Meet Mark The Dog Guy: He Gives Shelter Dogs Free Haircuts So They’ll Get Adopted

Mark The Dog Guy has dedicated his life to helping out shelter dogs in need of homes.

He offers his services to local dog shelters, giving dogs with matted, dirty fur free haircuts to improve their chances of getting adopted.

Almost all of the dogs he works on quickly move on to a new home.

“I come home uplifted every day,’” Mark told metro.co.uk. “I develop a bond with the animals which is just amazing.”

It all began when Mark ended his job as a consultant.

His girlfriend recommended that rather than going back to a ‘soulless’ job, Mark should do something he really loved.

He decided that something would be giving dogs a helping hand. Mark and his girlfriend had recently adopted two pit bulls from a shelter through Susie’s Senior Dogs, and so he was moved to do the jobs that many shelter staff simply don’t have the time for: grooming all the new additions.

Mark went to grooming school at the American Academy of Pet Grooming to learn more and develop his skills, where he was allowed to get to work from day one.

It was there that Mark learned about how much of an impact matted fur can have.

‘The first dog I ever worked on was Ernie,’ Mark told us. ‘My hands turned black from the dirt that was caked on Ernie as I brushed him out.

‘I had to re-apply the shampoo three times to get the dirt off of him, but he came out adorable.

‘It was really then I thought that the shelter dogs could probably use a cut too.’

Towards the end of grooming school, Mark reached out to Animal Care Centers of New York (ACC) to find out if he’d be able to help out.

They offered him the position of groomer on a trial basis.

And soon, Mark became Mark The Dog Guy. Since then he’s given lots of dogs incredible transformations, relieving the discomfort from matted fur and making them ready for adoption.

Mark wants to use his grooming skills to make sure great dogs don’t get overlooked because of their appearance.

“All dogs need homes, whether they are from a pet store, a breeder, or a shelter.

These animals have soooooooooo much love to give and just want to give and receive love.”

One of Mark’s best success stories was little Falko, a black poodle.

“Falko had just come into the shelter and [matted fur] terribly over his body,” Mark told us.

“I didn’t have a lot of time to finish him and I wasn’t happy with the cut, [but] Adoptions at ACC were going to take him to an adoption event that day.

The funny thing was that post-cut, Falko never made it to the adoptions van.

As they were taking him to the adoptions van, someone walking in said “Wow, a poodle. I want that dog!” and Falko was adopted even before his first event.

I think it was then that the ACC really recognized how I could help the dogs get adopted.”

See more of Mark’s dog transformations over on the Mark theDog Guy Facebook. 

Mark The Dog Guy (Picture: Susie’s Senior Dogs)

One of Mark’s clients pre-groom. (Picture: Mark The Dog Guy)

 Mid-groom. (Picture: Mark The Dog Guy)

Post-groom. (Picture: Mark The Dog Guy)

Ernie the dog before and after. (Picture: Mark The Dog Guy)

  

(Picture: Mark The Dog Guy)

(Picture: Mark The Dog Guy)

A brown poodle before. (Picture: Mark The Dog Guy)

That same brown poodle after. (Picture: Mark The Dog Guy)

  

And this dog is blown away by the results. (Picture: Mark the Dog Guy)

This dog looks very happy with his trim. (Picture: Mark The Dog Guy)

Today is National Horse Protection Day

National Horse Protection Day was created to bring light to the plight of horses in America and beyond and help the thousands of unwanted horses in this country to find forever homes. 

The horse has a legendary mystic on the American culture.  It helped to forge a nation and yet despite that many go unwanted, abused or neglected.  National Horse Protection Day is about addressing those issues.

How to Observe

Do you have the means and ability to adopt? Perhaps you have spare time or an interest in horse husbandry.  Check out the website below for more information on ways to get involved. Use #HorseProtectionDay to post on social media.

History

National Horse Protection Day was founded in 2005 by Pet Lifestyle Expert and Animal Behaviorist/Advocate, Colleen Page.

For more information about National Horse Protection Day, click here:  National Horse Protection Day

A Missing Police K9, "Milo" is Being Sought by Prince William County, Virginia Police – Please Share

Prince William County, Virginia - A missing police K9, "Milo" is being sought by Prince William County police.

Milo was last seen in the area of the 14100 block of Rahill Ct. in Woodbridge around 7:45 p.m. Sunday, police said.

According to authorities Milo ran from his handler as they were returning home after work. Officers have not been able to find the dog and are asking the public to help in the search.

He is described as a friendly dog, police said. Milo is trained to work in and around people and is not aggressive. The dog is actually very shy and may avoid contact at first.

