This is a strange story about a Yorkie who escaped from a house, was found by animal control, and given away as a gift.

It all started when Janet Torren took her 4-year-old dog Shai over to her son’s house for a visit. When the two of them went out Shai managed to get out a sliding door and was eventually picked up by animal control. Torren searched for her beloved dog for 12 days, knocking on doors and making phone calls.

She had called the Stoughton Animal Control many times but was always told her dog was not there. Shai had a microchip so Torren called the company to see if any vets had scanned it in, no one had. However, she decided to call another company and then learned the chip had been scanned by the town pound in Stoughton, the one she had been calling.

Here are the details from Boston.com.

So, once again, Torren called Kristin Bousquet, the town’s animal control officer. There was no answer. After Torren left a message threatening to call police, Bousquet called back and tried to suggest someone else at the pound or the local rescue league may have scanned Shai’s microchip, even though Torren said the company told her that Bousquet had registered Shai.

“It was a continuing change of the story,’’ Torren said. “There was nothing solid to what she was saying. If I asked her a question, she changed the answer. It was one lie after another.’’

After a brief investigation, Murphy found that Bousquet had given the dog to a police officer’s girlfriend, who was planning to move to Florida with Shai. He found that the dog was well fed and in good condition. The officer and his girlfriend, neither of whom Murphy identified, did not know that the dog had been missing, Murphy said.

Torren decided not to press charges against Bousquet, but she was fired from her job as animal control officer last week.

* Pic courtesy David Abel/Globe Staff. Call me crazy, but that doesn’t look like a Yorkie to me.

They are located at a high kill shelter in Kentucky, so time is of the essence.

Soxy

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14934088

Cupcake

http://www.petfinder.com/petnot/displaypet.cgi?petid=14934672

Luna

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14934933

Mitzi

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14934945

The pups are at the Daviess Animal Control located on 2620 Highway 81 Owensboro, KY 42303.   You can reach them at (270) 685-8275 or via email,  click here.

Please post and crosspost this message, let’s help save these senior gals.  They still have a lot of living to do, give one a chance and in return you’ll get an endless amount of unconditional love.

Public services are being cut in counties across America, many effecting animal shelters and animal control.

In Kings County (WA.) there are proposed budget cuts which could eliminate animal control services, something which may have a far wider negative impact than at first glance.

County Executive Kurt Triplett said he will eliminate all discretionary services, and that could include huge cuts in parks and animal control. He hopes to protect the prosecutor’s office and other parts of the Public Safety Department from any major cuts, looking at 2 percent cuts in Public Safety compared with 8 to 10 percent countywide.

He said he will look at cuts in all services not required by the state, and may cut all parks funds not covered by the King County parks levy. This may mean the county will try to persuade local cities to take over county parks in annexation areas, and try to enlist a nonprofit agency, such as the Humane Society, to take over animal control.

But Brenda Barnette, with the Seattle Humane Society, said her organization would like to help, but doesn’t have the resources to take over King County animal control.

When Ron Sims was executive, he asked the Humane Society to work up a proposal on the costs for taking over animal control, and the organization came up with a figure of about $5 million, she said.

“We felt King County animal control was grossly understaffed. There was no interest (from King County) in this and we moved on. We’re not thinking of taking on that responsibility.

“If (Triplett) wants to cut his budget down to zero, it would be insane to volunteer to take it over. We don’t have that surplus money,” she said.

She said without animal control there would be no one to pick up stray dogs or vicious dogs, and each city in the county would have to have its own program.

Claire Davis, an attorney and co-chairwoman of KCAA Exposed, a grass-roots group formed last year to demand changes in King County animal control, said she was shocked by Triplett’s proposal.

“Cutting the budget down to zero has never seriously been considered by anyone. It’s irresponsible and insane,” she said.

Davis said it would be illegal for the county to stop animal control in unincorporated King County.

Metropolitan King County Council member Julia Patterson agreed.

“There’s a state mandate that we provide animal-control services,” she said, but added that she doesn’t necessarily think it’s a bad idea for King County to get out of the animal-control business.

“This gives us an opportunity to explore if other entities could do a better job,” Patterson said, adding that maybe it should be considered as a regional service, with all cities in the county contracting with an agency, such as the Humane Society, for animal control.

“You can’t leave unincorporated King County in the lurch with services for dangerous dogs or dogs running loose,” she said. “But I don’t think it’s such a bad suggestion. We can rethink how to provide the service in a much more humane and progressive way. He’s (Triplett has) thrown the first shot out there, and this is how we evolve. It makes us think outside the box, and that’s a good thing.”

While I realize that times are tough and budgets need to be cut, I hope those in charge consider the end result of their actions. Eliminating the budget for animal control may get them what they want now but cost them far more in the long term.

I want to thank Dogster member Daddy for barking this important story to me.

