lizards and other reptiles, at least two cats and a pair of guard dogs - as they could.

"I got the lizards and they got two of our three macaws," which were worth $2,000 each, he said. "They tried to get other animals out, but they couldn't. There were too many cages, maybe 50 to 60, and too much fire."

"I'll miss them, all of them," Rivera said. "I used to play with the parrots. I'd put them on my shoulder. I was with them all the time. And the rabbits, all the kids around here loved them. They used to come in and take their pictures."

Fire officials said the blaze erupted in Urrego Alba Cleaners at 1105 Southern Blvd. about 4:15 p.m. and quickly spread to the other buildings. The cause was under investigation.

During the height of the fire, which wasn't brought under control until about 7 p.m., several blocks of Southern Blvd. were cordoned off in both directions. Service on the elevated No. 2 and 5 subway lines was suspended between E. 149th and E. 180th Sts. Transit officials said thick smoke billowing from the buildings was near the tracks and creating an unsafe situation.

Weird but True
David K. Li, Wire Services
November 18, 2008

British veterinarians want big Dogs and fat cats to shed their girth.

Seven Dogs and a Cat --all at least 30% over their desired weight -- will be put on a 100 day diet and exercise regimen as part of a study to see if they can drop 162 collective pounds.

"Owners often show their affection by giving unhealthy human treats [to pets] .... Theu don't realize they are actually killing their pets with kindness," said vet Sean Wensley.

Dogfighting Ring Is Broken Up in Texas
By JAMES C. McKINLEY Jr.
Published: November 16, 2008

HOUSTON — State officials said late Friday that they had begun dismantling one of the largest dogfighting rings in the country that night, arresting eight people and seizing 187 dogs used by a sophisticated network of bettors throughout eastern Texas . Investigators continued to search for suspects Saturday.

In all, 55 people were indicted after an undercover investigation that lasted 17 months. Officials said the network’s matches drew crowds of up to 100 people, who placed tens of thousands of dollars in wagers on a single fight.

“This was a large-scale, highly organized operation,” said Lisa Block, a spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Public Safety.

It was not uncommon for a gambler to put $500 to $1,000 down on the matches, which took place weekly or twice a month at eight sites in secluded parts of Harris County, where Houston is the largest city, law enforcement officials said.

The events were by invitation only. “They didn’t go out in the street and advertise it,” Ms. Block said. “They would spread the news among themselves.”

Because the ring members invited only people they knew to the fights, undercover agents from the state police infiltrated the group to gather evidence and even managed to videotape some of the matches, officials said. The investigation started after troopers received a tip from someone in another state about the fights, Ms. Block said.

Many of the participants in the ring bred the dogs themselves, buying and selling animals back and forth with other members. Most of the dogs seized were pit bull mixes bred and trained to fight. They were kept in large kennels in rural areas northeast of Houston. Some of the dogs had been injured in fights and were being cared for by the Houston Humane Society.

During raids to seize the animals, state troopers also found firearms, marijuana, cocaine and stolen property, the authorities said. But the indictments charged the defendants only with engaging in dogfights, a felony that carries up to two years in prison, or misdemeanor charges of being a spectator at a dogfight, which carries up to a year in jail.

Cell Phone Sniffing Dogs Added to N.J. Prisons
Posted: Sunday, 16 November

NEWARK, N.J. (AP)  -- New Jersey prison officials are trying a new approach to detect illegal cell phones among the inmate population: cell phone-sniffing Dogs.

New Jersey Department of Corrections Spokesman Matt Schuman tells The Press of Atlantic City that other methods prisons use to detect illegal cell phones, such as metal detectors or machines that track usage, require the phones to be turned on.

He says the Dogs are trained to detect the scent of the phone itself.

Schuman says 217 cell phones were confiscated in New Jersey prisons since October of last year.
Prison officials say cell phones are sought-after contraband because they can be used to transmit pictures or sensitive information about a facility's layout, or conduct drug deals or other illicit activities.

Movie Review
Roadside Romeo
Yash Raj Films & Walt Disney Pictures
By RACHEL SALTZ
Published: October 25, 2008

With the animated dog’s-life feature “Roadside Romeo,” Bollywood continues its technological juggernaut. A co-production of Yash Raj Films and Walt Disney Pictures, “Romeo” is something new under the Indian sun: sophisticated computer-generated animation that uses stars to voice the characters. But craftsmanship and Disney aside, “Romeo” is very much a conventional Hindi movie with a small-guys-versus-gangsters plot, song-and-dance sequences and film references galore.

Romeo, a honey-colored pup living on the Mumbai streets, has the voice of Saif Ali Khan, and he’s a typical Khan character, a Westernized sweet-talker with a propensity to start every sentence with “Dude” and “O.K. guys.” His idea for financial uplift? Open a hair salon, which he does with his crew of Bollywood-savvy mutts. (The uninitiated needn’t worry; the subtitles let no reference go unparsed, as in “Imitating Shah Rukh Khan” after a line of dialogue.) Trouble occurs when the gang runs afoul of Charlie Anna (Jaaved Jaaferi), the big don dog, who loves Laila (Kareena Kapoor), the same fluffy white creature with dreadful pink eye shadow that Romeo adores.

$coop that Poop
October 24, 2008

NEW YORK ~AP
Dog owners, take note: New York City's fine for failing to pick up after Fido is now $250, more than double the $100 it had been since the pooper-scooperlaw passed in 1978.

Gov. Paterson signed the increase into law in July but there was a 90-day delay before it took effect yesterday, the Sanitation Department announced.

Dog lover steams 'milk'
October 24, 2008

BOULDER, Co. ~AP
The owners of the "Got Milk?" slogan are geting mean with a Dog loverwho sold memorabilia printed with the words "Got Soy Milk?" and a photo of her Dog sporting a soy-milk mustache.

Mary Kenez, of Boulder, who sold the T-shirts and novelties though her online business, was threatened with a lawsuit by the California Milk Processors Board for trademark infringement.

"I thought it was cute," said Kenez, whose Golden Retriever, Cloe, died last summer. "To me it was just a parody."

2 Dozen Poodles Rescued from Queens Home
Thursday, 23 October 2008

NEW YORK ~AP
The ASPCA says it has rescued about 25 poodles from a home in Queens.
The dogs, ranging in age from 2 months to 6 years, are relatively healthy, but are not well socialized to strangers and new environments.

The ASPCA said Thursday that residents of the house had a breeding business. Sales became slow, resulting in too many poodles.

A social worker involved with the family notified the ASPCA.

The director of the agency's Manhattan adoption center says the dogs will receive medical treatment and behavioral training before they're put up for adoption.

Vick plans plea in Va. dogfights
October 22, 2008

SURRY, Va. (AP) - Former NFL quarterback MICHAEL VICK plans to plead guilty to state dogfighting charges, a step that could allow him toqualify for an early release from federal prison and into a halfway house.

In court papers filed in Surry County Circuit Court, Vick's attorneys say they are seeking to have him enter his plea by video teleconference. The papers also note that the guilty plea would save the government the considrable expense of transporting Vick to Surry.

"I'm not trying to make him suffer," Commonwealth's Attorney Gerald Poindextersaid in a telephone interview. "I'm just trying to make him account for what he's done."

Rush Limbark! Crazy Pet Names Unleashed
BY RICH SCHAPIRO
Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Some people give their pets unique names.

Sophie Touch & Pee is a golden retriever who struggles to hold it in. Edward Scissorpaws , a grey feline, has claws that she's not afraid to use. Rush Limbark's owner knows that if she leaves her Hurricane Katrina rescue dog in a car with commentator Rush Limbaugh 's show on the radio, he'll rest easy.

"We joke about the fact that he is a conservative canine," Buena Silverman , of Holicong, PA, says.

These dogs and cats are among the 100 selected by staffers at Veterinary Pet Insurance , a pet health insurance provider, as having the most unusual names among its 465,000 pets insured nationwide."

Gone are the days when only names like "Spike" and "Fido" echoed across parks and dog runs. Now, pet owners are far more likely to label their furry loved ones names that demonstrate personal creativity or, simply, draw laughs.

"The dog park would definitely be a more interesting place if you heard people saying, 'Fetch, Rafikikadiki,' or, "'Come here, Meatwad,'" said Curtis Steinhoff , the senior director of corporate communications for the pet insurance company.

"I might be a little hesitant to introduce people to Miss Fuzzbutt, or Sir Lix-a-lot, but I also can't think of many better conversation starters."

Two New York canines made the list of the 50 most unusual dog names. There's Mr. Poo, a mixed breed from Ridgewood, Queens , and The Bean, a Corgi-Cardigan, who calls Sagaponack , L.I. home. Among the names that round out the top ten most outrageous dog monikers are: Sirius Lee Handsome, Low Jack, Peanut Wigglebutt and Scuddles Unterfuss.

The most bizarre cat names include Snoop Kitty Kitty, Sparklemonkey and Toot Uncommon.

'Walter Reed' for combat dogs opens at Texas base
By MICHELLE ROBERTS
Wed., Oct. 22, 2008

SAN ANTONIO – A new $15 million veterinary hospital for four-legged military personnel opened Tuesday at Lackland Air Force Base , offering a long overdue facility that gives advanced medical treatment for combat-wounded dogs.

Dogs working for all branches of the military and the Transportation Safety Administration are trained at the base to find explosive devices, drugs and land mines. Some 2,500 dogs are working with military units.
Like soldiers and Marines in combat, military dogs suffer from war wounds and routine health issues that need to be treated to ensure they can continue working.

Dogs injured in Iraq or Afghanistan get emergency medical treatment on the battlefield and are flown to Germany for care. If necessary, they'll fly on to San Antonio for more advanced treatment — much like wounded human personnel.

"We act as the Walter Reed of the veterinary world," said Army Col. Bob Vogelsang, hospital director, referring to the Washington military medical center that treats troops returning severely wounded from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The dogs can usually return to combat areas if they recover at the Military Working Dog Center, he said.

Before the center opened, veterinarians treated and rehabilitated dogs in a cramped building that opened in 1968, when the military trained dogs for work in Vietnam .

The hospital was already overloaded by Sept. 11, 2001, but since then, demand for military working dogs has jumped dramatically. They're so short on dog breeds such as German shepherds , Labrador retrievers and Belgian Malinoises that Lackland officials have begun breeding puppies at the base.

Lackland is training 750 dogs, which is nearly double the number of dogs there before the Sept. 11 attacks , Vogelsang said.

To treat the trainees and injured working dogs, the new hospital has operating rooms, digital radiography ,CT scanning equipment , an intensive care unit and rehab rooms with an underwater treadmill and exercise balls, among other features. A behavioral specialist has an office near the lobby.

"This investment made sense ... and somehow, we were able to convince others," said retired Col. Larry Carpenter, who first heard complaints about the poor facilities in 1994 and later helped to launch the project.

Training a military working dog takes about four months. With demand outstripping the number of dogs available, hospital and veterinary workers were trying to keep them healthy and working as long as possible, Vogelsang said.

Working dogs usually enter training at 1 1/2- to 3-years-old, and most can work until they're about 10, he said.

Then, the military tries to adopt them out and "station them at Fort Living Room," Vogelsang said

Photo: AP – Dog handler James Stegmeyer works with Kamilka at the new Military Working Dog Center at Lackland Air

In Hard Times for Humans, Hardships for Pets, Too
With all the talk of bulls and bears lately, what’s happening to cats and dogs?
By TINA KELLEY
Published: October 17, 2008

Jenny Daniel, a volunteer at Animal Care and Control of New York City, with Bricky, who was give up by ts owners this week.

Rescue group leaves Iraq without puppy that was championed by thousands in petition campaign
By FREDERIC J. FROMMER
Associated Press Writer
October 15, 2008

WASHINGTON (AP) -- An animal rescue group left Baghdad on Wednesday without a puppy whose cause has been championed by thousands of people from around the world.

But the group said the U.S. military had cleared the dog to leave and was hopeful to get it out of the country as soon as Sunday.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International says the military finally agreed to allow the dog, Ratchet, to leave the country, but only 30 minutes before the flight out, too late for the dog to make it. SPCA's Operation Baghdad Pups flight left with six other dogs bound for the U.S.

The military responded that it did not hold the dog or order it to stay put at a U.S. military base.

Army Spc. Gwen Beberg, 28, of Minneapolis, adopted Ratchet (left) after she and another soldier rescued the puppy from a burning pile of trash in May. But Defense Department rules prohibit U.S. troops who are deployed from caring for pets in theater or taking them home.

Baghdad Pups tried to collect Ratchet two weeks ago, but said a U.S. commander had intercepted a military convoy carrying the dog to Baghdad and sent it back to Beberg's former base. More than 45,000 people have signed an online petition urging the Army to let the puppy come to the U.S.

Baghdad Pups has brought more than 50 cats and dogs to the U.S. to be with their owners. The group says it is both rescuing animals who face abuse in Iraq, as well as helping soldiers who benefit from the bond developed with the animals.

Beberg, who plans to return to the U.S. next month, was ecstatic about the news that her dog was cleared to leave.

"I am thrilled that Ratchet is going home!!" she wrote in an e-mail to the SPCA and others Wednesday, adding that she planned to do a "victory dance" on Sunday.

Maj. Daniel Elliott, a spokesman for U.S. forces south of Baghdad, said in a statement Wednesday that the military had no control of the dog.

"Our military working dogs carry rank and are afforded many of the rights and privileges of their fellow soldiers," he said. "Ratchet is a wild dog indigenous to Iraq. A stray, befriended by a soldier. As such, we do not control him, nor can we 'order' him not to leave" the base.

Elliott added that there was nothing preventing SPCA from picking up the dog.

Besides the thousands of petition signers, Ratchet had champions such as Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison, as well as both of the state's senators, Democrat Amy Klobuchar and Republican Norm Coleman, all of whom wrote letters to the military asking them to review the case.

To sign Ratchet petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/clemency-for-ratchet

Army blocks soldier from bringing puppy back
By FREDERIC J. FROMMER
Associated Press Writer
Tue October 14, 2008

WASHINGTON – More than 10,000 people have signed an online petition urging the Army to let an Iraqi puppy come home with a Minnesota soldier, who fears that "Ratchet" could be killed if left behind.

"I just want my puppy home," Sgt. Gwen Beberg of Minneapolis (left with Ratchet) wrote to her mother in an e-mail Sunday from Iraq , soon after she was separated from the dog following a transfer. "I miss my dog horribly." Beberg, 28, is scheduled to return to the U.S. next month.

Ratchet's defenders are ratcheting up their efforts to save him. On Monday, the program coordinator for Operation Baghdad Pups, which is run by Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International , left for a trip to the Middle East to try to get the puppy to the U.S.

And last week, Beberg's congressman, Democrat Keith Ellison , wrote to the Army urging it to review the case.
Beberg and another soldier rescued the puppy from a burning pile of trash back in May. Defense Department rules prohibit soldiers in the U.S. Central Command , which includes Iraq, from adopting pets , but exceptions have been made. Operation Baghdad Pups says it has gotten 50 dogs and six cats transferred to the U.S. in the last eight months.

"I'm coping reasonably well because I refuse to believe that Ratchet has been hurt," Beberg wrote in the e-mail to her mother, Patricia Beberg. "If I find out that he was killed though — well, we just won't entertain that possibility."
The mother said her daughter sent another e-mail saying that she confirmed that the dog was still alive and doing OK.

Operation Baghdad Pups' program coordinator, Terri Crisp, is scheduled to arrive in Baghdad on Wednesday. Crisp said the adopted dogs left behind face death on Iraqi streets.

She said Iraqis view dogs and cats as nuisances and carriers of disease, and U.S. soldiers have rescued many of them from abuse.

Photo provided by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

Thu, October 9, 2008

A Kennel Belies Its Name
October 3, 2008

Agents raided the Almost Heaven Kennel in Emmaus, Pa., on Thursday and found hundreds of animals crowded into a filthy compound and dozens of puppy carcasses in a freezer. The owner, Derbe Eckhart, was charged with animal cruelty.

Agency to Reconsider Taking Gray Wolves Off Endangered
Species List
By JIM ROBBINS
September 24, 2008

HELENA, Mont. — The federal agency that removed the gray wolf from the endangered species list in March has changed its mind and is asking a federal judge to vacate the decision.

The request, by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, follows a temporary order by Judge Donald Molloy of Federal District Court in Missoula, Mont., against the service’s decision in March to remove the wolf from the list. The agency said then that the wolf population in the Northern Rockies had fully recovered.

The order stopped a plan to allow hunting of the wolves in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming until a lawsuit by environmentalists challenging the wolves’ removal from the endangered species list could be heard.

