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Thursday, August 18, 2016

Silverdale, Washington - The Kitsap Humane Society, Puppuccino Pals Program Treats a Dog a Week at Starbucks: To Help Them Get Adopted


The life of a shelter dog can be a lonely one. Waiting each day for someone to finally notice you and take you home is no doubt exhausting, and one shelter is trying to make the waiting game just a little bit easier.

The Puppuccino Pals program was established in April at the Kitsap Humane Society in Washington. Every Tuesday, volunteer Molly Clark takes one of the shelter's dogs to the local Starbucks for a delicious Puppuccino. (It's on the chain's "secret menu" and is just a small cup filled with whipped cream.)

Not only does the dog get to take a break from the shelter and enjoy a car ride and a treat, the Starbucks also posts signs telling customers about the dog of the week, in hopes that they might decide to adopt him.

Even though the program was officially established in April, Clark has been taking dogs out for Puppuccinos to give them a break from shelter life for quite some time.

"The dogs LOVE the shelter breaks, and they adore the Puppuccinos," Kimberly Cizek Allen, events and outreach assistant coordinator at the Kitsap Humane Society, told The Dodo. "You can see it in their little eyes as they lick the whipped cream out of the cup."

Even if a dog might not be a good fit for a Puppuccino outing, the shelter makes sure that they still get their treat — and the exposure.

"Should a dog not be suited for an outing due to some type of limitation, Molly will take another dog on an outing, and bring a Puppuccino back," Allen said. "That way the Puppuccino Pals dog can enjoy play yard time, or quiet room time, or whatever is most appropriate and still be featured in our program!"

The shelter also features each Puppuccino Pal dog on its Instagram account, to give them a little extra attention.

The Puppuccino Pals program is a great way to get shelter dogs out in the community, and to remind people as they grab their daily coffee that hundreds of amazing dogs are still waiting, every day, for the right home.

If you'd like to adopt a dog of your own, you can check out Adopt-a-Pet.com to get started.







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Waldorf, Maryland - Last Chance Animal Rescue Needs Fostering Help for Dogs from Floods in Louisiana


Sharing from my friends at: Last Chance Animal Rescue.

FOSTER for LCAR! We urgently need short-term (2-3 weeks) puppy foster homes for pups who have been rescued from the floods in Louisiana. Transport arrives in Waldorf, Maryland this weekend!

Please email, foster@lastchanceanimalrescue.org or call (240) 412-5751 for more information. PLEASE SHARE!

We have FAQs below, where most frequently asked questions are answered!

We provide crates, food and medical care. You provide a warm home and extra love! A two to three week commitment is required and our foster coordinators will do their best to match you up with a litter of puppies that meet your breed and size preferences.

FAQ's

Q: How do I qualify?

A: Our foster coordinators will fill you in and email or fax you a FOSTER application. Please contact our foster coordinators at the above email or phone number, we can not send an application via Facebook. If you are having trouble getting through and do not want to leave a message, please private message us your telephone number and email and address and we will contact you.

Q: Is it possible to adopt a pup that I foster?

A: Yes, it is. The steps to do so are provided in the foster packets that you will get when you pick up your pup/s.

Q: Can I foster ONE of the pups?

A: We do not separate litters, however, many puppies come in without litter mates.

Q: I do not want to foster but I am interested in adopting, can I just adopt?

A: Yes, when the pup is ready for adoption in about two weeks. When available, the pup/s photo and bio information are posted to our Facebook page, in our adoptable dog album:
http://tinyurl.com/ku5dpur Stay tuned! Note that a foster parent interested in adopting a puppy that they foster will have priority. Every dog photo caption has information on how to adopt and a link to the adoption application which has adoption fee information.

Please Share!






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Sunday, August 14, 2016

Symptoms, Causes and Treatment for Mushroom Poisoning in Dogs


Mushroom poisoning occurs as a result of ingesting toxic mushrooms, which is a common hazard for dogs because of the amount of time they spend outdoors or in wooded areas, particularly in the summer and fall. Toxic mushrooms are classified into four categories (A, B, C, D), based on the clinical signs and their time of onset, and into seven groups (1-7) on the basis of the toxin they contain. However, because it is sometimes difficult to identify what type of mushroom your dog has consumed, you should always bring the suspected mushroom with you when you take your dog to the veterinarian.

