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That man’s best friend thing works both ways, as a lucky Florida dog that was saved from the jaws of a hungry alligator by her owner can attest today. Mandy, a 45-pound Wheaten terrier, sat docilely by her master’s side Thursday as David Grounds, his right hand heavily bandaged, revealed to TODAY’s Meredith Vieira just how far a man will go to save his furry companion.

Have you ever considered your dog as an extra child? You may not be that far off. New research shows dogs are similar to 2-year-olds in their capacity to understand simple pointing gestures, Discovery News reported.

Trained for 2 Years, Retriever Helps Mr. Montalvan Get Back on His Feet NEW YORK -- Like any other golden retriever seeking a treat, Tuesday nudged his owner's hand with his snout one recent morning and waited expectantly. Luis Carlos Montalvan got up from a chair in his small Brooklyn apartment and walked to the kitchen. Tuesday followed close behind, eyes fixed on a white cabinet. The retriever sat alertly as Mr. Montalvan, an Iraq war veteran with severe post-traumatic stress disorder, reached for a vial of pills, lined a half-dozen on the table and took them one by one....

While searching Thursday afternoon for a stray dog in an Appling graveyard, a Columbia County Animal Care and Control officer came across an unexpected sight – a man and woman sunbathing in the nude. “I was a little shocked,” Animal Control officer Russell Swann said. “I was expecting to see a dog out there.” Animal Control had received a call from a member of Solid Rock Baptist Church on Scotts Ferry Road stating that someone had abandoned a dog on the church’s property. Mr. Swann said he responded to the call and first searched in the front side of the...

Yesterday, authorities seized more than 400 dogs and charged 26 people from seven states in what Humane Society officials are calling one of the largest crackdowns on dogfighting in the United States. State and federal agents staged raids in several states, charging individuals in Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas following a more-than-year-long investigation originally tipped off by the Humane Society of Missouri. In Missouri, prosecutors said members of a multistate ring routinely denied the dogs medical treatment and "destroyed" injured dogs who were no longer able to fight by shooting them "in the head, throwing them into...

Patriot Streak’n Rocket, who answers to “Streak,” stood out among the chaotic group of Labradors and golden retrievers roaming Discovery Green. At 11 inches tall and 10 pounds, he didn’t seem like much of a contender in the long-jump competition. As a terrier, he’s not a natural swimmer. And the 2-foot drop to the water below the dock must have seemed like a small cliff. But Streak gleefully leapt without hesitation in every round of the recent Dock Dogs competition held at the downtown park....

BAGHDAD, June 22, 2009 – Army Sgt. Laurence Cameron was given the radio call sign “Dawg Medic” by other soldiers during this deployment, but it wasn’t until a recent mission that the Rock Hill, S.C., native actually lived up to the nickname. Army Sgt. Laurence Cameron, left, administers intravenous fluids to a military working dog with Army Sgt. James Harrington south of Baghdad, June 20, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Mary Phillips  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Cameron, a combat medic with the North Carolina National Guard’s B “Dawg” Battery, 113th Field Artillery, 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team,...

A dog in Germany shot by a drunken man with a gun took swift revenge by biting off the end of the man's nose, authorities said on Monday. Police said the armed man was snooping at night in the yard of a house in Stadtlauringen in northern Bavaria when he shot the Bernese mountain dog from point-blank range. Before collapsing, the dog leapt at the 39-year-old man and bit off the end of his nose, a local police spokesman said. Bleeding profusely, the man called police and was taken for treatment in a nearby hospital. His motives for being in...

Prince George's County Sheriff Michael Jackson said Friday deputies acted "in a professional and acceptable manner" when they shot two dogs inside the home of Berwyn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo last summer. During a press conference Friday morning in which Jackson made public selected details from an internal investigation, he said, "The release of today's findings are consistent with what I've felt all along — my deputies did their job to the fullest extent of their abilities." Calvo has filed complaints that police and deputies needlessly shot the dogs when they raided his house on July 29, 2008, after mistakenly...

6/18/2009 - LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFNS) -- After three weeks, the newest member of the 37th Force Support Squadron Airman and Family Readiness Flight knows her way around the three-story building and often bounds through open doors on surprise visits. Aamee, a four-month old Belgian Malinois, is the first puppy to be fostered by a unit at Lackland through the military working dog foster program. The foster program socializes potential working dogs to different people and environments to prepare them for a life of various handlers and locations. Aamee has been with the flight on a pilot test...

