Yes, People Should Clean Up Their Dogs' Poop, But Does This Poster in England Go Too Far?

A borough's campaign last year included a poster of a boy eating dog poop, and now it's gone viral on the Internet. Is it too much in the war on poop?

Some people take dog poop really seriously. If you work here at Dogster, it's kind of hard not to notice. Recently, Michael Leaverton wrote about the neighborhood in Brooklyn (my old neighborhood, actually), that was fighting dog poop via webcams, and activists in Ipswich, Massachusetts, and Boulder, Colorado, have advocated using DNA testing to catch owners who don't clean up. And in a moment of true hipster weirdness, two Brooklyn artists had a turf war over painting dog poop gold.

These examples aren't much, though, when compared with the anti-poop campaign unleashed by the borough council of Spelthorne in Southeast England. These people really hate dog poop, and they've grossed out about half the planet in the process.

A poster in the council's "No Messin'" campaign features a picture of an adorable ginger-haired toddler looking at the camera. The child is holding two lumps of what looks like dog poop in his hands, and it's smeared around his mouth and cheeks. The caption reads "Children will touch anything. Dog feces can be harmful to human health and can cause blindness. An infection called Toxocara canis can be caught if the waste is not removed immediately."

The campaign was launched last year but recently exploded across international borders when it was posted to Imgur.com. Since it went up Sunday, the poster has gotten 1 million hits on Imgur and been reposted to scores of other sites.

Some people have declared the poster to be "vile," but the Spelthorne Borough Council continues to stand behind its approach. In a statement, one council member said that the campaign was effective precisely because it was "hard-hitting." The statement further reads:

"The council takes the view that these kinds of messages and imagery are necessary to have the required effect. It is using a number of different images and messages to deal with this problem which, it hopes, will persuade people to act more responsibly."

Spelthorne isn't the first government body in England to use this tactic, either. Last year, officials in Bristol put up a billboard as part of its war on poop showing a little girl eating fake (we hope) poo. Our man Leaverton wrote a hysterical take on this one, Why Is This Little Girl Eating Dog Poop on This Billboard?

It's certainly the responsibility of every dog owner to clean up after his or her pet, but -- does this go too far? I have to admit that my inner 12-year-old is giggling up a storm, but grown-up me is kind of squirming. I'm all for confrontation and making people uncomfortable in the name of a good cause. A good part of my urge to write is driven by the old maxim to "Comfort the troubled and trouble the comfortable."

But this is dog poop. Is the situation really this out of control?

What do you think? Is the ad a good way to draw people's attention to a serious problem, or a bunch of people blowing things out of proportion with shock tactics?

Clean up after your pets by Shutterstock.

The poster that's gained so much international infamy for Spelthorne.

Another poster from the same "hard-hitting" campaign. This one kind of looks like the dog poops money. Isn't that a good thing?

Piece of poop on the beach by Shutterstock.

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10-Year-Old Goldfish Had Surgery To Remove A Tumor, Expected To Live Another 20 Years

Melbourne, Australia  - George the goldfish had a 45-minute operation to remove a life-threatening tumor at Lort Smith Animal Hospital in Melbourne last week.

George’s owners were reportedly very attached to the 10-year-old goldfish. After discovering the tumor, they opted not to put the fish down but to have him operated on.

George had to be given general anesthetic, so Dr. Tristan Rich, the veterinarian performing the operation, had George swim in a bucket of water laced with anesthetic.

When the operation was done, they put George in a bucket of normal water. He was given painkillers and antibiotics, and after a few minutes he started swimming around, good as new.

According to the hospital’s Facebook page, the surgery went “swimmingly” and George has returned home. As long as George stays in good health, he’s expected to live another 20 years.

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I Worked For A Puppy Mill

(By Josiah M. Hesse)

For one week during the winter of 2005, I worked for a puppy mill. A friend and I had been hired to drive a van across the country—the company served as a middleman between major dog-breeding facilities in Iowa and various stores between there and New York City. When I signed up for the job, I had no idea that I would be committing a crime, nor that I would be participating in an industry of torture that would haunt me forever.

To read more on this story, click here: I Worked For A Puppy Mill

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L.A. Firefighter and Mom Attack Lady Who Feeds Stray Cats

Ian Eulian and his mom, Lonieta Fontaine, face assault and battery charges after allegedly beating Rebecca Stafford unconscious for feeding stray cats in the neighborhood.

"He said, the cats were pooping in his backyard and that they attacked his dog,” cat lady Rebecca Stafford told ABC 7. “It got hostile, and then I got punched and knocked out.”

Ian Eulian, 37, and his mother, Lonieta Fontaine, are now on trial, accused of felony assault and battery in the Sept. 14, 2013 attack. The video is expected to be a key piece of evidence, KTLA 5 reported.

Defense Attorneys claim Stafford started the fight, throwing bits of cat food in Eulian’s face before he clocked her.

