paw planet: May 2011

New Cat Breed: Cuban Blue

Posted on 12:56 AM No Comments
Labels: Animal News, Cat Breed

Have you heard about Cuban Blue? It is said to be a newly identified breed of short-hair cat found in Cuba.

In a Havana apartment, four cats race around the floor and tumble over the furniture playing with each other, occasionally jumping into the laps of their human visitors. They act like typical house cats, but these are not just any felines. They are members of what Cuban cat lovers believe is a newly identified breed of short-hair cat they call the Cuban blue.

Cuban Blue described as a mid- to large-size strong cat, very docile and playful. They also have agreeable personality and looks similar to the Russian blue.

Azul Cubana or the Cuban Blue recognized for the silver-gray shade of its fur was reported by the Cuban Association for Cats (ACAG) as the sixth of its type in the world. According to the ACAG the breed can be easily identified because of strength, elegance and sturdiness of the animals.

As for now, it remains to be seen if the rest of the cat world will accept the Cuban blue as a new breed.

Police dog in Ohio killed by car after cruiser's door opens accidentally

Posted on 12:39 AM No Comments
Labels: Animal News

New Albany's first police dog was struck and killed by a vehicle last night. An automatic K-9 door opens unexpectedly and the police dog jumps into oncoming traffic.

Officer Bungee, was in a K-9 cruiser with his handler and partner, Officer Joel Strahler, traveling on U.S. Route 62 near Yantis Drive at about 8:30 p.m. Wednesday. "K-9 vehicles have automatic door openers installed so that doors can be opened remotely in case the dog needs to come to its handler's aid," said Sergeant Greg Jones. "Police dogs are trained to immediately leave the vehicle and get to work once the vehicle door opens."

Jones said the department doesn't know why it opened resulting to Bungee's death but there is an investigation into whether there was a malfunction with the door.

Bungee is a three-year-old Belgian Malinois, he joined the police department as its first K-9 member in August 2010. He was a huge asset in the field with his drug training, and he was a very friendly dog. He was also a fantastic community outreach tool with various school programs.

Liger cubs nursed by dog in China

Posted on 1:14 AM No Comments
Labels: Animal News

Today in canine heroics: A dog has stepped in to nurse two rare liger cubs that were abandoned by their mother in China. The offspring of a male lion and female tiger were apparently abandoned after merely four days of nursing. The staff at the Xixiakou Wildlife Zoo in China found a female dog that was receptive to nursing the liger cubs as well as her own pups.

According to the animals keeper, four cubs were born but only two survived. The two who died were unhealthy at the time of delivery.

The surviving pair of siblings initially had trouble drinking the dog's milk, but soon got used to the new flavor. The pair were feeding well from their canine stepmother.

Bird of prey loses it's lunch: Stray poodle found home

Posted on 1:23 AM No Comments
Labels: Animal News

A stray poodle picked up by a bird of prey ended up saved, not snacked on, when the bird dropped the dog on the grounds of a Sechelt, B.C., nursing home.

The six-year-old poodle, dubbed "Miracle May" by workers, dropped out of the heavens and appeared in the kitchen of a Sunshine Coast care home, desperately in need of rescue. Nancy Skelcher found the furry white creature, shivering in the kitchen of Shorncliffe Nursing Home in Sechelt, at the end of her night shift at around 5:30 a.m.

May suffered several gouges to her neck and chest from about 10 deep puncture, claw marks to her back and multiple broken ribs from the harrowing ordeal.

May was likely a stray before her unlikely “rescue”. She was found without identification, had severely overgrown nails and badly decayed teeth. The shelter don't how long she had been wandering without care but according to them, she was obviously very neglected.

The SPCA tried to look for May’s owner, but no one has come forward.

Now, the shelter is now trying to raise $3,500 to $4,000 for May’s surgeries, as well as to spay her and remove a hernia and some mammary gland tumours.

Mummified you Dog

Posted on 12:56 AM No Comments
Labels: Animal News

If you are a grieving pet owner and you want to bring back your pet well, now you can! Oh yes, you can have your dead or deceased pet again with the help of one woman, but lifeless of course.

A Brooklyn woman is making a name and a living for herself by practicing the ancient art of mummification on people's pets. PD Cagliastro is one of the only macabre mystics in the country slinging animal mummification services based on the ancient Egyptian art. It took her 20 years to figure out the formula by studying embalming, consulting with chemistry students and reading the few scraps of ancient Egyptian texts out there.

"It was a sick fascination," said Cagliastro, who works and lives in her "house of death" with her teenage daughter and husband, an exterminator.

The witchy woman has channeled her services for 120 customers, preserving everything from a championship Connecticut racing pigeon to cats cut short by killer cars.

"There was something really special about him," said Sebastian Duque, 26, a web designer who had his cat, Jake, mummified after it was hit by a car in 2008. His frog, Alice, was also preserved in linen and plaster. Jake is now perched on top of Mr Duque's bookshelf in his Upper East Side apartment, and Alice lives in a drawer.