On Monday the Fish and Wildlife Service asked Judge Molloy to vacate the delisting and allow officials to reconsider their finding and further study the issue. “We are going to take a look at everything again and address the concerns expressed to us by the judge and everyone else,” said Sharon Rose of the service’s Mountain Prairie Office.

Environmentalists were pleased by the agency’s action. “We’re delighted by the request to redo the plan,” said Louisa Wilcox, of the Natural Resources Defense Council. “It clearly reflects the fact that there were problems with the plan.”

The environmentalists’ lawsuit, filed in July, said among other things that a plan to control the wolf population relied too heavily on killing the animals, rather than on nonlethal means of control. They also said the wolves’ genetics, which dictate their long-term survivability, were not well understood.

The reconsideration of the listing was not related to a recently announced decline in the wolf population in the Rockies. Wildlife officials counted 1,455 animals this summer, down from 1,545 a year ago. It was the first drop in more than 10 years and officials said they were not sure why.

The first wolf hunting season, scheduled for this fall, was delayed after Judge Molloy’s order. If the judge grants the Fish and Wildlife Service’s request, it will be further delayed until the re-evaluation is complete.

But state and federal agents in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming will still be allowed to kill problem wolves that threaten livestock. Since wolves returned to the West in the 1990s federal agents have killed more than 1,000 wolves, and last year 186 problem wolves were killed in the three states.

• • •

Long Live the Gray Wolf
Editorial
September 24, 2008

The federal Fish and Wildlife Service has rescinded an earlier decision to remove the gray wolf in the Northern Rockies from the endangered species list. The wolves need the protection, so this is wonderful news. It will be even better if it results in a secure, long-term future for the wolves instead of the threadbare state protections that have been in place since the wolf was delisted last winter.

Judge Donald Molloy (left) of Federal District Court has had much to do with this outcome. In July, in response to a lawsuit from environmental groups, he found that the government had failed to meet its own standards for delisting the wolves. Crucially, the service had provided no evidence of interbreeding among the scattered populations of wolves. Interbreeding is an important sign of adequate, stable numbers.

Nor did Judge Molloy think much of the protection plans in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. After it delisted the wolves, the Fish and Wildlife Service entrusted the job of managing wolf populations to the states. He was especially critical of Wyoming’s program, which is really more of a wolf-killing plan since it allows wolves to be hunted for sport or shot as predators in most of the state.

Federal biologists will almost certainly try to rewrite the wolf recovery plan to meet Judge Molloy’s objections. In doing so, and before proposing any new delisting scheme, they must insist that the states demonstrate not only the capacity but, especially in Wyoming’s case, the political will to manage wild populations responsibly. More than 100 wolves have already been needlessly killed since the ill-advised delisting.

Judge Molloy has reminded us of one other thing. That is the importance of the Endangered Species Act, which the Bush administration has repeatedly tried to weaken. There have been few biological reintroductions as successful as the restoration of the gray wolf to the Rockies. The wolves would never have survived without the act’s legal shelter.

Dog Owner Sent to Prison for Murder in ’01 Mauling
By JESSE MCKINLEY
September 22, 2008

SAN FRANCISCO — A San Francisco Superior Court judge sentenced a woman to 15 years to life in prison on Monday for her role in an infamous fatal dog mauling. Marjorie Knoller, whose dogs attacked a neighbor, was sentenced to 15 years to life.

The sentence came a month after the judge, Charlotte W. Woolard, reinstated a second-degree murder conviction against the woman, Marjorie Knoller, stemming from the 2001 attack that killed Ms. Knoller’s neighbor Diane Whipple. Ms. Whipple, a 33-year-old lacrosse coach, was attacked in the hallway of her building in January 2001 by Ms. Knoller’s two 120-pound dogs and bitten more than 75 times.

A second-degree murder conviction against Ms. Knoller was thrown out in 2002 by the original trial judge, who said the evidence did not support the charge. She was sentenced instead to four years in prison for involuntary manslaughter and released on parole in 2004.

But on Monday, Judge Woolard, who took over the case earlier this year, imposed the new sentence, which was hailed by Kamala D. Harris, the San Francisco district attorney. “This defendant is now facing the appropriate punishment,” Ms. Harris said.

The mauling attracted widespread attention and was moved to Los Angeles in search of an unbiased jury.

Ms. Knoller asserted that she had tried to protect her neighbor from the dogs, a powerful breed called Presa Canario. But prosecutors convinced a jury that Ms. Knoller was both aware of the dogs’ violent potential and blithe to other people’s safety. Ms. Knoller’s husband, Robert Noel, who was not present at the attack, was also convicted of involuntary manslaughter.

Dennis Riordan, a lawyer for Ms. Knoller, said she would appeal the reinstated murder conviction. “In our view,” Mr. Riordan said, “the notion that she said, ‘Rather than staying home and cooking dinner, I’ll go out and possibly kill somebody,’ is unsupported by the evidence.”

Pool photo of Ms Knoller by Nick Ut

Man Arrested for Allegedly Throwing Canine to Her Death
September 19, 2008

Thanks to the diligence of the ASPCA Humane Law Enforcement (HLE) department, justice will finally be served to the man who allegedly threw his ex-girlfriend’s small dog to her death. The incident occurred on September 14, 2007—a year ago this week.

On that day, Farah Benoit returned to the Brooklyn apartment she had shared with former boyfriend Sherman Haynes to collect her belongings, including her three-year-old shih tzu, Zahara. Haynes would not allow Benoit into the building and began tossing her possessions—including clothing and a heavy cabinet—out of his third-floor window. Witnesses stated that Haynes grabbed Zahara by the throat and then  threw the canine to the sidewalk below.

Benoit rushed Zahara to Manhattan’s Animal Medical Center, but with multiple broken legs, collapsed lungs and internal bleeding from the impact, the 15-pound dog soon succumbed to her injuries.

Haynes fled, and for a year avoided both the NYPD and HLE investigators seeking to question him. However, HLE continued to work the case, striving to pinpoint Haynes’s location. His use of a social networking website, plus information from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, ultimately led ASPCA Special Agent Peter Rivas to the door of Haynes’s new Manhattan apartment, where he was arrested on September 5, 2008.

Haynes was arraigned the following Friday and charged with aggravated animal cruelty, a felony. He also was charged with reckless endangerment, reckless endangerment of property, menacing, criminal possession of a weapon and criminal mischief. The NYPD slapped him with an additional charge of aggravated harassment for an unrelated incident. Haynes, 27, faces up to seven years in prison for the combined charges.

“This case is another sad example of a pet being used as a pawn for revenge in a domestic violence situation,” says Joseph Pentangelo, Assistant Director, ASPCA Humane Law Enforcement. “We see this all too often. I urge anyone leaving an abusive relationship to take their pets with them or place them, at least temporarily, with family or friends. Do not leave them behind, where they become easy targets.”

In an effort to address the high incidence of pets being harmed in domestic violence disputes, about a dozen states—including New York—have passed laws allowing pets to be included in orders of protection.

ASPCA Emergency Grant Funding Tops $75,000 Following Hurricanes Ike & Gustav
Pre-Assessment Funding for Ike Aftermath Already at $25,000
September 17, 2008

The ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) has dispersed and pledged more than $75,000 in grant funding to organizations in Texas and Louisiana following Hurricanes Ike and Gustav, in addition to deploying a team of disaster response experts to assist both states in dealing with the aftermath of animal and animal agency casualties.

The grant funding covers recovery costs, as well as transportation assistance, distribution of food and supplies, and other needs.

“Thanks to the kindness and generosity of our supporters, the ASPCA is able to offer grants and emergency funds to assist organization affected by both Hurricanes Ike and Gustav,” said ASPCA President and CEO Ed Sayres. “Over the years, these organizations have shown exceptional commitment and dedication the animals in their care, and we are happy to be able to provide assistance during their time of need.”

In the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, the ASPCA has already pledged more than $25,000 in pre-assessment grants to the following organizations:
• Animal Aid of Vermillion Parish in Louisiana, for recovery and supplies;
• Walter Ernst Foundation of the Louisiana Veterinary Medical Association, for equine hay drops in southwest Louisiana;
• Habitat for Horses Inc. in Hitchcock, Texas, for emergency hay after destruction of a new barn and sheds, and for 60 horses on site and another 300 in foster care across several states;
• Hopeful Haven Equine Rescue Organization in Shreveport, Louisiana for assistance with removal of hoof stock from flooded areas in Vermillion Parish, as well as hay.

The ASPCA is working closely with the Texas State Animal Resource Team (TXSART) and other credentialed animal care agencies to assist and provide resources. ASPCA disaster team members are stationed at the Area Command Center at the Texas Animal Health Commission in Austin, Texas, and are currently providing assessments in Liberty County, just north of Galveston, one of the hardest-hit areas

For full article √ click here >

National Briefing | Rockies
Montana: Gray Wolves May Get Government Reprieve
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
September 16, 2008
A federal wildlife official in Billings said the government planned to retreat for now from its attempt to take gray wolves in the Northern Rockies off the endangered species list.

The official, Ed Bangs of the Fish and Wildlife Service, said the government in the next week planned to withdraw a rule issued this spring. The rule was based on the assertion that the region’s approximately 1,500 wolves were recovered fully, opening the way for public hunting of wolves to begin this fall in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming. Those hunts had been in doubt since July, when Judge Donald Molloy of Federal District Court blocked them pending resolution of a lawsuit by environmentalists.

Atlanta Journal-Constitution
CLASSIFIEDS
Received - August 31, 2008

SINGLE BLACK FEMALE seeks male companionship, ethnicity unimportant. I'm a very good girl who LOVES to play. I love long walks in the woods, riding in your pickup truck, hunting, camping and fishing trips, cozy winter nights lying by the fire. Candlelight dinners will have me eating out of your hand. I'll be at the front door when you get home from work, wearing only what nature gave me. Call (404) XXX-XXXX and ask for Daisy,

I'll be waiting....

Over 150 men found themselves talking to the Atlanta Humane Society.

Bear-kill Dog's Owner Charged
AP
August 29, 2008

The owner of a Ruttweiler that authorities say killed a bear cub this week will face charges brought by the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Matt Stanton, an NJSPCA spokesman, said Wednesday that Teri Daubner of Jefferson Township faces two counts of failure to provide proper shelter for her Dog and two counts of causing an animal's death.

The first counts are criminal charges and the second charges are civil charges filed on behalf of the animal. The charges carry a term of up to six months in jail and a maximum fine of $2000.

Daubner's Dog, Max, was in an outdoor kennel but got out when the cub wandered onto the property Tuesday. Daubner had built the pen after the 5-year-old Ruttweiler caused the death of a neighborhood Dog.

Hotel Chains Open Their Doors to Dogs
By Phyllis DeGioia for The Dog Daily
August 28, 2008

Imagine that the following happens during your next vacation: You enter the lobby of a luxury hotel with your accompanying children, colleagues or friends, and your eyes wide open. Your companions gasp while you stare, jaw agape, at the finery and expensive furnishings. You’re so taken aback by the splendor that you almost drop your dog’s leash.

This scenario might not just be a daydream -- especially the part about your dog. That’s because many hotels now cater to dog owners like you. Now you can stay at hotels ranging from luxury chains, where you can expect royal rover treatment, to reasonably priced hotels, which place more emphasis on functionality rather than flash.

Full Article @ http://dogs.myfoxny.com/Happy/hotel_chains_open_doors/index.html

A New Top Dog for Obama Family?
By Gina K. Callaghan
27 August 2008

Forget about beating John McCain, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama has another daunting task ahead -- getting his daughters a dog.

Obama and his wife, Michelle, reportedly promised the kids that -- win or lose -- they will have a canine companion after the election.

During the last seven weeks, The American Kennel Club asked people to vote for the potential First Pet. The results will be announced Thursday, August 28, at the AKC's headquarters in New York City. Both Obama daughter have allergies so the AKC narrowed the choices to hypoallergenic breeds.

More than 42,000 people cast their vote for top dog, and AKC officials said it  was a close race –  with the winning breed edging out the runner-up by a (dog) hair.

The Canine Candidates are:
The Bichon Frise
The Chinese Crested
The Miniature Schnauzer
The Poodle
The Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier

By the way, we're not giving short shrift to the McCain pets. The Associated Press reported that John and Cindy McCain have 24 pets, including four dog. Their breeds of choice: the English Springer spaniel and Yorkshire terrier.

EDITORIAL COMENT
We don't care what breed as long as it's a rescue!

BEARS FEAR PLUCKY PUP
By AUSTIN FENNER and CLEMENTE LISI
August 26, 2008

If only Goldilocks had a feisty dog.

A pint-sized, pugnacious pooch used his loud bark to scare off a trio of bears in New Jersey after they strayed into his back yard.

Pawlee, a 15-pound, black and gray cockapoo, ran out of his home in the town of Wyckoff on Sunday after he spotted a mother bear and her two cubs wandering in his direction.

"He has a pretty loud bark," owner Fran Osiason told The Post yesterday. "Sometimes he's a crazy little puppy."

Osiason said she and her son Jacob, 9, scurried out of the house, just off Route 208 about 20 miles northwest of Manhattan, at 8:30 a.m. to see what the hubbub was all about.

"I scooped up the dog, and the bears turned around and went back into the woods," Osiason recalled. The brave pup had been about 20 feet away from the bears, the family said.

The two cubs were so startled by Pawlee's barking, they climbed a tree. The bruins eventually climbed down and followed their mom over a 4-foot fence before scattering into the woods.

The Osiason family called police, but by the time they showed up, the bears had gone.

Alicia Price, 18, a college student who dog-sits Pawlee, said she's not surprised by his actions. "He's crazy. He has a lot of energy," she said. "He's always barking at things."

Osiason said bears are not uncommon in the woods behind her home - although she had not seen any until last weekend. "We're very close to the woods," said Osiason, noting that deer are a more common sight. "We sometimes feel like we're in their territory."

Osiason said they've had Pawlee - a mix between a cocker spaniel and a poodle - for the past six months.

Weird But True
By Tim Perone
August 24, 2008

A Dog in Nevada went against his instincts and saved six cats.

Angel was being walked in Renowhen he became obsessed with something in the bushes. When the Dog's owner investigated, he noticed a box of abandoned kittens.

When one of the kittens tried to run, Angel tracked it down and brought it back.

K-9 CAMPAIGNERS
DEMO DOGS HAVE PLENTY TO BAR(ac)K ABOUT IN DENVER
August 24, 2008

Tomorrow is Day One of the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colo.
As political animals await the party's official nomination of Sen. Barack
Obama, dog lovers are hoping their candidate will name a mixed-breed
shelter mutt as his choice for first family dog.

Here's a brief list of things to do in Denver if you're a Democratic dog.
Get a copy of The Colorado Dog magazine, a luxury lifestyle K9 publication
that's sold at newsstands and in PetSmart, Petco and Whole Foods stores
(to subscribe, visit thecoloradodog.com). The glossy quarterly is owned by
serious dog lovers Jamie Downey and Heather Green, both of whom own three
large dogs. The magazine's pages offer excellent information on regional
safety, health, nutrition, training and shelter pet adoption - plus plenty
of stylin' fashion for haute dogs.

Just as the Mile High City is playing a big role on the national stage by
hosting the DNC, The Colorado Dog is going national, too, gearing up for a
relaunch under its new banner, The American Dog. The new, revamped glossy
will go on sale in October at 4,000 locations nationwide, including Barnes
& Noble and Borders.

Denver happens to be one of America's most dog-friendly cities, boasting
five off-leash areas within city limits, plus breathtaking Cherry Creek
State Park in nearby Aurora, which offers dog-friendly hiking trails.

Visitors looking to bring home an adopted Denver dog as a souvenir should
check out the excellent Misha May Foundation (mishamayfoundation.org).
Meanwhile, shopping hounds will love Denver's Mouthfuls Pet Boutique,
which carries an impressive selection of gourmet pet foods, home-baked
treats and toys, collars and other items for dogs, cats and people who
love spending money on them.

The store currently features a head-turning window display that would do
Barney's creative director Simon Doonan proud: Targeting political
animals, the tableau features a Sen. Obama mannequin alongside canine
constituents sporting "Bark for Barack" bandannas (to order one, visit
mouthfuls.net). js@pet-reporter.com

End of the line for puppy mill in West Virginia
by John Polis
August 24, 2008

More than 1,000 puppies have a new lease on life following their discovery Saturday in a large puppy mill breeding facility tucked away in the backwoods of West Virginia, just outside of city of Parkersburg.

Best Friends Animal Society is on site working with local Wood County law enforcement officials, the Humane Society of Parkersburg and the Humane Society of the United States, and, late Saturday began rescuing scores of dogs from the Whispering Oaks Kennels.

