Let this be a lesson to you, kids. Don’t decide to bathe your 7 month old puppy after a killer squat workout. Particularly when he’s put on 15lbs of solid Pit Bull mass since his last bath. This reckless monkey-faced animal monster owned me tonight. I don’t know how I’ll manage when he’s full grown.
This is so funny. Dogs are awesome.
BASEBALL PLAYER’S DOG HAS “ACCIDENT” ON THE FIELD
Pitcher David Price from the Tampa Bay Rays brought his French Bulldog, Astro, to the ballpark. It appears that Astro had to really go. The Tampa Bay Rays organization has actively raised money for dog-related causes in the past and is a pet friendly organization.
SEATTLE FAMILY ADOPTS DOG WHO PHOTOBOMBED THEM IN CHILE - “The O’Connor family was on a cruise when they stopped in Valparaiso. As the family posed to take a picture, a stray dog jumped up at them.”
The O’Connor family encountered a stray, named Chili Dog, while they were on a cruise in Chile. Chili Dog “photobombed” the family in one of their photos. After returning to Seattle, Kaylan O’Connor tracked down Chili Dog with the help of a Chilean group called Red de Defensores y Rescatistas de Animales. Chili Dog recently arrived safely in Seattle to start his new life with the family. Read more from the Inquisitr:
The family affectionately named the canine Chili Dog, but after eight hours, it was time for them to return to their cruise. Once back in Seattle, Kaylan O’Connor made it her mission to track down her beloved Chili Dog. She looked for someone who would be able to find the dog and transport him back to the United States.
Alexis Castillo, director of Red de Defensores y Rescatistas de Animales (EDRA) in the Chilean capital of Santiago, said she received an email from O’Connor in February asking for help tracking down the canine.
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Altogether, Kaylan O’Connor spent nearly $2,000 arranging to bring Chili Dog home to Seattle, where he finally arrived on May 28 — three months after the family first encountered him in Valparaíso. He joined two “brothers,” Auto and Klaus, whom O’Connor said took to Chili Dog in a way they haven’t with other canines.
Sounds like Chili Dog jumped into the right photo. Thanks to his new family he no longer has to live on the streets. Click here for the full story. (Additional photo from Facebook page of Kalan O’Connor)
DOG HELPS HOCKEY PLAYER DEAL WITH SEIZURES - “Moxie is amazing…She’s by my side, every step, every day. I certainly wouldn’t be able to be as independent without the service and safety she provides.”
A sled-hockey player named Christy Gardner was recently honored as USA Hockey’s Disabled Athlete of the Year. Due to injuries suffered while serving in the army, Gardner suffers from occasional seizures. However, her service dog, a Golden Retriever named Moxie, is trained to stabilize her when a seizure occurs. Read more from the N.Y. Daily News:
Moxie is a 5-year-old golden retriever, an assistance dog with a weakness for peanut butter and an astonishing set of skills, all of them cultivated to keep Gardner safe. Moxie, happily, did not have to do much of anything but watch nine days ago, when Gardner was honored as USA Hockey’s Disabled Athlete of the Year — a distinction earned not so much by her dazzling skills as a sled-hockey player as by her voracious appetite for improvement — getting after her latest athletic passion the way Moxie gets after a chew toy.
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Technically, Moxie was trained only to help respond to a seizure. So if Gardner were stricken, Moxie would go get the telephone and bring it to her. She could open the door, and run over to a neighbor’s house and ring the doorbell. She could even climb a ladder or activate an elevator in order to stay close to Gardner.
But because of the close bond that Gardner and Moxie forged at the beginning of the puppy’s life, Moxie grew so in tune with her owner that she could detect a seizure moments before it would happen. Much as diabetes-assistance dogs can pick up on the secretion of a hormone before a low blood-sugar attack — dogs have a sense of smell 100 times more acute than humans do — seizure-assistance dogs often can detect an almost imperceptible twitch, a toe tap or finger snap, that occurs before a full seizure.
Moxie is an amazing dog who is helping an amazing athlete. What a pair! Click here for the full story. (Photos by Robert F. Bukaty)
STRAY DOG RESCUED AFTER “INVITING” WOMAN TO HOME - “She let Lyla off the leash and followed Lyla inside. Lyla ran off and Linda found her in a bedroom, on an old mattress, wagging her tail. She was excited to have a visitor.”
