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Source: KomoNews.com, Mar 4, 2010
Wildlife Safari in Winston has rare animals from across the globe – like rhinos, lions and even an Anatolian Shepherd.
And the rare thing about the Anatolian Shepherd female at Wildlife Safari is not her breed, but her roommate – who just happens to be the fastest predator on earth.
“It’s a very popular question of why we have a dog and a cheetah out there and it’s a common practice that a lot of institutions across the United States are doing right now in an effort to tell this very conservation story,” said Dan Brands, Curator at Wildlife Safari.
As a single birth cheetah cub, Sanurra was abandoned by her mother, which opened the door for these two to be brought together.
“Rather than let Sanurra grow up alone we were able to bring in a dog as a sibling, basically like her sister, and they have been together ever since,” said Sarah Roy, cheetah supervisor at Wildlife Safari.
This odd pairing was no accident, as an Anatolian Shepard is very protective and that natural instinct could be the key to saving the wild cheetah population.
“Anatolians will be like that no matter how they are raised, whether it’s with goats or whether it’s cattle. So the farmers get these dogs as puppies and a big barking dog is plenty to keep a cheetah away from their livestock. And in turn, farmers are shooting less cheetahs because right now they are a shoot-on-sight animal,” said Roy.
While these roommates may be considered the odd couple at Wildlife Safari, caretakers says it’s like nothing they’ve ever seen.
“When we take the dog for her daily walk, the cheetah sits on her house and waits for the dog to come back and if we take Sanurra down to the village for the day, Ellie cries and whines for her cheetah to come back, so they do miss each other,” said Roy.
That type of bond could change the road ahead for cheetahs in Africa.
Source: Associated Press, Feb 19, 2010
A family dog is credited with keeping a little girl safe after she spent the overnight hours Friday in 30 degree temperatures near Cordes Lakes, 36 miles east of Prescott.
Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Dwight D’Evelyn credits the dog, a Queensland Heeler, with 3-year-old Victoria Bensch’s survival.
A Department of Public Safety helicopter crew saw movement and found the little girl and her dog just before 9 o’clock Friday morning, three-quarters of a mile from her home.
D’Evelyn said the DPS crew landed and then flew the child back to be reunited her mother and father.
The child was then flown to Phoenix Children’s Hospital where she will be treated for frostbite.
Authorities said the little girl was outside playing early Thursday evening when she disappeared along with her dog.
Source: SummitDaily.com, Feb 3, 2010
The owners of the dog awoke to the smell of natural gas, grabbed their 6-month-old child and evacuated the house. They tried unsuccessfully to wake their neighbors.
When firefighters arrived, they awakened the other residents and found that a burner on a gas stove had been left on — leaking raw gas into the home.
The house was ventilated and the occupants returned inside.
“The occupants are very lucky that the dog woke them up,” RWB deputy chief Jay Nelson said in a press release. “With the amount of gas inside the house, it could definitely have had a very different outcome if a spark ignited that gas.”
Source: Associated press, Jan 13, 2010
Police credit a 15-year-old German Shorthaired dog with saving the life of an elderly, unconscious man in Pine City.
Brett Grinde says he took Effie out for their usual walk on Monday evening, but within a couple minutes she started pulling on the leash, wanting to go in a different direction.
Effie then took off running, leading Grinde to a neighbor’s house where a 94-year-old man was on face down on the driveway. The dog started licking the man’s face. Grinde called 911, then started CPR.
KARE-TV reports the eldery man, William Lepsch, regained consciousness and is in serious condition at North Memorial Medical Center.
Source: Associated Press, Nov 19, 2009
A shelter’s decision to euthanize a dog that was thrown from the sixth-story roof of a Brooklyn building has inspired new state legislation.
State Assemblyman Micah Z. Kellner said on Thursday that he introduced a bill requiring shelters to release any animal they plan to kill to a legitimate rescue group that offers to take in the animal.
Animal activists were outraged last week when the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals put down the pit bull mix named Oreo. The ASPCA said it tried to rehabilitate Oreo, but she was too aggressive.
Before Oreo was euthanized, at least one upstate sanctuary had offered to take her in. The ASPCA said sanctuary was not appropriate in her case.
ASPCA attorney Debora Bresch says the agency is reviewing how the bill fits with existing law.
Source: PittsburgPostGazzette.com, Nov 3, 2009
A domesticated mutt is acting as the surrogate mom for nine newborn African painted dog pups at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium, a ground-breaking arrangement for the rearing of the wild dogs, whose mother died shortly after they were born.
