Welcome to my blog.
All in Animal Companions
The winner of the UK’s ugliest dog contest is Muppet, a 12-year-old Chinese crested pooch from Peterborough. Bev Nicholson, the dog’s proud owner, says Muppet is a “wonky little rescue dog” that is “beautiful inside and out.”
“Why are one of my puppies that my American Pit had ... green?” dog owner Annise Tooley asked Google last week.
A sheriff's deputy in northeast Washington, not far from the Canadian border, was on patrol in a rural wooded area when he came across a dog sitting in the road. Deputy Wright tried to coax the dog into his vehicle so he could find the owner, but the pup held her ground.
French cinema icon Alain Delon died last week at 88, and he almost brought his beloved dog, Loubo, with him. Delon had wanted the 10-year-old Belgian malinois to be euthanized and buried with him, but fortunately Delon’s surviving family kiboshed the idea.
Dolce & Gabbana has just rolled out a new product called Fefé, a perfume for dogs. According to their website, Fefé is “an olfactory masterpiece featuring the cocooning and warm notes of Ylang, the clean and enveloping touch of Musk, and the woody creamy undertones of Sandalwood.”
The US women’s gymnastics team completed a strong Olympics this week, capturing 10 medals in Paris. The thrill of victory and its agonizing opposite can be stressful in the extreme, but the team has had a comforting presence on their side: a four-year-old golden retriever named Beacon.
The smell of human stress affects dogs’ emotions – and their decision-making – according to a study conducted by the University of Bristol, Cardiff University, and the British charity Medical Detection Dogs. Their research appears in Scientific Reports.
A Great Dane named Kevin, the record holder as tallest living dog, died less than two weeks after earning the title. Guinness World Records said Kevin, following an unexpected surgery, had “tragically died just days after his record-breaking achievement was announced to the world.”
There is something about ginger cats. They tend to be more confident, more outgoing, and generally more cheeky – especially the toms. BBC News asked biologist and cat behavior expert Roger Tabor if there was a reason for ginger adventurousness.
The Australian animated series Bluey has pre-school fans all over the world. Plenty of adults love the show too, and so do their dogs for some reason. People magazine consulted with Amanda Farah, the National Training & Behavior Coordinator for Best Friends Animal Society, to break down why the show has become known as “dog entertainment.”
A family-friendly zoo in England has an R-rated problem: five African grey parrots that curse a blue streak. The foul-mouthed birds are spicing up the proceedings at Lincolnshire Wildlife Park in Friskney.
A 34-year-old elephant named Ali at Florida’s Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens has just undergone an intense, drawn out dental procedure to remove his tusk. Ali was once part of the menagerie at Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch in Los Olivos, California; he was donated to the Florida zoo in 1997.
Coffee shops around Japan have fully embraced the concept of the animal cafe. First came pet-friendly spots, then cat and dog cafes, then all manner of creature-themed stops, including the latest craze: the pig cafe.
Last year we noted the longevity of Bobi, both at his incredible 31st birthday, and at his passing in October. Now the arbiter of such things, Guinness World Records, is investigating Bobi’s advanced age, which has been questioned by veterinarians.
A new breed of dog – the Lancashire heeler – has joined the 200 other official breeds recognized by the American Kennel Club. The new guy is a “sturdy little dog with a short, weather-resistant coat of black and tan or liver and tan, they are affectionate with their owners, always happy, talkative and always ready for a walk,” according to the AKC website.
In August a mysterious canine illness broke out in Oregon, affecting at least 200 dogs. Since then, the respiratory ailment has spread to 14 states, and vets still don’t know what’s causing it.
In western Thailand just outside Kanchanaburi, an elephant sanctuary is home to a few dozen rescued domestic elephants. They’ve had a difficult time, either born into a brutal life of logging or retirees from the slightly less degrading tourism trade.
On August 19, 71-year-old hiker Richard Moore of Pagosa Springs, Colorado, and his 12-pound dog Finney had set out to climb Blackhead Peak just east of town. He never returned, and a several-days-long search did not find the missing man.
“The idea that animals should have the right to vote sounds preposterous.” That’s how Chicago lawyer Ioan-Radu Motoarcă opens his argument, published in the serious Oxford University Press journal Analysis.
In May, we were wishing Bobi a happy birthday, his thirty-first – by far more birthdays than any other dog had ever celebrated. We’re sad to report that there will be no more, as Bobi has passed on after three decades.
