Mountaintop Natural Pets

Source: wtam.com, Mar 13, 2010

The Saint Francis Animal Sanctuary in Vermilion, Ohio is trying to find loving homes for several special dogs.

Director Deb Parker says careless breeding at an Ohio puppy mill has left a litter of young doggies blind.

Parker explains the puppies were born with a condition called microphthalmia, which happens when two dachshunds with the dominant “dapple” gene, are breed together.

Parker stresses that even though these puppies are blind, they are normal in every other way, and are likely to have a normal life span, and provide great companionship for a caring and patient owner.

Parker says her sanctuary is one of the few in the United States that accepts pets regardless of their special needs or the expense involved to treat and care for them.

She blames puppy mills for breeding thousands upon thousands of dogs each year that are sold for inflated prices in pet shops. They often go unwanted and are later put to death.

Saint Francis Animal Sanctuary has many more pets that are in need of homes. The shelter can also use additional volunteers and monetary donations.

Source: Scsun-news.com, Jan 4, 2010

Puppy Dog Ranch is offering a $500 reward for information leading to the arrest of person or persons who shot and killed Larry the dog on the evening of Dec. 31.

Larry was shot in the neck and killed on Twin Sisters Creek Road, off of Racetrack Road, in Arenas Valley on private property. Larry was 4 years old.

“He was considered “everyone’s dog” in our neighborhood,” said Laurie West, owner of Puppy Dog Ranch. “He literally greeted every single person in our neighborhood when they get home from work.”

West and her partner, Kevin Rodriguez, have filed a detailed police report.

The last person to see Larry alive saw him between 6 and 7 p.m. on Dec. 31.

Anyone with any information on who shot Larry should call Rodriguez at (575) 574-5717 or West at (575) 313-7232.

Puppy Dog Ranch is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dog rescue and sanctuary.

For more information, visit www.puppydogranch.org.

Source: CBSNews, June 6, 2009

Bella, a rescued dog, and Tara, an elephant, are living out their lives together on 2,700 acres of natural habitat refuge designed for endangered African and Asian elephants, CBS News reported.

Bella, a rescued dog, and Tara, an elephant, are living out their lives together on 2,700 acres of natural habitat refuge designed for endangered African and Asian elephants, CBS News reported.

While most of the elephants living at the Elephant Sanctuary outside of Nashville choose elephant partners, Tara opted for Bella instead.

“They drink together, they sleep together, they play together,” said Elephant Sanctuary Director Carol Buckley.

The pair has formed such a tight bond, that the dog lets the elephant rub her belly with her huge elephant foot, Buckley says. When Bella got sick last year and was forced to live in the sanctuary office while she recovered, Tara waited outside the office gate. She stayed there every day for two weeks until a program director finally brought the dog out to see her.

The story seemed like a Disney movie to a lot of people, including people at Disney, CBS News reported. Disney called Buckley to pitch a live action movie with Tara and Bella, but Buckley said no.

“When that piece aired, we were just bombarded with offers,” said Buckley. “Books, movies, any number of things. But we don’t want them to be in that environment where they are dominated and trained for people.”

The elephants at the Elephant Sanctuary come from zoos and circuses, CBS News reported. Many have been forced to live in small, confined areas and are sick when they arrive. The Elephant Sanctuary allows them a place to recover and to live out the rest of their lives in their natural habitat.