Everyone says it: One year for a dog equals seven years for a human. But like a lot of things everyone says, it’s wrong.Dogs do have life stages a lot like humans, but the math isn’t that straightforward. To start, a 1-year-old dog isn’t equivalent to a 7-year-old human.“If you look at a 1-year-old dog, he’s sexually mature,” says veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker. “They still ha.... Read More
Six shelters in southeastern Wisconsin have agreed to waive adoption fees for adult cats (1 year or older) throughout the month of July.The initiative, the first ever of its kind, comes in response to a recent spike in abandoned cats in the region, according to a press release.“Just eight weeks ago we had empty adoption suites and today, we have more than 160 cats and kittens on our adop.... Read More
Willy, an 18-month-old corgi-Chihuahua mix, was on a mission when he entered a South Bend, Indiana, home. His goal? To find three vials with living bedbugs by sniffing their scent.The dog was accompanied by a canine handler during the demonstration by Rose Pest Solutions at the residence of a Tribune reporter. Willy first found a vial hidden beneath a bed mattress, scratching the area to ale.... Read More
As the director of Austin Pets Alive!, Ellen Jefferson gets a lot of urgent phone calls. Agency heads from municipal animal shelters across the country want to know how her nonprofit group, which adopts the sickest, least-loved dogs and cats, helped to make Austin the largest city in America with “no kill” shelters.In 2011, one of those calls came from San Antonio, Texas.“I walked in.... Read More
The inhabitants of the desolate, man-made island off the coast of Abu Dhabi can’t be immediately seen among the breakwater rocks.But as you draw close, their meows give them away.A colony of stray cats has swelled on Lulu Island among its barren sandy hills and abandoned buildings that have fallen into disrepair, with the gleaming modern skyline of the United Arab Emirates as a backgroun.... Read More
Oh, those puppy eyes.Just by gazing at their owners, dogs can trigger a response in their masters’ brains that helps them bond, a study says.And owners can do a similar trick in return, researchers found.This two-way street evidently began when dogs were domesticated long ago, because it helped the two species connect, the Japanese researchers say.As canine psychology experts Eva.... Read More
In advance of the release of Disney/Pixar’s Finding Dory, animal protection and conservation groups are urging consumers not to buy fish like Dory, a blue tang, or other wild-caught fish as pets for home aquariums.While many freshwater fish can be bred in captivity, most saltwater fish offered for sale for aquariums are captured in the wild and taken primarily from coral reefs in the Phili.... Read More
A woman is angry with a shelter for breaking its own rules to give Maine Governor Paul LePage a stray dog the day before the dog was put up for adoption.Donna Kincer, development director of the Greater Androscoggin Humane Society, acknowledged the Jack Russell terrier mix was supposed to be made available a day later and on a first-come, first-served basis.“The governor walks in your fr.... Read More
Layla was an energetic 4-year-old springer spaniel just reaching her prime. Jack Lundbohm figures she would have been the perfect dog for last fall’s grouse-hunting season.But Layla died one day last August, after splashing along the shore of Lake of the Woods for nearly two hours. She had been playing with Lundbohm’s 5-year-old grandson, Gus, and not long after the boy took a break from t.... Read More
For many decades, declawing cats has been a routine veterinary procedure, but this is no simple pedicure.There’s anesthesia, pain medication and the amputation of the cat’s toes back to the first knuckle.New York’s first-in-the-nation legislative proposal to ban the declawing of cats has sparked a heated debate among veterinarians and cat lovers alike, with some insisting it’s inhu.... Read More