Symptoms and Types
Symptoms vary greatly depending on the type of mushroom ingested. Category A mushrooms, for example, are the most toxic and cause the destruction of cells, especially liver and kidney cells. Category B and C mushrooms, meanwhile, affect nervous system, and category D mushrooms cause gastrointestinal irritation. The following are some of the more common symptoms associated with mushroom poisoning:

Vomiting
Diarrhea
Abdominal pain
Weakness
Lethargy
Yellowing of the skin (jaundice)
Uncoordinated movements
Excessive drooling (ptyalism)
Seizures
Coma

Causes
Ingestion of toxic mushroom(s).

Diagnosis
You will need to give a thorough history of your dog’s health to your veterinarian, including the onset and nature of the symptoms, and possible incidents that might have precipitated the complications. He or she will then perform a complete physical examination as well as a complete blood count, biochemistry profile, and urinalysis -- the  results of which may reveal may reveal abnormally low blood glucose levels (hypoglycemia) and abnormally high levels of liver enzymes due to liver damage. Your veterinarian will also typically take a sample from the stomach to identify the type of mushroom.

Treatment
Mushroom poisoning is an emergency that will require immediate hospitalization. Often, activated charcoal is given by mouth to bind the toxins present in the stomach and intestines. The dog also undergoes fluid therapy to stabilize fluid levels and enhance urination, which helps in the elimination of toxins. Depending on the type of mushroom and severity of the complications, a veterinarian may even choose to induce vomiting.

Living and Management
With treatment, overall prognosis is typically good, especially if stomach washing is initiated hours within ingestion. However, it ultimately depends on the amount of mushrooms ingested and the toxicity of the mushroom. For example, group I mushrooms are severely toxic.

In addition, some symptoms associated with mushroom toxicity are only seen later when liver and kidney complications occur. Your veterinarian will typically evaluate the liver and kidney functions through laboratory testing every 24 or 48 hours. You should nevertheless inform him or her if you should observe any untoward symptoms in the dog.




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Rare Fish Called the ‘Nutcracker’ Eats Mens Testicles with Human Like Teeth, Caught in New Jersey Lake


A father and son fishing at a New Jersey lake may be lucky their bodies still have all their pieces after catching a fish called 'the Nutcracker' that is more commonly seen in the Amazon.

Ron Rossi, from the Philadelphia suburb of Delran, was out with his son Frank at a man-made body of water when they hooked what they thought was a piranha.

However, the rare species in Swedes Lake was actually a pacu, an omnivorous fish native to Brazil that has human-like teeth and has been reported to eat the testicles of swimmers and fishermen.

The Rossis realized the bizarre find when they went home and researched the animal after being confused at its lack of sharp, piranha chompers, they told WPVI.

Department of Environmental Protection officials said the South American fish are sometimes kept as pets, who may have dumped the pacu into the lake.

The species can grow up to four feet long and uses its molar-like teeth to crush food that falls into the Amazon River.

Many pet owners mistakenly think they are piranhas when they purchase the more famous species's cousin, which can grow up to 55lbs.

Given the fish's worldwide popularity, it turns out that the Rossis did not make the surprise catch of the century, or even of the last couple years.

A 10-inch pacu was caught in northern New Jersey in September 2013, followed by 17-incher in Washington state, a 20-inch specimen in southern Illinois two months later and a 14-inch pacu in Michigan's Lake St Clair last summer.

The fish's worldwide popularity has seen them spread far from their Brazilian homeland, with the fish being found in Paris, Scandinavia and Oceania.

In Papua New Guinea, where the fish is known as the 'Ball Cutter', a member of the species is thought to have contributed to two men's death from blood loss after it castrated them.

Scientists in Denmark said that reports of pacu eating genitalia were 'overblown' after they issued a joking warning to male swimmers to beware following a sighting of the fish, according to National Geographic.

