Cat Finds Owner Who Moved To Nursing Home

If home is where your heart is, then Cleo the cat definitely belongs with her owner Nancy Cowen.

Several weeks ago, the fluffy feline was separated from Cowen when the elderly woman was moved from her home in Westcott, England, into the Bramley House Residential Home in the same town.

Somehow the cat, who was left in the care of a neighbor, found her way to the nursing home – where she had never been before – presumably in an attempt to find her beloved owner.

Bramley House employee Laura Costello told the Dorking and Leatherhead Advertiser, which first reported the sweet story, "About two weeks after Nancy moved in, this cat just started turning up and sleeping on the benches outside the home. It was very strange."

Staff at the home became friendly with the kitty, whose identity wouldn't be revealed until Cowen spotted the cat hanging out around the grounds a few weeks later.

"One of the other carers picked her up one day, and Nancy said, 'That cat looks like my cat,' " Costello recalled. "Then she said, 'But my cat lost part of her tail in a traffic accident.' The carer looked at the cat she was holding and realized part of its tail was missing. Then Nancy's sister came 'round and said she definitely was Cleo."

Clearly inseparable, Cowen and Cleo will now stay together at the facility, where staff have agreed to care for the cat and find her a home in the future if she needs one. For now, everyone is curious about how exactly Cleo found her way there.

"I have no idea how she's found her," Bramley House employee Fiona Collins told the Advertiser. "It's quite spooky in a way."

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British Parrot Missing for Four Years Returns Speaking Spanish

A pet parrot that spoke with a British accent when it disappeared from its home four years ago has been reunited with its owner - and the bird now speaks Spanish.
The reunion was brought about by a Southern California veterinarian who mistook Nigel, an African gray parrot, for her own missing bird.

Teresa Micco tracked Nigel's microchip to Darren Chick, a Briton who lives in Torrance.

"I introduced myself and said, 'Have you lost a bird?'" Micco told the newspaper. "He initially said, 'No.' But he thought I meant recently."

When she verified Chick's name and said she had his African grey parrot, "He looked at me like I was crazy."

To read more on this story, click here: British Parrot Missing for Four Years Returns Speaking Spanish

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Meet Belle, a Puppy the Size of a Hamster

Get ready to have your heart melted. This is Belle. She’s a six-week-old terrier puppy, the size of a hamster.

Belle was the only survivor of a litter of four. Her owner, Karenza Cruse, thinks she may be the country’s smallest dog. She’s had a number of health problems since birth and requires round-the-clock care.

To read more on this story, click here: Meet Belle, a Puppy the Size of a Hamster

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How to Choose Your First Pet Snake

Choosing your first pet snake can be a nerve wracking process. Getting your pet and the equipment right the first time is the easiest way to ensure a long and happy relationship with your new slithering friend!

To read more on this story, click here: How to Choose Your First Pet Snake

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Ferrets: Man's Other Best Friend

If a human points his or her finger at something, a dog might infer that there’s hidden food, while the chimpanzee remains more or less clueless about the meaning behind that sort of non-verbal communication.

As dogs have evolved in a social space occupied by human social partners, they’ve gained the unique ability not only to comprehend human social-communicative cues, but perhaps even to manipulate humans, and certainly to initiate communicative interactions with humans.

To read more on this story, click here: Ferrets: Man's Other Best Friend

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Black Dog Syndrome - Why Do People Discriminate Against Dark Pets?

Just when you were hoping there were no new ways to be racist, it turns out people may be racist against dogs. Black Dog Syndrome is the name shelter workers have given to the tendency of dark-furred pups to languish in kennels while their lighter-furred brethren get adopted. “The effect is very real,” says Mirah Horowitz, executive director and founder of Lucky Dog Animal Rescue. “We recently had a litter of five very cute, very fluffy puppies, two yellow and three black. And the yellow ones all went immediately, but for the black ones it took weeks.”

To read more on this story, click here: Black Dog Syndrome

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Sweet Pit Bull Gets Over 1,000 Stitches After Knife Attack

Los Angeles, California - A 2-year-old pit bull is making a remarkable recovery Sunday, hours after receiving more than 1,000 stitches following a knife attack.

The Ghetto Rescue Foundation brought the dog named Spartacus to the Pet Care Center in South Los Angeles Saturday. Although his family tried to care for him, they realized they needed extra help.

The attack in Florence happened earlier that day.

