2010 September | The Dog Files

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Comeback For Most Of Vick’s Abused Pit Bulls

September 28, 2010 in Adoption News, Endangerment, Lifestyle News, News

From his controversial signing with the Eagles a year ago to his stunning and victorious ascension this week as the team’s new starting quarterback, Michael Vick’s postprison comeback has the sports world abuzz all over again.
But meanwhile, another comeback has been going on much more quietly as the canine victims of Vick’s dogfighting ring – Sweet Jasmine, Handsome Dan, Jonnie Justice, and the dozens of other pit bulls seized from Vick’s Virginia compound in 2007 – travel their own path of redemption.

Sports Illustrated senior editor Jim Gorant tells their story in a new book, The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick’s Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption (Gotham, $26).

Surprisingly, 47 of the 51 dogs rescued from Vick’s property survived, even though they were initially written off as unsalvageable even by some ardent animal-rights activists. The majority have become family pets, agility champions, and even therapy dogs.

Twenty-two of the dogs, the tougher cases, ended up at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Utah. Some have been adopted, and the sanctuary continues to work with the others on their “people and dog skills” with the goal of finding them good homes.

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Tags: Comeback For Most Of Vick's Abused Pit Bulls, dog, pit bulls, rescue dogs, Vick No Comments »

by Melody Chen

Mystery Dog-Killing Disease Returns To UK

September 28, 2010 in Dog Safety, Endangerment, Environment, News, World

By Andy Bloxham for telegraph.co.uk

Last year, four dogs died and another 14 fell ill after being walked in Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire.

Now experts fear the disease has returned after one dog died and at least eight dogs were taken ill after visiting the forest.

Warning signs have been put up and the Forestry Commission is advising owners to keep their pets on leads while walking them to reduce the risk.

Pesticides and other man-made chemicals have been ruled out and local vets’ latest theory is that the dogs ate poisonous mushrooms.

Janice Dixon, a vet in Rainworth, Notts, said she had treated several dogs at her surgery in in the past week with “horrendous” symptoms.

Miss Dixon added all the dogs had been walked in or around Sherwood Forest in the 24 hours before becoming ill.

She said: “All the dogs had horrendous diarrhoea and vomiting and were put on IV drips.

“I think this is something naturally occurring in the forest at this time of year because exactly the same thing happened last year, just for a month and then it stopped.

“It starts in September, there is more humidity and less daylight and a change in the flora and fauna. I think it could be a mushroom or fungus causing the illness.”

Derek Broughton, of Lincoln, said one of his King Charles Spaniels died on Tuesday after visiting Clumber Park.

Mr Broughton took his two King Charles Spaniels to the forest and said they ran around as normal but he did not see them pick anything up.

He said: “It was just a normal weekend but when I came down to see them Monday morning, all hell had broken loose.”

Later that day, all three dogs had collapsed and were almost comatose, he said. One of the spaniels, called Bertie, died the following morning.

Stuart Burgess, of the Forestry Commission, said: “It looks like whatever it was last year could be reoccurring this year because we have got similar reports in similar areas at the same time of year.

“We are putting notices up on our sites to say that there is something happening again and to put dogs on a lead and if their dogs fall ill to take them to the vet quickly.”

A spokeswoman for Natural England said: “Natural England has been made aware of recent incidents of dogs being taken ill in woodlands in the Sherwood area.

“The symptoms and timing of these incidents are identical to an outbreak in the same area last year and as a result it is highly likely that they have the same cause.

“It was established that pesticides or other man-made chemicals were not involved in last year’s outbreak and we believe that this latest outbreak is caused by naturally-occurring agents such as ticks or mites.”

Tags: dog, Dog Safety, Forestry Commissio, Mystery Dog-Killing Disease Returns, Nottinghamshire, Sherwood Forest 1 Comment »

by Melody Chen

The End Of Puppy Mills?

September 28, 2010 in Endangerment, Environment, Law Enforcement, Legal News, News

By Matt Hrodey for milwaukeenewsbuzz.com

WISCONSIN – State government is now crafting long-awaited dog breeder regulations called for by legislation signed into law last year by Gov. Jim Doyle. The requirements, which are aimed at neglectful â€œpuppy millsâ€ in the state, are undergoing public review before they become final.

Under the 2009 legislation, the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) is responsible for crafting the new licensing procedure for dog breeders, dog dealers and animal shelters in the state. The rules apply only to dog breeders who sell 25 or more dogs a year.

As reported in a January 2009 story in Milwaukee Magazine, Wisconsin has become a magnet in recent years for puppy mills. Many are Amish or Mennonite operations that have moved to the state from Pennsylvania, another hotspot for the breeders. There, however, they have faced increased scrutiny.

The same is happening in Wisconsin, which, until the new rules take effect, largely lacks any regulation of dog breeders. According to the story, â€œMany mills operate without regard for sound breeding practices or the dogsâ€™ physical and emotional health. The result is often sick puppies and â€˜breederâ€™ dogs that live a miserable existence in horrific conditions.â€

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by Melody Chen

Dog’s Lick Saved My Life, Says Woman

September 28, 2010 in Heroics, News

By Sam McKnight for The Southland Times

The kiss of life has new meaning for a Southland woman who credits her dog as her saviour.

