Free Republic

An inmate at the Cape May County jail is being called heroic for helping to save a county employee from a vicious dog that attacked her at the animal shelter where he was working off his sentence. For his selfless act, Justin Peggs, of Deptford Township, Gloucester County, will get three days off his 45-day sentence for assault in a fight last summer on the Wildwood Boardwalk. Peggs, 22, grabbed a pit bull terrier off the leg of employee Kathleen James and held down the snapping, snarling animal for several minutes so staff could rescue James and get a noose...

CHEYENNE - Linda Clark was devastated Saturday afternoon when she and her husband returned from the grocery store to find two pit bulls attacking their Shetland pony, Spirit. The couple was putting away their things when a neighbor came knocking at the door to report that Spirit was down and the dogs were tearing away at her. Linda’s daughter-in-law, Teresa Clark, said Jeff Clark immediately ran outside with the first thing he could find, a pellet gun. He fired toward the dogs and they ran off, but Spirit was already dead. Linda Clark, an avid horse rescuer, took Spirit in...

Wyoming lawmakers appear ready to change the state’s wolf management law to accommodate an agreement that Gov. Matt Mead and U.S. Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar reached last year on ending federal protections for the animals in the state. Under the agreement, wolves could be shot on sight in much of the state. The Republican governor has made wolf management a priority, saying the animals threaten agricultural interests and other wildlife. Officials say there are about 300 wolves in the state, and Mead has said the population grows by 10 percent every year. Under the deal, Wyoming would commit to...

SAN JOSE -- Police are looking for several men who stomped to death a 4-pound mini-Yorkshire terrier that was trying to protect its owner from an attack in San Jose over the weekend, authorities said. The dog's owner said he was walking the 6-year-old dog, Shadow, at Winchester Boulevard and Colonial Way about 2 p.m. Saturday when three men approached and asked if he was a gang member. The owner, a 32-year-old floor installer who asked that his name be withheld for safety reasons, said he had denied gang involvement, but the men attacked him anyway.

Kelso, WA - Lug and Marley, German shepherds, are quarantined at the Cowlitz County Humane Society after biting a woman who walked into their home while their owner was away. The dogs have been labeled "potentially dangerous" and it will be up to a judge to determine their fate - live or die. It is stunning that these dogs have been impounded. The woman who was "attacked", Elizabeth Elder, walked into the dogs' home - knowing that the owner was not there. Apparently Elder is a friend of the dogs' owner, Ingrid Sacha. It seems that Elder took the familiarity...

Police are asking for the public's help to locate four three-week-old puppies that were stolen during a burglary in the Double Rock neighborhood earlier this week. According to Sgt. Michael Andraychak, the burglars broke into a home on the 100 block of Cameron Way sometime between 9 a.m. and noon on Tuesday. The burglars used a blunt object to beat two adult dogs inside the house before grabbing the puppies. The puppies are a mix of Doberman Pinscher and Beagle, with tan and black coats, police said. Anyone with information regarding this incident should contact Sgt. Neil Cunningham of Bayview...

Sleek cropped ears may soon be a thing of the past on Dobermans and other breeds if B.C. veterinarians follow Manitoba's lead and ban the practice. Detractors say the procedure is merely cosmetic, and causes unnecessary pain to canines, who have no say in the matter. Similar bans have been enacted in Newfoundland and Labrador, and many European countries. Cherie Holmes, president of the Doberman Pinscher Club of Canada, said the procedure is not just a cosmetic indulgence, but contributes to the health and functionality of dogs' ears. "All wild dogs have pricked, standup ears because it gives better air...

DNA Test Helps Enforce Pet Clean Up Policy SAN DIEGO - The same DNA technology that has solved cold case murders is now being used to crack down on a whole new class of criminals: dog owners who don't clean up after their pets. "Unfortunately, people leave surprises in my yard, but I always carry plastic bags, so I can clean up those surprises," said dog owner Ted Stevens. Now, BioPet Vet Lab ,a company in Knoxville, Tenn., has developed technology that is says can identify the dogs that leave unwelcome calling cards on neighborhood lawns. The system, called Pooprints,...