Fearing the worst, I held my breath as I walked down the stairs toward the backyard at the Liberty Hotel last Wednesday night. This was the hotel’s first installment of a new weekly party called Yappy Hour where the dress code states “Canines come dressed to impress.’’ I had visions of dog owners and their pets in matching cheetah-print Juicy Couture track suits, with the poor dogs looking miserable in their ridiculous duds while their owners got sloppy drunk on Grape Escape cocktails. I’m happy to report that instead the scene consisted of owners enjoying a drink while their dogs...

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — Officials at a New Mexico animal shelter say they'll euthanize more than 50 dogs and puppies this week to make room for 12 pit bulls from an unresolved dog fighting case. ... Because of their aggressive nature, the pit bulls will be placed in one cage apiece — in spaces that usually house two or more dogs.

VINELAND, N.J. - Authorities are trying to find the person who tied a pit bull to the bumper of a pickup truck and dragged it through a New Jersey neighborhood. Vineland police got a call about the dragging on Saturday night and the young pit bull turned up the next morning on the porch of a nearby home. The animal had road burns all over the right side of her body. Her skin is gone above her right eye. Her foot pads and some of her nails were missing.

"Killer" the miniature dachshund shot by a police officer. (Richmond-Times Dispatch)Police in Danville, Virginia are defending the fatal shooting and killing of an 11 year-old miniature dachshund, claiming that the police officer who shot the 12-pound dog, acted reasonably and in self-defense. "Shooting a dog which is actively presenting a threat to an officer is within the department's policy," states a press release issued by Danville Police Chief Phillip Broadfoot. The diminutive dog, who had the ironic name of "Killer", was known as a "sweet, mild-mannered dog," reports the Richmond-Times Dispatch. "He just kind of walked up and down the...

In a recent article about legislation against Pit Bulls, I ended with a comment on how fear and anger over isolated and heavily reported attacks was resulting in reprehensible actions being taken against Pit Bulls as a breed group, blaming the dog, and not irresponsible dog owners. A common refrain is "get rid of these dangerous dogs", even though breed specific legislation has not resulted in changes promised. Not anywhere.Petraits for Lake Shore Animal Shelter After reading an article showcasing a Baltimore group which, like the HSUS's "End Dogfighting in Chicago" organization, is working to help Pit Bulls and the...

Barking but true: How a Rottweiler became surrogate father to an abandoned wolf cub By MAIL FOREIGN SERVICE 12th June 2009 He is a fully grown Rottweiler. She is a tiny wolf pup. But that hasn't stopped 18-month-old,150lb dog Ulrok and and eight-week-old cub Beldaran becoming best of friends They sleep together, frolic in the sun and even howl at the moon in unison - and their unlikely union brings a smile to the face of everyone who sees them. [Pic in URL] Beldaran, who weighs just five pounds, was adopted by the Rottweiler when she was just four days...

SEATTLE – A dog that ran off from its owner in Seattle's Seward Park found and ate some marijuana and got high. Owner Jen Nestor Waddell told KING-TV the 11-year-old black Lab mix named Jack was "just stoned" May 12 after they returned home from the park. The dog's eyes glossed over and he had trouble walking. The vet said Jack had swallowed a large amount of dried, harvested marijuana. After some medication to induce vomiting and a night of rest Jack was back to normal.

PIQUA — Glenda Moss saved Jeter after an early life of abuse. Jeter paid her back Thursday, June 11. The five-year-old great pyrenees is credited with saving the lives of Moss and her son David, 19, by alerting them to an early morning fire at their Harney Street home on Piqua’s west side. Smelling smoke and hearing the crackle of fire, mother and son fled the house around 6 a.m. with Jeter following. For an unknown reason, the 120-pound dog went back into the house and perished. Glenda Moss was sleeping in a recliner in the living room when Jeter,...

Posted: 11:05 am EDT June 11, 2009 ATLANTA -- A teenager was hit by a car in southwest Atlanta Thursday morning. News Chopper 2 flew over the scene on Joseph E. Lowery Blvd. and Mitchell Street around 8 a.m. Officer Schwartz with the Atlanta Police Department said a 14-year-old was running from a pit bull when the teen was hit by a car. The teenager was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital in stable condition. There is no word on any charges being filed against the driver.

CINCINNATI, OH -- A Blue Ash family is outraged after returning home to find their dog had been shot and killed by a police officer. The dog was a Chihuahua-mix named “Jack” that Scott and Sharon Bullock had given to their 12-year-old son for his birthday a few years ago. When the Bullocks returned home from a family member's funeral on Friday, they found blood and three bullets on their front porch – along with a note to call the Blue Ash Police Department about their dog. The Bullocks were shocked to learn that Jack had gotten out of the...

