When Labs Are Tigers and Chows Are Pandas
July 12, 2012 by MichaelMountain
It started in China, but is spreading to the West: dyeing your dog to look like another animal. From tigers to turtles, it’s pets as fashion statements. Shelters used to have people dropping off their pets because “she doesn’t match the new furniture.” Now we’ll probably have them dropping them off because “the kids want [...]
U.K. High Court Votes to Kill Family Dog
June 13, 2012 by Michael Mountain
Two years ago, animal control officials in Northern Ireland, seized a family pet from the home of Caroline Barnes, a former veterinary nurse whose 11-year-old daughter was registered as a disabled person. Lennox is part Labrador, part American bulldog and part Staffordshire terrier. The officers told Nurse Barnes that the dog looked like an American [...]
What’s Up with the Genesis Awards?
May 7, 2012 by Michael Mountain
Two big no-no’s at this year’s Genesis Awards. The HSUS needs a whole new selection committee, plus it should have raised holy hell and walked away from the relationship with Animal Planet.
The Geese at JFK Airport
April 26, 2012 by Michael Mountain
“No one was hurt,” according to an AP report after a second collision in one week between a plane and a goose near Kennedy Airport. Well, not to sound like a “crazy goose lady,” but someone was indeed hurt – killed, in fact. Most of the reports explained that a goose had flown into one [...]
Barbie Doll Is SeaWorld Trainer
April 26, 2012 by Michael Mountain
How grotesque is this? Mattel’s latest Barbie doll is a SeaWorld trainer: With this Barbie I Can Be SeaWorld Trainer Nikki Doll and Playset Nikki doll wears her uniform wetsuit and waist pack where she can store fish food for the animals; a whistle and toy are additional training tools. The set comes with a [...]
Two More Horses Dead in Race Horror
April 15, 2012 by Michael Mountain
Yet another disaster yesterday at a big horse race. At the U.K.’s infamous Grand National, where the contestants race around a dangerous obstacle course, two of the contestants stumbled, broke their legs, and were put down. One of them was the favorite, Synchronised. The name of the other was According to Pete. Both horses went [...]
For Dogs Too Fat to Climb the Stairs
April 9, 2012 by Michael Mountain
This new device is NOT the answer to the problem of Fido being so fat he can’t even climb the stairs. The answer is to lose some weight. But instead of that, people are going for Option Two: Buy him an elevator. The device has been designed by a U.K. insurance company that’s worried that [...]
To Dye, to Die, Aye, There’s the Rub
April 9, 2012 by Michael Mountain
Astoundingly, the Governor of Florida has signed a bill overturning a 45-year-old ban on dyeing baby chicks. We’re told that this extraordinary step backward was at the behest of a dog groomer who wanted to enter a contest featuring colored and sculpted dogs. Chicken ranchers say the color that’s used to dye baby chicks is [...]
Hundreds of U.K. Military Dogs Killed, Not Retired
April 6, 2012 by Michael Mountain
There’s outrage in the U.K. over the number of military working dogs who are routinely destroyed, rather than retired, when they return from active duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Those Bad Badgers!
March 26, 2012 by Michael Mountain
Just like the residents of The Haven, a community for seniors in England’s West Midlands, the local badgers like big houses. The trouble is: they like their houses to be right under the human houses.