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is again cautioning consumers that chicken jerky products for dogs (also sold as chicken tenders, strips or treats) may be associated with illness in dogs. In the last 12 months, FDA has seen an increase in the number of complaints it received of dog illnesses associated with consumption of chicken jerky products imported from China. Now, four months later, pets are still dying from these treats. And, since the FDA testing has been inconclusive, the pet food companies that sell them aren’t recalling them. Again, that’s even though many pets are dying. Some of...

An altercation between two neighbors over a noisy dog resulted in one man being shot to death Saturday morning, police said. The second man was recovering from minor injuries, according to Ocala police. The shooting occurred at the intersection of Northeast Seventh Terrace and Northeast Fourth Street. Police identified the man who was shot and killed as 53-year-old Willie Chester. The Ocala Police Department received a call at 10:13 a.m. regarding shots fired. Arriving at the scene, officers found the two men injured and on the street, according to OPD officials. The men were taken by ambulance to Munroe Regional...

This is how it happens, folks. Little by little. Law by law. The proponents of sharia get themselves elected to positions of power – and then, before too long, they start trying to subject the rest of us to it, bit by bit:

Out for a walk with 42 Saint Bernard dogs Lasquite's Saint Bernards on Lasqueti Island Canada (Click onto the link to view the two-minute + video on the Fox 43 WPMT webpage)

Dog: man's best friend for over 33,000 years He's been man's best friend for generations. An ancient dog skull found in Siberia and dating back 33,000 years presents some of the oldest known evidence of dog domestication. When combined with a similar find in Belgium, the two skulls indicate that the domestication of dogs by humans occurred repeatedly throughout early human history at different geographic locations -- rather than at a single domestication event, as previously believed. "Both the Belgian find and the Siberian find are domesticated species based on morphological characteristics," said Greg Hodgins, a researcher at the University...

CAMP PENDLETON – The second RPG round blew Cpl. Mike Dowling off his feet. The Marine had never seen combat before, but in 2004, he found himself in the thick of battle in Iraq's infamous "Triangle of Death." Boom! The blast from the rocket-propelled grenade slammed him into the ground, along with a fellow Marine, Sgt. Rex. As Dowling recounts in his just-published book, the explosion must have knocked him out cold for a second: "I come to with Rex on his feet, eyes white with fear and searching wildly in the smoke and dust to find me. "Then he's...

As nearly anyone who has adopted a dog or cat from a shelter can attest, there’s something special about a rescued pet; it’s as if the animal senses he’s been given a second chance at life. That’s certainly the case with Juno, a Belgian Malinois who was rescued from a shelter just days before she was to be euthanized. But since coming to live with her family in Alcoa, Tenn., Juno has taken on the role of rescuer to four-year-old Lucas Hembree. Lucas suffers from Sanfilippo syndrome, an inherited, metabolic disease caused by the absence or malfunctioning of an enzyme...

A Montara man walking two lapdogs off leash was hit with an electric-shock gun by a National Park Service ranger after allegedly giving a false name and trying to walk away, authorities said Monday. The park ranger encountered Gary Hesterberg with his two small dogs Sunday afternoon at Rancho Corral de Tierra, which was recently incorporated into the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, said Howard Levitt, a spokesman for the park service. Hesterberg, who said he didn't have identification with him, allegedly gave the ranger a false name, Levitt said. The ranger, who wasn't identified, asked Hesterberg to remain at...

Not into small dogs but this is a great video.

A Dutch Muslim politician has called for a ban on dogs in The Hague, the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Islamic legal tradition holds that dogs are "unclean" animals, and some say the call to ban them in Holland and elsewhere represents an attempted encroachment of Islamic Sharia law in Europe. This latest canine controversy -- which the Dutch public has greeted with a mix of amusement and outrage -- follows dozens of other Muslim-vs-dog-related incidents in Europe. Critics say it reflects the growing assertiveness of Muslims in Europe as they attempt to impose Islamic legal and religious norms on...

SILVERTON — Turkish sheepdogs prized for their fierceness are raising concerns they may be a little too tough for the southwest Colorado communities where ranchers are using them. The Akbash dogs weigh up to 120 pounds and are especially aggressive toward animals near the sheep they guard. But that can include hikers and other backcountry tourists, prompting debate about whether the breed should be regulated. The Durango Herald reports that Silverton town trustees met last week to discuss Akbash conflictsU.S. Forest Service officials, sheepherders and outdoors enthusiasts have also entered the debate over regulations surrounding the use of the breed.