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Town Uses Fake Dogs to Scare Off Real Geese

Wyandotte, Wisconsin  - For many of us, seeing Canadian geese is our only encounter with wildlife. These birds are beautiful to watch. However, most of us don’t enjoy having to watch where we step when we are around these big birds. Golfers get mad when they have to sidestep around geese droppings too.

Don Gutz, a resident of Wyandotte, came up with a peaceful way to rid his neighborhood park and golf course of the water fowl. Placing life-like menacing looking dogs and coyotes made out of rubber and plastic around the park and golf course, Gutz told, a USA Today reporter, “These “dogs” and “coyotes” are staged at various points to discourage geese from messing up the putting greens. One of them is placed close to BASF (Waterfront) Park and shocking park goers and some golfers. Wow!”

Justin Lanagan, superintendent of Recreation for the city of Wyandotte, stated that when a person gets close to these “dogs” and “coyotes,” it’s clear that they are not real. “The only movement you see is the tail blowing in the wind or the entire decoy spinning in the wind,” Lanagan said to USA Today. “It’s very real to the geese, and obviously real to some people.”

Prior to placing the decoys in the park and throughout the golf course, Lanagan hired a professional company with a trained Border Collie to chase the geese away. While it worked incredibly well, it was quite expensive. That is why he opted to place decoys in the park and on the golf course.

Made out of a rubber cutout, similar to materials you find in a Halloween mask, the decoys also have a fluffy tail that flaps in the wind. It is mounted on a plastic stake.

The park and golf course crews move the decoys around to create the illusion of movement and to give the geese a sense that these fakes are real. They are mostly placed alongside the ponds, a favorite place of Canadian geese.

The fakes are a success. According to Lanagan, “Compared to last year, our problems with the geese have drastically been reduced.”

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Adorable Rescued Pit Bull Has Short Spine Syndrome - Loves Humans, is Heavy on Affection

If Cuda the pit bull starred in a fairy tale, she’d be called The Ugly Duckling Dog. And if the afflicted rescue canine were a character in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, she’d be mistaken for a toy on the Island of Misfit Toys.

However, she’s much more than that; this pit bull terrier dog has a smile and a love for humans that dwarfs her outward features.

Cuda suffers from what is called Short Spine Syndrome, aka Baboon Dog Syndrome. Essentially, it is a genetic condition in which the sufferer — in this case, the pit bull — is born with a deformed spine or none at all, unlike the brawny pit bull terrier in this touching rescue video.

Doctors say dogs born with the condition have normal functioning organs, but they are compacted in the animal’s tiny frame. This could later present problems and amount to shorter life spans in American pit bull terriers and other breeds.

As seen in the image below, this amazing animal has a drawn-in barreled chest and sloping rear. It’s not discernible from the photo, but her paws lack symmetry. Moreover, the backyard-bred pit bull has diabetes and a bad case of gas.

In 2010, Julie LeRoy, who worked as an animal control worker in Durham, North Carolina, received a call that soon sent her on a new path in life.

Apparently, the callers said they had trouble with a stray dog. When LeRoy arrived, the residents, who said they were being stalked by gang members and had to leave in a hurry, brought out the tiny pit bull, just a puppy then.

LeRoy was astonished by the tiny pup and conflicted at the same time on how it would fit in her household among other adopted pets.

“They brought out this twisted little dog on a long piece of twine as a leash. They called her Cuda because of her underbite. They said she reminded them of a barracuda. They told me they had to get out of town fast because gangs were after them. I rolled my eyes to myself and took this picture of Cuda with my phone. I texted it to my husband [Scott] with these words: ‘What do you think?’”

After texting her husband, Scott, back and forth to seek his advice on what to do with the unwanted terrier dog, his final reply was simple: “Do what you’re going to do because you’re going to… do it anyway.”

The deal was sealed after paying the couple the requisite $50 to offload Cuda. Upon the advice of her husband, LeRoy took their new companion to the local vet for a thorough checkup. X-rays confirmed the pit bull terrier likely had the congenital condition, but there was no immediate cause for alarm.

To LeRoy, the rescued pit bull was adorable and as happy as any other puppy. That’s why she was suddenly taken off guard by the public that gawked at its gargoyle-like features, as if the tiny pup was a mutant from The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms or was some feral insectoid from a distant exoplanet. Alarmed by the public’s response, LeRoy gathered her items and raced out of the store.

Over the years, Cuda has proven to be nothing less than a breath of fresh air to their home. Despite her “deformities,” the pit bull with the shortened spine loves humans, is heavy on affection, has a huge smile, and loves to play at a moment’s notice as The Huffington Post wrote.

Since rescuing the dog, the LeRoys have joined online communities with others whose companions suffer from the same birth defect. She and Cuda have connected with support groups and those who have a vested interest in stopping inbreeding and are interested in helping abandoned animals find good homes.

