Kale Chips, the once-obese beagle taken in by a Chicago
animal rescue organization, was listed Thursday as being ready for adoption
after losing 23 pounds.
"He's still quite overweight, but the difference in
his body shape and energy level is amazing," Heather Owen, the executive
director of One Tail at a Time, told NBC Chicago in a statement.
The pup weighed in at a whopping 85 pounds when he was
transferred from Chicago Animal Care & Control to One Tail in early
January. Since then, he was put in with a foster family who monitored his diet
and gave him regular exercise.
Owen said Kale Chips could "barely walk 10 feet"
at the start of his program but can now walk up to a half mile per day. The dog
has lost 23 pounds since the start of his regimen and has about another 25
pounds to lose before he's within his ideal weight range.
The ideal forever home for Kale Chips would be one in the
Chicago area where he can continue on his weight-loss program.
He gets along well with other dogs and cats, but would
prefer no energetic children, One Tail said. Kale Chips has an
"enthusiastic" bark and would do best in a single-family home with
people who are home often to spend time with him.
Those interested in potentially adopting Kale Chips should
contact One Tail at a Time .
The organization has posted photos and a video to Facebook
documenting Kale Chips' transformation.
The fennec fox, also known as the desert fox,
is a beautiful, small member of the canine family. Fennec foxes can be kept as
pets, although they are not very common. They are petite, save for their
enormous ears. They behave much like dogs, but since they are not domesticated
they do require careful socialization as well as precautions against escape. As
always, before deciding on adopting one of these beautiful little animals, be
sure you will legally be allowed to keep them where you live.
Fennec foxes have a mature weight of just 2 -
3.5 pounds, with a soft, thick, short coat that is off white on the underside
and reddish or tawny on the back, with some black markings on the back and
tail. They are very active, quick and agile, and have a high pitched yelp.
These foxes are nocturnal in the wild although pet fennecs adapt somewhat to
their owner's schedule. They are clean animals and can be litter trained, although
owners have varied opinions on how easily.
In the wild, fennec foxes are omnivores, eating
a diet of insects, rodents, plants, fruit, and reptiles. The ideal diet for pet
fennec foxes would probably be a commercial wild canid diet (such as zoos would
feed), but most owners will feed a mix of dog food, cat food, vegetables and
fruit with good success. Some breeders will alternatively recommend a diet of
raw meat, vegetables, and a vitamin mix.
Fennecs are very active and need an outlet for
their energy. They are curious, and will get into anything and everything.
They are also known for their digging. Outdoor
enclosures must be designed to prevent them from digging under or climbing over
the fence, both of which they will do quite readily. Burying a significant
portion of the fence and turning the fence in at the top (or completely
covering the enclosure) should prevent escape. Some owners have taught them to
fetch like dogs, and this makes a good outlet for their energy. If out of a
secure yard, however, they must be leashed. They are extremely quick and if
they run after something as they would in the wild they can be very difficult
to recapture. As long as adequate shelter is provided they are fairly tolerant
of both hot and cold weather. One of their favorite activities is basking in
the sun.
Fennec foxes are quite similar to dogs, and
hand raised pups are usually docile, only biting if feeling cornered or
threatened. They can be trained to a leash and to come when called (still, they
should always be leashed when out of the house/yard). They are also generally
not afraid of strangers and are friendly to everyone. They may bother other
pets in the household, if only because fennec foxes will want to play with them
all the time.
Also be sure to have a veterinarian available
who will treat fennec foxes. They are quite hardy animals, but will require
vaccination against standard canine diseases and medical care similar to a dog.
If
a golden retriever gives birth, gets stung by a bee or sprayed by a skunk,
veterinarians want to know.
Scientists
are studying the popular breed to find out why their lifespans have gotten
shorter over the years and why cancer is so prevalent.
The
Colorado-based Morris Animal Foundation recently got the first lifetime study
of 3,000 purebred golden retrievers up and running after signing up the first
dogs in 2012. The nonprofit says the review of health conditions and
environmental factors facing golden retrievers across the U.S. can help other
breeds and even people, because humans carry 95 percent of the same DNA.
"Canine
cancer has become a dog owner's greatest fear," said Dr. David Haworth,
president and CEO of the foundation, which invested $25 million in the study.
"You don't see dogs running loose that much anymore, we don't see a lot of
infectious diseases, and the vaccines we have today are very good, so our
concerns are warranted."
The
vets haven't learned enough yet to improve or prolong the retrievers' lives,
but key factors could lie anywhere, said Dr. Michael Lappin, who has 19
patients from Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts, in the study. When he graduated from
veterinary school in 1972, golden retrievers lived 16 or 17 years. Today, it's
nine or 10 years.
Golden
retrievers die of bone cancer, lymphoma and a cancer of the blood vessels more
than any other breed in the country.