“Right now, we are concentrating on removing the newborns, the pregnant mothers, and any dogs who need immediate medical attention,” said Rich Crook, rapid response manager for Best Friends Animal Society.

“The dogs, most of them dachshunds, Chihuahuas, poodles and other small breed dogs, were confined sometimes four or five to a cage measuring just two feet by three feet,” Crook said. “Many cages had feces in them. All had poor ventilation. The sheer number of animals was overwhelming, and the odor of urine in 90-plus degree heat was stifling.”

By the end of the day Saturday, Crook said as many as 200 animals might be removed from Whispering Oaks and transported to a local emergency shelter set up by the local group, the Humane Society of Parkersburg. The remaining dogs will be transported over the next two days, he said.

Best Friends has been working with the Parkersburg Humane Society since last May, when the agency called for assistance in the case. Best Friends also advised the Wood County prosecutor’s office in the case, and recently requested assistance from HSUS and other agencies to help with coordination of the operations at the local emergency shelter.

The fight against puppy mills, mass breeding operations that supply pet stores and fuel internet sales throughout the United States, is a priority initiative for Best Friends, which in the past two years led several other puppy mill busts. Puppy mills produce an estimated four million dogs in the U.S. each year for the pet sales market; and, sadly, an estimated six million homeless dogs and cats are killed in the U.S. each year.

“It’s a national travesty that the puppy mill industry is allowed to flood the market every year with so many dogs being killed each year in animal shelters,” said Julie Castle, director of community programs at Best Friends.
Best Friends’ Community Programs group works with local organizations across the United States on a wide variety of animal welfare issues related to pet overpopulation, including puppy mills and management of feral cat populations.

Photo by Clay Myers

Inside A West Virginia Puppy Mill Rescue
Hard work, collaboration, cooperation: all for the dogs
http://network.bestfriends.org/Blogs/Detail.aspx?b=2145&g=ce572b98588b4a7590bc003c7438b4df

Hotel Chains Open Their Doors to Dogs
By Phyllis DeGioia for The Dog Daily
August 28, 2008

Imagine that the following happens during your next vacation: You enter the lobby of a luxury hotel with your accompanying children, colleagues or friends, and your eyes wide open. Your companions gasp while you stare, jaw agape, at the finery and expensive furnishings. You’re so taken aback by the splendor that you almost drop your dog’s leash.

This scenario might not just be a daydream -- especially the part about your dog. That’s because many hotels now cater to dog owners like you. Now you can stay at hotels ranging from luxury chains, where you can expect royal rover treatment, to reasonably priced hotels, which place more emphasis on functionality rather than flash.

Full Article @ http://dogs.myfoxny.com/Happy/hotel_chains_open_doors/index.html

A New Top Dog for Obama Family?
By Gina K. Callaghan
27 August 2008

Forget about beating John McCain, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama has another daunting task ahead -- getting his daughters a dog.

Obama and his wife, Michelle, reportedly promised the kids that -- win or lose -- they will have a canine companion after the election.

During the last seven weeks, The American Kennel Club asked people to vote for the potential First Pet. The results will be announced Thursday, August 28, at the AKC's headquarters in New York City. Both Obama daughter have allergies so the AKC narrowed the choices to hypoallergenic breeds.

More than 42,000 people cast their vote for top dog, and AKC officials said it  was a close race –  with the winning breed edging out the runner-up by a (dog) hair.

The Canine Candidates are:
The Bichon Frise
The Chinese Crested
The Miniature Schnauzer
The Poodle
The Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier

By the way, we're not giving short shrift to the McCain pets. The Associated Press reported that John and Cindy McCain have 24 pets, including four dog. Their breeds of choice: the English Springer spaniel and Yorkshire terrier.

EDITORIAL COMENT
We don't care what breed as long as it's a rescue!

BEARS FEAR PLUCKY PUP
By AUSTIN FENNER and CLEMENTE LISI
August 26, 2008

If only Goldilocks had a feisty dog.

A pint-sized, pugnacious pooch used his loud bark to scare off a trio of bears in New Jersey after they strayed into his back yard.

Pawlee, a 15-pound, black and gray cockapoo, ran out of his home in the town of Wyckoff on Sunday after he spotted a mother bear and her two cubs wandering in his direction.

"He has a pretty loud bark," owner Fran Osiason told The Post yesterday. "Sometimes he's a crazy little puppy."

Osiason said she and her son Jacob, 9, scurried out of the house, just off Route 208 about 20 miles northwest of Manhattan, at 8:30 a.m. to see what the hubbub was all about.

"I scooped up the dog, and the bears turned around and went back into the woods," Osiason recalled. The brave pup had been about 20 feet away from the bears, the family said.

The two cubs were so startled by Pawlee's barking, they climbed a tree. The bruins eventually climbed down and followed their mom over a 4-foot fence before scattering into the woods.

The Osiason family called police, but by the time they showed up, the bears had gone.

Alicia Price, 18, a college student who dog-sits Pawlee, said she's not surprised by his actions. "He's crazy. He has a lot of energy," she said. "He's always barking at things."

Osiason said bears are not uncommon in the woods behind her home - although she had not seen any until last weekend. "We're very close to the woods," said Osiason, noting that deer are a more common sight. "We sometimes feel like we're in their territory."

Osiason said they've had Pawlee - a mix between a cocker spaniel and a poodle - for the past six months.

Weird But True
By Tim Perone
August 24, 2008

A Dog in Nevada went against his instincts and saved six cats.

Angel was being walked in Renowhen he became obsessed with something in the bushes. When the Dog's owner investigated, he noticed a box of abandoned kittens.

When one of the kittens tried to run, Angel tracked it down and brought it back.

K-9 CAMPAIGNERS
DEMO DOGS HAVE PLENTY TO BAR(ac)K ABOUT IN DENVER
August 24, 2008

Tomorrow is Day One of the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colo.
As political animals await the party's official nomination of Sen. Barack
Obama, dog lovers are hoping their candidate will name a mixed-breed
shelter mutt as his choice for first family dog.

Here's a brief list of things to do in Denver if you're a Democratic dog.
Get a copy of The Colorado Dog magazine, a luxury lifestyle K9 publication
that's sold at newsstands and in PetSmart, Petco and Whole Foods stores
(to subscribe, visit thecoloradodog.com). The glossy quarterly is owned by
serious dog lovers Jamie Downey and Heather Green, both of whom own three
large dogs. The magazine's pages offer excellent information on regional
safety, health, nutrition, training and shelter pet adoption - plus plenty
of stylin' fashion for haute dogs.

Just as the Mile High City is playing a big role on the national stage by
hosting the DNC, The Colorado Dog is going national, too, gearing up for a
relaunch under its new banner, The American Dog. The new, revamped glossy
will go on sale in October at 4,000 locations nationwide, including Barnes
& Noble and Borders.

Denver happens to be one of America's most dog-friendly cities, boasting
five off-leash areas within city limits, plus breathtaking Cherry Creek
State Park in nearby Aurora, which offers dog-friendly hiking trails.

Visitors looking to bring home an adopted Denver dog as a souvenir should
check out the excellent Misha May Foundation (mishamayfoundation.org).
Meanwhile, shopping hounds will love Denver's Mouthfuls Pet Boutique,
which carries an impressive selection of gourmet pet foods, home-baked
treats and toys, collars and other items for dogs, cats and people who
love spending money on them.

The store currently features a head-turning window display that would do
Barney's creative director Simon Doonan proud: Targeting political
animals, the tableau features a Sen. Obama mannequin alongside canine
constituents sporting "Bark for Barack" bandannas (to order one, visit
mouthfuls.net). js@pet-reporter.com

End of the line for puppy mill in West Virginia
by John Polis
August 24, 2008

More than 1,000 puppies have a new lease on life following their discovery Saturday in a large puppy mill breeding facility tucked away in the backwoods of West Virginia, just outside of city of Parkersburg.

Best Friends Animal Society is on site working with local Wood County law enforcement officials, the Humane Society of Parkersburg and the Humane Society of the United States, and, late Saturday began rescuing scores of dogs from the Whispering Oaks Kennels.

“Right now, we are concentrating on removing the newborns, the pregnant mothers, and any dogs who need immediate medical attention,” said Rich Crook, rapid response manager for Best Friends Animal Society.

“The dogs, most of them dachshunds, Chihuahuas, poodles and other small breed dogs, were confined sometimes four or five to a cage measuring just two feet by three feet,” Crook said. “Many cages had feces in them. All had poor ventilation. The sheer number of animals was overwhelming, and the odor of urine in 90-plus degree heat was stifling.”

By the end of the day Saturday, Crook said as many as 200 animals might be removed from Whispering Oaks and transported to a local emergency shelter set up by the local group, the Humane Society of Parkersburg. The remaining dogs will be transported over the next two days, he said.

Best Friends has been working with the Parkersburg Humane Society since last May, when the agency called for assistance in the case. Best Friends also advised the Wood County prosecutor’s office in the case, and recently requested assistance from HSUS and other agencies to help with coordination of the operations at the local emergency shelter.

The fight against puppy mills, mass breeding operations that supply pet stores and fuel internet sales throughout the United States, is a priority initiative for Best Friends, which in the past two years led several other puppy mill busts. Puppy mills produce an estimated four million dogs in the U.S. each year for the pet sales market; and, sadly, an estimated six million homeless dogs and cats are killed in the U.S. each year.

“It’s a national travesty that the puppy mill industry is allowed to flood the market every year with so many dogs being killed each year in animal shelters,” said Julie Castle, director of community programs at Best Friends.
Best Friends’ Community Programs group works with local organizations across the United States on a wide variety of animal welfare issues related to pet overpopulation, including puppy mills and management of feral cat populations.

Photo by Clay Myers

Inside A West Virginia Puppy Mill Rescue
Hard work, collaboration, cooperation: all for the dogs
http://network.bestfriends.org/Blogs/Detail.aspx?b=2145&g=ce572b98588b4a7590bc003c7438b4df

Cindy Adams
People, Know Your Rights
August 18, 2008

Attorney Karen Copeland just stayed evictionof a 90-year-old womanwhose apartment also housed a fellow senior citizen, a Poodle, age 13. The Fair Housing Act provides that you may have accommodation for whatever easesyour physical or mental limitations. This includes non-enforcement of the "no pet" clause. People, know your rights. Copeland believes many are unaware they may keep a Dog under such circumstances.

NaturalNews.com
Certain Pets Targeted for Euthanization Because of Breed Profiling
by: Susan Thixton
August 17, 2008.

A recent article in the Leaf Chronicle, Clarksville, TN newspaper has got the fur flying. The Leaf Chronicle reported on euthanizing procedures for the county Animal Control. Horrendous standard procedures flatly euthanize particular breeds regardless of the dog's history or circumstances. Simply because of their breed they are issued a death sentence without any chance of redemption. The shelter reports that 40% of pure bred dogs are euthanized. My guess is those numbers are greatly under reported.

PHILADELPHIA WEEKLY PRESS
Humane Society Says: Dog Shooting was a Tragic End to Lives Marred by Constant Neglect
Aug. 15, 2008

The killing of 80 dogs by two Pennsylvania puppy mill operators sheds further light on an industry that forces thousands of dogs to exist in a state of constant neglect and suffering, only to be destroyed when they can no longer turn a profit for their keepers.

Dogs were shot and killed at A&J Kennel and E&A Kennel in late July after a state dog warden inspected the facilities and ordered veterinary treatment be provided to a portion of the dogs at both kennels. A&J Kennel had been licensed by the state to keep up to 100 dogs and E&A Kennel up to 250 dogs. Following the shootings, A&J Kennel was closed voluntarily by the owner, and E&A Kennel was closed for enforcement reasons, according to

The shooting of these 80 dogs is a tragedy,said Stephanie Shain, The Humane Society of the United States' Stop Puppy Mills campaign director. And it brings to light the greater and constant tragedy that thousands of animals are routinely suffering in a state of neglect at puppy mills in Pennsylvania and across the United States.

Current laws allow dogs in Pennsylvania's commercial kennels to be killed by gunshot when they are no longer profitable to kennel owners. A bill under consideration in Harrisburg would mandate that animals in commercial kennels be euthanized only by a licensed veterinarian. The legislation (H.B. 2525) would increase the size of cages dogs are housed in, eliminate stacking of cages on top of each other while housing animals, and require annual veterinary care for dogs kept for breeding in commercial kennels.

The Humane Society of the United States is working in conjunction with The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Pennsylvania Legislative Animal Network to pursue this important legislative effort in Pennsylvania.

Elmer Zimmerman's comment that he shot his dogs because they were old and he wanted to get rid of them demonstrates an attitude toward breeding dogs that is, sadly, more the norm than the exception in the puppy mill industry. Dogs who are sick or too old to breed are routinely destroyed or abandoned.

This shooting highlights the rampant problems with commercial breeding in Pennsylvania, Shain said. This industry is in desperate need of reform and oversight. Treating dogs like they are agricultural crops has been the norm in the large-scale puppy breeding industry for far too long.

Facts:
The Humane Society of the United States estimates there are almost 2,000 puppy mills in Pennsylvania and more than 10,000 puppy mills in the United States.

Puppies from Pennsylvania puppy mills can be found across the country. They are sold through brokers to pet stores and over the Internet, as well as directly to the public through classified ads.

Most commercial breeding kennels in Pennsylvania are not federally licensed and inspected under the Animal Welfare Act because their owners claim to sell puppies directly to the public, which would exempt them under a loophole in the law.

The HSUS is advancing legislation that will close the loophole that allows breeders who sell directly to the public to escape federal licensing and inspection guidelines.

Consumers can help stop puppy mills by refusing to purchase a puppy from a pet store or from a website, or from any breeder who has not been carefully screened, including an in-person meeting.

The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization backed by 10.5 million Americans, or one of every 30. For more than a half-century, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty On the web at humanesociety.org

Weird But True
By Lukas I. Alpert
August 14, 2008

A giant inflatable Dog poop blew away from an outdoor Art exhibition in Switzerland, tearing down power lines and damaging homes in its path.

The house-sized replica turd was ultimately corralled and brought back to the exhibition.

Kalamazoo Gazette
Rare Dog Disease Is Noted in Van Buren County
by Roberto Acosta
August 14, 2008

KALAMAZOO -- Dog owners and buyers are being warned about a rare disease that has resulted in the death of two dogs in Van Buren County and been reported in dogs in three other Michigan counties.

Dr. Kenneth Main, a veterinarian at the Allegan Animal Clinic, said two dogs he was treating for canine brucellosis, a bacterial disease passed through breeding, were euthanized a month ago.

The Michigan Department of Agriculture issued a warning Wednesday after cases of the disease were found in three dog-breeding facilities in Missaukee, Osceola and Wexford counties.

People who have bought dogs from breeders and pet stores in the past few months should get the animals tested for brucellosis, Main said. The tests typically cost $20 to $30, he said.

"We were totally surprised by the results (of testing)," Main said of positive tests in the two dogs brought to his clinic. "This is the first time in my 36 years I have seen a case of it."

Symptoms of the disease in dogs are arthritis, eye problems and general malaise, Main said. He added, though, that the symptoms are not always prominent. "It could take a couple of years before you notice anything," he said.
More serious side effects of the disease include sterility in male dogs and aborted puppies in females. While transmission of the disease to humans is rare, it is possible, Mann said. The disease is generally passed to humans through fluids infecting an open sore or cut, he said.

Some warning signs of the disease in humans include flu-like symptoms and enlarged lymph nodes.

Main said that the recent cases are a "reminder that it's (brucellosis) out there" and people need to get their dogs tested for the disease

The Villages DAILY SUN
Lost Canine Reunited with Owner Thanks to Diligent Villagers
By RACHEL KATZ
August 14,2008

THE VILLAGES — A flash of white caught Karen Tynes’ eye Aug. 6 as she drove along County Road 466.
A small dog ran along the side of the road, panting from the heat. Immediately, Karen and her husband Gordon, Village of Woodbury residents, turned the car around to retrieve the animal.

“By the time we turned around, about five cars had stopped in the road and the dog had started to cross in traffic,” Karen said. “He was in the median.”

Tynes, president of the Responsible Dog Owner’s Group, opened her van door and welcomed the canine into her arms.

After checking with the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office to see if anyone reported a lost dog, Tynes headed to Petco.
 
“They thought they recognized him from the way his face (fur) was cut,” she said. “We left the dog with them in safekeeping.”

Then Tynes sprang into action.