A woman in Florida discovered a stray dog wandering around an old church. After a few days of feeding the stray dog, now named Lyla, the woman followed her to an abandoned house where Lyla had been living. Lyla’s teeth had been filed down by someone and it appears she was used to breed dogs for a dog-fighting ring. Fortunately, Lyla has been rescued by a group called Poodle and Pooch Rescue of Florida. Read more from their Facebook page:
Linda, a PPR volunteer, saw a dog wandering behind a church in Apopka. She watched as this skinny dog would appear from the woods, eat the food Linda left for her, then disappear. Linda named her Lyla. On the 10th day, after eating her meal, instead of walking back into the woods, Lyla walked toward Linda, sat down next to her and kissed her on the face. Linda put a leash on Lyla to see where she’d lead her, as Linda was worried there might be puppies. Lyla led Linda to an abandoned home in the woods where she’d been living. She let Lyla off the leash and followed Lyla inside. Lyla ran off and Linda found her in a bedroom, on an old mattress, wagging her tail. She was excited to have a visitor. Linda sat next to her and felt that Lyla’s milk was dry and saw no evidence of pups. Lyla followed Linda back to her car and hopped on Linda’s lap. They drove to Park Avenue Vet Hospital.
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After being abused by humans, Lyla trusts us and knows she is safe. She is so grateful and happy.
Fortunately, Lyla no longer has to fend for herself on the streets. Click here to learn more about Poodle and Pooch Rescue of Florida. (Photo and additional information from myfoxorlando.com)
AIR FORCE VETERANS HELP RESCUE STRAY DOGS IN ITALY - “Although the volunteer group doesn’t speak English, Cummings and other retirees on base decided to help the shelter by donating pet supplies.”
Retirees of the U.S. Air Force near Aviano Air Base in Italy are helping a local rescue group called Dingo by donating various supplies. A woman named Carol Cummings and other retirees wanted to help out the Italian volunteer group because of the large number of stray dogs and other animals in the area. Read more from aviano.af.mil:
The volunteer group, led by Franca Valerio, hosts more than 200 animals in a private, open shelter surrounded by farmland. Despite being an open shelter, the dogs, cats, sheep, goats and birds are protected from rain by a variety of dog houses and cages.
Cumming says that it was the high number of animals coupled with the low number of volunteers that inspired her to start donating food and flea medication to the shelter, despite not knowing much Italian.
“Taking care of that many animals is an overwhelming job, I mean I’ve got three and I wouldn’t think of wanting any more than that,” said Cummings.
The high number of stray animals is not unusual for the communities surrounding Aviano Air Base. According to Ministry of Health data, roughly 2,000 stray dogs and 3,000 stray cats were caught in the Friuli Venezia Guilia region in 2010. The abandonment of dogs and cats is punishable up to one year in jail or a fine ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 Euros.
Much respect to the volunteers who are coming to together to help the local dogs and cats in the area. Click here for the full story. (Photo by 2nd Lt. Allie M. Delury)
DOG IN CALL OF DUTY: GHOSTS BASED ON NAVY SEALS DOG - “The Navy Seal the team consulted with brought his unit’s dog and Ruben was blown away by the technical savvy the animal carried on its harness such as the camera and vibrating collar to give the dog stealthy commands.”
The upcoming video game Call of Duty: Ghosts features a canine character named Riley. The character is based on real military dogs from the Navy SEALS team. Players can control the dog and engage in missions within the game. Read more from The Escapist:
But when Activision unveiled the dog used to capture motion for us in its new Ghosts at the Microsoft Xbox One reveal a few weeks back, the internet went ablaze with memes and Twitter accounts all showing our love for the military canine. Mark Ruben, executive producer of Ghosts at Infinity Ward, admitted the team was taken aback by the response.
“No clue,” Ruben said when I asked whether they anticipated the frenzied reaction. “We thought maybe people would think the dog was cool, as a new squad member. We had no idea there would be Twitter accounts, any of that.”
The top photo above is the real dog used as the model for the game character. Click here for the full story and here to see a clip of the motion capture work of the dog.
DOG SURVIVES FOUR DAYS UNDER BOAT - “The dog was trapped under the boat for four days after it overturned and was swept 2 miles down the upper Chena River…”
A Labrador-Terrier mix named Cutie was trapped under a boat in Alaska after it overturned in the river. The owner and his friends were ejected out of the boat, but survived. However, no one noticed Cutie and it was presumed she was swept away. Four days later, when they retrieved the boat, they discovered that Cutie had survived in an air pocket under the boat. Read more from the Fairbanks News-Miner:
When they arrived on scene Wednesday, they were equipped with ropes, come-alongs and a chain saw winch to extract the boat.
But the water had gone down considerably since Monday, and McDonald was able to look under the boat. That’s when he heard Cutie barking and growling and realized she was still alive. She was stuck up under the dash in the boat’s bow, where she had evidently found an air pocket.
McDonald and two other rescuers hooked a rope onto the boat and flipped it over. Cutie came running out. She wasn’t her usual friendly self but she was happy to see them, McDonald said. She also was hungry.
“As soon as we got back to the truck we gave her a chicken leg,” McDonald said.
He also called John Minerva and his girlfriend, Grace Sommer, to tell them the news.
“He said, ‘We found Cutie’ and (Grace) started to cry and said, ‘Great, now we have to bury her,’” Minerva said. “Then he said, ‘Nope, she’s alive.’”