Lappin
plans to get his families together in a few months to see if they have found
ways to make life easier for their dogs, especially because the most helpful
data about cancer, obesity, diabetes and other chronic conditions won't emerge
for six or seven years, researchers say.
Early
exams showed 33 percent of the dogs, which are 1 to 5 years old, had skin
disease or ear infections; 17 percent had gastrointestinal illnesses; and 11
percent had urinary disease.
The
dogs get medication to treat the conditions, but vets can't treat them
differently because it would skew the results, Lappin said.
Marla
Yetka of Denver says her nearly 2-year-old golden retriever, Snickers, joined
the study and has been suffering from skin problems. Yetka uses oatmeal shampoo
on her pet, but she's looking forward to talking with other participants about
their remedies.
"I
have too many friends who have lost goldens," she said. "Is it what
we are feeding them, their environments, their breeding?"
Pet
owners keep tabs on everything, from a move across country or across town, a
change in climate or time zone, new children at home, different food or
behavioral changes. Most keep journals so they don't constantly call the vets
when their dog gets a thorn in its foot, eats a spider or devours a bunch of
bologna if it tears into the groceries.
The
vets collect blood, waste, and hair and nail samples annually to test if the
dogs get sick, hoping to uncover a common thread or early warning sign among
dogs that develop cancer or other diseases.
Doctors
also check for changes in temperature, blood pressure, energy, diet, sleeping
patterns or other factors that could explain illnesses.
"Everyone
involved will feel the burden it will take to be able to say, 'I am playing a
role in stopping cancer in these animals I love,'" Haworth said.
So
far, seven golden retrievers have died of conditions such as cancer and
gastrointestinal problems, and one was hit by a car, Haworth said. Another
dropped out when its owner died. The dogs come from every state; about half are
male and half are female; and half are fixed and half are not.
Those
who brought dogs into the study, including both veterinarians, hope golden
retrievers get a shot at the longer life they used to enjoy.
"I'm
glad I found the study and feel in some small way, I might make a
difference," Yetka said.
The St. Louis Zoo welcomes an orphaned 850-pound bear,
delivered by FedEx.
The two-year-old male named Kali, was orphaned as a cub,
arrived at his new home on Friday.
The bear was shipped in by plane and truck ahead of its
scheduled June 6 debut at the zoo's new Polar Bear Point Exhibit.
Zoo authorities say that Kali was resting comfortably and
would remain in quarantine for about a month, which is standard practice that
allows an animal to become acclimated to its new home.
Kali spent the past two years at the Buffalo Zoo after he
was orphaned in Alaska's wilderness, when a hunter unknowingly killed his
mother, unaware she had a cub.
Kali's latest adventure came Tuesday, when FexEx - having
over the years handled everything from endangered sea turtles to seals and
pandas - stepped in with air and ground transportation to get a bear halfway
across the country.
Kali caught a three-hour flight on a FedEx Express 767
jet from Rochester, New York, to Memphis, Tennessee, secured in a specially
designed, half-ton aluminum crate while monitored by a veterinarian and two
attendants, the company said in its blog.
The crate was placed behind the cockpit wall, allowing a
Buffalo zoo representative and Steve Bircher, the St. Louis Zoo's curator of
mammals and carnivores, to monitor and hydrate him and 'basically talk to him,'
said Susan Gallagher, the St. Louis zoo's spokeswoman.
At Memphis, FedEx said, the bear was wheeled to a waiting
company truck, its drivers trained in handling sensitive shipments.
Attendants who followed in a vehicle frequently checked
Kali's condition, providing water along the way during the five-hour drive in
which the bear was in a cargo area kept at 55 degrees.
Kali's new digs are a 40,000-square-foot habitat offering
visitors starting in a month a glimpse of him through a 22-foot window.
'We applaud the work of the Saint Louis Zoo and wish Kali
a bright and happy future in his new home,' Neil Gibson, FedEx's vice president
of corporate communications, said in a statement Friday.
Boxed up: Kali’s transportation on May 5 from Rochester,
New York, to St. Louis was donated by FedEx.
Tracking: Kali flew on board a FedEx Express flight from
Rochester to Memphis, and then a temperature-controlled truck transport via
FedEx Custom Critical from Memphis to St. Louis.
The St. Louis Zoo Now Has A New 850-Pound Bear: Delivered
by FedEx.
Helping hand: The Saint Louis Zoo’s veterinarian and
animal care staff accompanied him on the day-long journey.
His story: Kali came to St. Louis from the Buffalo Zoo,
where he has lived since May 2013. In March 2013, he was orphaned by an Alaskan
hunter who unknowingly killed Kali’s mother in a subsistence hunt.
Thirsty work: Vets accompanied Kali so he could be fed
and watered during the move.