My best friend of 16 years died Thursday. She was an Obedience Champion, #1 in her Breed in 2003 AKC, she had a Utility degree and OTCH points before arthritis took her out of competition. She knew about fifty words/expressions, she could swim like a mini tugbout, catch a frisby on the fly, retrieve anything with all her heart, climb a ladder, bark on command, drop food on command, find hidden objects on command, do the Schutzhund arm hold, and many other feats. She heeled perfectly off leash on Manhattan streets and parks recognizing the need to stop at every...

INDIANAPOLIS -- Police are looking for a woman and a missing pit bull, one of three that mauled a woman on Indianapolis' south side Wednesday, investigators said. Heather Paugh, 30, was attacked at about 11:30 a.m. as she went to pick up her mail at her home in the 3000 block of South State Avenue, Indianapolis police said. Paugh was being treated Thursday at St. Francis Hospital for numerous bites, some that took chunks of flesh from her arm. Paugh told 6News that the attack "lasted just a couple of minutes, but felt like a lifetime." Animal Care and Control...

The Food and Drug Administration has approved the first drug made specifically to treat cancer in dogs. Until now, all cancer drugs used in veterinary medicine were developed for use in humans and weren't specifically approved for animals. Federal law allows vets to administer cancer medicines and other human treatments under controlled circumstances. The new drug, Palladia, manufactured by Pfizer Animal Health Inc., has been approved to treat a type of cancer that accounts for about one in five cases of canine skin tumors. Canine cutaneous mast cell tumors -- the cancer in question -- can appear small and insignificant...

For centuries, humans have imagined they are the only animals with morals. But humans are not alone in the moral arena, a new breed of behavior experts says. Natural historian Jake Page said some scientists are acknowledging what pet owners have told their canines all along: "Good dog." Dogs are full of natural goodness and have rich emotional lives, said animal behaviorist Marc Bekoff, professor emeritus at the University of Colorado, Boulder. A dog's code of ethics is on display daily in parks, backyards and family rooms. "We're not trying to elevate animals," Bekoff said. "We're not trying to reduce...

Study Finds Mimicking Trainers Could Make Dog Behavior Worse: Trying to make your dog less aggressive by showing them you are the boss is a waste of time, researchers in a new British study say, especially when using popular new training techniques that urge owners to use physical force to make their dogs more compliant. According to the study, physical control methods usually shown on TV or touted by celebrity pet trainers like "The Dog Whisperer," Cesar Millan are "ridiculous" and could do more harm than good by making aggressive behavior in dogs worse. Researchers from the University of Bristol's...

A man said he saved his dog's life after sucking venom from a rattlesnake bite out of the animal's nose. Bobby Jenkins said he began feeling ill after getting his dog, Tank, to a veterinarian. He went to the hospital and received a dose of antivenin. In all, Jenkins needed four vials of antivenin at a cost of $3,500 per vial.

ROSTRAVER, Pa. -- A western Pennsylvania man is jailed on charges he beat a pit bull with a concrete block after telling witnesses he was God and the dog was the devil. Matthew Hubacher, 25, of New Eagle, remains jailed Thursday on animal cruelty and other charges in the incident Wednesday morning in Rostraver Township. Township police said witnesses claim Hubacher also threatened a man working on a nearby roof, while making the claim about being God and the dog being the devil.

MILFORD — A female German shepherd named Tory will not be euthanized for killing a small beagle-mix last month, as both pet owners last night agreed the attack was a "horrible accident."

A Chicago police dog named Bear should be given a new moniker: Houdini, his handler said. The German shepherd has been missing since Wednesday night after he was spooked by thunder and climbed a fence near the officer's Southwest Side home, Canine Unit Officer Rick King said.

I am sad beyond belief and also shocked. She had gotten sick last week, got her to the vet, and we were treating her. No matter what we tried, her condition got worse and worse. This morning as we were rushing her to an emergency clinic, she passed away before we could get her into the car. As Basset hounds go and even dogs, there were none better. She was only 6 years old.

-snip- Castro is accused of killing his girlfriend's cocker spaniel with a ball-peen hammer in 2007. Because he has previous felony convictions, prosecutors say if the 48-year-old Castro is convicted again he could be sentenced to life in prison under the state's three-strikes law.

