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.

UPDATE: Miami-Dade officer accused of killing K-9 gets misdemeanor charge

Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/07/30/1752997/miami-dade-officer-accused-of.html#ixzz0vALLDlyT

By David Ovalle For The Miamiherald.com

A judge on Thursday tossed out a felony charge against a former Miami-Dade police sergeant on trial for allegedly killing his police dog, but allowed a misdemeanor animal cruelty charge to go forward.

Allen Cockfield is accused of viciously kicking his K-9 partner, Duke, during a training session in June 2006, killing the Belgian Malinois.

He was charged with a felony count of killing a police dog, and a misdemeanor charge of animal cruelty.

Prosecutors rested their case Thursday, after presenting two days of testimony from eyewitnesses and medical experts who said that Duke died from a disruption to the heart caused by the kick.

But Cockfield’s defense lawyer, Douglas Hartman, argued Thursday afternoon for an acquittal on the felony charge because the state did not prove that the longtime canine handler intended to kill the dog.

He said the charge required proof of intent.

“This was a training accident,” said Hartman, who contends that Cockfield was trying to protect himself from Duke’s attacks.

Miami-Dade prosecutor Isis Perez, after researching the issue, agreed, and Circuit Judge Antonio Arzola threw out the charge.

But Arzola declined to issue an acquittal on the misdemeanor charge, meaning jurors will decide Cockfield’s fate.

Cockfield is charged with a first-degree misdemeanor.

The charge is punishable by up to one year in jail.

The trial will likely finish late Thursday or Friday.

Trial Over Miami-Dade Police Dog’s Death Begins

By David Ovalle For The Miamiherald.com

Duke was a young, rambunctious Miami-Dade police K-9 felled by a series of vicious kicks from his frustrated human partner during an ill-fated training session, according to prosecutors.

“Duke was unjustly killed,” Miami-Dade prosecutor Isis Perez told jurors Tuesday. “And that kick is what caused his death.”

But the defense painted Duke, a Belgian Malinois, as a troubled and aggressive 70-pound canine who attacked police Sgt. Allen Cockfield, an experienced handler who felt threatened.

“He was simply trying to save himself,” defense attorney Douglas Hartman said.
The lawyers offered their versions of events in the opening of Cockfield’s trial for the June 2006 death of Duke, a 2 ½-year-old rookie police dog.

Charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty and a felony count of killing a police dog, Cockfield could face jail or prison time, plus the loss of his state police certification, if he is convicted.

To read the rest click here.

By Penny Eims For The Examiner.com

Woodbury, Minnesota – A dog jumping inside of a running vehicle created quite a mess at the Woodbury Liquor Store on Tuesday afternoon. According to driver, Dick Coerber, his dog, a Dachshund, jumped from his wife’s lap, onto the car’s accelerator, while he was attempting to park his car.

The result? The car crashed through the front window of the liquor store, causing significant damage. Thankfully nobody was injured in the crash (Source: KSTP ABCNews5)

Dog owners should be aware that an unrestrained dog inside of a vehicle can be dangerous. The safest place for a dog is either confined in a crate, or restrained in a seat-belt harness specially designed for dogs.

Yesterday’s incident is an example of what can happen when a dog leaps unexpectedly while the car is in motion. Unrestrained dogs can create distractions to the driver, or as seen in this situation, they can literally be the direct cause of an accident.

To read the rest click here.

By Emily Jackson, Vancouver Sun

Delta police department’s latest canine recruit is more likely to lick than growl.

The two-year-old male yellow Lab, the first police therapy dog in Canada, started six weeks of on-the-job training Monday, said Delta police spokeswoman Sgt. Sharlene Brooks.

Adding a dog to the department’s victim services team is a new approach to helping people in traumatic situations, Brooks said.

The four-legged therapist will offer support and reassurance for “excessively emotional” people, she said.

A dog’s presence can help children and people with disabilities calm down and communicate, Brooks added.

To read the rest click here.

