News Sept13 2006 PetsWeekly

Red carpets, limousines, paparazzi… What does Morris, the cat who has the world by the tail, do next? He returns to his shelter roots. Yes, Morris the Cat was originally rescued from a shelter in Chicago in 1968. In spite of his fame, Morris has never forgotten where he came from, so he’s going to wield his considerable celebrity to help find homes for 1 million of his fellow felines. Together with 9Lives, he’s launching “Morris’ Million Cat Rescue”—and asking cat lovers everywhere to join him in the mission to find safe, loving homes for 1 million homeless cats. Morris is leading the effort personally by adopting the very first cat in a million, naming his new friend “Lil’ Mo.”

Today, 3 out of every 4 cats who enter shelters are euthanized. The need for someone to champion the cause of homeless cats has never been greater, and Morris is pleased to step up.

Beginning in September 2006, Morris and Lil’ Mo will lead a national campaign that includes traveling the country by bus, on a mission to find loving homes for 1 million homeless cats.

· A national kickoff event with American Idol’s Randy Jackson on September 19th in New York’s famed Grand Central Station

· A bus tour visiting 34 markets nationwide, making stops at events, retailers and shelters, raising awareness of this issue and facilitating cat adoptions in conjunctions with local shelters

· 9Lives is also partnering with 3600 shelters across the country to distribute Morris’ Million Cat Rescue Welcome Home Kits that will educate consumers on proper care for their cats at home

· In October, 9Lives and Morris will completely outfit and sponsor a car for the NASCAR Dollar General Busch Series Charlotte Motor Speedway night race. If the 9Lives car wins, $1,000,000 will be donated to cat rescue shelters.

· Lil’ Mo and Friends collectible stuffed animals will have names, stories and adoption papers, and will be individually numbered!

· For every purchase of 9Lives cat food, 9Lives will donate one dollar to an animal charity.

SYDNEY, Australia - At least 10 stingrays have been killed since "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin was fatally injured by one of the fish, an official said Tuesday, prompting a spokesman for the late TV star's animal charity to urge people not take revenge on the animals.

Irwin died last week after a stingray barb pierced his chest as he recorded a show off the Great Barrier Reef.

Stingray bodies since have been discovered on two beaches in Queensland state on Australia's eastern coast. Two were discovered Tuesday with their tails lopped off, state fisheries department official Wayne Sumpton said.

Sumpton said fishermen who inadvertently catch the diamond-shaped rays sometimes cut off their tails to avoid being stung, but the practice was uncommon. Stingrays often are caught in fishing nets by mistake and should be returned to the sea, Sumpton said.

Michael Hornby, the executive director of Irwin's Wildlife Warriors conservation group, said he was concerned the rays were being hunted and killed in retaliation for Irwin's death.

"It may be some sort of retribution, or it may be fear from certain individuals, or it just may be yet another callous act toward wildlife," he said.

He said killing stingrays was "not what Steve was about."

"We are disgusted and disappointed that people would take this sort of action to hurt wildlife," he said.

Stingrays are usually shy, unobtrusive fish that rummage the sea bottom for food or burrow into the sand.

They have a serrated spine up to 10 inches long on their tails, which they can lash when stepped on or otherwise frightened.

The spines emit toxins that can kill many small creatures and cause excruciating pain in humans. Few people have died from the poison, but the spines can badly tear flesh and the wounds are prone to infections, including tetanus.

Hornby said people should treat stingrays with caution, but "there is still no need to ... kill or mutilate these important animals."

BOSTON (Reuters) - At Mickey's first evening at a nightclub he listened to loud music, scarfed down appetizers and lapped up cocktails of chicken soup and beet juice instead of gin or vodka.

A 13-year-old Boston terrier, Mickey was among 50 dogs -- and 250 humans -- at a party in Boston by SkyBark, which began in Los Angeles. The gathering was aimed at marketing canine products while raising money for charity and is part of a new trend toward nightlife where humans are encouraged to bring their dogs.

Such parties are sponsored by companies marketing extravagant dog products, including all-natural, wheat-free dog treats at $11 a pound, synthetic-grass covered indoor porta-potties for $280 and leather jackets for $540.