POCONO LAKE, Pa. - In a bear-versus-beagle spat, a Pocono Mountain pet was a lucky dog. Susan Chappell says she let 6-year-old Heather out the door in Pocono Lake about 6 a.m. Wednesday, and heard a sudden commotion. Heather was barking at two bear cubs that had climbed up trees when a mother bear came out from under the porch and attacked.

They dropped their tiny dog off for grooming at the Castle Rock PetSmart. Minutes later, another dog mauled it to death...What troubled the family most though, was that Buddy had been killed by the PetSmart grooming manager's dog, a dog other workers call a pit bull. But a dog the owner calls in the police report, an American Bulldog Mastiff.

By Kate Ramunni STAFF WRITER Updated: 05/13/2009 03:59:21 PM EDT SEYMOUR -- Police are looking for help in locating a pitbull stolen from the Seymour Animal Shelter in March that a judge has ordered to be euthanized. The dog was stolen from the shelter on March 20, Lt. Paul Satkowski said. The dog is the subject of complaints in Naugatuck, where its owner lives, and had been held there until it was brought to Seymour in January. A court battle between the city of Naugatuck and the owner ended with a judge ordering the dog to be euthanized, Satkowski said,...

A dog owner whose border collie was found to be twice its ideal weight has been found guilty of neglect. Ronald West, of Donald Road, Brighton, was convicted in his absence after failing to appear before magistrates in the city and sentencing was adjourned. The court heard five-year-old Taz was found to weigh 88lb (40kg), after West ignored orders to improve his diet. Animal welfare officers who visited the 62-year-old's flat last December said they found dog faeces in every room. West told officers the dog was overweight because it had been given too many treats by him and his...

A small airport on the Oregon coast is taking care of its bird problems with a border collie named Filly. Southwest Oregon Regional Airport sends the dog after the pesky Canada geese that can pose a hazard to aviation. "She's chased flocks of geese into the water," said Bob Hood, the airport's wildlife manager. "She's really good at her job and she really likes her job." Filly is the third dog — officially called wildlife management canine — that Hood has trained to work at the airport. Hood and the operations crew had used propane cannons, cracker shells, whistles and...

A puppy had to have emergency surgery after eating an entire alphabet of fridge magnets. Six-month old Jack had just returned home from a castration operation on Thursday when he swallowed the magnets. The golden labrador was taken to the PDSA's charity hospital in Plymouth, Devon, by his owner the next morning, where he was immediately operated on. Owner Emma Keers says she will not buy any more magnets - and has banished Jack to sleep away from the fridge. She said: "Jack was sleepy after the (castration) anaesthetic so I put him in the kitchen to recover overnight. "The...

Eric Peterson of Brookings is a rescuer times two. First, he rescued Eve, a 2-year-old American Pit Bull Terrier. Now, with a demanding training regimen behind them, he's ready to undertake some search-and-rescue missions - with a lot of help from his pawed pal and partner. Eve is now qualified in "tracking and trailing ." She and Peterson are part of the Brookings County Sheriff's Department K-9 Search and Rescue program. A scenario for her and Peterson might be a situation where a nursing-home resident suffering from dementia wanders off or a child wanders away from home and becomes lost.

Little Rock Police think they've solved a string of burglaries across the city. All of them, detectives say committed by the same man, who as he was arrested, tried to poke out the eyes of a police dog. Limping his way out of the Little Rock Police Department, detectives say Russell Brewer, 39, of Greenbrier is responsible for over 40 business burglaries, including ten Wednesday night and early Thursday morning. Lieutenant Terry Hastings says it ended inside Cruse Uniforms at 1201 South Barrow where he fought with officers and police canine Xanthro. "Mr. Brewer decided he was going to try...

Eric Peterson of Brookings is a rescuer times two. First, he rescued Eve, a 2-year-old American Pit Bull Terrier. Now, with a demanding training regimen behind them, he's ready to undertake some search-and-rescue missions - with a lot of help from his pawed pal and partner. Eve is now qualified in "tracking and trailing ." She and Peterson are part of the Brookings County Sheriff's Department K-9 Search and Rescue program. A scenario for her and Peterson might be a situation where a nursing-home resident suffering from dementia wanders off or a child wanders away from home and becomes lost....