Full Story @ http://www.thevillagesdailysun.com/articles/2008/08/14/villages/villages01.txt

FAITHFUL POOCH
Scripps Howard
August 13, 2008

In an amazing display of loyalty, a German Shepherd stayed at his master's side for six weeks after the man killed himself out on the prairie in northeastern Colorado, authorities said.

The Dog, Cash, was found alive Sunday at Pawnee National Grassland next to the body of his owner, Jake Baysinger, 25, a resident of La Salle, Colorado.

The Dog survived on mice and rabbits.

Bronx Man Arrested for Abandoning Dying Puppy
August 8, 2008

ASPCA Humane Law Enforcement has caught a 32-year-old man who tried to shirk responsibility by dumping his sick dog in another borough. On July 25, ASPCA Special Agent Peter Rivas arrested a Bronx man, Russell Hobbs, for animal cruelty. He has been charged with one count of misdemeanor animal cruelty, and faces up to one year in jail and a $2,000 fine.

Hobbs allegedly abandoned his eight-month-old pit bull puppy, Lucy, on July 3, leaving her tethered outside an apartment building on 91st Street in Manhattan. A concerned passerby brought the puppy to the ASPCA’s Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital , where veterinarians discovered that she was critically ill with parvovirus . Despite attempts to save her, Lucy died four days later.

Under New York State law, abandoning an animal is a misdemeanor crime punishable by a year in jail, a $1,000 fine, or both.

If you need to relinquish a pet, do not abandon her—instead, please contact your local shelter .

August 4, 2008
by DAVID DICKSON

Zander the dog has become a real fan of the old saying "If at first you don’t succeed.…" It took more than one try to help the poor guy feel better.

As a young dog, he was found alongside the road in the middle of nowhere. He’d apparently just been hit by a car and couldn’t walk. He was rushed to Best Friends for some urgent care.

In the accident, Zander had broken his pelvis and femur. At Best Friends, he received all the emergency medical care he needed, but then he threw everybody a curveball. After healing up, his hip bones realigned over time and left him with a new, false hip joint. Meanwhile, the original hip joint was more or less stuck in place because some leftover bone was trapped there. Zander got to where he couldn’t move the hip much. For an active guy like him, that was really cramping his style!

The Best Friends vets decided to operate. Their plan was to remove the old piece of bone stuck in the original hip socket, which would let the joint move freely again. Only problem was, they couldn’t get the femur ball out of the pelvis socket to begin with. Yikes! Zander’s anatomy had changed after the accident and it was really wedged in there.

Because they couldn’t get the ball out of the socket, the vets couldn’t remove the offending piece of bone. They had hit a dead end. Still, they weren’t ready to give up. They wanted to try again.

The second time around, however, they brought in some extra help. Best Friends vet Dr. Patti asked her pal Dr. Patricia (Trish) Kupanoff of Phoenix, Arizona, to come and assist in round two. Dr. Trish has helped out at Best Friends with tricky surgeries before, one of them being Pepper the pig’s groundbreaking, never-before-attempted and ultimately successful shoulder surgery. Dr. Trish, a board-certified surgical specialist, agreed to help with Zander.

Using Dr. Trish’s expertise, the vets were able to better expose the joint and remove the offending bone piece by piece. In the end, they pulled off what they set out to do and Zander’s joint is moving so much better. (Thanks, Dr. Trish!)

What’s next for Zander? Well, once his skin heals, he’ll be off to do hydrotherapy and other physical therapy. The vets have high hopes for a great recovery. One leg is now shorter than the other, though, so according to Dr. Patti, "There may always be a little hitch in his getalong." Still, at long last he should be able to burn through all that pent-up energy. After all, there’s nothing more frustrating than wanting to bounce off the walls and having an old injury hold you back. Congrats, Zander

Photo by Sarah Ause

Weird But True
By Jeremy Olsham
August 8, 2008

A deep throated canine managed to swallow a 2-foo-long stick whole.

Hector, a Great Dane puppy, got a coniferbranch lodged between his neck and his stomach while playing in his family's garden in Britain.

The stick was removed wit a forceps by a veterinarianwho presented Hector's owner with a $4,000 bill.

Op-Ed Contributor
It’s Too Hot for Dog on the Menu
By FUCHSIA DUNLOP
Published: August 4, 2008
London
THOSE who hope to taste dog meat when they visit Beijing for this summer’s Olympics may be disappointed. The Beijing Catering Trade Association has ordered all 112 designated Olympic restaurants to take dog off the menu, and has strongly advised other establishments to stop serving it until September. Waiters have been urged to “patiently” suggest alternative dishes to customers who ask for dog. It’s all part of a wider campaign to avoid offending foreigners during the Games. (Beijingers have also been told to line up nicely, to stop spitting and even to avoid asking tourists questions about their ages, salaries and love lives.)

The order is not likely to bother many residents. Though dogs have been raised for food in China for thousands of years, you have to hunt around to find the meat on modern menus. Certain regions, like Hunan and Guizhou Provinces, are known for their canine predilections — but even in these places, dog is a relative rarity. And in Beijing itself, you hardly find it except in a few Korean and regional Chinese restaurants.

Dog eating, in any case, tends to be a seasonal pursuit. According to Chinese folk dietetics, which classify every food according to its heating and cooling properties, dog is one of the “hottest” meats around, best eaten in midwinter, when you need warmth and vital energy, not in sultry August.

That eating dog is seen as an issue says more about Western preoccupations than Chinese habits. Since time immemorial, Westerners have had a morbid fascination with the weird fringes of the Chinese diet. Marco Polo noted with distaste that the Chinese liked eating snake and dog; modern Western journalists just love to get their teeth into a juicy story about some revolting delicacy like the assorted animal penises served at the Guolizhuang restaurant in Beijing. And for gung-ho foreign tourists, a skewerful of deep-fried scorpions in the night market in central Beijing has become a rite of passage.

In case you’re wondering, there is nothing alarming about the taste of dog: smothered in chilies and aromatic spices in a Hunanese winter stew, it might remind you of lamb. For a Westerner, eating it can feel a little strange, but is it morally different from eating, say, pork? The dogs brought to table in China are not people’s pets, but are raised as food, like pigs. And pigs, of course, are also intelligent and friendly.

So what has induced the Chinese government to ban the serving of dog meat during the Olympics? One might observe that when it comes to important issues like human rights in Tibet, Chinese leaders don’t seem to care what the rest of the world thinks, yet when it comes to dietary niceties, they kowtow to the most irrational foreign prejudice.

It’s partly because the “issue” of dog-eating seems to be a magnet for animal rights activists. Many Westerners are genuinely shocked and offended at the idea of eating an animal they consider to be “man’s best friend.” Other morally questionable food practices — such as eating shark’s fin and cutting up live turtles — don’t appear to bother them so much. And after the Tibet riots and the Olympic torch debacle earlier this year, Beijing is keen to minimize the chance of more public relations disasters. South Korea likewise banned dog from menus during the 1988 Seoul Olympics in the hope of avoiding bad publicity.

Opinions about dog-eating are changing in China, too, as more people come to see dogs as adorable pets. A message board on sohu.com, one of the most popular Chinese-language Internet news sites, was peppered with posts supporting the ban. “The barbaric custom of eating dog should be illegal,” said one writer. Another wrote, “Thanks to the Olympics for bringing an advance in social civilization.”

Perhaps the key reason for the ban is a pervasive Chinese embarrassment about behavior that Westerners might consider “backward” (luo hou), like spitting, shoving your way onto a crowded bus — or eating dog. Despite their country’s meteoric rise as an international player, many Chinese, still smarting from the historical humiliation of the 19th-century opium wars against Britain, are acutely sensitive to foreign criticism. They share their government’s desire to present a clean, modern image to the world.

The irony is that many of the things the Chinese increasingly see as “backward” are those most attractive to foreigners: street traders, wet markets selling fresh produce, narrow hutong alleyways and higgledy-piggledly houses. Why go to Beijing if all you see is skyscrapers and Starbucks? Westerners commenting on the dog ban on the Web have been divided between approving dog-lovers and people outraged at Beijing’s failure to stick up for Chinese culture and tradition. In the end, those most likely to lament the ban are tourists hoping to shock their friends back home with wild tales of eating doggy hotpot.

Fuchsia Dunlop is the author of “Shark’s Fin and Sichuan Pepper: A Sweet-Sour Memoir of Eating in China.”

Illustration: Sophia Martineck

OF GENERAL INTEREST

Op-Ed Columnist
A Farm Boy Reflects
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF
Published: July 31, 2008
YAMHILL, Ore.

In a world in which animal rights are gaining ground, barbecue season should make me feel guilty. My hunch is that in a century or two, our descendants will look back on our factory farms with uncomprehending revulsion. But in the meantime, I love a good burger.

This comes up because the most important election this November that you’ve never heard of is a referendum on animal rights in California, the vanguard state for social movements. Proposition 2 would ban factory farms from raising chickens, calves or hogs in small pens or cages.

Livestock rights are already enshrined in the law in Florida, Arizona, Colorado and here in Oregon, but California’s referendum would go further and would be a major gain for the animal rights movement. And it’s part of a broader trend. Burger King announced last year that it would give preference to suppliers that treat animals better, and when a hamburger empire expostulates tenderly about the living conditions of cattle, you know public attitudes are changing.

Harvard Law School now offers a course on animal rights. Spain’s Parliament has taken a first step in granting rights to apes, and Austrian activists are campaigning to have a chimpanzee declared a person. Among philosophers, a sophisticated literature of animals rights has emerged.

I’m a farm boy who grew up here in the hills outside Yamhill, Ore., raising sheep for my F.F.A. and 4-H projects. At various times, my family also raised modest numbers of pigs, cattle, goats, chickens and geese, although they were never tightly confined.

Our cattle, sheep, chickens and goats certainly had individual personalities, but not such interesting ones that it bothered me that they might end up in a stew. Pigs were more troubling because of their unforgettable characters and obvious intelligence. To this day, when tucking into a pork chop, I always feel as if it is my intellectual equal.
Then there were the geese, the most admirable creatures I’ve ever met. We raised Chinese white geese, a common breed, and they have distinctive personalities. They mate for life and adhere to family values that would shame most of those who dine on them.

While one of our geese was sitting on her eggs, her gander would go out foraging for food — and if he found some delicacy, he would rush back to give it to his mate. Sometimes I would offer males a dish of corn to fatten them up — but it was impossible, for they would take it all home to their true loves.

Once a month or so, we would slaughter the geese. When I was 10 years old, my job was to lock the geese in the barn and then rush and grab one. Then I would take it out and hold it by its wings on the chopping block while my Dad or someone else swung the ax.

The 150 geese knew that something dreadful was happening and would cower in a far corner of the barn, and run away in terror as I approached. Then I would grab one and carry it away as it screeched and struggled in my arms.
Very often, one goose would bravely step away from the panicked flock and walk tremulously toward me. It would be the mate of the one I had caught, male or female, and it would step right up to me, protesting pitifully. It would be frightened out of its wits, but still determined to stand with and comfort its lover.

We eventually grew so impressed with our geese — they had virtually become family friends — that we gave the remaining ones to a local park. (Unfortunately, some entrepreneurial thief took advantage of their friendliness by kidnapping them all — just before the next Thanksgiving.)

So, yes, I eat meat (even, hesitantly, goose). But I draw the line at animals being raised in cruel conditions. The law punishes teenage boys who tie up and abuse a stray cat. So why allow industrialists to run factory farms that keep pigs almost all their lives in tiny pens that are barely bigger than they are?

Defining what is cruel is, of course, extraordinarily difficult. But penning pigs or veal calves so tightly that they cannot turn around seems to cross that line.

More broadly, the tide of history is moving toward the protection of animal rights, and the brutal conditions in which they are sometimes now raised will eventually be banned. Someday, vegetarianism may even be the norm.
Perhaps it seems like soggy sentimentality as well as hypocrisy to stand up for animal rights, particularly when I enjoy dining on these same animals. But my view was shaped by those days in the barn as a kid, scrambling after geese I gradually came to admire.

So I’ll enjoy the barbecues this summer, but I’ll also know that every hamburger patty has a back story, and that every tin of goose liver pâté could tell its own rich tale of love and loyalty.

I invite you to comment on this column on my blog,
http://kristof.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/30/your-comments-on-my-animals-column/

RESPONSE Comment #405. July 31st, 2008, 3:29 pm Not original but applicable: “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” - MOHANDAS GHANDI or “Beware the beast Man, for he is the Devil’s pawn. Alone among god’s primates, he kills for sport or lust or greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother’s land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death.” THE PLANET OF THE APES — ROD SERLING & MICHAEL WILSON or “The human race had yet to render itself extinct; perhaps the animals were just a dry run. Once you believed animals were insensate things, disposable, of utilitarian value only, it wasn’t hard to move on to people.” — NICHOLAS CHRISTOPHER in “The Bestiary” ROBERT COANE http://From-The-DOGHOUSE.com — Posted by Robert Coane >>>>>>>>>>> Comment #663. August 2nd, 2008 10:41 am To comment #594 posted by Jane Cain (In full at bottom) August 1st, 2008, 1:39 pm “I had just read the enclosed before reading your piece. I think God is more important than animals. I hope someone will write in defense of Him too. ‘Desecration of Host Not Seen as Free Speech’ ” The comment above, #594, clamors for a response. It is totally “off-topic” so I have no idea why your “moderators” decided to post it in the first place. This is not a “free speach” issue. It injects a particular brand of religious belief and topic where it deffinitely doesn’t belong. I have twice been blocked from responding. Faithfully following all the rules of your “Comments FAQ”, I will try a third time: God is indefensible. “In his own image”, he created Man to wreak havoc on all Creation. “The higher power is lower to the ground and walks on four feet.” - Elena Sigman — Posted by Robert Coane >>>>>>>>>>> Comment #594 August 1st, 2008 1:39 pm I had just read the enclosed before reading your piece. I think God is more important than animals. I hope someone will write in defense of Him too. Thanks Jane Desecration of Host Not Seen as Free Speech -- Confraternity Proposes Prayer Day in Reparation HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania, JULY 30, 2008 (Zenit.org).- The Confraternity of Catholic Clergy is proposing Friday as a national day of prayer and fasting in the wake of the desecration of the Eucharist by a Minnesota professor. Father John Trigilio, Jr., the president of the confraternity, a U.S. association of 600 priests and deacons, sent a statement this week asking Catholics “to join in a day of prayer and fasting that such offenses never happen again.” Paul Myers, a professor of biology at the University of Minnesota at Morris, says he desecrated the Eucharist by piercing it with a rusty nail, then he threw it into the trash. The self-professed atheist wrote about the incident on his blog and posted a photo of the desecrated host. The statement of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy said it found the actions of Myers “reprehensible, inexcusable, and unconstitutional. His flagrant display of irreverence by profaning a consecrated Host from a Catholic Church goes beyond the limit of academic freedom and free speech.” “Attacking the most sacred elements of a religion is not free speech anymore than would be perjury in a court or libel in a newspaper,” added the text. Father Trigilio told ZENIT that the congregation is asking the faithful to make a holy hour before the Eucharist on Aug. 1, the feast of St. Alphonsus Ligouri, and to fast in “reparation for the sacrilegious desecration of the Holy Eucharist.” — Posted by Jane Cain

Top Dog Model
Episode 04: July 30, 2008

While the dogs continue to bond, jealousy drives a stake into the heart of the relationship of two of the owners. At the Dog Bone Challenge some owners are shocked to find out they don't know their dogs as well as they think they do. While taking a dip in the pool, Tillman displays his very special technique of water conservation. Each dog/owner team spends time with a famous doggie photographer to come up with a shot to impress the judges.

S#!* happened --
How New York Convinced Dog Ownwers to Scoop Poop
By MICHAEL BRANDOW
July 27, 2008
On this, the 30th anniversary birthday of our famous "poop scoop" law, the first of its kind to work in a big city and model for communities around the world, what are we celebrating - besides the fact that we don't have to scrape something off our shoes?

Probably the fact that Health Law 1310 happened at all. These days, picking up after a dog is such a normal part of daily life that many owners do it automatically. Dogged and dogless New Yorkers alike don't want to remember a time, not long ago, when a common-sense solution to a
mounting urban problem was neither popular nor the only answer. They're still wincing over a civil war that divided people cleanly into pro-dog and anti-dog lobbies - with nothing in between.

But 1310 was also a new kind of law, a forebear of the sort of initiatives - particularly popular under Mayor Bloomberg - that, for good or ill, try to make us better people.

It was New York's decline in the early 1970s that allowed the poop-scoop law to pass in the first place. More people owned dogs for protection, and strays ran through the boroughs. Alan Beck, the head of the Bureau of Animal Affairs, estimated that by 1975, there were 300,000 to 500,000 pounds of dog crap left on city pavements daily.