No Pet For You Want to adopt a dog or cat? Prepare for an inquisition at the animal rescue. eople who rescue animals can be reluctant to believe anyone deserves the furry creatures. Some rescue groups think potential owners shouldn’t have full-time jobs. Others reject families with children. Some rescuers think apartment dwelling is OK for humans but not for dogs, or object to a cat’s litter box being placed in a basement. Some say no to people who would let a dog run around the fenced backyard “unsupervised,” or allow a cat outside, ever. It used to be that...

It's little wonder that with such cute faces peering out over the edge of their plastic bowl, these eight abandoned puppies have found new homes. But their futures could have been a lot bleaker. The puppies and their mother, a mongrel named Amy, had been found by a farmer stuffed inside a bale of hay on his land in Newark. But now, following an appeal by local newspaper the Lincolnshire Echo, the eight six-week old puppies have found caring owners ... The mother was discovered with a rope tied around her neck which she had bitten through. ...

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Gannett publication - link and title only.

Some residents at Danville Park Apartments are outraged over police firing at two dogs on the walkway outside their front doors. The residents said the shooting killed one animal, injured another and put the tenants in danger of gunfire that left bullet holes in doors, walls and a wooden deck around 2 a.m. on New Year’s Day. Witness accounts of the shootings contradict the reports of officers and a supervising sergeant. The shootings by officers Demetrius Hightower and Jarrod Birchfield are being reviewed by Decatur Police’s office of professional standards, police spokesman Lt. John Crouch said. Danville Park resident Steven...

It may sound barking mad but hardened criminals are discovering what softies they are by caring for pooches 24 hours a day. Forget the usual prison image of chain gangs and razor wire, tough U.S. jailbirds are each being handed a helpless pup to care for in their cells night and day. In two years, 468 rescue dogs have been placed with families after being trained by inmates in the Missouri Department of Corrections' 'Puppies for Parole' programme. They teach the dogs, which come from local animal shelters, how to behave and prepare them for adoption - helping their own...

GRATEFUL Devan Crawford owes her life to a pet rottweiler. Diabetic Devan, seven, was on the verge of a hypo – a seizure caused by low blood sugar – when Bruno sensed that she was in trouble. He alerted Devan’s mum Karen by licking the little girl and sitting by her until she realised what was happening. Mum-of-two Karen yesterday hailed the three-year-old rottweiler a “lifesaver”. She said: “Devan is a type one diabetic and has to inject insulin twice a day. “Bruno is very protective of her. He saved her life because he sensed she was about to hypo....

A Los Alamos family is mourning the loss of their pet dog after a mountain lion attacked and killed it in their backyard on Christmas Eve. Police Capt. Randy Foster said that when Hari Viswanathan heard the family dog, named Gwennie, barking outside and found a mountain lion trying to pull it through wooden slats in the fence, he frantically tried to get the big can to let go and even hit it over the head with a shovel. Even after four officers responded and the dog was dead, the mountain lion wouldn't let her go,

Christmas is a time for families. Unfortunately these eight adorable little puppies don’t have one of their own. Dumped on the caring staff at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home in London by their owner just a few days ago, the litter is now available for rehoming. Seasonally named after Santa’s reindeer – from left to right Dasher, Cupid, Prancer, Donner, Dancer, Comet, Blitzen and Vixen – the black, white and tan pups are mongrels and, although their breed is unknown, are likely to grow quite big. The mischievous pups will, however, spend Christmas at the home alongside 500 other dogs...

Enjoy! Pretty clever.

PORT RICHEY — Debra Jackson was tired of a neighbor's dog defecating in her yard, authorities say. So when she saw the dog and his owner Wednesday afternoon, she grabbed her shotgun. "I'm having a bad day," said Jackson, 50, according to a Pasco County Sheriff's Office report. "I'm gonna shoot you and that dog."

A dog had a miraculous escape after leaping off a roof and falling 50 feet on to a ledge at an apartment block. Kai, a two-year-old Shiba Inu, bounded over the side of the roof garden after his owner Tracy Aron took him up for his morning exercise. The pup had been jumping over the connected rooftops when he took a wrong turn and fell four floors on to a ledge below at the townhouse on the Upper West Side of New York. The protective fencing that usually surrounds the edge of the building had been removed due to renovation...