Packing up: Staff from the zoo and shipping company took
extra care to make sure he wasn't in too much distress.
Special cargo: The entire journey from Buffalo, NY to St.
Louis took a whole day.
Nice people: “FedEx is committed to the conservation of
at-risk animal populations, and we’re proud to have played a part in Kali’s
journey,” said Neil Gibson, vice president FedEx corporate communications.
Meet him in St. Louis: "Kali arrived safe and sound
and is adjusting nicely to his new surroundings," said Saint Louis Zoo
Curator of Carnivores Steve Bircher.
How he has grown: Incredible to see how large Kali has
grown in the two years since this picture was taken. It would also have been
far easier to ship at this size!
How he used to look! This picture was taken when Kali was
just a cub. He was taken to Alaska Zoo in Anchorage.
New home: Kali’s new home is a 40,000-square-foot habitat
that offers visitors a 22-foot viewing window, where the polar bear can come
right up to the glass to greet guests.
On ice: The sea water area features a 1,000-square-foot
Arctic room with a four-panel viewing wall.
There’s not much cuter than seeing a spry little squirrel
in its environment – running, jumping, climbing, nibbling… everything about them
is adorable.
But one family in Finland noticed a red squirrel in quite
the opposite circumstances – it was seemingly lifeless on the side of a road.
They were devastated, but then the wounded squirrel showed faint signs of life.
It was just the beginning of a story that went from heartbreaking to
heartwarming in a matter of seconds.
A family in Finland spotted this little guy seemingly
lifeless on the side of a road in 2007. When they were moving him, he showed
signs of life.
They immediately decided to try and nurse him back to
health.
Unfortunately though, “We realized that his eye would
never heal completely and he wouldn’t survive on his own,” says Priami, whose
family adopted the squirrel.
The family took the squirrel in as one of their own.
They named him Arttu, “pretty much the Finnish version of
‘Arthur.’”
He loved to joke around: “He liked to have playful
‘fights’ with our hands (you know, like cats do) and he was smart enough not to
bite too hard.”
Arttu quite the appetite: “We fed him nuts, fruits,
berries and mushrooms.” (And pinecones!)
Arttu lived with the family from 2007 – 2013, when he
passed of old age. They found him curled up in his ‘nest’ like he was sleeping.
“We fed other squirrels all the food we had stored for him
before he died.”
It’s hard to come to terms with the fact that our pets
have shorter lifespans than us. But however short, it looks like Arttu’s life
was very happy. Now he probably has all the nuts he can handle in squirrel
heaven.
Sako,
a 4-year-old king shepherd who fought off coyotes to save a boy after a car accident
is getting the recognition he deserves.
Sako,
was inducted into the Purina Animal Hall of Fame on Monday for his efforts to
protect Joseph Phillips-Garcia. The Toronto event, sponsored by Nestle Purina
Petcare subsidiary Purina Canada, honored Canadian domestic animals whose
actions have saved human lives.
In
June 2014, Phillips-Garcia, then 16, went out with his aunt, cousin, friend and
Sako for a day of fishing and wild potato picking, according to a Purina news
release. On the way home, their car went off the road and down a steep hill
more than 100 yards into the forest.
Phillips-Garcia
and Sako, the only two survivors of the crash, were thrown from the vehicle.
The teen blacked out and could barely move when he awoke.
“I
tried moving in any possible way I could. I felt my head and I looked down at
my hand, and it was just filled with blood,” Phillips-Garcia recalled in a
video released by Purina. The teen said a bone was jutting out of his leg.
Doctors would later determine he had a broken collar bone and a broken femur.
Sako,
who had lived with Phillips-Garcia’s family since he was a puppy, did not leave
the boy’s side, cuddling close to keep him warm through the night.
Constable
Kris Clark of the Lake Country Royal Canadian Mounted Police notes in the video
that maintaining body temperature is crucial for the survival of an injured
person who may be in shock.
The
dog’s assistance did not end there. Phillips-Garcia says Sako helped him drag
himself to a creek to get water and even fought off coyotes.
“We
were just falling asleep, and that’s when you hear the first couple of howls,”
the teen said. “He got up as soon as he realized their scent was coming closer
and closer, and then he just went in. You could hear them just fighting and the
bushes rumbling around.”
The
dog stayed with Phillips-Garcia until a search team found the pair 40 hours
later.
“He
saved my son’s life,” the boy’s mother, Fawn Adolph, says in the video. Clark
agrees that Sako played a “huge role” in the teen's survival.
Sako
received a medal for his valiant actions at Monday's ceremony, according to The
Washington Post. He was joined by three other dogs -- Nettle, Bella and Badger
-- also being honored for their lifesaving deeds. Over the past 47 years, 140
dogs, 27 cats and one horse have been inducted into the Hall of Fame, according
to Canada News Wire.