Had the city been, er, flush, it could have hired more sanitation workers to handle the problem. But New York was in the midst of a fiscal crisis, basic services were being scaled back, and street cleaners refused to do more dirty work.

When eyes turned to the owners, author Cleveland Amory and other animal rights advocates, along with humane organizations and shelters, united against a "pick it up yourself" proposal they considered harsh and unfair.

In the long run, they predicted, the law would force people to abandon their loved ones, and would lead to an eventual ban on dogs. Sidewalks and public lawns weren't worth preserving at any cost.

"Like the Jews of Nazi Germany," said the head of New York's Dog Owners Guild with typical understatement, "we citizens, including the old and the infirm, are being humiliated by being forced to pick up excrement from the gutter."

A raucous hearing in 1972 led to a stalemate and citizens started taking matters into their own hands. Town meetings degenerated into shouting matches and the stuff didn't just hit the fan - it was thrown at people.

On the pavement, walking a dog could be stressful and even violent. The simple pleasures of canine companionship were spoiled as paranoid pet owners looked over their shoulders for vigilantes, not always sure that someone would rise to their defense.

It took several years of bad community relations, and a no-nonsense mayor like Ed Koch, who went to the state level for support, before the fighting ended. But even in Albany there was strong resistance to the scoop. Not all the "nays" were given out of sympathy for people who'd gotten dogs for protection and companionship in a dangerous and alienating urban environment - though many leaders did think it was dehumanizing to force anyone to handle feces. The main concern was that similar laws had already
been tried and failed in other places, and those opposed feared that yet another unenforceable decree would only encourage more disrespect for authority in general.

The irony is that they were right, at least about the unenforceable part. Health Law 1310, which eventually passed in August 1978, was tough to police and erratically used. It succeeded not because of fines (of which there weren't huge numbers), but because the debate forced dog owners to take action.

Slowly but surely, owners learned that picking up wasn't so bad. They started to believe that lending a helping hand would get New York back on its feet. The vast majority of dogs owners continue to comply, not because they have to - they never really did - but because they want to.

Cleaning up a dog's mess had become, as Parks Commissioner Henry Stern rejoiced, "a respectable and honorable act."

No doubt Bloomberg noted the poop-scoop law's achievement when he proposed his smoking ban. Like 1310, the amazing success of anti-smoking legislation has more to do with peer pressure than police officers handing out tickets. But the simple act of legislating antisocial behavior shamed people into compliance.

If there are downsides to 1310, it's when legislators take the precedent too far. In the case of the poop-scoop law itself, there are calls to increase the fines - proposed by of all people Sen. Frank Pavadan, who
opposed the original legislation - and video surveillance of dog walkers in Brooklyn and the Bronx.

These measures are insulting and a waste of taxpayers' money. Picking up dog waste makes our lives better, but tracking those who don't do it like terrorists is draconian.

Then there are the other laws to "make our lives better," to get us to eat less fat and count our calories and maybe exercise a little. We can all perhaps agree on limiting the amount of noise in our neighborhood, but should we ticket a crying child? Air conditioners are wasteful, but can we legislate people to limit their use? Is your stroller too wide? Do you smell on the subway? There's a line between improving our lives and meddling with them.

But as long as we're vigilant about that boundary, it's hard to argue that Health 1310 wasn't a law that changed New York for the better - and proved we're a little nicer than people give us credit for. It cleared the air in more ways than one.

Surgery Will Put Dog With Amputated Leg Back On All Fours Again
July 27, 2008

A pioneering North Carolina State University collaboration between a veterinary surgeon and an engineer will give a deserving dog the ability to walk on four legs again.

Cassidy, a male German shepherd mix, was born with a defect in his right hind leg. His owner was referred to NC State's College of Veterinary Medicine in 2005 in order to have the defective limb removed. Three years later, Cassidy is back, this time for surgery that will replace the lost leg with an osseointegrated prosthetic limb.

Dr. Denis Marcellin-Little, associate professor of orthopedics, and Dr. Ola Harrysson, associate professor of industrial and systems engineering, are pioneers in the area of osseointegration, a process that fuses a prosthetic limb with an animal's (or human's) bones. The result is a custom-designed, limb-sparing prosthesis that behaves more like a natural limb - and a technique with implications for the future of human prosthetics.

Marcellin-Little and Harrysson began their work on osseointegrated pet prosthetics in 2005 with a cat named George Bailey, who had been born without the lower half of his hind legs. Harrysson designed and built the limb in collaboration with his students and Marcellin-Little, who performed the surgery. The procedure involved inserting a titanium nail into one of the legs and securing it with screws.

Since then, the collaborators have improved and strengthened the design, and Cassidy's limb surgery will be the third of its kind- and the first such surgery on a dog - performed at NC State.

"This research collaboration, along with new technologies, has made it possible for us to custom design and directly fabricate metal prosthetic implants in a timely and economical fashion," Harrysson says. "Ten years ago this process would have taken much longer, cost much more and not been as accurate. We see this process becoming even faster and more cost-effective in the future."

The researchers hope that Cassidy won't be the sole beneficiary of this surgery.

"The implications for this procedure are huge," Marcellin-Little says. "As we gain more experience with the surgical technique and the design of the limbs, we see the possible benefits for humans - implants that allow the prosthetic limbs to attach without chafing or irritation, and limbs with more natural ranges of motion. We believe that this is the future of prosthetics."

DNA Study Unlocks Mystery To Diverse Traits In Dogs
June 23, 2008

What makes a pointer point, a sheep dog herd, and a retriever retrieve? Why do Yorkshire terriers live longer than Great Danes? And how can a tiny Chihuahua possibly be related to a Great Dane?

Dogs vary in size, shape, color, coat length and behavior more than any other animal and until now, this variance has largely been unexplained. Now, scientists have developed a method to identify the genetic basis for this diversity that may have far-reaching benefits for dogs and their owners.

In the cover story of tomorrow's edition of the science journal Genetics, research reveals locations in a dog's DNA that contain genes that scientists believe contribute to differences in body and skull shape, weight, fur color and length -- and possibly even behavior, trainability and longevity.

"This exciting breakthrough, made possible by working with leaders in canine genetics, is helping us piece together the canine genome puzzle which will ultimately translate into potential benefit for dogs and their owners," said study co-author Paul G. Jones, PhD, a Mars Veterinary™ genetics researcher at the Waltham® Centre for Pet Nutrition -- part of Mars® Incorporated, a world leader in pet care that has been studying canine genetic science for the past eight years. "By applying this research approach, we may be able to decipher how genes contribute to physical or behavioral traits that affect many breeds."

Dogs originally derived from the wolf more than 15,000 years ago -- a blink of the eye in evolutionary terms. Selective breeding produced dogs with physical and behavioral traits that were well suited to the needs or desires of their human owners, such as herding or hunting ability, coat color and body and skull shape and size. This resulted in the massive variance seen among the more than 350 distinct breeds that make up today's dog population. Until now, the genetic drivers of this diversity have intrigued scientists who have been trying to explain how and why the difference in physical and behavioral traits in dogs changed so rapidly from its wolf origins.

An international team of researchers, which included scientists at the National Human Genome Research Institute, the University of Utah, Sundowners Kennels in Gilroy, California and Mars' Waltham Center for Pet Nutrition in the United Kingdom, studied simple genetic markers known as Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms, or SNPs, to find places in the dog genome that correlate with breed traits. Because many traits are "stereotyped" -- or fixed within breeds -- researchers can zero in on these "hot spots" to see what specific genes are in the area that might contribute to differences in traits.

The research used 13,000 dog DNA samples provided by Mars Veterinary, which holds one of the most comprehensive canine DNA banks in the world. This collection has been built up with the help of pet owners who have consented to their pets providing cheek swabs and blood samples for the database. Mars' DNA bank allowed the study to cover most of the American Kennel Club recognized breeds that span a wide variety of physical and behavioral traits and differences in longevity.

"With further refinement and additional data, this method could be used to tailor products that may benefit the health of pets," Jones said. "Pet owners and veterinarians may be able to develop better care regimes based on this knowledge. In addition, genetic information about behavioral traits, such as trainability and temperament, could also help veterinarians identify the most lifestyle-appropriate pet for an owner."

This research may also have implications for human health, as dogs suffer from many of the same diseases that we do.

Mars is continuing its commitment to canine genetic science with ongoing investigations to better understand the makeup of a dog's DNA to help benefit the lives of dogs and their owners. The Wisdom Panel MX™ mixed breed analysis test is the first product to use the knowledge gained through this research.

Learn more about the Wisdom Panel and this new study at http://www.wisdompanel.com.

Yonkers Police Fire Weapons 66 Times, 64 at Animals
Posted: Monday, 21 July 2008

YONKERS, N.Y. (AP)  -- When police in one of the biggest cities in New York City's northern suburbs fire their guns, it's almost always at an animal.

Yonkers police records show officers have discharged their weapons 66 times in the last two years. Last year, the police fired 46 times: 45 were at animals including dogs and deer, one was accidental. The year before, they fired 20 times: 19 were at animals, one was at a person.

Yonkers released the data this month in response to a Freedom of Information Law request by The Journal News. The newspaper says it's investigating a man's claims that police shot him when they executed a search warrant on his apartment and shot his three pit bulls to death.

Pit Bull Fighting for Life after Rattlesnake Bite
Posted: Monday, 21 July 2008

A pit bull is fighting for his life, after being bitten by a rattlesnake in the Bronx Tuesday.
Miguel Mota, the dog's owner, was walking the male pit bull, named "Stone," in a public park near the Bronx Zoo at Boston Road and Bronx Park East when the dog went into the bushes and yelped.

When he came out of the bushes, he was bleeding, and Mota rushed Stone to the Bronx Zoo - and then to several vet hospitals that couldn't deal with a snake bite until he got to the NYC Veterinary Specialists at 55th Street and 9th Avenue in Manhattan.

Dr. Ben Davidson diagnosed the wounds and bites from a rattlesnake, and immediately gave the dog anti-venom - in an effort to save its life.

The dog is still being treated - but will need much more anti-venom, something that is in very short supply in New York. Mota says he can't afford the $4,000 bill racked up so far, and so for now the doctors are paying out of their own pockets.

Mota says he knew it was a rattlesnake, because he saw one on the Discovery Channel, and it's still out there somewhere near the Bronx Zoo.

He says he fears if a child were to have been near the area and gotten bitten.

LOST & HOUND IN QUEENS
RETURNS 5 YRS., 850 MILES LATER
By JEREMY OLSHAN
July 15, 2008

NOW STAY, ROCCO! Rocco back in Queens with Natalie Villacis yesterday.

When her beagle, Rocco, squeezed himself under the backyard gate and disappeared into the streets of Queens, 5-year-old Natalie Villacis refused to believe - as her parents reluctantly told her - that she would
never see the puppy again. That was in 2003.

Last weekend, Rocco came home - after being found in Georgia. The prodigal pooch turned up in a shelter 850 miles away in Hinesville, and by a combination of chance and chip - the one embedded in his back - was reunited with Natalie, now 11, and her family.

"When my mom told me they found Rocco, I cried hysterically - just like I did when they told me he was lost," Natalie told The Post. "I felt like I was in a dream, like my head was spinning."

Someone dropped Rocco off as a stray at the Liberty County Animal Control in Hinseville on July 5, supervisor Randy Durrence said.
|
After scanning the pooch's identity microchip, one of thousands routinely implanted in the skin of many pets today, Durrence traced Rocco to Queens. Rocco's disappearance had been traumatic for both Natalie and her parents.
In the days after he vanished, the weeping child and her father, Jorge, plastered their neighborhood with signs in search of the dog. But it soon became clear Rocco would not return.

Even after the family later brought a poodle mix named Bonita into the home, Natalie said she never stopped wondering "what happened to Rocco, where he went, and if someone good found him.

"Every time I would see a dog on the street, I would say to my mom, 'Maybe
Rocco will come back,' " Natalie said. "She would say that he probably isn't going to come back. I would say, 'I know, but maybe he will.' " She even refused to part with his favorite toy, a stuffed cat.

"At night, I would wish, 'Please Rocco, come home.' And now that wish came true," she said.

When Natalie's parents, Jorge and Cristina, listened to the voice mail Durrence left for the family, they thought he or the computer must have made a mistake.

"We didn't think it could possibly be him - Natalie never stopped thinking about him, but we thought he was gone for good," Jorge said.

Jorge flew down to Georgia, and though he didn't quite recognize Rocco, was pleased to see that aside from a scratch on his ear, he was in perfect health.

"We have reunited families with their dogs before but never after so many years - this is unheard of," Durrence said.

Durrence said he could not imagine how a dog could make this journey but speculated that since the town is home to Fort Stewart and the Army's Third Infantry Division, "perhaps it was someone in the military."

Natalie said she was nervous about Rocco's return, in part because she was unsure how Bonita, the poodle mix the family got in 2004, would react. "I don't think he recognized me, but I told him I loved him as much as
always," she said. "Rocco seemed a little confused, but happy. He looked at me like, 'I don't know who you are, but I love you, too.' "

One of the first things she did was give Rocco his toy back. Bonita has not decided if there is room for a beagle in the house, she said, "but at least she hasn't tried to bite him. Rocco doesn't mind. He's
as calm as pie."

Embracing Rocco, Natalie asked her mother, "Where do you think he has been all this time?" "I don't know," her mother told her. "But if he could tell us, I'm sure he has more than enough material for a novel."

Pill-Popping Pets
By JAMES VLAHOS
Published: July 13, 2008

Americans are spending millions on mood-altering drugs for their cats and dogs.
Is it because we’ve driven them mad?

TV Star in the Making
by David Dickson
July 11, 2008

Georgia, the Vicktory dog—one of the dogs rescued from the property of former NFL quarterback Michael Vick—might just have to get herself a talent agent pronto. She’s a rising star! Georgia attended the Television Critics Association’s press tour in Los Angeles earlier this week and had the crowds scrambling over themselves to give her belly rubs and head scratches. Who cares about new sitcoms or reality game shows when you have a TV personality who rolls on her back for tummy tickles?

This loveable goofball is one of four Vicktory dogs to be featured in an upcoming two-hour National Geographic Channel special: "Dogtown: Saving the Michael Vick Dogs." In order to help put a face to the show, Georgia attended the press tour so that the critics and other attendees could see up close what the show was all about. The Best Friends team included John Garcia, Michelle Besmehn, Dr. Michael Dix, Elissa Jones, Juliette Watt as pilot, and of course Georgia… who racked up quite a bit more than 15 minutes of fame.

There were some pretty impressive acts in the lineup from the various programs to be showcased, but in the end it was Georgia who hogged all the limelight—and she did it without even trying! The Best Friends team chose Georgia to attend because they felt confident she would do well. Turns out they were right.

She blew everybody away, whether at the press tour, on walks throughout L.A. or while cruising through her luxury hotel where she stayed with Best Friends’ dog trainer John Garcia (stay tuned, John and Michelle will start blogging about Georgia’s adventures next week).

As one of the dogs rescued from Michael Vick’s estate, Georgia was due for a little pampering. She’s certainly had her run of bad luck in the past, and the scars to prove it. She was a prized fighter at one time, though her teeth have since all been pulled, possibly so that she could be bred safely. Georgia was sent to live at Best Friends along with 21 other dogs because she was deemed one of the roughest of the bunch.

The upcoming National Geographic Channel special will be following the progress of Georgia and three other Vicktory dogs since they’ve come to Best Friends. Part of the two-hour special looks at the question of whether fighting dogs can ever overcome their past, which Best Friends has always believed, but which others have claimed impossible. (Hmmm....wonder if Georgia, who’s been busily giving kisses to every stranger in LA has an opinion?)
Even though it was a short trip, if her talent for dazzling the cameras is any indication, she might as well get started on writing her Emmy acceptance speech. Way to go Georgia! The world needs celebrities like you.

Original: http://news.bestfriends.org
Photos of Georgia, John Garcia, Michelle Besmehn, and Georgia's adoring fans by Best Friends staff

Press Release
ASPCA Forensic Veterinarian Aids in Major Dog Fighting Raid in Georgia
NEW YORK, July 3, 2008

The ASPCA ®(The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals ®) today announced that it was part of a team of animal welfare agencies, led by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), as well as the Madison County, Ga. Sheriff’s Department and Madison County Animal Control, which participated in a major planned raid of “Shake Down Kennels,” an alleged dogfighting operation in Danielsville, Ga. Johnny Johnson, the alleged owner, was arrested and charged with felony dogfighting.