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Nativity Scene at St. Patrick’s Cathedral – New York, NY Behind the Blessed Virgin Mary and between the donkey and cow is a new addition to the St. Patrick’s Cathedral crèche: man’s best friend.St. Patrick’s rector Monsignor Robert Ritchie sets up the nativity each year at St. Patrick’s. This year, he decided to create a new tradition to reflect the dogs’ presence.It’s a dog in the likeness of Ritchie’s own Lexington, a yellow lab he got 15-years-ago, just two days before Christmas.“It turned out that the dog they showed me looked very much like my own dog,� Ritchie told...

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- He carefully but thoroughly searched an abandoned bunker halfway around the world thought to house insurgent activity. Then taking point in the pursuit of an unidentified enemy, Telin confidently led the squad of troops through a desert trail, following footprints in the dirt. Telin didn't carry a weapon. He didn't have any specific intelligence on the situation. Nevertheless, he fearlessly executed his task to track. Telin was a Belgian Malinois and military working dog deployed from Edwards to support military operations in the Middle East. "I trusted him with my life," said Master Sgt....

Recall on some pet food. Iams, River Run, and Marksman so far. http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/default.htm

(CBS News) Two kittens who were thrown mercilessly into a a bag and then dumped in the middle of the road are now available for adoption from and Iowa rescue group But if it weren't for the heroic actions of dog named Regan, they probably would not have survived. WHOTV reports that the two kittens, named Tipper and Skipper, were sealed in a Meow Mix bag with the rest of the litter, and then left in the street. The bag had been run over by a vehicle, killing some of the kittens and making it difficult to tell exactly how...

“You better be careful. Dobermans are traitors, they turn on their owners.” That was the “advice” I got from friends and family when I announced I was getting a Doberman. Despite having asthma, I have always been an animal lover, and after a breakup in 2001, I decided to get my first purebred dog. While many dog enthusiasts would recommend a small or medium-sized canine to start out with, I threw caution to the wind and picked out a Doberman. And that was how Diesel entered—and forever changed—my life. He was scrawny, lanky, and a total klutz. I, on the...

RENO, Nevada — A woman says she was fired as a baggage handler at Nevada's Reno-Tahoe International Airport after she refused to load an emaciated hunting dog on a plane. Lynn Jones says her supervisor told her to load the dog last month because the animal's paperwork was in order and its condition wasn't her concern.

The call came into the behavior specialists here from a doctor in Afghanistan. His patient had just been through a firefight and now was cowering under a cot, refusing to come out. Apparently even the chew toys hadn’t worked. Post-traumatic stress disorder, thought Dr. Walter F. Burghardt Jr., chief of behavioral medicine at the Daniel E. Holland Military Working Dog Hospital at Lackland Air Force Base. Specifically, canine PTSD. If anyone needed evidence of the frontline role played by dogs in war these days, here is the latest: the four-legged, wet-nosed troops used to sniff out mines, track down enemy...

A grieving family fulfilled their soldier son's final wish of rescuing the dog he befriended in Afghanistan just months before he was killed. The parents of paratrooper Conrad Lewis wept with joy as they greeted their son's best friend Peg who bounded up to them after completing six months in quarantine. Before his death Conrad adopted the dog and nicknamed her Peg - short for Pegasus - in honour of the Para's winged horse emblem. ... He fed the dog his rations and she never left his side, even accompanying him during fierce fire fights against Taliban insurgents. Conrad wanted...

At 40-50kg, Sirius dogs are bred to be heavier and stronger Since the Cold War, Denmark has staked its claim to northern Greenland - and its untapped mineral wealth - with dog sledge patrols. This is the Sirius Patrol in numbers.The vast icy expanses at the top of our planet are rich in coal, ore and minerals. Although inhospitable in the extreme, these areas are in demand. Denmark patrols and protects its sovereignty over Greenland with a small naval unit called the Sirius Patrol. The US Geological Survey estimates the oil reserves off its coast are as big as those...