* In loving memory of Bo’s buddy Checkers-July 4, 1994-July 27, 2009.

Since this is a dog blog, a couple of times a month our boy Bo (woof!) thought it would be nice to get the news through a dog’s eyes.

Bo invites everyone to read a chapter from his upcoming book BAD TO THE BONE due out early October. It’s a funny memoir about the crazy adventures we have shared together over the last 14 plus years, told through Bo’s eyes.

Okay Bo, take it from here….

How far would your owners go to save your fur?

Would they give up some of their hard earned cash? How about the time needed to nurse you back to health after a serious illness? Would they commit a crime if it meant keeping you in their lives?

I know my parents’ answers: yes, yes, no.

What can I say, they’re law abiding citizens. That means the purchase of medical marijuana for my glaucoma from Chachi down at the street corner is out, but they wouldn’t hesitate flying me to San Francisco to drop me off at a cannabis club. They’re strange folks, but who am I to judge.

Well, a woman in Wyoming shows how far she’d go to save her precious pit-bull. The Casper Star-Tribune has all the details.

Police arrested a Casper woman last weekend in connection to a burglary at the animal shelter where her pit bull was being held.

Jessica Johnson, 26, was booked on suspicion of burglary and conspiracy following the early Saturday morning break-in at Metro Animal Control in Casper, police said.

Police responding to a security alarm at the shelter found the pit bull running outside the building. The same dog had been taken to Metro Animal Control a day earlier after Johnson ran from officers following a traffic stop.

Responding officers determined someone had gotten into the shelter by smashing a window, according to a police affidavit. They discovered the pit bull was the only dog missing from the shelter.

A man found in a car near Metro told police he had driven Johnson and another man to the shelter. He said the pair brought walkie talkies with them, as well as a backpack.

Police found Johnson at 2nd and Evans streets in Evansville and caught her after a foot chase. She declined to speak with a detective.

Declined to speak? She probably didn’t sit either. Woof!

The funniest dog blog, written by a dog, on the internet. Commentary on the latest animal news stories of the day.

In Riviera Beach, FL  Pit Bulls were taken from a home where suspected dog fight training was taking place.

A phone call about a dog in distress led officials to the home, Animal Care and Control were the first to respond.

At the house they found enough evidence to get a warrant for a full search.

Four pit bulls were taken from 446 West 14th street. Frank Huggins was arrested for a felony violation of animal fighting. The house belongs to his brother who could also face charges.

The dogs have multiple scars on their bodies and some had open wounds on their face and neck.

Deputies also removed a treadmill used to run dogs, weights, chains and needles. Investigators say the heavy weights are put on the dogs collars to strengthen them. They say there were other signs the dogs were being trained such as being individually tethered and their lean physique.

The training operation at Huggins house is considered to be an isolated incident.  However, officials are investigating to make sure it isn’t part of a larger ring.

* There was no pic with the article. The adorable girl above is Dogster member Vega, a rescue.

Here’s an interesting story concerning the new mandatory sterilization ordinance in Los Angeles, CA.

When the Los Angeles City Council approved the measure in February, the hope was that pet sterilization would stem the tide of unwanted and stray animals flowing into shelters. According to the Humane Society of the United States, 3 million to 4 million animals are euthanized in shelters nationwide each year.

The new ordinance, which goes into effect in less than a week, orders all dogs and cats 4 months and older be sterilized.

The ordinance would exclude those dogs and cats that have special skills or are being trained for special activities. Also exempt, are show dogs and those trying to join the show circuit. Lastly, are those that have medical excuses. Hmm….as in, “No don’t cut those off, I may need them at a later date.”

Since spaying or neutering can be expensive the city has put into place a number of low cost options.

There are a number of reduced-cost options for sterilizing your animal. The city’s shelters and many of their private rescue partners offer vouchers — to everyone — worth $30 toward the cost of a sterilization procedure performed by participating veterinarians. Senior citizens, the disabled and low-income residents quality for a certificate for a free procedure at certain veterinary hospitals or a mobile clinic.

Interestingly, City Controller Laura Chick, released a report stating that “L.A. Animal Services was ill-prepared to implement or enforce the new law.”

She contends that animal control officers already have difficulty enforcing the other ordinances in place. While I realize it may be hard to enforce every ordinance, such as the leash law, it doesn’t mean an important issue such as this should be swept under the carpet.

It seems to me, the city controller is more concerned about the bottom line than the fact that millions of innocent animals are being euthanized each year. By putting an ordinance like this into place the number of suffering and abandoned animals will be substantially cut down.

There are  already major costs involved  to catch, temporarily take care of,  and euthanize these abandoned animals. I would think that, in the long run, the enforcement of this ordinance would be  cost-effective for the city.

Do you think that it should be mandatory for all pet owners to sterilize their pets, unless they fall under one of the exemptions ?  Or, do you think the this is something the government should stay out of ?