“Where we once thought Cuda was invincible, we now know even more that we must re-educate breeders who think inbreeding is a safe process to create superdogs. Through this journey, we have found many people whose dogs have one or two of the physical characteristics Cuda has. Cuda may have been a first-generation whoops or the result of several generations of inbreeding. This is not an uncommon practice among all breeders- and it’s time we start educating the public to the secrets behind the show dog!”

Cuda the pit bull even has her own Facebook fan page to help share her infectious joy for others, connect with other rescue animal owners, encourage pet adoption, and dispel the myth that all pit bull terriers are dangerous.

Certainly, this gassy, grinning, and burping pit bull terrier isn’t.

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Autistic Man Builds Feline Fun House Full of Secret Passageways For His Cats

St. James, Minnesota - People build bird houses, swing sets, tree houses and even skating rinks for their kids but a Minnesota man has created an indoor fun house just for cats.

If cats were in charge, there would be more homes laid out like this. Homeowner Greg Krueger transformed his St. James home into a kitty castle.

Krueger's home now has nearly 100 yards of overhead catwalks. His four cats get their choice of hideouts throughout the home, all with the proper lighting and padding.

"They're fun to watch, they're very agile." Krueger said. "To me it feels like we're a family living here."

The home is 15 years in the making. Krueger carved through his walls to create elaborate passageways. The home is like a puzzle he say's that he never quite can finish.

"I think about it constantly, I can't fall asleep." Krueger said.

The home is an obsession that started making sense last Fall when he saw a doctor.

"I have Asperger's Syndrome, I'm probably not the best at socializing." Krueger said.

Diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome at the age of 49, Krueger considers his form of Autism to be a blessing that gives him great focus.

"Obviously, my house would not be like this if I didn't have Asbergers." Krueger said. "I don't care, because if I like what I'm doing, I almost don't want to finish what I'm doing."

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A Message from Lisa LaFontaine, CEO & President, Washington Humane Society - Your Help is Needed to Honor, Gwen, the Dog of a Lifetime

Friends and Family - I have a favor to ask of you. This year, I am raising money for the DC Walk for Animals in honor of the incomparable Gwen. She is my sidekick, and an unsung hero in the humane world. Gwen has been a foster mother to literally hundreds of animals. She has healed them all - the sick, the injured, the frightened, the traumatized. The hundreds of people who have one of our former fosters have a little Gwen love in their lives.

Gwen sleeps most of the time now. She wears diapers, she cannot hear at all, and she can barely see. We carry her up the stairs. She has been attending animal walks for fifteen years, and last year she led the entire way. This time I'll bring her in a wagon because she won't be able to walk the route.

She will be grateful to be there, just as I will be grateful for any gift you can give to honor the dog of a lifetime. It would do my heart good if you would join me in thanking her in a big way by giving generously.
xo
Lisa (and Gwen)

To make a donation, click here: GWEN

For more information on the 2014 DC Walk for the Animals, click HERE.













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Washington, DC - Looking for a New Best Friend? All Dog Adoption Fees $100, this Week at the Washington Humane Society

Starting today, we are dropping our dog adoption fees down to $100 for a whole week so you can take home some warmth before summer officially ends! Swing by either of our adoption centers between noon and 7:00 p.m., open every day except Wednesday, and fall in love with your new best bud.



My cover photo is of Pretty, a Boxer/Hound looking for her forever home. Do you have room in your heart, and in your home for Pretty?


Meet Pretty: 

Animal ID: 23106240
Species: Dog
Breed: Boxer/Hound
Age: 1 year 18 days
Sex: Female
Size: Medium
Color: Black/Brown
Spayed/Neutered
Declawed :No
Site: DC Animal Care and Control
Location: Adoptions Kennel

Pretty is a 1 year old 40 lb pup who is a resilient pup! She is very tolerant and could go potentially go to foster with other pups or children. She is an amazing pup who is looking for a home who will use positive reinforcement training and love her forever. E-mail dogfoster@washhumane.org to learn more and visit her at 1201 New York Ave NE any day but Wednesday from noon to 7pm.

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Recognize This Holder? Learn The Damage It Can Do To Animals

These plastic can holders kill thousands of animals each year. Thrown away by careless people, these can strangle many wildlife and bird species.

The plastic gets caught around necks, abdomens, legs and wings and as they are plastic do not biodegrade. Many young animals are small enough to get caught in them and as they grow the plastic cuts into their skin leading to infections and a very slow, painful death. If you find any of these please cut them open before safely disposing of them to prevent any animals suffering a horrific death.

Please don’t drop litter – a lot of animals get injured by getting caught up inside pack plastic holders. Animals are naturally inquisitive creatures, but once they go into a small space, their spines prevent them from reversing out, so they need humans to cut them free. In some cases infection can set in and cause the animal severe suffering – in many cases, wildlife carers are left with little choice but to have the animal put to sleep.

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