Some wildlife experts worry that the introduction of pacu into lakes such as the one in New Jersey may endanger local fauna.

However, pacu cannot survive in colder water and the DEP urged owners of the fish to 'humanely destroy' it rather than throwing it into nearby waters.

A New Jersey man was surprised when he thought he caught a piranha, but the fish turned out to be a pacu, an Amazonian fish famous for eating men's private parts.




The Swedes Lake catch was the latest in an increasing number of pacu being found outside of their native habitat.




Fisherman Ron Rossi (pictured) researched the animal with his son, and environmental officials said that it most likely came from a pet owner who dumped it in the man-made lake



Pacu have spread around the world from their tropical home and been captured in places in northern Europe such as Scandinavia. Above left, a fish captured in Paris was about a foot long







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Man’s Roomba Vacuum Cleaner, Ran Over Dog Poop, Spreading a 25-Foot Trail of Feces Throughout His House


One man describes the events that unfolded when his Roomba ran over dog poop, spreading a 25-foot trail of feces throughout his house.

In a Facebook post, Jesse Newton said his dog, Evie, defecated in the living room at some point between midnight and when his vacuum cleaning robot was set to run at 1:30 a.m. When Newton‘s 4-year-old son awoke at 3 a.m. to crawl into bed with his parents, Newton smelled a strong odor. He got out of bed and walked into a “war zone of poop” in his living room.

Newton documented the dramatic saga that unfolded as a cautionary tail to others. The post, complete with a hand drawn map of the poop trail, has since gone viral with more than 140,000 reactions and more than 200,000 shares.

“Do not, under any circumstances, let your Roomba run over dog poop,” Newton said. “If the unthinkable does happen, and your Roomba runs over dog poop, stop it immediately and do not let it continue the cleaning cycle.”

Newton was not so lucky. He recounts his attempts to clean the copious amounts of dried poop from his living room and a failed effort at using a rug shampooer to remove poop from the rug where it all started.

“Some folks would shrug their shoulders and get back in bed to deal with it in the morning. But you're not one of those people,” Newton writes of himself.

Instead, in the early hours of the morning, he attempted to clean the Roomba but forgot to take the batteries out before soaking it. As the waterlogged Roomba sputtered to its death, Newton had some harsh words.

“You're not just using profanity - you're inventing new types of profanity,” Newton said of his reaction. “You're saying things that would make Satan shudder in revulsion. You hope your kid stayed in bed, because if he hears you talking like this, there's no way he's not ending up in prison.”

But the tale has a happy ending. After a week of trying to fix the costly device, he called the store where he purchased the Roomba and told them the story. The purchase came with a lifetime warranty.

"They are replacing the Roomba that ran over dog poop and then died a poopy, watery death in the bathtub - by no fault of their own, of course," Newton wrote on Facebook.

This is one experience that won't soon be flushed away.
See the full Facebook post below:

Jesse Newton with Kelly McQueen Newton.
August 9 at 7:23pm · Little Rock, AR · 

So, last week, something pretty tragic happened in our household. It's taken me until now to wrap my head around it and find the words to describe the horror. It started off simple enough - something that's probably happened to most of you.

Sometime between midnight and 1:30am, our puppy Evie pooped on our rug in the living room. This is the only time she's done this, so it's probably just because we forgot to let her out before we went to bed that night. Now, if you have a detective's mind, you may be wondering how we know the poop occurred between midnight and 1:30am. We were asleep, so how do I know that time frame?

Why, friends, that's because our Roomba runs at 1:30am every night, while we sleep. And it found the poop. And so begins the Pooptastrophe. The poohpocalypse. The pooppening.

If you have a Roomba, please rid yourself of all distractions and absorb everything I'm about to tell you.

Do not, under any circumstances, let your Roomba run over dog poop. If the unthinkable does happen, and your Roomba runs over dog poop, stop it immediately and do not let it continue the cleaning cycle. Because if that happens, it will spread the dog poop over every conceivable surface within its reach, resulting in a home that closely resembles a Jackson Pollock poop painting.