From wtsp.com

WINTER HAVEN, Florida — Dozens of volunteers from the Bay area community and across the state gathered to give more than 260 rescue dogs baths.

The dogs were taken from the Mid-Florida Retriever Rescue back in May, but because the custody hearing isn’t until mid-August, the dogs are currently staying at Polk County Animal Services.

The baths allow the dogs to have some social time and stress relief, since they can’t be fostered or adopted out yet.

Volunteers, like Patricia Pierce, came from as far as Redington Shores to help out.

If you would like to help out, Polk County Animal Services is accepting donations of towels and blankets.

You can also help make room at the shelter for the dogs by adopting other animals that need good homes and are eligible for adoption.

By Brian Haas for The Tennessean

As prison inmates increasingly run criminal enterprises, order hits and direct drug dealing from behind bars, state corrections officials are turning to a new weapon: dogs.

The Tennessee Department of Correction plans to train three drug-sniffing dogs to add cell phones to their olfactory arsenals in a growing war against prison contraband. Nationwide, prisons and jails have struggled to stop inmates from sneaking in cell phones and continuing to commit crimes while imprisoned.

“We probably will find one at least once a week here, sometimes more often,” said Ricky Bell, warden of Riverbend Maximum Security Institution, a prison that hosts Tennessee’s most dangerous inmates. “We get reports from people in the community that they’re getting threatening phone calls. That happens pretty often.”

In the last year alone, Tennessee corrections officers confiscated 1,684 cell phones at 12 state prisons. Other states report a similarly growing problem. Despite regular searches of inmates, their rooms and even their visitors, the phones still find their way to inmates’ hands. Corrections officers are not allowed to carry phones with them.

Sometimes, a friend or family member will toss a phone over a fence to an awaiting prisoner. Others use less comfortable methods.

To read the rest click here.

UPDATE 2: People report seeing missing dog mistaken for coyote

Three or four sightings in the same area on the same day has given those searching for Copper, a missing dog mistaken for a coyote, hope she might still be in the area.

Since it was announced that Copper was mistakenly released, many in the community have been actively searching the area around Jones Lane in Franklin County.

There was one report of a dog matching the description seen playing with a group of children, but the owner Lori Goodlett, says by the time she got to the area the dog was no where to be found.

Goodlett says it’s been a roller coaster ride of getting word of a sighting, but come up empty handed.

Others say the sighting are giving them hope the dog is still in the area, even those like Larry Estep who have never met or seen the dog before.

Estep says, “I’m not really interested in the reward or anything. I just want to find the dog and bring it home.”

Animal Activist Trudi Johnson feels the same, she says the sighting are giving her hope a reunion soon.

UPDATE 1: Coyote Dog Mix Up Brings Apology

The search for a Franklin County dog is garnering national attention. Ten year old “Copper” was lost on July 3rd, then found the same day by police. But officials at the Franklin County Humane Society mistook her for a coyote and told police to release her back into the wild. Now some animal lovers are taking their frustration to the people who help fund the Franklin County Humane Society.

At the Frankfort City Commissioners meeting on Monday night, a Franklin County Humane Society board member apologized to Copper’s owner for what’s been called a terrible mistake. Copper’s owner has gotten calls from all over the country, even substantial money for a reward from PETA.

Animal advocates asked the Board of Commissioners to revoke their funding of the Franklin County Humane Society. They requested that the Board provide more oversight of the Humane Society’s training, policies and procedures.

Several Frankfort City Commissioners said they’d like to see changes made at the Humane Society before the city’s contract with them is up for renewal.

Franklin County Humane Society Board Member Paul Brooker said the organization’s board is reviewing the incident, and will likely make policy changes at their next meeting. That is scheduled for Saturday, August 24 at 9 a.m.

Copper was last spotted about a week ago in the Jones Lane area of Franklin County. If you see her, call her owner at (502) 226-2580. There is $1750 reward for her return.

By Gabriel Roxas for wkyt.com

A dog owner waits and worries after her beloved pet was accidentally released into the wild.