Police believe Spartacus was hit over the head with a shovel, and cut numerous times. His attacker is unknown.

“Spartacus just sat there, I guess, letting him slice him up. Such a sweet dog,” said Alex Kyrkland of the Pet Care Center. “Whoever this person is, and I can’t even use that word, this animal, I think, he tried to cut his throat off.”

It took a surgeon at the Pet Care Center two hours to stitch up all of his wounds, reported CBS2’s Joy Benedict.

The center has several abused dogs awaiting adoption. Their veterinarians are volunteers and they turn no pup away, regardless of finances.

“I’m hoping that somebody is going to want to step up and probably take him permanently from Ghetto Rescue,” Kyrkland .

If you are interested in adopting Spartacus, contact: Ghetto Rescue

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Today’s Pit Bull is a Descendant of the Original English Bull-Baiting Dog: The Truth About Pit Bulls

Dog breeds are characterized by certain physical and behavioral traits. Each breed was developed to perform a specific job, whether that job is hunting rabbits, retrieving downed birds, herding livestock or sitting on people’s laps. When developing a breed, breeders selected only those dogs that performed their job best to produce the next generation.

Physical abilities and behavior are both important facets of any breed. A well-bred dog should have both the physical attributes necessary to perform its job and the behavioral tendencies needed to learn it. It’s not surprising that individuals of a specific breed tend to look and behave somewhat similarly. Pointers are more likely than Poodles to point, and sheepdogs are more likely than lapdogs to herd. However, while a dog’s genetics may predispose it to perform certain behaviors, tremendous behavioral variation exists among individuals of the same breed or breed type. It’s also important to note that some dog breeds are now bred for entirely different jobs than those for which they were originally developed. For example, certain strains of Golden Retrievers are now being bred as service dogs, a far cry from their original job of retrieving downed birds.

Today’s pit bull is a descendant of the original English bull-baiting dog—a dog that was bred to bite and hold bulls, bears and other large animals around the face and head. When baiting large animals was outlawed in the 1800s, people turned instead to fighting their dogs against each other. These larger, slower bull-baiting dogs were crossed with smaller, quicker terriers to produce a more agile and athletic dog for fighting other dogs.

Tips for Adopting a Pit Bull

Thinking about adopting a pit bull? Congratulations! Pit bulls can make very sweet and loyal family dogs. Adopting a pit bull should be fun and joyful, so we’ve created a list of handy tips to help you make good choices. 

Socialization is the key to a happy and confident dog. All puppies should be enrolled in a puppy class where part of the time is devoted to off-leash play with other dogs. 

Pit bulls are enthusiastic learners. They enjoy trick training and many graduate at the head of their obedience classes. There are many pit bull rescue groups that can recommend training classes. 

It’s play time! Pits are moderately active indoors and extremely active outdoors—be prepared to spend a minimum of 20 to 30 minutes twice a day engaged in aerobic-level activities with your dog. 

You may experience breed discrimination. Legislation may prohibit you from living in certain communities, and homeowners insurance may be harder to find. Before you adopt, call your local city hall or animal shelter to find out about your local laws. 

Do your research. Are your neighbors the kind who might get concerned about a pit bull in the community? Bringing home a pit bull may be tough because many people wrongly associate them as being aggressive. Be prepared with breed facts and history to let people know that it’s bad ownership—not bad dogs—that causes pit bulls to be aggressive. 

Adoption is the best option. By rescuing a pit bull, you are saving a dog that needs a home and family. Adopting a pit from a shelter means that the dog will have had an initial health evaluation and should also have already been vaccinated and spayed or neutered for you. More and more shelters use a standardized evaluation to assess the behavior of their dogs. If the dog you’re interested in has been evaluated, ask to see the results so you can get a more complete picture of the dog’s typical reactions to things. 

Consider adopting an older pit bull. With an adult dog, what you see is what you get. Their personality is already developed, and you'll be able to spot the characteristics you're looking for much more easily than with a puppy. 

Establish house rules for your new dog that everyone will stick to. Consistency is the key to training. Decide on the behaviors you find acceptable and those that you wish to discourage, such as: 

• Is she allowed on the furniture? 
• Is it okay for her to bark in the backyard? 
• Can she play with toys in the house? 
• How do you want her to behave when guests come into the home?

Set a good example for others. Become a proud parent—be sure to show your pit bull the love and care she deserves. And always let others know what great companions they make!  FOLLOW US!