It will be on your floorboards. It will be on your furniture legs. It will be on your carpets. It will be on your rugs. It will be on your kids' toy boxes. If it's near the floor, it will have poop on it. Those awesome wheels, which have a checkered surface for better traction, left 25-foot poop trails all over the house. Our lovable Roomba, who gets a careful cleaning every night, looked like it had been mudding. Yes, mudding - like what you do with a Jeep on a pipeline road. But in poop.

Then, when your four-year-old gets up at 3am to crawl into your bed, you'll wonder why he smells like dog poop. And you'll walk into the living room. And you'll wonder why the floor feels slightly gritty. And you'll see a brown-encrusted, vaguely Roomba-shaped thing sitting in the middle of the floor with a glowing green light, like everything's okay. Like it's proud of itself. You were still half-asleep until this point, but now you wake up pretty damn quickly.

And then the horror. Oh the horror. So, first you clean the child. You scrub the poop off his feet and put him back in bed. But you don't bother cleaning your own feet, because you know what's coming. It's inevitable, and it's coming at you like a freight train. Some folks would shrug their shoulders and get back in bed to deal with it in the morning. But you're not one of those people - you can't go to sleep with that war zone of poop in the living room.

So you clean the Roomba. You toss it in the bathtub to let it soak. You pull it apart, piece-by-piece, wondering at what point you became an adult and assumed responsibility for 3:30am-Roomba-disassembly-poop-cleanups. By this point, the poop isn't just on your hands - it's smeared up to your elbows. You already heard the Roomba make that "whirlllllllllllllllll-boop-hisssssssss" noise that sounds like electronics dying, and you realize you forgot to pull the battery before getting it wet. More on that later.

Oh, and you're not just using profanity - you're inventing new types of profanity. You're saying things that would make Satan shudder in revulsion. You hope your kid stayed in bed, because if he hears you talking like this, there's no way he's not ending up in prison.

Then you get out the carpet shampooer. When you push it up to the rug - the rug that started it all - the shampooer just laughs at you. Because that rug is going in the trash, folks. But you shampoo it anyway, because your wife loved that damn rug, and you know she'll ask if you tried to clean it first.

Then you get out the paper towel rolls, idly wondering if you should invest in paper towel stock, and you blow through three or four rolls wiping up poop. Then you get the spray bottle with bleach water and hose down the floor boards to let them soak, because the poop has already dried. Then out comes the steam mop, and you take care of those 25-ft poop trails.

And then, because it's 6am, you go to bed. Let's finish this tomorrow, right?

The next day, you finish taking the Roomba apart, scraping out all the tiny flecks of poop, and after watching a few Youtube instructional videos, you remove the motherboard to wash it with a toothbrush. Then you bake it in the oven to dry. You put it all back together, and of course it doesn't work. Because you heard the "whirlllllllllllllll-boop-hissssssss" noise when it died its poopy death in the bathtub. But you hoped that maybe the Roomba gods would have mercy on you.

But there's a light at the end of the tunnel. After spending a week researching how to fix this damn $400 Roomba without spending $400 again - including refurb units, new motherboards, and new batteries - you finally decide to call the place where you bought it. That place called Hammacher Schlemmer. They have a funny name, but they have an awesome warranty. They claim it's for life, and it's for any reason.
So I called them and told the truth. My Roomba found dog poop and almost precipitated World War III.

And you know what they did? They offered to replace it. Yes, folks. They are replacing the Roomba that ran over dog poop and then died a poopy, watery death in the bathtub - by no fault of their own, of course.

So, mad props to Hammacher Schlemmer. If you're buying anything expensive, and they sell it, I recommend buying it from them. And remember - don't let your Roomba run over dog poop.



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Wednesday, August 10, 2016

Two Major DC Animal Shelters Merged to Create the Biggest Shelter in the Country


The Washington Humane Society shelter, a District-owned building on New York Avenue, Northeast, looks every bit the old-school pound—concrete floors, chain-link cages, lots of barking dogs. Washington Animal Rescue League, near Manor Park in Northwest DC, feels like a pet spa—soothing music pipes in, a miniature waterfall gurgles, quiet dogs relax in frosted-glass enclosures.

