Now more than ever, you are needed to donate your old blankets, towels, and sheets to your local animal shelter. With financial cut-backs, repairs on shelters are often put off, so if it's drafty, the animals suffer. I know my shelter uses rags to stuff under doors. No kidding! Empty out those closets... this is your chance to get rid of stuff and do something useful!


Friday, October 30, 2009

News Round Up

via Helena Sung at Paw Nation:

Eli the Chihuahua Dons Pope Costume for Halloween

Eli the chihuahua, a celebrated doggy model, caused a commotion when he dressed up as Pope Benedict XVI for this year's Times Square Dog Day Masquerade event in New York City.
See story here: 


via Caleb Johnson of Switched: (absolutely hilarious!)

Controller-Chewing Dog Spends Money on Xbox Live
When you adopt a dog, you expect to drop some cash on things like food, visits to the vet, and maybe chew toys. But one man's best friend drained his bank account in an unexpected way.
See the link for the full story:
http://www.switched.com/2009/10/27/controller-chewing-dog-spends-money-on-xbox-live/


via Frank Warner of the Morning Call (Lehigh Valley):
Memorial service planned for Allentown police dog
The Allentown Police Department tentatively has scheduled a Nov. 5 memorial service for Axel, the police dog, who died last week after six years on the force.
The memorial service could be held at 10 a.m. Nov. 5 at the Lehigh Consistory at 1533 W. Hamilton St., Allentown, Assistant Chief Joseph Hanna said Tuesday. Police are working quickly to firm up the arrangements, he said. The service is likely to attract police K-9 units from all over Pennsylvania, and some beyond the state, Hanna said.
Axel, who was 8 years old, died Thursday after a battle with cancer. Handled by city K-9 Sgt. John Hill, Axel was actively involved in street patrols and drug detection. Hanna said the dog has been cremated, and Hill probably will keep the ashes.


A very interesting and informative article via Tom Henry at The Toledo Blade:

(I highly recommend reading this fully due to the statistics covered. It's a very good article).
 
Dog warden told to push adoptions; board seeks to reduce euthanasia
They may be uncertain about which dog-kill statistics to trust, but all three Lucas County commissioners agree the status quo is unacceptable at the county dog warden's office and said yesterday they have made it clear to Dog Warden Tom Skeldon they want fewer dogs killed and more dogs adopted.
Read the entire story here:
http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091028/NEWS16/910280338/0/SPORTS12



via Jonah Goldberg at the National Review:

Fido, a.k.a. the Climate Criminal
The government cannot have my dog.
Don’t tell that to the authors of the new book Time to Eat the Dog?: The Real Guide to Sustainable Living. They calculate that dog owning is much worse than SUV driving for the planet. So when you see a car heading to the dog park with some happy labs drooling out the window, you should think “climate criminals.”
See the rest of the article here:
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=NjExNzg1ODdlNzNlMDc4NmNhYjJkNDI4Zjg4ZGQ5OTY=


via Kristen Seymour at Paw Nation:

World's Oldest Dog 'Still Sprightly' at Almost 21


Otto, a 21-year-old dachshund/terrier mix, has been confirmed by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's oldest living dog, reports the Associated Press. He's not as big on going for walks, admits owner Lynn Jones, but she says he's "still sprightly."


via Celeste Busk from the Chicago-Sun Times:

Pets can donate blood, too



 Sanchez, a mixed Boxer breed, relaxes in the "Dog Ward" before giving blood with the help of Dr. June LaFave (left) and Kate Gallagher for the CVES Blood Donor Bank program. 
(Note from dellbabe68: no one tell these folks they have a real live pittie there! - hahaha! In truth they probably know but it's too bad the photo credit did not say boxer-pitbull mix. Pitties can use the good press.)

Injured or sick cats and dogs in the Chicago area often need donor blood for emergency transfusions. That’s why the Chicago Veterinary Emergency Services is looking for pets to donate blood for its special Blood Donor Bank.

“Blood donors are critical for pets in need of a transfusion and having access to a supply of blood can greatly improve a pet’s chance of recovery,” said Dr. Gene Mueller, administrator at CVES, 3123 N. Clybourn. “We have ‘superstar’ blood donor dogs [and cats] literally saving lives.”

See the rest of the article here:
http://www.suntimes.com/lifestyles/easy/1851678,pets-blood-donate-102909.article



via Rose Martelli at Paw Nation:

Septuagenarian Crustacean to Be Freed From NYC Restaurant


Photo: Helin Jung / PeoplePets.com

A lobster in his 70s, seemingly destined to wind up as dinner, will be liberated from a New York City restaurant and allowed to live out the rest of his natural life back in the ocean.
PeoplePets.com reports that the campaign to save Larry the Lobster began about a week ago when Ryan Sutton, a reporter who covers restaurants for the Bloomberg news service, penned a column about the senior crustacean, who lives in his own tank at Oceana in Rockefeller Center. The name "Larry" was given to him by Sutton's editor. Larry's age was determined by his weight; he clocks in at 11 pounds.

In his column, Sutton claims that the thought of eating another living creature "probably born before World War II" led him to wonder why he's never considered the age or history of any other meat he's eaten: "There's something humbling about consuming flesh from an animal that's given its life, involuntarily, for me, the diner."

After Sutton's story was published, readers sent in e-mails suggesting that a "freedom fund" be set up for Larry. One respondent even offered to buy Larry's entire tank for the purpose of releasing him. The restaurant also received a couple dozen phone calls and e-mails.

Oceana managing partner Paul McLaughlin agreed to voluntarily send Larry back to Maine's coastal waters. The attention Larry garnered may also put an end to the restaurant's recent decision to order bigger and bigger shellfish from its seafood purveyors. McLaughlin claimed that his clientele, made up mostly of lawyers and bankers, had begun requesting larger helpings of lobster.

"Obviously, you don't see that size lobster everyday, but large lobsters are delivered all over the city without fanfare," McLaughlin was quoted by Peoplepets.com. "Why this has raised an eyebrow, we're not entirely sure, but so be it."


xoxo