Milo is a small black Labrador weighing 50 pounds with a small patch of white hairs on his chest. He is wearing a choke collar with his service badge and vaccination tag attached, police said. Milo is also wearing a black nylon strap harness that buckles across the top of his back.

Anyone with information on Milo's whereabouts is asked to call police at 703-792-6500 or the Animal Shelter at 703-792-6465.

Please Share!

6-Month-Old Puppy Receives Braces to Relieve Pain So He Can Eat

A six-month-old Golden Retriever puppy is getting relief in his mouth thanks to a set of braces.

The Harborfront Hospital for Animals in Spring Lake, Michigan, posted photos Saturday on Facebook of the dog, Wesley, outfitted with braces.

“February is National Pet Dental Health month, so we thought this was a good time to let you know about the importance of your best buddy's dental health,” the veterinary clinic captioned the post, which has been shared more than 270,000 times.

The puppy belongs to Molly Moore, the daughter of the clinic’s veterinarian, Dr. James Moore, who is called a “doggie dentist” in the Facebook post.

“He wasn’t able to fully close his mouth and chew well and he stopped playing with his toys because of the pain and started losing weight because he couldn’t eat,” Molly Moore told ABC News of Wesley.

The braces were put on Wesley on Feb. 19 and should come off this week, according to Moore.

“I think the only way he realizes anything is different is because we had to take his toys away so he doesn’t pull the braces off,” Moore said. “He’s still as puppy-ish as ever.”

Moore added that her dad sees a lot of “unique cases” in his practice.

“He does a lot of oral procedures and different orthodontia for dogs,” she said.

A spokeswoman for the American Veterinary Medical Association told ABC News that, as with people, dental problems for dogs can lead to other, more serious health issues.

"Veterinary dentistry includes the cleaning, adjustment, filing, extraction, or repair of animals' teeth and all other aspects of oral health care in animals," the spokeswoman said. "Veterinary dentistry is a function of veterinary practice because it requires diagnosis and treatment, and, to be fully effective, demands extensive knowledge of anatomy, anesthesiology, pharmacology, physiology, pathology, radiology, neurology, medicine, and surgery that is part of the graduate veterinarian's training."

Save the Birds: Don't Let Cats Roam Free, Campaign Urges

Our beloved cats are killing machines that take down some 200 million birds a year in Canada, one study found.

And now a new campaign is asking cat owners to help reduce the carnage by promising not to let their cats roam free outside — a move they say will benefit our feline friends as well.

Cats are by far the leading human-linked cause of death for birds in Canada, a 2013 Environment Canada report showed. And outdoor life is also a deadly and unnecessary risk for cats, says Ted Cheskey, senior manager of the conservation group Nature Canada.

"Both cat and bird populations are in different sorts of trouble," he said.

Today, Nature Canada launched its "Keep Cats Safe and Save Birds Lives" campaign, which is asking cat owners to make an online pledge not to let their cats roam free outdoors.

16 birds per cat per year

Each pledge could save an average of 16 birds a year, Nature Canada estimates. It plans to keep a running tally of "saved" birds online.

The campaign is expected to have the most impact on species that spend time on the ground, including some of the ones at risk, such as the wood thrush and the yellow-breasted chat, and common backyard visitors such as American tree sparrows and dark-eyed juncos.

To read more on this story, click here: Save the Birds:Don't Let Cats Roam Free, Campaign Urges

The Kids' Farm at the National Zoo is Temporarily Closed Due to a Few Animals Having E. Coli

Washington, DC - The Kids' Farm at the National Zoo is temporarily closed due to a few animals having E. coli, the National Zoo announced Monday.

Zoo veterinarians first detected the presence of E. coli on Feb. 18 in the goats. On Friday, tests results revealed that four goats and one cow were positive. The zoo said the Kids' Farm was immediately quarantined.

The other animals in the Kids' Farm tested negative, according to the zoo.

No staff member or animals are showing signs of the disease, zoo officials said.

Once zoo veterinarians receive three consecutive weeks of negative results, the zoo will start planning to reopen the Kids' Farm.

Pit Bull Saves Domestic Abuse Victim: Michigan Town Lifts Pit Bull Ban

Isis is a Pit Bull. She’s also a hero, having saved Jamie Kraczkowski, her owner,from her drunk, abusive boyfriend.

Said Kraczkowski about the incident:

“Finally, when my head got hit against the wall [by my boyfriend], [Isis] just grabbed his pant leg and she was done. She was done with him abusing me – and abusing her.”

But when the police arrived on the scene to help Kraczkowski, they told her she had a mere five days to get rid of her dog, her baby, her hero Pit Bull, because Hazel Park (the Michigan town where she lives) had banned Pit Bulls in 2013.