“The ASPCA is proud to assist HSUS in their raid of this illegal dogfighting ring,” said ASPCA President & CEO Ed Sayres. “Dr. Merck is the nation’s premiere “Animal CSI” and adding her invaluable knowledge of veterinary forensics to the crucial investigation work done by HSUS and participating agencies makes for a tremendous combination.”

The raid took place in Madison County, Ga. and resulted in seven dogs being seized for examination and evidence, as well as dogfighting paraphernalia. Dr. Melinda Merck, ASPCA’s senior director of Veterinary Forensics, and Felicia Earley, an anti-cruelty veterinary assistant with the ASPCA, were part of the elite team of animal welfare professionals involved. The ASPCA’s Mobile Animal Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) Unit, was also on-site to allow Dr. Merck to examine and care for any victims immediately, as well as gather and process all of the forensic evidence right at the scene. A “forensics first,” the mobile unit is specially-designed vehicle outfitted with state-of-the-art forensics tools as well as medical equipment tailored for animal patients.

“It was a privilege being able to be a part of this organized and thorough investigation,” said Dr. Merck. “Dogfighting cases are very complex and it sometimes takes multiple resources in order to effectively bring them down. This collaborative effort is a shining example of our ongoing fight against animal cruelty.”

Today’s raid marks the first Ga. dogfighting bust since the May 10 passage of new legislation signed by Governor Sonny Purdue, which strengthened the state's dogfighting law, making it a felony to own, possess, train, transport or sell a dog for the purpose of dogfighting. Those involved in illegal dogfighting, as Johnson is alleged, can receive one to five years in prison, a minimum fine of $5,000 or both.

For more information about the ASPCA’s fight against animal cruelty, visit http://www.fightcruelty.org/ . For more information about the ASPCA’s programs and services, visit http://www.aspca.org/

Television
Who Let the Dogs On? You’d Be Surprised
By LISA BERNHARD
Published: July 6, 2008

IN the Oscar-nominated 1993 documentary “The War Room” the producer R. J. Cutler helped chronicle the political maneuverings of George Stephanopoulos and James Carville, the savvy architects of Bill Clinton’s presidential run against President George H. W. Bush. Fifteen years later Mr. Cutler finds his lens focused on

	Can the skateboarding English bulldog Tillman outperform the giant schnauzer Kenji and avoid expulsion from the Canine Academy? That Mr. Cutler has gone from the White House to the Dog House with his coming CBS reality show, “Greatest American Dog,” should not signal the decline of his career. A blend of “American Idol,” “Big Brother” and “Survivor,” the series, which has its premiere on Thursday, pits 12 dogs and their owners against one another for a $250,000 reward. As it turns out, competing presidential candidates and competing dogs (or their caretakers) aren’t so different. “What they have in common is the shared sense that the prize should be theirs,” Mr. Cutler said. Within the mansion and grounds outside Los Angeles that have been turned into the Canine Academy for the show, pet-and-human pairs showcase qualities like loyalty, intelligence and teamwork before a jury of three dog experts and the host, a zoologist named Jarod Miller.
Cliff Lipson/CBS
Elan Hagens and the giant Schnauzer Kenji

Most tasks are less about brawn than bond. In a personality challenge, for instance, each owner picks a word out of a hat and then takes a picture of the dog evoking the mood or thought that word represents through props and expression.

As with children, working with animals can be dicey. In a move that could help avoid a repeat of the controversy last year surrounding “Kid Nation,” the CBS reality series that drew questions about child neglect (though no charges or lawsuits were filed), trainers, veterinarians and representatives of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the American Humane Association were all on the set to ensure safety. And behind the scenes a second set of so-called Dream Dogs, closely matching the canine contestants in size, tested each stunt.

In any case, there is plenty of pet pampering. “Survivor”-esque reward challenges mean that winning pairs get the elaborate Dog Bone Suite, along with the power to banish another team to the backyard Dog House. Naturally, it’s often the humans who aren’t so well behaved.

“We’ve got our own Omarosa,” said Wendy Diamond, a judge and the founder of Animal Fair magazine, referring to one of the more controversial contestants on “The Apprentice.” “If you look at this show from a dog’s perspective, can you imagine having to live with some of these owners? That’s what I was thinking: Oh, that poor dog!”

In at least one case stage mother is a more fitting term than dog owner. Beth Joy Knutsen, a New Yorker, employs four talent agents for her little mixed-breed Bella Starlet, a veteran dog actress.

“It’s really amazing to be recognized for her achievements,” said Ms. Knutsen, who has a detailed tattoo of Bella on her leg. “We’ve done so much, and this is the next step in our journey of life together.”

On the show one of Ms. Knutsen’s rivals is David Best, a New York doctor. His life of fancy restaurants and Broadway theater was “all about me,” he said, until he acquired Elvis, a Parson Russell terrier, and “fell head over heels for this little dog.”

Calculating that Nov. 9 was Elvis’s 13th birthday (in dog years), Dr. Best held a “bark mitzvah” last year at Sammy’s Roumanian steak house on the Lower East Side. About a hundred people attended, including the sex expert Dr. Ruth Westheimer, a friend of Dr. Best’s. Video of the event on the Web led to an invitation to take part in “Greatest American Dog.”

Another 400 to 500 dogs and owners auditioned for the show, with producers searching throughout the country for a cross section of breeds and skills. The applicants ranged from house pets to show-dog veterans, though Westminster champions were not considered.

Mr. Cutler, who is an executive producer, said he had been asked to develop a reality show about dogs by Ghen Maynard, executive vice president for alternative programming at CBS, after Stu Schreiberg, another of the show’s executive producers, brought the idea to Mr. Maynard.

“My first reaction was, I can’t believe there isn’t a competition show based around dogs on network television,” said Mr. Cutler, whose reality credits include “Flip That House” on TLC. “Although, having spent many months on it, I can tell you there are a lot of challenges in designing and filming it.” He cited the difficulty in creating competitions that dogs of different sizes, breeds and ages could all handle, adding, “I can see how some might have been discouraged.”

But Ms. Diamond, a veteran of four failed dog-theme reality pilots and two short-lived cable series, has her own theory about the paucity of pet-friendly reality series. “There are dog people, and there are not-dog people,” she said, “and network executives tend to not have that unconditional love.”

Mr. Maynard has a different take. “As much as the animals are characters, reality shows are about people,” he said. “So if the people aren’t compelling, and if we don’t find the relationships they have compelling, then all the dog tricks in the world aren’t necessarily going to make an interesting show.”

And in the end the success of “Greatest American Dog” may hinge on how well it taps into a basic human craving.
“I’ve caught myself running down the hallway in my apartment building to get to the door to see Elvis,” Dr. Best said. “And if you’ve ever been in love, you do that with people, don’t you? There’s one difference: When the door swings open, that person who loves you could one day say, ‘Get lost.’ ”

Original: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/06/arts/television/06bern.html?_r=1&ref=television&oref=slogin
Official Web Site: "Greatest American Dog"

Ideas & Trends
Sit. Stay. Love.
By ERICA GOODE
Published: July 6, 2008

HUMANS are an overrated species, or so Leona Helmsley apparently believed.

DOGGY DEAREST Joan Crawford sharing a bite with her dog. Some people share all with pets.

She briefly considered giving some of her real estate billions to other humans — indigent people, to be specific — but later changed her mind, leaving instead up to $8 billion in a charitable trust solely for the care and welfare of dogs. She favored her Maltese, Trouble, over her family, providing $12 million for the dog in her will, a lot more than she left her grandchildren. Predictably, the news of the extent of Mrs. Helmsley’s charitable bequest was greeted last week with outrage about misguided priorities and jokes about a wealthy woman so arrogant, imperious and ill-tempered that only a canine could abide her. But Mrs. Helmsley, though richer and crankier than most, was hardly the first person to deem the companionship of dogs or other pets more gratifying

than that of people, raising the question of how common such sentiments are and whether they represent a reasonable choice in a world of fickle and unpredictable two-legged creatures, or evidence of some deep-seated psychological disturbance.

The field of psychotherapy has traditionally viewed those whose closest relationships are with animals as somehow lacking, their affections pathologically misplaced, their devotion a symptom of their inability to forge healthy connections with the humans around them.

But in recent years, researchers have begun to take far more seriously the bonds between humans and animals — perhaps unsurprising in a society where more than 68 million households include one pet — and to evaluate those relationships in a more positive light.

Their findings support the notion that feeling closer to a pet than to anyone else is more common than one might think.

“There are whole segments of the population that prefer being in the company of dogs than people, and I’m not sure that’s such a negative thing,” said Joel Gavriele-Gold, a psychoanalyst in private practice in Manhattan and the author of “When Pets Come Between Partners.”

One-third of the participants in a 1990 study by researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University were found to have had closer relationships to their dogs than to their family members, as evidenced by scores on psychological tests.

In another study, Lawrence A. Kurdek, a psychologist at Wright State University in Ohio, found that college students who had a high level of attachment to their dogs showed greater attachment to the pets than to their fathers. Their attachment to their mothers, siblings and best friends was just about the same as their attachment to their canine companions, Dr. Kurdek found.

The study, reported in the April issue of the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, found that the students who were most strongly attached to their dogs did not show high levels of anxiety or avoidance — characteristics that some therapists would expect to see in people with unusually fierce bonds to animals.

The finding, Dr. Kurdek wrote, supports the idea that “people strongly attached to their pet dogs do not turn to pet dogs as substitutes for failed interactions with humans.”

To Dr. Gavriele-Gold, the intensity of the relationship between people and their pets is unsurprising.

“Humans tend to be very disappointing — notice our divorce rate,” Dr. Gavriele-Gold said. “Dogs are not hurtful and humans are. People are inconsistent and dogs are fairly consistent.”

Still, he said, he has seen patients who, betrayed and wounded in childhood, have turned to a cat or dog for the uncritical support and love they never received.

“If you grew up in an atmosphere where you were abused, you’re not going to have a high regard for people,” he said.

Bennett Roth, also a psychoanalyst in Manhattan, recalled a woman he once treated who viewed the years of her life through the lens of what dog or cat she owned at the time.

“The cats were essentially more reliable to her than her family had been, and she didn’t feel safe with other people,” Dr. Roth said.

In other cases, a pet can provide an outlet for more unpleasant traits, like a need to control others, a refusal to compromise or an inability to grant other people autonomy. Dr. Gavriele-Gold described one patient as “a total control freak” who became a dog trainer. “It worked out really well for him,” he said. “He was able to marry a woman who was totally laid-back, and he had no desire to control her because he was able to do it with the dogs.”

Several experts said that from everything they had read about Mrs. Helmsley, who died last August, her relationship with her dog may have fallen into the pathological category. Healthy or not, Mrs. Helmsley did not go quite as far in her devotion as some others. She may have backed her love for Trouble with millions, but, perhaps because she hailed from a more staid generation, she never quite declared the bond exclusive.

Others do. A Web site in England, www.marryyourpet.com, features testimonials from pet owners who claim, seriously or not, that their relationships with their dogs or cats are primary. And Marc Bekoff, an animal researcher in Colorado, said he was startled recently at a meeting when a woman kept talking about her “significant other.”
It turned out, he wrote in an e-mail message, that she was talking about a beagle.

Original: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/06/weekinreview/06goode.html?_r=1&ref=weekinreview&oref=slogin

July 4, 2008
ASPCA Assists in Record-Breaking Puppy Mill Raid

The ASPCA is assisting in Tennessee's largest-ever puppy mill raid, lending our special cruelty investigation team that includes two forensic veterinarians and our Mobile Animal Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) Unit .
The 747 animals discovered in the raid, which began early last Wednesday, were kept in enclosures throughout the 92 acres of hilly and rocky terrain known as Pine Bluff Kennels in Lyles, TN. While the vast majority is dogs, other animals on the property include horses, burros, miniature horses, chickens, goats, parrots and pedigreed cats.

The ASPCA team, including Dr. Melinda Merck , the nation's premier forensic veterinarian and animal CSI, was deployed at the request of the Humane Society of the United States to assist in the collection of evidence for future use in the likely criminal prosecution of the farm’s owner. According to Merck, there are about 700 dogs on the property—including more than 200 puppies—all suffering from a lack of basic care. The dogs were found in feces-encrusted, unventilated pens with little or no food or water. Maladies such as matting, sores, broken limbs, hernias and abscesses are prevalent. Breeds found on the site run the gamut, from Pomeranians and Chihuahuas to German shepherds and Great Danes.

“This is one of the worst situations I have ever seen,” says Merck. “Animals are in extreme states of neglect and illness. Some are dead. The overcrowding, the unsanitary conditions, the flea and parasite infestation, as well as the stress of competing for food and coping with untreated illnesses, are all severe.”

“We are pleased to be able to lend both human resources and hi-tech equipment to this effort in Tennessee as part of our ongoing fight against puppy mills,” says ASPCA President & CEO Ed Sayres. “We want to see this cruelty come to an end.”

Original: http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=media_tristatenewsalert070408#1

Legacy of $8 Billion? For Us? Dogs Take the News in Stride
By RALPH BLUMENTHAL
Published: July 3, 2008

Froggy, a 5-month-old Yorkshire and cairn terrier mix, stared at the front-page article, sniffed it dutifully and wandered off Wednesday for better sniffing elsewhere in the Washington Square Park dog run.

	So Leona Helmsley, before her death last year at 87, had secretly earmarked up to $8 billion of her real estate fortune for the care and welfare of dogs — way beyond the mere $12 million she had willed to her Maltese, Trouble — although it remained unclear whether trustees would regard her statement of intent as binding. Froggy had trouble just following the tale. “It’s the frontal lobe thing,” said his owner, Annie Albrecht, a Hollywood writer. But once she explained the situation, she said, Froggy was ecstatic. (Ms. Albrecht was happy to translate, as other owners also did for their pets quoted below). “I’d have a lovely green field and a fountain and a big place for me to sit and watch,” Froggy said of Ms. Helmsley’s largess. “Oh, and I’d have free doggie day care and also health care for doggies that don’t have a home, and spaying and neutering for cats, too.”
Librado Romero/NY Times
Ethan, a 3-year-old poodle, saw the story for himself.

“Cats?” said Sidney, Roberta Bayley’s 7-year-old pug, playing nearby. “Let them get their own millionaire.”
Billy, a 9-year-old Jack Russell terrier who was playing with Sidney, said, “If I had my way, I’d buy every squeaky toy I could get my hands on.”

Also, “more no-kill shelters would be nice,” Billy told her owner, Laura Hughes, a casting director.

“What I would do,” Nina, a 5-year-old beagle-Labrador mix, told her owner, Sarah Levy, a lawyer, between tummy scratches, “is get the biggest jar of peanut butter, and I’d open my own dog run with no other dogs and a thousand people."

	Nikita, a Kerry blue terrier, compulsively scratching her shaggy coat, had her own plans for the money, she assured her owner, Derek Berg, a photographer: “I’d make a special squirrel farm and no skateboarders within two miles — They scare me and get me very angry, mostly the sounds.” Tearing around the sandy run, Tennessee, a Labrador retriever and Great Pyrenees mix, said he did not want anything for himself, but would use the money to buy a bigger apartment for his owner, Mariel Rittenhouse, a freelance writer, and her boyfriend — while cautioning that $8 billion no longer buys the kind of Manhattan space it used to. Some hesitated to embrace Ms. Helmsley. “Maybe she is making up for past misdeeds,” said Ethan, a poodle belonging to Claudia Schalb, an art critic.
Robert Coane/ Scoop & Howl
Derek Berg translates for Kerry blue Nikita at Washington Square Park

But many seemed willing to forgive the darker aspects of her record — she went to prison for tax evasion and was widely derided as the Queen of Mean for her exacting and tyrannical ways.

“She left it to us, and she could have just bought more shoes,” said Max, a busily herding border collie and setter mix belonging to Barry Ratoff, an artist.

Froggy had some reservations: “I would think a children’s hospital might have been a better choice.”

Oliver begged to differ. A wire-haired dachshund with impeccable counterterrorism credentials — he worked for a time for Hans Blix, the chief United Nations weapons inspector, sniffing out weapons of mass destruction, said his owner, Laura Bong, a film editor and dog walker — he had some worldly experience others lacked. He sat alone, gazing at the commotion.

“It’s a good idea even though she was not so nice a person,” Oliver said, adding, “I told you there were no weapons of mass destruction there.”

If he didn’t romp much with the other dogs on Wednesday, he had a lot on his mind. “He’s upset about the Zimbabwe election and the gun thing,” Ms. Bong said, adding that Oliver would undoubtedly prefer to be home with “his down comforter and cashmere wrap.”

(Oliver’s claims of overseas service could not be immediately verified.).