This is the heart-breaking moment male beagles kept in captivity inside a laboratory were released from their cages for the first time. Scared and visibly unsure of leaving the confines of their cages, the dogs were among many being used for lab testing in Spain before it went out of business. A total of 72 beagles were rescued by members of Animal Rescue Media Education (ARME) during the operation - most of whom had never been outside their cages.

Hero is no ordinary New Hampshire dog. Hers is a tale that began in war-torn Samarra, Iraq, in early 2007. Justin Rollins, of 82nd Airborne Division, had found the tiny puppy, one of a litter of eight, living underneath an abandoned portable toilet near his base. Smiling and enjoying the company of the young litter, he and his team-mates took some photos to send home. Just hours later, Justin was killed by an IED. The happy pictures he had taken and emailed home that night were the last contact he'd have with his girlfriend and family - but the start...

It was an overcast day in Newport, N.H., when a simple “20/20″ shoot turned into something that made me wonder about life after death. I was filming soldier Justin Rollin’s parents Skip and Rhonda playing with their dog Hero, whose rescue from the Iraq War zone where Justin died was nothing short of a miracle. Sometimes when Rhonda hugged Hero she would softly pet her face and coo, “Justin, are you in there?” It was Rhonda’s gentle way of remembering their son and his last living connection to Hero. At one point, Hero wandered off and took a stroll in...

La Jolla woman vows to freeze and starve herself to find lost ChihuahuaA woman took to the streets Wednesday to find her lost Chihuahua, and she won’t clothe herself or eat until the dog comes home. Arlene Mossa Corona wore a bikini and held up a sign with pictures of her dog Chispeta in the intersection of La Jolla Village Dr. and Genesee Ave. at about 9 a.m. Wednesday. Corona, a student at UCSD, said she tried everything to find her dog, from calling the pound to contacting a pet psychic. The only other option was to wear her bikini...

Ward Van Alstine is a tough U.S. Marine who, after a somewhat troubled life growing up in Santa Rosa, developed a sense of purpose amid the gunfire, bone-rattling explosions and death in Afghanistan. The 22-year-old corporal said he became a man during two tours of duty in the war, but it took a starving, battered dog to help him through the worst of it. One day, as he prepared to go on patrol, a dirty, sad-eyed mutt walked up and touched something in him. The shy, brown-and-white pooch, with a dark patch around the nose, was something precious and good...

A young girl’s tears of joy were captured on camera by her parents as they surprised her with the family’s pet dog she thought she’d never see again. Alyssa Smith’s parents, from Hampshire, paid £1,300 to be reunited with their dog Holly, who they had to leave behind when they moved back to the UK from Dubai. Darren Smith and his family adopted former street dog Holly two years ago while living in the United Arab Emirates. ... Two months after relocating to Hampshire, Mr Smith, who thought Holly had been re-homed with another family, saw their dog on a...

Researchers at KTH say they have found further proof that the wolf ancestors of today’s domesticated dogs can be traced to southern East Asia — findings that run counter to theories placing the cradle of the canine line in the Middle East.Dr Peter Savolainen, KTH researcher in evolutionary genetics, says a new study released Nov. 23 confirms that an Asian region south of the Yangtze River was the principal and probably sole region where wolves were domesticated by humans. Data on genetics, morphology and behaviour show clearly that dogs are descended from wolves, but there’s never been scientific consensus on...

So I arrive home from work this morning - usually both dogs greet me, the senior first, by standing on hind legs with front paws on my wrist so I don't have to bend down to give them a hug. It was immediately obvious that the 8 y.o. was uncomfortable and her sides were swollen. Now I've looked up the symptoms of bloat, but what I'm asking for is help with *eliminating* that, if possible. So if there's anyone knowledgible out there on this holiday morning, I'd appreciate some help. Besides the obvious discomfort and swollen abdomen, her collar was...

Chicken jerky treats may be to blame for dozens of new reports of mysterious illnesses and some deaths in dogs, prompting a renewed warning for pet owners by the Food and Drug Administration. At least 70 dogs have been sickened so far this year after reportedly eating chicken jerky products imported from China, FDA officials said. That’s up from 54 reports of illness in 2010. Some of the dogs have died, according to the anecdotal reports from pet owners and veterinarians. FDA officials say they have not been able to find a cause for the illnesses. Extensive chemical and microbiological...