On Sunday, June 24, 5 boys, ranging in ages between 9 and 13 thought it would be amusing to pour gasoline on a dog and set it afire.

The Humane Society of the United States on Friday called for the district attorney in Nashville to prosecute five boys accused of setting a dog on fire and get them psychological help.

All five, ages 9 to 13, have already been charged with a felony count of aggravated animal cruelty and ordered to undergo psychological evaluations, prosecutors said.

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Chain Off 2007 • Unchain the 50!
Freedom for Chained Dogs All Across America
(and Canada too)

This Year’s 4th of July Event marks our 5th Annual Chain Off, and we’re going More Grassroots than EVER, with a Goal of at least ONE PERSON per state living chained to a Doghouse for 8-24 hours in our Fabulous “Unchain the 50″ Campaign!

We’re excited to announce TWO Main Unchain the 50 Events, East Coast and West Coast. The East Coast Event will take place at Piedmont Park, Atlanta, Georgia, details are below, and the West Coast Event will take place at Marymoor Park near Seattle, Washington. A very special thanks to Susan Hartland and Pam Cheatham for their hard work in setting up the locations.

Tammy Grimes will live chained in Atlanta for 29 hours June 30-July 1; anyone else who would like to represent their state by coming and living chained with Tammy is cordially invited.

This year Grimes, of Tipton, Pa., was scheduled to bring her protest and a group of chained humans to Piedmont Park on Saturday and today, along with information on why people shouldn’t tether their pets. It’s an idea that’s growing across the country.

“We’re very excited to have the Chain Off in such a big city,” said Grimes, who founded Dogs Deserve Better in 2002, a group that educates people on the cruelty and danger of chaining dogs.

Grimes and at least 12 other people had signed up to be chained up over this weekend. In all, 74 people in 29 states planned to chain themselves this weekend, Grimes said. Carrie Teska, a law librarian from Kennesaw who will be chained for 24 hours, said she hopes the event makes people reconsider chaining.

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I would think that anyone owning or managing a business should be in the know when it comes to laws that would apply to them, especially when it come to laws for the disabled. It’s not as if they are new or obscure. I am constantly amazed at the number of stories I hear about discrimination over persons with service dogs. Don’t people realize that anywhere the public is allowed to go, service dogs are allowed.

Here’s yet another case of discrimination and to me the solution isn’t very fair or agreeable! Sorry, but some people are just idiots!

Service Dog Owner Challenges Strict Pet Rules

Under Law, Rules Must Be Adjusted For Service Dogs

DENVER — A local woman trying to move into a mobile home community said she is being discriminated against because of her dog.

After expressing interest in moving into the Southpark Mobile Home community, Judy Largo was told she could not bring her dog, Daisy.

The Southpark Mobile Home community near Hampden Avenue and Federal Boulevard has a strict pet policy, with signs posted near the entrance stating, “no dogs allowed” and “pet restrictions.”

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A sad story with a not so sad ending. How could someone be so heartless as to toss a little 1 yr old puppy out, let along a puppy that is deaf and blind? I will never cease to be amazed at the cruelty of people! Luckily this is one little dog whose story will have a happy ending.

This story comes to us from Wilmington, DE.

Braille is a playful, sweet one-year-old Daschund. His color and markings make him unique, but it’s a common genetic defect that brought him into the world with no sight, no ability to hear and – almost – no chance.

“He was brought to us by a woman who said someone pulled up outside of her house and just tossed this dog out of the car onto her front lawn,” said Nancy Fitzgerald of the Delaware Humane Association.

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The Fourth of July is almost upon us and no doubt there will be many celebrations starting this weekend so I wanted to take the time to pass along some great health and safety tips for your dog from the ASPCA.

Fourth of July Safety Tips

For many people, nothing beats lounging in the backyard on the Fourth of July with good friends and family—including the four-legged members of the household. While it may seem like a great idea to reward Rover with scraps from the grill and bring him along to watch fireworks, in reality some festive foods and products can be potentially hazardous to your pets. The ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center offers the following tips:

* Never leave alcoholic drinks unattended where pets can reach them. Alcoholic beverages have the potential to poison pets. If ingested, the animal could become very intoxicated and weak, severely depressed or could go into a coma. Death from respiratory failure is also a possibility in severe cases.

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Now this definately got my attention!