Lola, a Chihuahua in a rhinestone collar, interrupted her run to confide a dream to her owner, Samantha Retrosi, a student: a dream of someday owning a collar with real diamonds.

Sappho Nelly, another Chihuahua with extensive training as a therapy dog comforting hospital patients, told her owner, Nina Goedé, an artist and composer from Paris, that the Helmsley billions could be put to good use opening up a shaded small-dog section in the dog run, so that little featherweights like her wouldn’t have to keep looking over their shoulders for the brutes. Cradled in her owner’s arms, she spoke in a fetching French accent.

Another Oliver, a wheaten terrier stopping to gulp water, agreed. “Buy a bigger dog park,” he urged his owner, Erma Eliazov, a brands consultant. “This is gross.”

Across town, in Tompkins Square Park, George Rand, a retired nurse practitioner, sat on a bench with Johnny, an ailing 8-year-old adopted part pit bull found wandering in Brooklyn. Johnny hadn’t read the Helmsley article in The New York Times — “He’s kind of a Daily News kind of dog,” Mr. Rand said. But he said Johnny would know just what to do with the Helmsley billions. “He’d keep about $500,000 for medical care and give away the rest,” Mr. Rand said. “He’s that kind of dog.”

Original: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/03/nyregion/03dogs.html?ref=nyregion

Pit Bulls’ Owner Is Charged in Mauling of Neighbor, 90
By AL BAKER
Published: July 3, 2008

The owner of two pit bulls has been charged in the dogs’ mauling of an elderly Staten Island man that left him in critical condition, the authorities said on Wednesday.

The dogs’ owner, James W. McNair (left), 28, a registered sex offender, was arrested late Tuesday and charged with keeping unleashed dogs and with failure to have collars or tags on the dogs, officials said. He was also charged with possession of fireworks, which were found when the police searched his home, the authorities said.

William J. Smith, a spokesman for the Staten Island district attorney’s office, said on Wednesday that Mr. McNair would also be charged with second-degree assault.
The victim, Henry S. Piotrowski, 90, was attacked about 11 a.m. Tuesday in his yard on John Street, which is adjacent to Mr. McNair’s backyard in the Elm Park neighborhood. It was not until a neighbor, Reginald Bell, ran at the dogs with a butcher knife that they stopped.

Mr. Piotrowski, who drove a tank during World War II, remained in critical condition on Wednesday at Richmond University Medical Center, said Jennifer Sammartino, a hospital spokeswoman.

The dogs were later euthanized, according to a spokesman at Animal Care and Control of New York City.
The dogs — named Popeye and Brutus — stripped most of the skin off Mr. Piotrowski’s arm and leg, and according to a cousin the leg had to be amputated.

Mr. Smith, from the district attorney’s office, said Mr. McNair was released from state prison in 2004 after serving a sentence for third-degree rape. He was not expected to be arraigned until Thursday, Mr. Smith said.

The authorities said the fireworks were in plain sight in Mr. McNair’s home on Newark Avenue. Their value is more than $100, according to an arrest report.

Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly called the attack on Mr. Piotrowski “a horrendous situation,” and spoke of a separate attack early Wednesday in Brooklyn in which a pit bull bit off part of a 3-year-old’s ear during a family dispute.

“It is an increasing concern for us,” Mr. Kelly said. “You see police officers encounter dogs virtually on a daily basis. In some areas they’re being used as weapons.”

Original: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/03/nyregion/03maul.html?ref=nyregion

Helmsley, Dogs’ Best Friend, Left Them Billions
By STEPHANIE STROM
Published: July 2, 2008

Sure, the hotelier and real estate magnate Leona Helmsley left $12 million in her will to her dog, Trouble. But that, it turns out, is nothing much compared with what other dogs may receive from the charitable trust of Mrs. Helmsley, who died last August.

	Her instructions, specified in a two-page “mission statement,” are that the entire trust, valued at $5 billion to $8 billion and amounting to virtually all her estate, be used for the care and welfare of dogs, according to two people who have seen the document and who described it on condition of anonymity. It is by no means clear, however, that all the money will go to dogs. Another provision of the mission statement says Mrs. Helmsley’s trustees may use their discretion in distributing the money, and some lawyers say the statement may not mean much anyway, given that its directions were not incorporated into Mrs. Helmsley’s will or the trust documents. “The statement is an expression of her wishes that is not necessarily legally binding,” said William Josephson, a lawyer who was the chief of the Charities Bureau in the New York State attorney general’s office from 1999 to 2004. Still, longstanding laws favor adherence to a donor’s intent, and the mission statement is the only clear expression of Mrs. Helmsley’s charitable intentions. That will make the document difficult for her trustees, as well as the probate court and state charity regulators, to ignore.
Jennifer Graylock/Associated Press
Leona Helmsley and Trouble in New York in January 2000

The two people who described the statement said Mrs. Helmsley signed it in 2003 to establish goals for the multibillion-dollar trust that would disburse assets after her death.
The first goal was to help indigent people, the second to provide for the care and welfare of dogs. A year later, they said, she deleted the first goal.

Howard J. Rubenstein, a spokesman for the executors of Mrs. Helmsley’s estate, said they did not want to comment on the statement because they were still working to determine the trust’s direction.

Mrs. Helmsley, the widow of Harry B. Helmsley, who built a real estate empire in Manhattan, was best known for her sharp tongue and impatience with humanity. She became a household name when she was featured in glossy advertisements for the Helmsley hotels. “It’s the only palace in the world where the queen stands guard,” advertisements for the Helmsley Palace proclaimed.

But for many Americans, she later became a symbol of unbridled arrogance and belief in entitlement, particularly after she was convicted in 1989 of $1.2 million in federal income tax evasion, for which she was sent to prison. She was the subject of a 1990 television film, “Leona Helmsley: The Queen of Mean,” with Suzanne Pleshette in the title role, and at least three books.

When she died last year at 87, she left all but a few million dollars of her vast estate to what will become one of the nation’s dozen largest foundations when the probate process is finished. She had $2.3 billion in liquid assets when she died, according to the probate petition, and the disposal of her real estate holdings is expected to produce an additional $3 billion to $6 billion.

Even if the resulting total is at the low end of the estimate — $5 billion or so — the trust will be worth almost 10 times the combined assets of all 7,381 animal-related nonprofit groups reporting to the Internal Revenue Service in 2005.

The five executors of her will — Mrs. Helmsley’s brother, Alvin Rosenthal; two of her grandsons, Walter and David Panzirer; her lawyer, Sandor Frankel; and her longtime friend John Codey — have been preoccupied with disposing of the real estate.

They are also the trustees of the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust and, according to the two people who discussed the mission statement, have fretted about the public outcry that disclosure of its terms might incite.

They have reason for concern: News last year that the biggest named beneficiary in Mrs. Helmsley’s will was Trouble, her Maltese, led to death threats against the dog, which now requires security costing $100,000 a year. But they also cannot sit on the liquid assets much longer without raising questions from the attorney general’s office, which oversees the use of charitable assets in New York State.

The trustees recently hired a philanthropic advisory service to help them figure out a way to remain true to Mrs. Helmsley’s intentions while at the same time pursuing broader charitable goals with her foundation.

Judge Renee R. Roth of Surrogate’s Court in Manhattan will also play a role. She has already demonstrated a willingness to be flexible, cutting the size of Trouble’s trust fund to $2 million, from the $12 million prescribed in Mrs. Helmsley’s will, and ordering that the difference be added to the pending charitable trust.

Judge Roth also agreed to a settlement between the trustees and two of Mrs. Helmsley’s grandchildren who were explicitly left out of her will. The agreement gave those grandchildren $6 million each.

There are many ways the trustees could spend the Helmsley money on dogs. National groups like the Humane Society of the United States and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals have programs dedicated to dogs, and many smaller local groups rescue abandoned and abused dogs. Or the trustees could use the trust’s money to finance veterinary schools or research on canine diseases.

Her goal of helping dogs was not Mrs. Helmsley’s only posthumous quirk. In her will, she ordered that her tomb, in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., be “acid-washed or steam-cleaned” once a year.

She also made two grandchildren’s combined $10 million inheritance contingent on their visiting their father’s grave, requiring that a registration book be placed in the mausoleum to prove that they had shown up.

Original: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/02/us/02gift.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

Beloved Pets, Displaced by Floodwaters, Find Temporary Shelter in Iowa
By MALCOLM GAY
Published: June 30, 2008

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — As floodwaters began to rise this spring, forcing thousands from their homes, Sgt. Kent Choate oversaw one of the larger evacuation efforts, providing shelter to hundreds of animals whose owners had been displaced.

Anne Duffy holds a rescued German shepherd.	Supplies arrive at a pet shelter in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Sandra L. Dyas for The New York Times

"We expected we’d house our animals and maybe 100 more lost animals,” said Sergeant Choate, who is in charge of the animal control unit of the city’s Police Department, “but then one of the city’s pumps broke, and we knew it was going to grow exponentially. We just didn’t know how big.

Almost every spring, water from the nearby Cedar River flooded the approach to the building that housed the animal shelter. But this spring was different. Heavy rains left surrounding farmland saturated, and by early June the engorged Cedar River, normally a lazy stretch of water that feeds the Mississippi, had washed over its banks, flooding an estimated 4,200 homes here and displacing thousands.

As the shelter flooded, animal control officers were forced to relocate the animal shelter to higher ground at nearby Kirkwood Community College, where Anne Duffy, a professor of veterinary technology, had previously offered the college’s Animal Health Technology building as a shelter during flooding.

“We both agreed after the May flooding that we should put a policy together,” Ms. Duffy said, referring to Sergeant Choate. “We were going to get right on that, but then the flood came up before the policy did.”

As the situation deteriorated, flood victims, many staying in hotels, shelters or cars, began dropping off pets at the college. Others, who had been forced to flee without their pets, began calling in with pleas for their animals to be rescued. Within days, what had started as a makeshift shelter had grown into a sprawling operation housing nearly 1,000 animals — dogs, cats, rabbits, birds, lizards, even a red-eared slider turtle — in three buildings.

With the influx of animals came an infusion of aid. Several national chain stores donated supplies. Veterinary technicians came from as far away as California to volunteer, and legions of veterinarians, groomers and even flood victims soon arrived at the shelter wanting to help.

On Saturday, 40-pound bags of dog food were stacked pell-mell throughout the complex, pet toys were crammed into boxes, and desks, shredded paper and cat litter had been pushed into corners of classrooms. Ms. Duffy estimated that volunteers had logged roughly 25,000 hours at the shelter.

One of the lessons driven home after Hurricane Katrina — in which an estimated 200,000 animals were displaced — was that some residents risked, and lost, their lives rather than leave a beloved pet behind.

“The biggest thing learned by everyone from Katrina is the importance of animals in people’s lives,” said Diane Webber, disaster preparedness director for the Humane Society of the United States. “They can’t be excluded from disaster planning and response. People aren’t going to function and they’re not going to evacuate if their animals aren’t provided for.”
Ms. Webber, who estimated the Humane Society sheltered 15,000 animals across Louisiana and Mississippi during the 2005 hurricane, said animal evacuation first arose as an issue after Hurricane Andrew’s march across southern Florida and Louisiana in 1992.

The dedication of Americans to their pets is well documented, including a Zogby International poll in 2006 in which 49 percent of adults reported they would refuse to evacuate if they could not take their pets.

Joanna Hughes, 45, said her husband, Philip, had lived with their six dogs in a garage for several days after they evacuated their home in nearby Palo.

“My husband would’ve stayed there right with the dogs until they hauled him away in shackles,” said Ms. Hughes, who visited her dogs at the Kirkwood shelter Saturday. “He cares more about the pets than he ever did about the house.”

Ramona Potts and her mother, Dorothy Jensen, refused to leave their four dogs, including a miniature poodle named Lilly Mae, when floodwaters forced them to evacuate their homes about 10 blocks from the Cedar River.
“We were living in a Buick,” said Ms. Potts, 51, who visited the dogs at the shelter Saturday. “But my dogs weren’t doing too well in the car. Lilly Mae kept jumping out the window.”

Still, many animals were either abandoned or forgotten as the floodwaters approached.

One of the dogs at the shelter, a white German shepherd, was rescued by searchers who were answering a call to rescue another animal.

“There was no rescue request on this dog,” Ms. Duffy said. “She was swimming back and forth in five feet of water when they pulled her out of the house. She was just swimming from the back of the house to the front of the house.”
Ms. Duffy added that that although the German shepherd showed signs of having recently given birth, rescuers did not find her litter. “We speculate that she lost her puppies in the flood,” Ms. Duffy said.
As the waters have receded, the shelter’s population has dropped to around 620. The city of Cedar Rapids has imposed a 14-day hold on all pet adoptions, although unclaimed pets like the German shepherd may eventually be shipped to out-of-state shelters for placement.

“We’re trying to give people a chance to find their lost pets before we put strays up for adoption,” Ms. Duffy said. “But there’s really no way the people of Cedar Rapids could adopt all these animals.”

Press Release
ASPCA Assists in Tennessee’s Largest-Ever Puppy Mill Raid
Dispatches Forensics Team, Mobile CSI Unit for Triage of Sick & Injured Animals

NEW YORK, June 26, 2008—The ASPCA ®(The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals ®) is assisting in Tennessee’s largest-ever puppy mill raid of more than 700 dogs, lending a special forensic cruelty investigation team that includes two forensic veterinarians, as well as its "Mobile Animal Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) Unit," a critical tool in the collection and processing of evidence at crime scenes.

“We are pleased to be able to lend our assistance, both in terms of human resources and equipment, in our ongoing fight against animal cruelty,” said ASPCA President and CEO Ed Sayres. “The ASPCA team is helping in all aspects of the recovery, collection, storage and documentation of animal evidence at the site. The ASPCA’s Mobile Animal CSI unit is an important component in this effort, as it offers the ability to work on-site with the necessary tools, allowing evidence to be processed more accurately and efficiently.”

The ASPCA team was deployed at the request of the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), which led the raid, to assist in the collection of evidence for the prosecution of the criminal case. The team includes the ASPCA’s Dr. Melinda Merck, the nation’s premier forensic veterinarian and “animal CSI,” Dr. Ellen Hirschberg, and five disaster response team experts— the ASPCA’s Sandy Monterose, Allison Cardona, Felicia Earley, Eric Lee and Chris Fagan—and volunteer veterinarian Dr. Solvieg Evans.

The 747 animals discovered in the raid, which began early yesterday, were housed in various enclosures among the property’s 92 acres of hilly and rocky terrain known as Pine Bluff Kennels in Lyles, Tennessee. The farm’s owner could face criminal charges.

According to Dr. Merck, the majority of the animals are dogs, including more than 200 puppies, suffering from a general lack of husbandry, such as little to no food or water, lack of proper ventilation in enclosed areas, and feces encrusted pens. Conditions such as matting, sores, broken limbs, hernias, abscesses, and a host of other medical conditions are prevalent.  Breeds observed include basset hounds, Jack Russell terriers, Pomeranians, Chihuahuas, boxers, Chow-Chows, dachshunds, Shih tzus, German shepherds, border terriers, shar-peis, pugs, Yorkshire terriers, and Great Danes. Other animals on the property include horses, burros, miniature horses, chickens, goats, parrots and purebred cats.

“This is by far one of the worst situations I have ever seen,” said Dr. Merck. “Animals are in extreme cases of neglect and illness, and some are dead. The overcrowding, unsanitary conditions, flea and parasite infestation, as well as the stress of competing for food and coping with untreated illnesses, is severe.”

Animals in critical condition were examined immediately on the ASPCA’s CSI unit, which operates under the leadership of Dr. Merck and brings both state-of-the-art forensics tools and unmatched expertise to crime scenes. The specially-designed vehicle is also outfitted with medical equipment tailored for animal patients. 
Animals at the facility are in the official custody of the HSUS and are being transported to a nearby emergency shelter. They are expected to be placed in shelters and placed up for adoption. Many of the other animals, including livestock, are in temporary foster care.

The rescue was set into motion by the HSUS’ Tennessee state director who received undercover tips and worked with investigators with the District Attorney’s office for the 21st Judicial District to build a case against the puppy mill operator. Law enforcement personnel from the Hickman County Sheriff’s Department, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, the 21st Judicial District Drug Task Force and the Tennessee Highway Patrol assisted in executing the search warrant. Other organizations assisting in the rescue included the Humane Society of Missouri, the Nashville Humane Society, High Forest Humane Society, Hickman County Humane Society, Tampa Bay SPCA and many others. 