Honey, a mixed-breed dog from the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society’s North Side shelter, is nursing the black and white puppies that were born at the zoo Oct. 25, and zoo officials say all are gaining weight and doing well.
It’s the first time such a domestic surrogate has been used to mother and feed new-born painted dogs. The pups’ natural mother, 10-year-old Vega, died of a ruptured uterus.
The mortality rate for African painted dog pups, even with a healthy mother, is 50 percent in the first 30 days, in the wild or in captivity.
Source: PR.com, September 26, 2009
For Pits’ Sake, Inc. today announced the launch of the award-winning Knock Out Dog Fighting program in Dothan, Alabama. “We are excited to have the opportunity to share the best practices of our anti-dog fighting program so our success can be replicated in Alabama,” said Kris Crawford, Founder of the Knock Out Dog Fighting program.
The Knock Out Dog Fighting program is an unprecedented youth intervention program created to stop the cycle of violence by combating the cruel and inhumane activity of dog fighting. “Dog fighting is a popular activity with street gangs,” said Crawford. “If we can get kids out of gangs and prevent more from getting involved, that helps reduce the number of kids involved in dog fighting.”
Former City of Dothan Magistrate and certified canine behaviorist Renee Jones-Lewis is the Knock Out Dog Fighting program director in Alabama. Renee serves on the Board of Directors for the Alabama Canine Coalition and Save-A-Pet at the Dothan Animal Shelter, and also runs K9 Connections, the kennel and rescue facility utilized by For Pits’ Sake. K9 Connections often times cares for and rehabilitates pit bulls rescued from cruelty and abuse situations and law enforcement raids.
“As a former Magistrate for the City of Dothan, I saw, on a daily basis, what learning about life on the ‘streets’ can do to the impressionable minds of the youth of today,” said Renee. “Children learn from their adult role models and when those role models are proponents of dog fighting, children learn that violence and cruelty are the norm.”
Dothan is located in Houston County, Alabama, where a record 102-year prison sentence was handed to dog fighter Johnny Ray Lewis in November 2007. He was sentenced six years in prison for each of the 17 felony counts a jury found him guilty of at his trial. Renee was an expert witness for the case and also led the fight to have the dogs seized in the raid individually evaluated and temperament tested instead of systematically euthanized.
Knock Out Dog Fighting has created youth intervention programs for schools, community centers and juvenile detention facilities that help at-risk youth make better choices, develop self-respect and healthy lifestyles – which reduces involvement in gang-related activities like dog fighting. Dog fighting is a form of animal abuse and research shows that there is a marked correlation between those who abuse animals and those who go on to commit violent crimes against people. The Knock Out Dog Fighting program incorporates humane education into every class to help children and young adults learn to develop a greater understanding of the human-animal bond, empathy for animals, and positive reinforcement training. The program teaches them that there is a humane way to work with animals, and in turn, a more positive and humane way to approach life in general. These kids learn that they can achieve what they set out to do using positivity and kindness instead of anger and violence.
For more information about the award-winning Knock Out Dog Fighting program and how you can help stop cruelty and abuse, go to www.KnockOutDogFighting.org
About Knock Out Dog Fighting (www.KnockOutDogFighting.org)
Knock Out Dog Fighting is a youth intervention program developed by the 501(c)3 nonprofit organization For Pits’ Sake, Inc. to stop cruelty and abuse. Founded in 1997, For Pits’ Sake is a leader in the community for both human and animal rescue, humane education, safety programs and therapy work with battered/abused and special needs children. As world-famous search and rescue dogs, the For Pits’ Sake pit bulls responded to over 200 search missions including high profile cases such as the search for Laci Peterson and the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.The Knock Out Dog Fighting has formed partnerships with several community organizations and law enforcement agencies to stop cruelty to both animals and children.
For Pits’ Sake, Inc. has received numerous awards for their work in the community including a Jefferson Award – The Nobel Prize for Community Service, the American Red Cross Real Hero Award, the President of the United States Lifetime Volunteer Service Award, the United Animal Nations Animals Choice Award, the NSAL Heroism Award, a Certificate and Letter of Achievement from the FBI, Certificates of Appreciation from County Supervisors, Senators and Assembly members, and a letter from the Governor of CA stating they “demonstrate the true strength of California.”
Contact Information:
Knock Out Dog Fighting
Cristi Derenzi
408-813-7487
info@knockoutdogfighting.org
www.KnockOutDogFighting.org
www.ForPitsSake.org