Dog cancer drug

Cancer affects many people’s lives, but it’s not just humans. Our favorite pets can also get the debilitating and often deadly disease. But now there may be hope for our four-legged friends. Some vets are testing a new cancer vaccine.

Tucson veterinary oncologist Mary Kay Klein has been treating dogs with an experimental canine melanoma vaccine.

Callie, a 7 1/2 year old golden retriever, has malignant melanoma. Her owner, Gene DiLuigi, drives seven hours from California to get Callie treated.

“All in all it looks like she’s cancer free,” DiLuigi said.

“I will tell you that I couldn’t be more pleased,” Klein said.

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The New Hampshire SPCA has about three time the number of dogs they normally have due to a recent rescue of 19 Italian Greyhounds and they desperately need donations of dog and puppy food over and above their normal needs.

Check out the story and if you can help, please do. Please help by getting the story out, email it to your friends, post it to your blogs and websites, let’s do what we can to those those who are helping to rescue and save these dogs!

SPCA in need of dog food after recent rescue

25 dogs crowd the shelter

STRATHAM — Despite crowded conditions, the New Hampshire SPCA took in 25 more dogs this past week including 19 Italian greyhounds that were rescued in Epping

“We have just under 60 dogs in house” not including the 19 greyhounds said the SPCA’s Sheila Ryan. “Typically, we have a third less than that.”

Ryan said the shelter is at full capacity and needs dog and puppy food.

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BSL - Breed Specific Legislation, legislation very often targeted toward pit-bull breeds of dogs and in Ontario it’s a strict law that is without compromise or compassion.

Ontario’s Pit Bull Law

A “pit bull” includes:

(a) a pit bull terrier,
(b) a Staffordshire bull terrier,
(c) an American Staffordshire terrier,
(d) an American pit bull terrier,
(e) a dog that has an appearance and physical characteristics that are substantially similar to those of dogs referred to in any of clauses (a) to (d); (“pit-bull”)

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Came across this story this morning and it just touched me. There’s so much that I can empathize with and I laughed and cried and could understand so well the emotions of the writer.

So here’s a wonderful ‘dog story’ for you to enjoy. A special ‘thank you’ to My West Texas and Ed Todd for bringing this touching story to us!

Herein is a lessen in gratitude taught by a dog named Herd

Ed Todd

Herd was into her 16th year on Earth when she passed into the Great Beyond.

I cried. I wept over and over the week of her death, for we were as close heart-to-heart as a fellow and his dog can be.

It was in the first week of March 2007 when Herd died. I had just returned home at mid-morning and grieved that I was not with her at the instant of her death. I covered her with a white cloth. Afterward, I carried Herd into the house and prepared her for a wake in the living room near an antique wooden prayer bench. I bathed her. It was sweet joy.

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This time the dog was stolen from a Cape Coral yard where Chris Mynhier says he let Ellie, his 11-year-old whippet miniature greyhound, outside to use the restroom on Monday - just like he did everyday.

Except instead of the the little dog coming back in the house as usual, she was no where to be found. Chris search everywhere for her without luck.

The following day the story takes an unexpected twist when a neighbor visits Chris with some news.

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Another sad case of ‘children’ setting a dog on fire, this time from Nashville, TN! Again I question what could possibly be going through these kids’ minds to perpetrate an atrocity like this on an innocent animal?? What is happeneing to the morals of our youth today??

Five boys face charges of animal cruelty after being accused of setting a dog on fire, authorities said.

The incident happened near an abandoned house in north Nashville on Sunday, WSMV-TV reported. The boys, who have not been identified because they are juveniles, ranged in age from 9 to 14.

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With the weather getting nicer and nicer all over, many people are opening their windows to let the frest air in but this can pose a threat to our dogs and pets that people don’t think about too often. Screens which let the air in and keep bugs out may not offer adequate protection to keep our pet inside. A scratching dog or cat can potentially rip open a screen and a running dog could possible bust through. While this may not necessarily pose too much of a hazard with a low placed window, unless the pet is small, a second floor or higher window could be a death sentence.

The dog in this story, who fell from a second story apartment window in Boston, was lucky!

Dog Falls From Second Story Window - A South End dog survived a fall out of the front window of a second-story apartment at 435 Shawmut Ave. on June 18, but not without a few cuts and bruises.

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