Such goods are helping fuel growth in sales of pet products, which the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association estimates will rise 6 percent to a record $38.4 billion in 2006, including about $7 billion on dogs.

Canine cocktail parties give entrepreneurs a chance to push their high-priced wares to consumers who are drawn in by the chance to socialize with other dog lovers.

"Dogs provide a way for people to get to know each other a little deeper than they ordinarily would. They serve as social facilitators," says Leslie Irvine, a University of Colorado at Boulder sociologist who studies human-animal behavior.

This isn't the only way that man's best friends are helping owners make connections.

There are "yappie hours" in Boulder where people get together to have drinks and socialize while their pets play. In big cities, some singles get spruced up to walk their dogs, hoping to meet a romantic prospect.

The Nordstrom department store in Hollywood lets customers bring dogs of all sizes shopping with them.

Ingrid Newkirk, president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, says that parties for dogs have become so popular that she decided to write a guide to throwing healthy ones.

There's nothing wrong with spoiling your pet, she says, though it's important to keep the dog's welfare in mind. That means staying away from novelties like pooch-sized party hats, which are held on with rubber bands that can give dogs headaches, or uncomfortable outfits that might trip them up.

"People have good intentions but they don't pay enough attention to what the animal is experiencing," says Newkirk.

Italian designer Gucci sells a leather pet carrier for $2,655 and markets bone-shaped brass dog pendants embossed with its logo for $90. Les Pooch sells a doggie perfume made in France at $3,000 for a 4-ounce bottle.

But not everyone sees the trend favorably. University of Connecticut sociologist Clinton Sanders says that dogs don't get any pleasure from extravagances.

"I don't have too much sympathy for turning dogs into furry, retarded people. They aren't people. They are dogs," says Sanders, author of the book "Understanding Dogs."

The SkyBark party in Boston seemed to appeal more to the sensibilities of cash-carrying humans than the dogs. A canine caterer offered "muttini" cocktails, but bowls of water were scarce. Pet-a-Potty litter boxes were available for purchase, but dogs were directed to relieve themselves outdoors.

Murphy, a 3-year-old rescue dog, got roped into wearing a white wedding gown with a heavy train that dragged behind him. He squirmed out of the outfit as photographers rushed the stage to record the spectacle.

That dress was from House of Chienelle, a maker of wedding gowns, bridesmaids dresses and tuxedos for canine weddings.

Such excesses have been around since at least the 19th century, when pet stores popped up in France selling extravagant items like diamond dog collars, says Sanders.

Mainstream retailers, including The Gap and Target Corp, have jumped on the bandwagon in recent years as marketers saw the growing number of dog owners willing to spoil their pets in the way they indulge children. Some 44 million American households include dogs, compared to about 38 million with cats.

Alison Boston, a Boston real-estate agent with two Chinese cresteds, says that clothing is a necessity for her dogs, Gizmo and Dixie, because the exotic-looking breed doesn't have fur on most of its body and needs protection when they venture out.

Each has about 150 outfits and they get excited when she puts on their clothing, she says, because they know it means that they're going on an outing, sometimes to join her while she shows homes.

"They're a great marketing tool," she says. "At the end of a day when somebody has looked at a lot of houses, they remember my listing; they remember the house with the dogs."

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Dog fends off rattlesnake to protect coyote friend

SCOTTSDALE - An affable Australian shepherd mix named Pepper greets visitors to the Southwest Wildlife Rehabilitation and Educational Foundation.

Guests don't know that the pat-worthy canine is the animal sanctuary's first line of defense against rattlesnakes.

Rescued from being euthanized 10 years ago, Pepper has a gift for detecting rattlers. The sanctuary depends on his alertness to protect animals and people on its north Scottsdale desert grounds.

Recently, Pepper earned hero status for standing tough between a rattler and an aged coyote named Kachina.

One night a few weeks ago, Southwest Wildlife director Linda Searles heard the special high-pitched bark Pepper employs for snake alerts. She grabbed her snake bucket and tongs and tracked the barking to the pen of Kachina, a 14-year-old female coyote with a special affinity for Pepper.

What Searles saw was Pepper limping while circling a rattlesnake a few feet from Kachina's enclosure.