Cutie sounds like one lucky dog. Hopefully she recovers fully from her scary ordeal. Click here for the full story. (Photo by Tim Mowry)
“GOOD DOG” BY ARTIST GRAHAM CHAFFEE - “Ivan, who is plagued by terrible nightmares about chickens and rabbits, is a good dog—if only someone would notice. Readers accompany the stray as he navigates dog society, weathers pack politics, and surveys canine-human interactions. Good Dog’s story and pen-and-ink art are deceptively simple, but Chaffee uses the approachability of the subject matter as a device to explore topics such as independence, security, assimilation, loyalty, and violence.”
Tattoo artist and illustrator Graham Chaffee’s new graphic novel, “Good Dog” is being released this week. The book is about the adventures of a stray dog named Ivan. This looks wonderful!
Click here to order it on Amazon, and here for Chaffee’s website. Also, read his Tumblr page gschaffeetattoos.tumblr.com (Additional info from boingboing.net)
Anonymous asked: do you know where we can watch the series you just posted about? is it on television or online?
I believe the episodes will be available online. You can watch them online at the Castaways YouTube channel (only one has been posted so far) or at their website.
GUIDE DOG HELPS TRAINERS AVOID CAR - ““He kind of alerted me that there was something pretty bad happening behind us…” O’Neill, an 18-month-old yellow lab, was on his final field test when he suddenly turned around.”
A guide dog in training named O’Neill and his trainers narrowly avoided being hit by a runaway car. As the video shows, O’Neill and his trainer noticed the car just in time, then ran out of the way. O’Neill is being trained through an organization called Guide Dogs for the Blind. Read more from ktvu.com:
The video from Monday morning reveals how Guide Dogs for the Blind trainer Todd Jurek and his dog O’Neill both heard the car behind them as it jumped the sidewalk and headed their way.
“He kind of alerted me that there was something pretty bad happening behind us,” remembered Jurek.
Jurek said O’Neill, an 18-month-old yellow lab, was on his final field test when he suddenly turned around.
“He reacted probably two seconds before I did,” explained Jurek. “He turned around saw it, then I turned around saw it.”
Jurek said when he saw the car barreling toward him and his colleagues — including the woman who was blindfolded as part of the training — he instinctively pushed them out of the way.
O’Neill, a Yellow Labrador, passed his test and will be graduating from the program soon. Click here for the full story and here for more about Guide Dogs for the Blind.
DOCUMENTARY ON REHABILITATION OF SCARED DOG THROUGH PRISON TRAINING PROGRAM - “Castaways is about the characters whose lives and stories are weaved together and bonded by the interaction of man and dog.”
In the first installation of a new documentary series called “Saving Castaways,” a severely traumatized dog named Esther is successfully trained through a program called Prison Trained K9 Companion Program. The series focuses on a prisoner rehabilitation program that allows inmates to train shelter dogs to makes the dogs more presentable for adoption. Training the dogs also benefits the inmates by providing them with new skills and by serving as a calming presence. The program was founded by a woman named Debi Stevens and over 6,000 dogs have been trained so far. Over 2,000 of the dogs are rescues.
Many of the dogs selected for the program were at risk of being euthanized so it’s great to see them get a second chance at life. Click here to learn more about Saving Castaways and here for more about the Prison Trained K9 Companion Program.
DOG HAS AN OFFICE JOB - “Customers and fellow-employees at Burlington Stone are now greeted by the pet at the dispatch window, where she takes the weighbridge ticket in her mouth and finds an office administrator to process the form.”
A nine-year-old Border Collie named Misty “works” for a company called Burlington Stone in the U.K. Misty’s owner is a longtime employee and has been bringing Misty to work. The dog somehow learned to receive documents at a window and carry them to employees. Read more from The Telegraph:
Owner Elaine Prickett, who has worked at the quarry in Kirkby-in-Furness for 35 years, said that the workers believe that they could not cope without her help.
The dog was never taught to collect the paperwork, but had picked it up simply from watching how the women in the office worked, she claimed.
“I brought her in here as a pup and everybody fell in love with her and I’m not allowed to come to work without her,” she said.
“From about five-years-old she started copying us and mimicking us and she’s now nine, so she’s been doing it for a fair while. I don’t think we could do without her.”
Customer Lex Ward, who is using the quarry’s slate to makeover his garden, said that he has no issues being served by the dog, adding: “She lovely. She doesn’t argue and I was delighted to see her when I came here for the first time.”
Misty sounds like a great employee. Click here for the full story.
UPDATE: TWO DOGS RESCUED AFTER SURVIVING OVER A MONTH IN THE DESERT
This is an update to this previous story. Two stray dogs who had been living in the desert in Arizona have been rescued by Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. One of the dogs, named Junior, had an ID chip and officials will attempt to trace the dogs’ history. Hopefully they are adopted into a great home. Click here for more information and a news video from azfamily.com (Photo from Maricopa County Sheriff’s Facebook page)