If that’s all you know of the two groups, the decision they made in February to merge—into an organization whose scope is unmatched by any other humane society in a major US city—might seem odd. But the outward differences don’t indicate philosophical ones. Both were longtime local institutions: The Washington Humane Society was founded in 1870, the Washington Animal Rescue League in 1914. Both boasted low euthanasia rates, with each saving roughly 90 percent of its animals. And they worked together for years, with WHS often sending dogs and cats to WARL when it was over capacity.


To read more on this story, click here: Two Major DC Animal Shelters Merged to Create the Biggest Shelter in the Country



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Monday, August 8, 2016

URGENT! Missing Dog From Riverdale, Maryland – Please Share!


From the owner:

MISSING**** Riverdale Missing since June 22
Male

Hi everyone , the past June 22 on a wenedsday my dog escaped when I opened the door to take out the trash it was around 7:30 am My address is 6305 Patterson st Riverdale md 20737 my dogs name is oso he's white curly haired and his tail is is very short like a snow cone , As you can imagine I'm very sad and he's extremely missed there's not one day I don't go out and still look for him after 48 days of him being lost, there not one moment I can't stop the tears coming from my face and I still have my faith and hope that one day I will have him return home please that's why I'm on here I hope that some one will help me find him if you have seen him pleas contact me ASAP at 2407012433.or 2402804485 

https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/mld/pet/5722373742.html
Prince George's County Animal Shelter Riverdale Park Animal Hospital Riverdale Park-University Park Patch City of College Park Animal Control City of Greenbelt Animal Shelter Volunteers for the Greenbelt Animal Shelter Brentwood Animal Hospital


Please Share!





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Friday, August 5, 2016

Christopher Walken Supports Best Friends Animal Society: Advocates Adopting Shelter Cats


Christopher Walken, one of the most noteworthy and versatile actors, supports Best Friends Animal Society’s efforts to bring awareness to the plight of millions of cats who die in our nation’s shelters every year.

Walken earned worldwide acclaim and the Academy Award for his role in the searing Vietnam war drama, The Deer Hunter. Through his career on screen, stage and television, Walken has shown a breathtaking range of skills portraying everything from violent villains to quirky characters in comedies. 

On August 5th, he can be seen starring in his latest role in the upcoming family comedy Nine Lives. Walken plays a mysterious shopkeeper with a fondness for felines and a few tricks up his sleeve. The film is directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and also stars Kevin Spacey and Jennifer Garner. It’s actually a role he’s somewhat familiar with. At home he and his wife share their life with a shy, stray cat who showed up on their doorstep pregnant. After finding homes for her kittens, “Girl” is now a member of the Walken household.

But not every stray cat is as lucky as “Girl.” It is estimated that as much as three-quarters of cats who enter shelters, most of which are community cats (stray and free-roaming), never make it out alive. Walken supports Best Friends’ efforts to increase adoption and save rates for cats.

According to national statistics, each day more than 9,000 dogs and cats die in the nation’s shelters. Best Friends has brought increased awareness to how people can get involved in the solution by adopting, and spaying/neutering their pets, donating, volunteering and sharing this message with their friends.

About Best Friends Animal Society® 
Best Friends Animal Society is the only national animal welfare organization dedicated exclusively to ending the killing of dogs and cats in America's shelters. A leader in the no-kill movement, Best Friends runs the nation's largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals, adoption centers and spay and neuter facilities in Los Angeles and Salt Lake City as well as lifesaving programs in partnership with more than 1,500 rescue groups and shelters across the country. Since its founding in 1984, Best Friends has helped reduce the number of animals killed in American shelters from 17 million per year to an estimated 4 million. By continuing to build effective initiatives that reduce the number of animals entering shelters and increase the number who find homes, Best Friends and its nationwide network of members and partners are working to Save Them All®.

To become a fan of Best Friends Animal Society on Facebook click here: 





Follow Best Friends on Twitter: http://twitter.com/bestfriends

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