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Shocking photos of dead dogs sprawled on a floor sparked outrage over the weekend after they began circulating on social media. According to the Express U.K., the photos of the dead dogs accompanied news that the dogs had been killed in Kuwait after a securities contractor lost a contract. According to the Arab Times, a person who works for the securities company has dismissed claims that the dogs were killed out of revenge because of the lost contract and failure to pay workers their wages. The person, who provided information anonymously, declared that "falsehoods were being spread online." The individual...

The Sierra Vista Farmers Market has homemade, natural products for humans, but we also realize your pet is a very important part of your life and deserves the best. Don’t miss the special presentation about Natural Pet Wellness at noon this Thursday. Market vendor Zia Bischoff, who has over 40 years of experience working with animals, will discuss topics including natural wellness remedies, healing salves, and nutritional supplements for older dogs. She’ll explain the latest research on natural pet products, what’s in them, and why they are effective. Handouts about pet wellness will be available as well as an ice...

A police officer is being praised for keeping his gun holstered after two vicious dogs roaming an Idaho neighborhood charged him. Body camera footage shows Meridian police officer David Gomez standing his ground as the canines, one foaming at the mouth, run directly at him. Gomez can be heard warning bystanders as he readies his nonlethal tools — a baton and pepper spray. Not only does he prevent an attack, but he manages to usher the snarling animals into a patrol car without incident. The owner was later cited for having vicious dogs at large. Bloody cellphone videos of officers...

Small dogs the world over can all trace their ancestry back to the Middle East, where the first diminutive canines emerged more than 12,000 years ago. A new study, which appears in BMC Biology, focused on a single gene responsible for size in dogs. Researchers found that the version of the gene IGF1 that is a major determinant of small size in dogs probably originated as a result of domestication of the Middle Eastern gray wolf, which also happens to be smaller than many other wolves. In terms of which came first, big dogs or small dogs, the answer is...

A golden jackal (Canis anthus) from Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Based on genomic results, the researchers suggest this animal be referred to as the African golden wolf, which is distinct from the Eurasian golden jackal (Canis aureus). Credit: D. Gordon E. Robertson ======================================================================================================================= Despite their remarkably similar appearance, the "golden jackals" of East Africa and Eurasia are actually two entirely different species. The discovery, based on DNA evidence and reported in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on July 30, increases the overall biodiversity of the Canidae—the group including dogs, wolves, foxes, and jackals—from 35 living species to 36. "This...

Humans may have domesticated dogs two separate times, taming wolves both in Europe and Asia thousands of years ago, according to new research. A major international research project may have cleared some of the controversy surrounding the origins of man's best friend, which has until now remained a mystery with two primary hypotheses. The first holds that humans domesticated dogs for the first time in Europe more than 15,000 years ago.

They may be man's best friend, but the question of where domestic dogs originated has long remained a mystery. Some argue that humans first domesticated wolves in Europe, while others claim this happened in Central Asia. Now, a new paper suggests that both these claims may be right, and that dogs were domesticated not once, but twice.

It’s easy to laugh at a grown man in a rubber dog suit chewing on a squeaky toy. Maybe too easy, in fact, because to laugh is to dismiss it, denigrate it – ignore the fact that many of us have found comfort and joy in pretending to be animals at some point in our lives. Secret Life of the Human Pups is a sympathetic look at the world of pup play, a movement that grew out of the BDSM community and has exploded in the last 15 years as the internet made it easier to reach out to likeminded...

It's hardly a dog's life of just eating and sleeping for President Barack Obama's pets, Bo and Sunny. The pair of Portuguese water dogs - Bo with his distinctive white chest and front paws, and the all-black Sunny - are canine ambassadors for the White House, very popular and so in demand that they have schedules, like the president. [Snip] The dogs have a pretty nice life. "They can sit on my lap, they sit on my chair, they cuddle with me," Mrs. Obama said. "I like to lay on the floor with them and blow in their face. I...

Police rescued two people Sunday morning after a coyote cornered the pair as they were hiking in a Burlingame park with their dogs. At 9:07 a.m., officers responded to a report of a coyote threatening hikers and their dogs at Mills Canyon Park, located on Adeline Drive, according to police. The hikers were walking on trails inside the park when they stumbled on the coyote. At one point, the hikers became cornered by the coyote, which seemed to be interested in the dogs. Officers arrived at the scene and were able to scare off the coyote. The officers then safely...