"He had a strange look on his face and had stopped barking," Searles said. He'd been bitten.

Typically Pepper would circle at a greater distance, but Searles theorizes he was protecting the coyote. The two animals often sleep side by side with the chain-link fence of Kachina's pen between them.

Searles quickly put the snake in the bucket for release into the desert. She raced Pepper, whose body was already stiffening in pain, to Sonora Veterinary Hospital in Phoenix, where he was immediately treated with a costly antivenin. Shots cost $500 each; he needed two. The shots worked.

"He's a pretty tough little guy," Searles said. "By now, he's his old self again."

That means he's hanging out with the dogs that patrol the sanctuary.

A sanctuary volunteer gave Pepper a neckerchief that spells out "hero," and he mostly lives up to it.

"He doesn't like thunderstorms, so I let him come into the clinic during storms," Searles said.

Animals may have their own personalities, study finds

Researchers at the University of Tasmania believe animals may have individual personalities.

The studies on squid and native rats show each animal has a different behavioural trait, such as being bold, inquisitive or shy, which dictates how they react in any given situation.

Researcher David Sinn says the personality of the animals plays an important role in its survival.

"If environments are unpredictable for animals, which they often are, it may be a strategy for a population to have a wide variety of behavioural strategies ensuring that some animals get through to the next generation," he said.

Dr Sinn says the personalties were extremely evident when the animals were under threat.

"You've got animals which you might consider bold - when they are attacked by a predator they actually attack the predator right back, they grab it, they bite it," he said.

"Or they are ambivalent to it, they just kind of sit.

"Shyer animals tend to flee or try to get away from the threatening situation the best they can."

Rescuers to Carry Oxygen Masks for Pets

APPLETON, Wis. (AP) -- Pets here will be breathing a little easier now that local rescuers will be carrying oxygen masks designed for animals.

Six Appleton fire trucks and 13 ambulances will be equipped with masks intended for use on dogs, cats and other small animals.

Alderman Richard Thompson initiated the program after he saw a newspaper photograph of a firefighter in Superior giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to a cat rescued from a house fire.

"A pet is family to most people," he said. "I know I wouldn't want to lose Maggie, my collie, or Lucy, my Tabby cat, to a fire, carbon monoxide poisoning or Lord knows what else."

"It was something to see," Thompson said. "There was no organized solicitation effort. People and community groups just read or heard about the program and stepped up to the plate."

The masks, which come in three sizes, will be distributed to each of six fire stations and to the Appleton Police Department K-9 unit, he said.

The Madison Fire Department carries similar masks on its seven ambulances, said Lori Wirth, the department's community education officer.

The Madison department also bought its masks with money raised from unsolicited donations, she said. In fact, the department raised so much money it was able to buy mask kits for several neighboring communities.

Wirth said the department's firefighters haven't had to use the masks yet but they're trained and willing.

"What we've done so far is use the masks as a way to remind people to get out of their residence in the event of a fire and don't go searching for pets," she said. "Firefighters will care for any pets we find in the event they suffer from smoke inhalation."

NEW YORK - A judge is this dog's best friend. Bebe, a 5-year-old bichon frise, a fluffy little white dog, was given an order of protection after a man was accused of beating him.

Fredrick Fontanez, 20, was arraigned Thursday on a misdemeanor count of animal abuse and released on his own recognizance, but not before the judge told him to steer clear of Bebe.

The protection order, the first for a dog in the state, was issued by Queens Criminal Court Judge Alex Zigman. It says Fontanez cannot come within a 100 yards of the dog and its owner, Derek Lopez.

Bebe was found badly beaten July 20 in Lopez's apartment, where Fontanez was staying, a criminal complaint said.

Lopez, 27, says he had to go to work and left Bebe with Fontanez, trusting the dog would be safe. When he returned hours later, he found a severely bruised Bebe, who "winced, yelped and cried" at the slightest touch, the complaint said.

One of Lopez's neighbors said he heard the whimpering dog and saw Fontanez inside the apartment at the time.

A veterinarian said the 14-pound dog, a type of toy spaniel known for its merry temperament and inquisitive expression, had been repeatedly hit or kicked.