Shirley Mulvihill was alone and asleep in her house on Waituna Lagoon Rd, near Kapuka on Wednesday when her eight-month-old Staffordshire dog Fiji licked her face to alert her to danger shortly before 10pm.

Her eyes opened to a smoke filled bedroom and her house in the firm grip of a fiery inferno, she said.

She made a frantic phone call to the fire service for help but halfway through the phone cut out, she said.

Not knowing if the message had got through, she dashed out the front door and ran down the road to one neighbour, but no-one was home.

So it was on to the next to make sure the alarm was raised. But from the window she saw the lights of fire engines coming, the call had been answered, Mrs Mulvihill said.

“I’m certainly no runner but it didn’t take very long for them to get here.”

But it was too late, the house was engulfed and her neighbour told her the kitchen was gone.

“My house is gone, but we are both alive, thanks to Fiji.”

The experience was frightening and unreal, she said.

Fiji was a special friend and now even more so, Mrs Mulvihill said.

“She’ll get a few treats out of this.”

Mrs Mulvihill was taken to Southland Hospital by ambulance and treated for smoke inhalation and other than coughing a bit she was unharmed, she said.

The brick and roughcast house was all but destroyed in the blaze, with fire spreading to all parts of the house.

Invercargill senior station officer Peter Thwaites said fire engines from Invercargill and Kingswell stations accompanied by three water tankers all attended the fire.

Fire crews spent about four hours at the scene.

Fire safety officer Stuart Ide examined the scene yesterday afternoon and he said it was believed the fire started in the kitchen area of the house but it was not yet determined how.

Lightning strikes were in the area and two or three power transformers were knocked out, which “have to go into the mix”, he said.

There were no smoke alarms in the house, Mr Ide said.

Mr Ide will continue his investigation today.

Tags: dog, Dog's Lick Saved My Life, heroic, Southland 1 Comment »

by Melody Chen

UK Dog Owner Prevented From Finding Microchipped Pet Under Data Protection Act

September 28, 2010 in Endangerment, Missing, News

By Laura Roberts for telegraph.co.uk

Dave Moorhouse’s Jack Russell terrier, Rocky, was stolen in 2007 and he was informed earlier this year that the microchip provider had discovered details of his dog’s new address.

However, they refused to pass on the animal’s whereabouts claiming it would breach the Data Protection Act.

Last week a court refused Mr Moorhouse’s request for a court order compelling Anibase, the microchipping database, to reveal the name and address of the new owners.

Mr Moorhouse, 56, from Huddersfield, West Yorks, said: “Whatâ€™s the point of having your pet microchipped if you canâ€™t get him back?”

The dog went missing in January 2007 from his home.

Mr Moorhouse, a self-employed bricklayer, said: â€œI secured him on his lead in the backyard and went to Leeds. When I came back Rocky was missing and I presume he was stolen because someone would have had to have let him off his lead.â€

He added: â€œAll that next week I was in the nearby woods in looking for him.

â€œI put an ad in the local paper and I reported his theft to the vets where Rocky had been microchipped.â€

Three years later, in April 2010, Mr Moorhouse received a letter from Anibase asking if he wanted them to update their database with the name and address of the dogâ€™s new owners.

It is believed they had requested that their details be added onto the database.

Mr Moorhouse said: â€œI told Anibase that I didnâ€™t want to transfer ownership because my dog had been stolen.

â€œI asked them for the name and address of the people who had my dog but they wouldnâ€™t give me the details.â€

Mr Moorhouse contacted the police who also refused to disclose the information after concluding that there was no criminal case to answer.
A judge at Huddersfield County Court ruled that the matter was outside his jurisdiction.

Steven Wildridge, managing director of Animalcare, the company that runs Anibase, said: â€œThis is not a choice, itâ€™s an obligation under the Data Protection Act. If the individuals involved do not want us to pass on their details to the original owner then we cannot do so unless compelled to following a criminal or civil proceeding.”

He added: “This is a common problem that can occur if a dog is involved in a marital dispute or it is lost or stolen. We encourage people to sort things out amongst themselves but if they refuse there is not much we can do. We would encourage Mr Moorhouse to go to a solicitor and start a civil case.”

In January this year the Kennel Club recommended to Defra that all puppies are microchipped before being sold on.

The average cost of implanting a microchip is Â£25-30 although vets charges do vary.

Caroline Kisko, Secretary of the Kennel Club, said: â€œMicrochipping is a method of permanent identification and does not provide proof of ownership. If somebodyâ€™s dog has been stolen and an ownership dispute arises then this needs to be reported to the police, who can demand that details of the dogâ€™s location be disclosed, where appropriate.”

Tags: Data Protection Act, dog, Dog-Owner Prevented From Finding Microchipped Pet Under Data Protection Act, Missing No Comments »