Dog tests positive for meth, heroin TUSTIN, Calif. – A dog picked up during an arrest in Tustin, California has tested positive for methamphetamine and heroin, authorities said. Tustin Police Lt. Robert Wright tells CNN that the dog named Bubba was found in a hotel room after officers served an arrest warrant for Joshua West, 40, on March 22 in Orange County. West was on parole for drug violations, said Wright. Police reported illegal drugs were found in the room along with used needles. The dog was turned over to Orange County Animal Care (OCAC) and transported to its facility....

The geology of the site, as well as pollen and algae finds, suggest that the hunter-gatherers encountered the mastodon next to a small pond that both humans and animals used as a water source, the researchers believe. Waters said that the prehistoric "people knew how to find game, fresh water and materials for making tools. These people were well adapted to this environment. The site is a slam-dunk pre-Clovis site with unequivocal artifacts, clear stratigraphy and thorough dating." Another research team previously excavated the site and found what they believed were dog remains, so dogs "would most likely have been...

SEATTLE — Ever since last summer, when Lynn Gemmell’s dog was inducted into the trial of a drug that has been shown to significantly lengthen the lives of laboratory mice, she has been the object of intense scrutiny among dog park regulars. To those who insist that Bela, 8, has turned back into a puppy — “Look how fast she’s getting that ball!” — Ms. Gemmell has tried to turn a deaf ear. Bela, a Border collie-Australian shepherd mix, may have been given a placebo, for one thing. The drug, rapamycin, which improved the heart health and appeared to delay...

The FDA is ramping up warnings about a common sweetener that can be toxic to dogs. Xylitol, a type of sweetener found in many sugar-free gums and other products, can have devastating consequences if ingested by a dog, the agency said in a statement issued Thursday. Over the past several years, the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine has received a number of reports of dogs being poisoned by xylitol, sometimes with deadly consequences, the agency said. Xylitol-related calls to the ASPCA's Animal Poison Control Center rose from 82 in 2004 to more than 3,700 in 2014, as CBS News correspondent...

There are things I love about being a woman. The perils of walking and traveling alone and the safety concerns that accompany it are not among them. As an avid hiker and a stubbornly independent person, this has always irritated me. I don't like that constant, nagging feeling of unease. I don't really enjoy double-checking for my pepper spray in my purse or carrying my keys between my fingers on my way back to my car. I particularly hate getting catcalled, followed and leered at. Then I got a German shepherd. The catcalls were the first thing I noticed vanish...

Sammie and Simon are now inseparable. Sammie, a 3-month-old boxer puppy, was shot, dragged behind a car and spray painted, according to Rescue Dogs Rock NYC. He was taken to Paws & Claws Animal Clinic in Columbia, S.C., for treatment, according to the YouCaring page set up to aid his recovery. There, a border collie named Simon befriended him. Simon, who’s recovering from mange and neglect, noticed Sammie’s suffering. In a touching photo, he reaches out to comfort his canine companion. “A perfect example which shows us that our companion animals DO FEEL pain and show compassion for others,” Rescue...

A study of labrador DNA revealed more than a fifth of the dogs carry a genetic variation which could predispose them to food-seeking and weight gain. Labrador dogs are well known for being fond of their food, but new research suggests their greedy nature could be down to genetic mutation. Labrador retrievers are top dog in the UK, with 32,507 animals newly registered with the Kennel Club in 2015 alone. But the breed is well known for its tendency to develop a portly form, a concern given the variety of health problems - from diabetes to heart disease - linked...

The six dogs are now with SPCA of Texas in Dallas.Six dogs who were rescued from a dog meat farm in South Korea by Humane Society International arrived at the SPCA of Texas in Dallas just after midnight Tuesday. The pups will be evaluated and treated for any medical issues before eventually being put up for adoption. The six dogs in Dallas are part of a group of 250 dogs and puppies rescued by HSI's Animal Rescue Team from a dog meat farm in Wonju, South Korea. All of those dogs are now with shelters that are part of...

Nora Hall with the family's pet dogs.A family’s loyal basset hounds have refused to leave the side of a dying baby girl who suffered a major stroke. Nora Hall’s mother Mary Hall wrote on Facebook: “My daughter had a stroke on April 6. We have been at Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis since then. She is not going to survive. “They allowed us to have our bassets here in the last couple of days because they are so attached to her.” “Our hearts are so completely broken. We have been praying so hard for a miracle. We tried so very...

Dogs and other animals now have a bathroom of their own at New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport. A new pet relief facility has opened in JFK’s Terminal 4, WCBS 880’s Stephanie Colombini reported. It allows service and guide dogs, emotional support animals and pets traveling with their owners to go to the bathroom without having to exit the terminal and go through security again. The tiny room is marked with a paw print on the door. It’s outfitted with a red fire hydrant and a patch of artificial turf, 1010 WINS’ Carol D’Auria reported. A federal regulation says all...