The Frankfort Humane Society reportedly confused her Sheba Inu, a rare breed of dog, for a coyote, and it was released into the woods. Ever since Lori Goodlett started looking for her dog, Copper, she’s received calls and signs of hope, but so far… “It hasn’t been her yet,” Goodlett said.

It all began when a Frankfort police officer found Copper on the loose. The officer brought her to the Frankfort Humane Society, which initially took Copper, but soon called back police saying they wouldn’t keep her because they believed she was a coyote and therefore a nuisance animal. “The Humane Society is a private organization run by their own board of directors,” Frankfort Police Major Fred Deaton said, “and they’re there to take them in, but if they tell us they won’t house the animal, then we have to look for other options.”

Police consulted with experts who told them if the animal is a coyote, then their only options are to kill it or return it to its natural habitat. Not wanting to see the animal euthanized, police brought what the Frankfort Humane Society insisted was a coyote to an open field and released her into the wild.

To read the rest click here.

By Darla Slipke for Newsok.com

More than 70 puppies and dogs are recovering at local animal shelters after being rescued Friday from cramped, feces-infested environments in Norman and Oklahoma City, officials said.

The animals were seized, and the owner was arrested on animal cruelty complaints after an undercover investigation by Norman police. The animals, which included Maltese, Chihuahuas and Yorkies, are receiving care and medical attention at the Norman and Oklahoma City Animal Shelters.

Animal welfare officials said Aurelia Snow, the dogs’ owner, was breeding the dogs at a building she leased behind a home at 18617 SE 134 in Oklahoma City and selling the puppies on the Internet from her home at 13780 Mesquite Road in Norman.

Animal welfare officers pulled 51 dogs, ages 7 and older, from the mill in Oklahoma City, and removed 27 dogs and puppies from the home in Norman.

To read the rest click here.

Imagine walking into your bedroom to find a strange man standing in your doorway, how frightening would that be? Well, that was exactly what happened to a Fort Carson, Colorado solider one night.

Fortunately, her pit bull was by her side while the the chaos happened. After the intruder refused to leave, her pit bull promptly chased the intruder out of the residence.

Police officers responded quickly after the incident happened that night. K9 Unit was able to get to the scene as Canine Officer P. Strevett and his partner Cole went to work. It wasn’t long before the male suspect was found hiding under a vehicle parked in a garage, in the 1600 block of E. Bijou Street.

Sprung on the Fourth of July weekend, dozens of beagles were rescued from a bankrupt testing lab in New Jersey. Best Friends Animal Society in Kanab, Utah, helped care for 88 of the dogs. St. Hubert's Animal Welfare Center in Madison, N.J., helped 30.

By Sharon L. Peters for USA TODAY

They had lived the most sterile, regimented lives imaginable.

Day after day, month after month, year after year, they were confined to plexiglass crates, fed and watered on precise schedules, kept clean. But with no opportunity to leave their solitary little boxes and spend time with others like themselves, with nothing but the most antiseptic contact with humans and no time outside the gleaming, climate-controlled facility, the 118 beagles — lab dogs used to test drugs and chemicals—displayed nothing of the much-acclaimed breed characteristics: joyful, noisy and curious.

Imagine the amazement these floppy-eared creatures felt when, suddenly, they were whisked from their isolated existence and deposited into the welcoming arms of rescuers ready to introduce them to the ways of regular-dog life.

It happened on Fourth of July weekend after a bunch of animal-loving groups had pushed hard for quick resolution; they had learned weeks earlier that Aniclin, the New Jersey research facility where the dogs lived, had gone bankrupt and locked its doors. (The animals’ caretakers had reportedly climbed fences to provide food and water until more solid arrangements were made.) After legal machinations, St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center in Madison, N.J., ultimately got 30 of the dogs to prepare for adoption; Pets Alive Animal Sanctuary in Middletown, N.Y., got 88 of them.

To read the rest click here.