The ASPCA’s “Mobile Animal Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) Unit,” the nation’s first, was unveiled in December 2007. A “forensics first,” the “Animal CSI” vehicle was created to significantly advance the prosecution of animal cruelty and help strengthen cases against offenders by incorporating the emerging field of veterinary forensics in crime scene investigations.  It also provides a proven chain of custody for law enforcement, thus ensuring the integrity of the evidence, and helps reduce the stress placed on the animals that are the innocent “collateral victims.”
“Puppy mills are nothing but large-scale, substandard commercial breeding operations that house dogs in overcrowded and often unsanitary conditions, without adequate veterinary care, food, water and socialization,” said Sayres. “We want to see this cruelty come to an end.”

To learn more about the plight of puppy mill dogs, please visit ASPCA.org/puppymills

Homeless Pets Crowd Shelters as Families Hit Hard Times
By BRENDA GOODMAN
Published: June 26, 2008

ATLANTA — “Desperate Pets!” read the headline of an online classified ad posted from Lee County, Fla., which is ranked first in the nation in home foreclosures.

Roger and Tammy West lost their house in Jasper, Ga., to foreclosure and moved to a rental property. They say they cannot afford to keep two of their three dogs. Photo: Erik S. Lesser for The New York Times

“Please Help!” begged a post from a pet owner in Carroll County, Ga., who said she had two dogs that would be homeless when her mother’s home was foreclosed on in a few weeks. “Our shelter has something like an 80 percent kill rate,” the post said. “I have exhausted every effort I know to find them a good home. No one wants a pregnant dog.” As mounting layoffs and foreclosures have caused many middle-class Americans to lose their economic footing, some are parting with their pets, a trend that has sent a tide of displaced dogs and cats to rescue groups and county animal shelters around the country, officials said.

“One lady was crying to me today and said: ‘I’ve either got to feed my kid or feed my dog. What would you do?’ ” said Shari Johannes, owner of Dog Pack Rescue, a “no kill” shelter in Kingston, Ga., that keeps animals until they are adopted.

Like most such no-kill rescue groups in areas where foreclosures are high, Ms. Johannes, who is keeping 180 dogs on five acres, is over capacity. She will not accept any more animals, though people beg her daily to take their pets.
When no-kill rescue groups turn pets away, the last option for owners is usually a county animal shelter, which will typically euthanize animals when space runs out.

In Georgia, which ranked sixth in the nation in foreclosures in May, directors of county animal shelters reported that the number of pets surrendered by their owners spiked in the first part of the year.

The number of pets left at Henry County Animal Care and Control in McDonough, Ga., was up 71 percent for the first four months of 2008 compared with the same period in 2007, said Gerri Dueringer, the shelter’s director.

In Clayton County, 22 percent more pets were surrendered in the first part of the year compared with 2007, said Mark Thompson, a police captain and director of the animal shelter in Jonesboro, Ga.

Other areas of the country hit hard by foreclosures are seeing similar increases, said Wayne Pacelle, president and chief executive of the Humane Society of the United States.

“In terms of relinquishment, I’d say this is the most serious circumstance that I can recall,” Mr. Pacelle said. And as more pets are being turned in, he noted, cash donations to animal rescue groups have declined and fewer people are adopting pets.

“It’s a bit of a triple whammy,” he said.

The Humane Society recently started a foreclosure fund, which offers grants of $500 to $2,000 to help nonprofit animal rescue groups weather the crisis. Since late March, when the fund was announced, 133 groups have applied for aid and 11 have been given grants.

“Obviously, it’s a crisis for local shelters; I worry about what it means for our society,” said Betsy Saul, a founder of Petfinder.com, a Web site that showcases animals for adoption at 11,000 sites in the United States.

Ms. Saul recently polled her member organizations to gauge the problem and found that half of her respondents had seen pets turned in because of home foreclosures in the last six months.

After months without construction work, Roger West of Jasper, Ga., began to miss mortgage payments. In May, he and his wife, Tammy, and their 6-year-old daughter, Macy, became the third family on their street to lose their home to foreclosure.

“The way things have fell off, we’re just praying our way through it,” Mr. West said.

Though they were able to move to a much smaller rental home, they decided that they could not afford to keep two of their three dogs, a German shepherd and a boxer.

“It’s like losing a member of the family,” said Tammy West, who is trying to find the dogs a home on the Web site Craigslist. “They’re not bad or mean or anything. They are just dogs that are going through a bad situation like we are.”

The Wests, who said they had $11 in the bank after they paid their bills recently, were able to persuade their new landlord to give them some time to find new homes for the dogs, but they know that other pet owners, and their pets, have not been so lucky.

Tracy Thompson, facility manager of the Paulding County animal shelter in Dallas, Ga., said: “We are a fast-growing county, or we were. And it kind of came to a screeching halt. We have a lot of empty construction and vacant homes around here.”

Ms. Thompson said the flood of new animals because of foreclosures had already led to an increase in euthanizations at her facility.

“Last month, we euthanized 151 animals for space,” she said. “In June, we’re already up past that.”

“We see people who are at the end of their rope,” Ms. Thompson said. “We’ve had some bring their animals in who are living in their cars, and we’re all in tears then.”

Ms. Dueringer, the Henry County shelter director, said: “You pick up the young, adult, healthy dog and its only crime is that it’s alive. And you have to put it to sleep. It’s torturous to staff. It’s heartbreaking.”

Original http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/26/us/26pets.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Beaten-down dog from Vick case has his day
Pit bull rescued from famous dogfighting ring now helps cancer patients
Marianne Favro, KNTV
June. 17, 2008

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. - It’s a Dog’s life. And for Leo it couldn’t be better.

Leo — rescued from heavy chains that confined him as one of the pit bulls in former NFL quarterback Michael Vick’s dogfighting ring — is a lover, not a fighter. He now happily frolics in a clown collar as he makes the rounds at the Camino Infusion Center, where he brings comfort to cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.
Despite his training as a killer, Leo is a sweetheart as he visits his friends on the ward.

“He is wonderful, and all the patients love Leo,” said Paula Reed, the facility’s oncology director. “They really love his eyes and gentleness.”

Six months ago, Leo should have been dead.

When officers raided Vick’s Bad Newz Kennels in Smithfield, Va., last year, they found dogs, some injured and scarred, chained to buried car axles. Forensic experts discovered remains of dogs that had been shot with a .22-caliber pistol, electrocuted, drowned, hanged or slammed to the ground for lacking a desire to fight.

Vick, an All-Pro quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons, was suspended indefinitely and is serving 23 months in federal prison after pleading guilty in August to bankrolling the dogfighting operation and helping to kill as many as eight dogs. Three co-defendants also pleaded guilty and were sentenced to prison.

About 50 dogs were rescued.

Animal advocates are divided over whether fighting dogs can be trusted to have new lives as pets or working dogs. One of the dogs seized at Bad Newz was put down as too aggressive, but the others were dispersed to sanctuaries and training facilities across the country.

An ‘incredible’ difference with patients
One of them was Leo, who ended up in the care of Marthina McClay, a certified trainer and counselor in Los Gatos, near San Francisco. McClay is president of Our Pack, an advocacy group for pit bulls.

“He was a little like a caveman at a tea party,” McClay said. “He didn’t have a lot of training.”

But after five weeks of intense instruction and supervision, and more weeks of acclimation, Leo is now — with all due respect —a pussy cat. He loves putting his head on a patient’s lap and batting his big brown eyes.

“The difference that he’s had with our patients has been incredible — the smiles on their faces, the joy when they see him,” said Reed of the cancer center.

“Leo is a survivor and our patients are survivors, and I think they can relate to each other,” she said.

Original story and video http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25214356/from/ET/

Editorial Notebook
The Cost of Smarts
By VERLYN KLINKENBORG
Published: May 7, 2008

Research on animal intelligence always makes me wonder just how smart humans are. Consider the fruit-fly experiments described in Carl Zimmer’s piece in the Science Times on Tuesday. Fruit flies who were taught to be smarter than the average fruit fly tended to live shorter lives. This suggests that dimmer bulbs burn longer, that there is an advantage in not being too terrifically bright.

Intelligence, it turns out, is a high-priced option. It takes more upkeep, burns more fuel and is slow off the starting line because it depends on learning — a gradual process — instead of instinct. Plenty of other species are able to learn, and one of the things they’ve apparently learned is when to stop.

Is there an adaptive value to limited intelligence? That’s the question behind this new research. I like it. Instead of casting a wistful glance backward at all the species we’ve left in the dust I.Q.-wise, it implicitly asks what the real costs of our own intelligence might be. This is on the mind of every animal I’ve ever met.

Every chicken that looks at you sideways — which is how they all look at you — is really saying what Thoreau said less succinctly: you are endeavoring to solve the problem of a livelihood by a formula more complicated than the problem itself. Thoreau himself would not dispute that he was hoping to recover the chicken’s point of view. He went to Walden Pond “to remember well his ignorance.”

Research on animal intelligence also makes me wonder what experiments animals would perform on humans if they had the chance. Every cat with an owner, for instance, is running a small-scale study in operant conditioning. I believe that if animals ran the labs, they would test us to determine the limits of our patience, our faithfulness, our memory for terrain. They would try to decide what intelligence in humans is really for, not merely how much of it there is. Above all, they would hope to study a fundamental question: Are humans actually aware of the world they live in? So far the results are inconclusive.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/07/opinion/07wed4.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&oref=slogin

Related: Lots of Animals Learn, but Smarter Isn’t Better (May 6, 2008)

Cops: Dogs Removed from Suspected L.I. Puppy Mill
Posted: Wednesday, 07 May 2008

EAST NORTHPORT, N.Y. (AP)  -- Dozens of dogs have been removed by police and firefighters from a suspected puppy mill on Long Island.

Authorities say most of the dogs were filthy, scared and living in a house in East Northport that was filled with foul air.

The Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says a woman faces misdemeanor animal cruelty charges.

The organization says 56 dogs were removed from the house. Most were shih tzus and poodles.

Puppy mills often exist to produce purebred puppies in large numbers. Many organizations working to combat animal cruelty say they put animals in deplorable conditions.

Researchers Seek to Demystify the Metabolic Magic of Sled Dogs
By DOUGLAS ROBSON
Published: May 6, 2008

When humans engage in highly strenuous exercise day after day, they start to metabolize the body’s reserves, depleting glycogen and fat stores. When cells run out of energy, a result is fatigue, and exercise grinds to a halt until those sources are replenished.

Dogs are different, in particular the sled dogs that run the annual Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in Alaska. This is a grueling 1,100-mile race, and studies show that the dogs somehow change their metabolism during the race.
Dr. Michael S. Davis, an associate professor of veterinary physiology at Oklahoma State University and an animal exercise researcher, said: “Before the race, the dogs’ metabolic makeup is similar to humans. Then suddenly they throw a switch — we don’t know what it is yet — that reverses all of that. In a 24-hour period, they go back to the same type of metabolic baseline you see in resting subjects. But it’s while they are running 100 miles a day.”

Dr. Davis, who studied the sled dogs, found they did not chew up their reserves and avoided the worst aspects of fatigue. He is pursuing the research for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which gave him a $1.4 million grant in 2003 to study the physiology of fatigue resistance of sled dogs.

Dr. Davis, who is teaming with researchers at Texas A&M in a $300,000 Darpa grant, awarded last fall, has been traveling to Alaska for years to learn why the sled dogs are “fatigue-proof.”

“They have a hidden strategy that they can turn on,” he said. “We are confident that humans have the capacity for that strategy. We have to figure out how dogs are turning it on to turn it on in humans.”

Researchers have not demonstrated that ability in other species, but Dr. Davis said migratory mammals or birds could have it. Nor is it similar to the mammalian diving reflex that lets aquatic mammals like seals, otters and dolphins stay under water for long periods of time by slowing metabolic rates.

“The level of metabolism is staying the same,” Dr. Davis said. “It’s not slowing down their calorie burn rate.”
In fact, sled dogs in long-distance racing typically burn 240 calories a pound per day for one to two weeks nonstop. The average Tour de France cyclist burns 100 calories a pound of weight daily, researchers say.

How the dogs maintain such a high level of caloric burn for an extended period without tapping into their reserves of fat and glycogen (and thus grinding to a halt like the rest of us) is what makes them “magical,” Davis says.

Posted: Tuesday, 15 April 2008
Seeing Eye Dog Retires After 63 (Dog) Years of Service
NEW YORK -- After 63 long years of hard work - - dog years, that is - - Ruger the seeing eye dog is calling it a career.

Kevin Coughlin, 46, of Manhattan, who is blind, has to give up his beloved guide dog, Ruger on Friday because of the yellow lab’s advanced age. For nine years Ruger has helped Coughlin navigate the jam-packed sidewalks of the city, saving him from cars, cabs and construction sites.

Ruger	Kevin Coughlin and Ruger

Coughlin told 1010 WINS he realized Ruger had found the right home one day when 42nd Street was even more crowded than usual, “Ruger went to the left and he went to the right.  He couldn’t go around people so he was stomping his feet in place like he was an impatient New Yorker."

The bond between this man and this dog grew even stronger a few years ago when Ruger had cancer surgery. Coughlin nursed his dog back to health.  “I felt like I was finally able to give back a little to him,” said Coughlin. As Friday, the day of departure, nears, Coughlin spoke lovingly of the animal he calls, “my colleague and my pal,” saying he will miss him immensely. “I am so blessed to have had him in my life."

Ruger will be retiring with an adoptive in Warcick NY

But before he goes, the helpful pooch is being honored  for all those years of service, on Thursday at Manhattan's St. Agnes Church from 5-7 p.m. Folks at the church say they plan on thanking Ruger by giving him a sterilized bone and some of Mother Hubbard's mini-treats. 

Word is, he's most excited about the mini-treats.

April 12, 2008
Is it safe?
Now the evidence is in: If a community is humane, then yes, it’s safe. And if it harbors cruelty to animals, it’s not safe for people, either.

In a recent prison survey in Chicago, 7 out of 10 people convicted of violent crime said they’d begun with animals. And dog-fighting is right up at the top.

That’s why Best Friends is working in a model program with Safe Humane Chicago to reach people, especially young people, before they’re drawn into the vortex of violence.

This week, we visit a high school where young people have signed on to learn more about animals – and about how kindness to animals builds a better world for all of us.

For More:
http://news.bestfriends.org/index.cfm?page=news&mode=entry&entry=35CB2EF5-19B9-B9D5-9DBE8E9F036895DA

Groundbreaking work with the VICKtory dogs.

Emotional healing Halle was terrified of people when she came to Best Friends last December. The change has been amazing. This week, read about how she and the others are coming out of their shells. When Halle first came to Best Friends in early January, she was absolutely terrified of people. That’s understandable, considering that she was one of the dogs rescued from Michael Vick’s dog fighting ring. Halle and 21 other “Vicktory” dogs have been at the sanctuary for almost three months now, and their progress has been nothing short of amazing.

Full Article http://news.bestfriends.org/index.cfm?page=news&fps=1&mode=entry&entry=E6EB5218-19B9-B98A-E2F076FA983F6D8E Watch the video “Pitties of the Round Table.”

EDITORIAL
When Protection Vanishes
Published: April 5, 2008

At midnight on March 28, the gray wolves in Wyoming slipped out of the protection of the Endangered Species Act and became other kinds of creatures: trophy game animals to be hunted in the state’s northwest corner and predators to be shot on sight elsewhere.

The nature of the wolf didn’t change, only the restraints imposed on humans. In the next three days, three wolves were killed, two by hunters and one by a rancher, all in the predator zone where the only restriction is the obligation to report a kill within 10 days. Environmental groups plan to sue to reverse the lifting of these protections, but they are barred from doing so for 30 days — plenty of time for more wolves to die.
It is tempting to adduce an ancestral hostility between man and wolf. But this is a problem in economics. Wolves kill a small number of livestock, and compensating ranchers’ losses is a price worth paying. What this is really about is a competition between two top predators — man and wolf — for elk. Elk-hunting generates revenue, and wolves cannot pay for the elk they take.

Gray wolves in the Rocky Mountains were eradicated in the early 20th century, so it is easy to think of them as a special case. They were reintroduced by humans — a legally mandated intervention — and they will be killed by humans because of another legal intervention. Their survival is wholly a matter of our intent. And yet you might say the same thing about every other species, every other ecosystem on this planet.

The more we think about it, the more we believe the only nature that matters anymore is human nature. This is not a happy thought. The answer to every important environmental question ultimately depends on human self-restraint. The simple ethical fact seems to be that humans cannot restrain themselves, not without laws and incentives that are only as solid as our weakest intentions. The laws change, and overnight all that good work is threatened by gun smoke.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/05/opinion/05sat3.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&oref=slogin