Long Island, NY (AHN) - Chanel, a dachshund, celebrated her 21st birthday with a party complete with cake Wednesday in New York. Her owners, Denice and Karl Shaugnessey, took her to Manhattan's Dog Hotel and Spa, where they celebrated the milestone birthday party and received a certificate from a Guinness World Records official confirming Chanel's rank as oldest dog, England's The Daily Telegraph reported. At 21, Chanel's age puts her at the human equivalent of 147 years old. She can't walk very far, and she wears special doggy goggles to prevent her cataracts from worsening. "She's independent," Denice Shaugnessey told...

The world's oldest living dog, a dachshund called Chanel, has celebrated her 21st birthday. Owner Denice Shaugnessey said Chanel would celebrate with some cake and then a nap.

A dog that a Wildomar man once saved from being put to sleep threw himself between his master and a marauding mountain lion at Lake Elsinore on Tuesday. The dog -- a mixed breed named Hoagie -- and the mountain lion fought a ferocious battle at one of the lake's campgrounds that saved the man's life and nearly killed the dog, who was rushed into four hours of surgery, according to authorities. "There's no question the dog saved his life," said Orange County sheriff's spokesman Jim Amormino.

A mountain lion attacked and nearly killed a dog that defended its owners Tuesday on a trail in the Santa Ana Mountains. The dog was severely mauled in the stomach area and rushed to a veterinary hospital for surgery, according to Orange County sheriff's spokesman Jim Amormino. The 5-year-old black Labrador mix named Hoagie underwent a four-hour operation and was expected to survive, he said. William Morse was hiking with his wife near a campground in the Cleveland National Forest, about 10 miles from Lake Elsinore, when a 120-pound mountain lion approached. "Out of nowhere, a mountain lion just charged...

Exclusive: PETA’s Pet Killing Program Set a New Record in 2008Public Records: PETA Found Adoptive Homes for Less than 1 out of 300 Animals Animal lovers worldwide now have access to more than a decade’s worth of proof that People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) kills thousands of defenseless pets at its Norfolk, Virginia headquarters. Since 1998, PETA has opted to “put down� 21,339 adoptable dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens instead of finding homes for them. PETA’s “Animal Record� report for 2008, filed with the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, shows that the animal rights group...

We've heard of Christmas in July, but Halloween in May? Between the Flowermart's Pet Parade and Mascot Contest tomorrow and the Maryland SPCA's March for the Animals pet costume contest last week, it's prime time for dogs in dresses. (Costumes are optional for pets at the Flowermart.) In honor of these events, the theme of this Animal House Friday will be: Pets that wear clothes and the owners who love them (and dress them). At the March for the Animals, I saw a Pomeranian barking her tiny head off at a shy pit bull. I thought: She looks just like...

Pâté or dog food? Either could be yummy. That's because you probably wouldn't be able to differentiate which is which in a blind tasting, according to a study scheduled to be released today by the American Assn. of Wine Economists. Researchers provided 18 volunteers five food samples to try in a blind taste test. Only three were able to identify the canine fodder. "We have this idea in our head that dog food won't taste good and that we would be able to identify it, but it turns out that is not the case," said Robin Goldstein, a co-author of...

CALGARY- Just call her angel of the morning. Spotting two prowling coyotes stalk a puppy cowering under a pickup truck on her northwest bus route on Tuesday, Calgary Transit driver Dawn Hagel did the only thing she could. The 43-year-old stopped the bus, opened its door, and let the frightened pup scamper on board, saving it from a gruesome fate. “I see this particular pick-up truck at the bottom of the hill about three times a week, and I knew I couldn’t leave the dog because when I returned the truck would no longer be there,” Hagel said. “This puppy’s...

VALHALLA, N.Y. (WABC) -- A family of a little boy attacked by a pit bull is opening up about how hard this has been. On April 17th, Frankie was with his aunt at her house in Wappinger's Falls. Unprovoked, the woman's pit bull turned vicious, mauling Frankie in an attack that lasted up to 20 minutes. The 44-year old was also bitten after she threw herself on top of the boy in an attempt to shield him. Tuesday, April 28, 2009 | 6:37 PM Eyewitness News VALHALLA, N.Y. (WABC) -- A family of a little boy attacked by a pit...

By Sara Olkon | Tribune reporter April 21, 2009 When people showed up to give away their dogs and cats at a local shelter last year, the main reasons they cited were "no time" and accidental pet pregnancies. This year, the No. 1 reason is a lot simpler: no money. As the recession takes hold, Chicago animal control workers are taking in about 11 percent more pets than they did a year ago. And shelters are caring for more high-priced pets, including purebred and "designer" dogs, as people who are unaccustomed to economic distress start feeling the pinch. Animal care...