Alex, The Dalmation, Rescued After Four Days In Pipe

August 21, 2007

Alex, The Dalmation, Rescued After Four Days In Pipe

Larry Thompson of West Virginia was finally able to rescue his fourteen year old Dalmatian, Alex, after trying three days to reach him. (Play video.) You can hear the intense relief and emotion in Thompson’s voice the moment he pulls Alex free of the pipe. I can only imagine how Thompson felt, especially considering he headed up the rescue efforts himself.

It’s believed that Alex crawled into the storm drain to beat the heat on Thursday. He apparently crawled the length of the 80 foot pipe, turned around and got stuck. On Friday, his family realized he was missing and the rescue efforts began with Thompson using a back hoe to try to reach him. When a heavy rainstorm hit, he had to dig a culvert to divert run-off from the opening of the storm drain in which Alex was stuck. By Sunday night, they still hadn’t reached Alex, so at 3AM Larry Thompson called his cousin and asked if he’d drive to Kentucky to get an excavator. His cousin was at Thompson’s yard at 8AM and they finally got Alex out a little bit later. Alex had been 20-25 feet underground. It looks like, despite everything, the Dalmatian is going to be okay and Thompson will be putting a cover on the pipe opening.

August 20, 2007

NFL’s Michael Vick To Plead Guilty

Michael Vick has accepted a plea deal and will plead guilty to federal conspiracy charges connected to dog fighting. His three co-defendants have already pleaded guilty and agreed to testify against Vick. Two of the co-defendants signed statements that Vick killed dogs that “underperformed” by drowning, hanging, or slamming them to the ground. Michael Vick could face 12 to 18 months in prison and a lifetime ban from the NFL. Fifty-three of the sixty-six dogs seized from Vick’s property will probably be euthanized.

The Michigan State University College of Law has a very informative page on dog fighting that covers the history, the training, the culture, the societal cost, the criminal links, laws and legal issues, and evidence, including less obvious things such as the drugs/vitamins/medical supplies used. You can also find out about the signs of dog fighting. And the Humane Society of the United States has a FAQ on dog fighting. (Note: None of the these pages have gruesome photos of dogs showing the barbarism of dog fighting. They do have a wealth of information.)

You can help make a change by educating yourself and by supporting these groups:

August 16, 2007August 16, 2007

Feline Hyperthyroidism Linked To Flame Retardants

A new study has found has levels of flame retardant chemicals to be three times higher in cats with hyperthyroid disease than in normal, healthy cats. These flame retardant chemicals are called PBDE’s (polybrominated diphenyl ethers) and are used in things like upholstery, carpet, mattresses, and even televisions. It’s thought cats are exposed to PBDE’s when they groom because they’re ingesting contaminated household dust from our furniture and carpet and from their bedding.

The study also found that canned fish and seafood flavored cat food had significantly higher levels of PBDE’s in them. And a diet of canned food may have levels of PBDE’s twelve times higher than a diet of dry food. It’s estimated that pet cats might be receiving as much as 100 times greater dietary PBDE exposure than American adults.

Sweden started limiting the uses of PBDE’s when it was found in human breast milk. The state of Washington passed legislation banning PBDE’s this year.

Read about the symptoms of and treatments for feline hyperthyroidism.

August 15, 2007

We Like: The MouseRat Cat Toy

Raven, The Director of Feline Toy Testing, at PetProject has long loved the MouseRat by MetPet (scroll to bottom). MetPet has three Classes of FlyToys—there are some really neat looking ones. New MouseRats make Raven growl. She will “request” vigorously and endlessly that we play with her, if we happen to even be in the room where the toy lives on top of a shelf. She absolutely does not like Sage, her co-worker, to play with the MouseRat. It is hers and we’d best remember it!

The MouseRat and the other FlyToys from MetPet are made the same way flies are tied for fly fishing, minus the hook of course. The MouseRat is made from deer hair, which Raven loves. They are very durable and last a long time. You need to put them away when not in use. They come on nylon line and an acrylic rod. We actually prefer a longer piece of lighter weight line, so I retrofit mine with fishing line.

August 14, 2007August 14, 2007

DNA Reveals Origin Of Domestic Cat

Scientists have found that all domestic cats descended from wild cats from the Middle East—in particular, from the Fertile Crescent, which was located in what is now Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey. This means that domestic cats in different areas didn’t originate from the wild cats in those areas as was once thought. Domestic cats in Europe did not come from the European wildcat. Today’s domestic cats all descend from five female cats from the Middle East. It was due to humans transporting their cats that domestic cats spread throughout the world.

Archaeological evidence points to cats being domesticated much earlier than once believed. It has long been thought the Egyptians first domesticated the cat around 4,000 years ago (2,000 B.C.) But, findings published in 2004, revealed that a Neolithic site on Cyprus had provided the earliest archaeological evidence of domestic cats from 9,500 years ago (7,500 B.C.) The DNA and archaeological evidence supports the theory that cats and people began sharing their lives as humans began to settle and farm, and had grain stores that needed to be protected from vermin.