Volunteers Build Fences To Free Dogs Of Their Chains

Admin: Melody Chen

Categories: Dog Safety, Environment, Heroics, News

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By Amy M.E. Fischer for The Daily News

Month after month, no matter the weather, the 4-year-old pitbull was left outside chained to a tree in an overgrown yard near West Side Highway.

The heavy choke-collar around Lucy’s thick neck was padlocked to her chain.

No new smells, no new scenery. Sometimes her chain tangled, and the friendly tan-and-white dog couldn’t reach her ramshackle little shelter, leaving her exposed to the rain and the cold.

“We’d always slow way down so we could see what she was doing,” said Lexington resident Erin Fields, 31, who began tossing Lucy rawhide bones last December.

Fields’ heart ached for the lonely dog. She called the Humane Society but was told as long as Lucy had food, water and shelter, they couldn’t intervene.

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On Italian Beaches, Dog Lifeguards Are On Watch

Admin: Melody Chen

Categories: Environment, Heroics, News, Working Dogs

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By Francoise Kadri

TARQUINIA, Italy — This summer, Italy’s special squad of rescue workers were again chalking up success: some 300 dogs ready to help save lives on dozens of Italian beaches.

In early August in Tarquinia, a town about 100 kilometers (60 miles) north of Rome, the dogs and their human partners saved on the same day two girls, who had fallen off their boat and two others, who had fallen off an inflatable raft.

The labradors, golden retrievers and Newfoundlands trained by the Italian School for Rescue Dogs (http://www.waterrescuedogs.com/) are credited with saving more than 100 lives, including a dozen this year alone.

“Compared to the rest of the world, the school is the only one that systematically monitors beaches every summer with human-canine units,”
Roberto Gasbarri, the school’s coordinator for central-southern Italy, told AFP.

The teams work in most of Italy’s 20 regions, even landlocked ones such as northern Trentino Alto-Adige, where rescuers monitor lakes.

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Lost Dog Reunited With Family After 4 Years In North Carolina Wilderness

Admin: Melody Chen

Categories: Environment, Lifestyle News, News

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By Erin James for The Virginian-Pilot

MANTEO, N.C. – Merri Jo Alford knew what she was looking for.

Hidden somewhere at the Outer Banks SPCA among stacks of paperwork buried in long-forgotten cardboard boxes were a few pieces of paper stapled together. On them, Alford knew, would be the names and phone number of a New Bern, N.C., couple with whom she’d spoken so many years ago.

But how much time had passed? Had it been two years, Alford wondered, or three? Could it really have been four years since Greg and Leigh Wilkinson desperately filed a lost-dog report?

Alford knew one thing for sure: The skinny dog with matted fur that she had rescued near Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge was the pooch the Wilkinsons had lost on a canoeing trip years ago.

She remembered the distinctive-looking dog from the flyers the Wilkinsons posted. She remembered their persistence in looking for her.

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Grave Concern: Hero Buried In Popular Dog Park

Admin: Melody Chen

Categories: Environment, Lifestyle News, News

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By Jeff Wilson for The Associated Press

VENTURA, Calif.—For at least one American patriot, this plot sickens.

The grave site for an 1860s Army hero awarded the Medal of Honor is now a popular Ventura dog park with poop soiling what veterans say should be sacred ground.

“Talk to any veteran, he will tell you it is a terrible thing. It’s disrespectful,” said retired Marine Sgt. Craig “Gunny” Donor, who served two tours in Vietnam and is bent on getting the soldier’s remains moved.

Pvt. James Sumner, who was awarded the nation’s highest military honor for gallant actions after a band of Apache Indians kidnapped a settler’s child, died in 1912 and he was buried in what was then St. Mary’s Cemetery.

Most of the flat grave markers have been hauled away, but a few dozen markers still pepper the 7-acre Cemetery Memorial Park that was home to about 3,000 permanent residents. Most were never relocated.

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Dog-Eating Alligator In Florida Wanted ‘Dead Or Alive’

Admin: Kenn Bell

Categories: Endangerment, Environment, Law Enforcement, News

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By The Associated Press

MIAMI — Florida officials have put out the word that an urban alligator who has been eating dogs and other pets and terrorizing a neighborhood is now wanted, dead or alive.

Gary Morse of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission told AFP the state agency has taken the unusual step of authorizing an alligator hunter to shoot and kill the three-meter (10-foot) long animal.

But finding this alligator, on the loose for two years in the St. Petersburg area and stalking pets around the city’s canals, may not be easy, Morse said.

“Alligators regularly use the drainage system to travel. When you are trying to target a specific gator is really difficult to catch it,” Morse said.

Tensions mounted on Monday night, when residents reported that the alligator ate a mixed breed dog who was running free near the canal. Then, the alligator was reportedly glimpsed the next morning near Tony’s Meat Market.

But when Charles Carpenter, the alligator hunter, arrived on the scene, the culprit was nowhere to be seen.

Morse said some people have been reportedly feeding the renegade gator, making his capture even more complicated, because he is eluding bait traps.