Kraczkowski continued:

“Thank God they’re allowing me to do home quarantine now. But, you know, it’s been pretty traumatizing for me. I don’t know what’s going to happen with my dog. I definitely don’t feel safe without her.”

That was two months ago. In the time since, there’s been a pretty massive uproar from people in the Hazel Park community and across the country in support of Jamie Kraczkowski and Isis. It turns out that people aren’t too keen on dogs – especially hero dogs – being punished just for looking a certain way.

At last Wednesday’s city council meeting, many of those supportive Hazel Park citizens stood up in defense of Isis and Pit Bulls in general.

Suzanna Rondeau was one such person. She spoke to FOX 2 after the meeting:

“When I heard there was a ban on Pit Bulls [in Hazel Park], I was pretty upset. I have Pit Bulls. So I basically couldn’t live in Hazel Park with my dogs.”

Also at the meeting was Magan Bouchard, who said:

“I’ve got a niece and they have a Pit Bull and live up north and the dog protects the baby.”

The incredible support was enough to convince the City Council to lift the ban on Pit Bulls altogether, though City Manager Edward Klobucher did come out to defend the original decision:

“We can’t ban stupid owners, so we looked to try to address what was a serious public health situation when we had 40-something bites by Pit Bulls in the past few years.”

(It’s worth noting that studies have shown that visual identification of Pit Bulls is notoriously unreliable. Studies have also shown that, in places that have banned Pit Bulls – like Council Bluffs, Iowa – dog bites didn’t really decrease overall, and significantly increased among other breeds, like Labs and Boxers.)

While Pit Bulls are indeed once again allowed to live in Hazel Park, there are limitations – Pit Bulls have to be licensed, they have to be spayed/neutered, they have to have shots, they have to go through behavioral assessment to determine whether or not they’re dangerous, they have to have insurance, and owners have to have a fence.

It’s not a perfect situation for Pit Bull owners, but it’s certainly better than the alternative – having their dogs put to death for their appearance.

Though the fight against Breed Specific Legislation is ongoing, there’s no doubt that laws against Pit Bulls are softening in the United States. Moreaville, Louisiana tried to ban Pit Bulls back in November of 2014, but a public outcry (thanks to a girl named O’Hara Owens and her Pit Bull Zeus) got the ban overturned. Furthermore, more and more states are outright prohibiting BSL, like New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.

It’s the sort of trend that might make stories like this one a whole lot more common, due in no small part to bonafide hero dogs like Isis.

Indonesia: Fire Deliberately Started, Killed Three Female Orangutans, to Clear the Land for Farming

These are the horrific pictures of three female orangutans who were killed in a land fire in Indonesia.

The orangutans, two, twenty-year-olds and a baby orangutan approximately one year old, were caught in the blaze near a protected forest in Bontang City, East Kalimantan.

The founder of the Centre for Orangutan Protection, Hardi Baktiantoro, claims the forest fire was deliberately started to clear the land for farming.

“It is completely illegal to clear forest land by burning it, and in this case the land that was burnt still had three orangutans living there,” he said.

After investigating the death of the orangutans, a team of officers from the Kutai National Park and the Bontang city police buried the three orangutans.

'The bodies of the orangutans were decayed so we buried them soon after the investigation to prevent them from spreading disease,' the head of the Kutai National Park Office, Erly Sukrismanto, said.

The body of the orangutans were discovered after a resident posted a picture of them on Facebook.

Professional photojournalist Yuli Seperi said, “I saw a friend post a status on Facebook about the deaths so I went the location where the three orangutans were.

The deaths made me extremely upset as orangutans are a huge icon to Indonesia.”

The forest fires are claimed to have started around 2:30 p.m., Saturday, February 20.

The founder of the Centre for Orangutan Protection said, “It is not clear why the three orangutans could not escape the fire as they usually can. Perhaps they were afraid of the humans that surrounded the fragmented forest.

The three dead are believed to be a family of all females, two twenty year olds and one baby orangutan around the age of one.”

Officers evacuate the three Orangutan killed by a forest fire at a protected forest on Belimbing village, Indonesia.

The founder of the Centre for Orangutan Protection, Hardi Baktiantoro, claims the forest fire was deliberately started to clear the land for farming.

A team of officers buried the bodies of the three female orangutans to prevent them from spreading disease.

The body of the orangutans were discovered after a resident posted a picture of them on Facebook.

Professional photographer Yuli Seperi said, “The deaths made me extremely upset as orangutans are a huge icon to Indonesia.”

The charred bodies of the orangutan were found in a protected forest in Bontang.

The founder of the Centre for Orangutan Protection said it is not clear why the three orangutans could not escape the fire as they usually can.

The three dead are believed to be a family of all females, two, twenty-year-olds and one baby orangutan approximately one year old.