Ms Cagliastro removes the animal's organs and dries out the rest of the remains by submerging them in a salt mixture for months. After wrapping and plastering, the form is painted. Some customers choose to place the pet in a decorative box or have gems and gold affixed to the remains. The services cost between $100 and $400.

Her clients come from all over the world, some going so far as to drive their dead pets to Brooklyn from Washington and Oklahoma.

But when asked about Cagliastro's greatest dream, it is to mummify a human. And she already has a potential client lined-up, who has built a chapel in her Midwest home in preparation: "She wants to be entombed like a pharaoh."

Titanium-tooth in Osama's assault

Posted on 12:39 AM No Comments
Labels: Animal News

Despite the few facts released about the raid on Osama bin Laden's compound, people are parsing each detail in an incredibly collective study of the incident. The latest focus of attention is none other than a dog who helped the team bring down bin Laden.

Though the military has kept mum on the breed of the dog, at least one of th special breed of Belgian Shepherds called “Malinois” is said to have backed the Navy SEALs mission into the al-Qaeda chief's lair. It is not as well known as the German Shepherd or the Labrador, but it also trained to herd sheep. All the three breeds possess the speed, agility and sense of smell needed in war zones.

Daily report says, the dog has surgically-enhanced teeth that are made from titanium and strong enough to pierce a bullet-proof vest. Their body armor can withstand clouds of hot shrapnel, and they've been trained to wear oxygen masks for high-altitude skydives into enemy territory. They are also equipped with infrared night-sight cameras.

Recently, President Obama met the Navy SEAL who killed Osama bin Laden but he doesn't know who it was. In his private meeting with the full assault force, the president met the dog who participated on the mission. Said someone in the room, “it is a really scary dog.”

It's tick season: Beware of diseases

Posted on 1:03 AM No Comments
Labels: Animal News

Sunshine has people rushing outside, but it also brought a rush of hungry parasites. Veterinarians says the warm weather has brought ticks out of their dormancy.

Ticks generally don't become active until the warmer months. They are an indisputably dreaded enemy, a parasitic arthropods that feed on the blood of their hosts. They are attracted to warmth and motion, often seeking out mammals including dogs. Ticks tend to hide out in tall grass or plants, in wooded areas and other inviting areas where your pets like to hang out.

Each year, thousands of dogs are infected with serious diseases that are transmitted by ticks. Commonly known as vector-borne diseases, these include ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, anaplasmosis and others. And with its furry coat and love of exploration, your dog is likely to encounter disease–carrying ticks.

To keep our pets safe and protected from any tick diseases, always check them after they've been outside and remove tick properly. In removing tick, it is important to not to use your fingers to remove it. Use either a tweezers or needle nose pliers, just something to gently roll the tick off the animal's body. You can also use tick treatment, such as shampoo, soap and spray. But it's best to consult your vets first before using any treatment.

Dog Helped Take Out Osama Bin Laden

Posted on 11:45 PM No Comments
Labels: Animal News

While many Americans are anxious to meet and commend the team of Navy SEALs who raided the compound in Abottabad, Pakistan, and killed Osama bin Laden, one team member would be happy just to receive a doggie treat.

Among the unnamed heroes in the raid on the Abbottabad compound where Osama Bin Laden was found and killed on Sunday is one bomb-sniffing German shepherd or Belgian Malinois whose identity is being closely guarded. The dog who was part of the Navy Seal team is one of some 600 canines serving in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The explosive-sniffing dog was strapped to an assault team member as they took on one of their greatest challenges to date. He was part of the operation in which the elite US Navy Seals lowered themselves down ropes from three Black Hawk helicopters into the terrorist supremo's hideout.

The dogs are well-protected in these dangerous situations, armed with ballistic body armor, protective gear to shield against bullets and shrapnel, and infrared night-sight cameras that provide crucial feedback to troops and warn of potential ambushes.

Although we don't know what's the true identity of this dog, let's salute him for a job well done. Truly, dogs have been playing a bigger role in special ops missions overseas.

NYPD Hero Dog Dies

Posted on 2:02 AM No Comments
Labels: Animal News

Scooby, the NYPD bloodhound who in 2007 helped find the men who shot and killed Officer Russel Timoshenko, 23, and wounded Officer Herman Yan, has died after suffering from an undisclosed illness. He was 10 - that's 70 in people years.

The North Carolina-bred bloodhound died slightly less than four years after what was perhaps his finest hour.

It was July 2007, and the NYPD was on the hunt for two violent thugs who had skipped town after shooting two cops. The NYPD officers had pulled them over in Crown Heights, Brooklyn for driving a stolen BMW. Officer Russel Timoshenko, 23, was shot in the face, and died a few days later. His partner, Officer Herman Yan, was wounded but survived.

The two suspects, Dexter Bostic and Robert Ellis escaped by getting a friend to drive them out of the city "but eventually got ditched near a highway in eastern Pennsylvania," and were seen at a rest area before they fled into the woods near the highway. Three hundred cops and six other police dogs were involved in the search. Bostic was caught quickly, and then Ellis at 8 a.m., with help from Scooby, a U.S. Marshal spotted Ellis sitting up against a tree, ending one of the biggest manhunts the Poconos had ever seen.