“He’s not hungry and he’s got a lot of places to hide.”

Carpenter told the St. Petersburg Times he plans to use a hunting rifle or semi-automatic pistol to take down his prey.

“He’s good at not getting caught,” Carpenter said.

Can A Dog Receive Communion?

Admin: Melody Chen

Categories: Environment, News

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By Brian Haas for The Tennessean

St. Peter’s Anglican Church has long been known as an open and inclusive place.

So open, it seems, they won’t turn anyone away. Not even a dog.

That’s how a blessed canine ended up receiving communion from interim priest Rev. Marguerite Rea during a morning service the last Sunday in June.

According to those in attendance at the historical church at 188 Carlton St. in downtown Toronto, it was a spontaneous gesture, one intended to make both the dog and its owner – a first timer at the church — feel welcomed. But at least one parishioner saw the act as an affront to the rules and regulations of the Anglican Church. He filed a complaint with the reverend and with the Anglican Diocese of Toronto about the incident – and has since left the church.

“I wrote back to the parishioner that it is not the policy of the Anglican Church to give communion to animals,” said Bishop Patrick Yu, the area bishop of York-Scarborough responsible for St. Peter’s, who received the complaint in early July. “I can see why people would be offended. It is a strange and shocking thing, and I have never heard of it happening before.

“I think the reverend was overcome by what I consider a misguided gesture of welcoming.”

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Police & Vets Kill 58,000 Stray Dogs in Baghdad to Stop Frequent Attacks

Admin: Kenn Bell

Categories: Environment, Government, Inhumane Practices, Lifestyle News, News, Tragedy, World

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Officials in Iraq have released a report today, which says the number of stray dogs that have been killed since 2008, in an attempt to stop a series of attacks within and around the city of Baghdad, RAW reports.

The killings are a part of a campaign that started in 2008, after increasing reports of dog attacks began to come in from local citizens and soldiers.

With Baghdad slowly returning to normal, and open markets becoming more common, there is more food left around the city.

There is also more food left in garbage heaps outside of the capital. This means better meals for stray dogs, which leads to them gaining health and having larger litters.

This has had a marked effect on the amount of strays around Baghdad, with tens of thousands causing havoc all over the city.

The campaign is carried out by security teams made of veterinarians and police officers, who correlate with other security forces in the area.

They sweep the city in the early morning, using poisoned meet to lure and kill stray dogs, warning civilians to stay away from the food left for the animals.

This is similar to the shootings that occurred under Saddam Hussein’s reign, which was mandatory part of security in Iraq.

Dog Fancy Names Top Ten American Cities For Your Pooch

Admin: Kenn Bell

Categories: Contest, Environment, Lifestyle News, News

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The best city in America for dogs? According to Dog Fancy Magazine it’s Provincetown, Massachusetts!

The winning city had to include plenty of dog parks and events, top notch veterinary care and laws that support and protect pets.

Rounding out the top 10:
Carmel, Calif.
Madison, Wis.
Benicia, Calif.
Fort Bragg, Calif.
Lincoln City, Ore.
San Diego, Calif.
Virginia Beach, Va.
Sioux Falls, S.D.
Salem, Ore.

Protecting Our Furry Friends From The Heat: Video

Admin: Kenn Bell

Categories: Environment, Health & Science News, News

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Canines Need Extra Care On Sultry Dog Days

Admin: Kenn Bell

Categories: Dog Safety, Environment, Lifestyle News, News

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By Gene Warner For BuffaloNews.com

A dog’s normal temperature is anywhere from 101 to 102.5 degrees, or a few degrees warmer than a human’s.

So compared with humans, dogs might seem to have more protection against the 90-degree heat wave sweeping through Western New York.

But dogs are ill-equipped for heat, largely because they don’t sweat.

“They haven’t bred a dog yet who can perspire,” said Gina Browning, public relations director for the SPCA Serving Erie County.

That’s why SPCA officials, veterinarians, dog wardens and pet owners are shouting from the rooftops this week about the dangers of the heat on their pets, especially dogs.

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Twlight’s’ Kristen Stewart Has A Thing For Wolves: Video

Admin: Kenn Bell

Categories: Celebrity, Environment, News, Wolves

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Dog Awareness Week Kicks Off In San Antonio, Texas

Admin: Melody Chen

Categories: Dog Safety, Environment, Law Enforcement, News

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From KENS5.com

Over just the last few weeks District 2 has picked up over 900 stray dogs and cats. This is a overwhelming amount which adds to the amount of dogs and cats being put to sleep at the shelters each day.

“This district alone has had 900 stray dogs picked up, so it is a major problem. And being part of the River Center Cluster we want to do a community service and give back to our community during these tough economic times,” says Margie O’Connell.

Through June 12 – June 20 this year, free spay and neuter procedures will be offered at the Ella Austin Center. This will be the second annual Dog Awareness Week which focuses on responsible pet ownership and the ultimate goal for a no kill city.