A Reno, Nevada  couple who was selling English Bulldog puppies out of their home were the victims of a home invasion on Wednesday.

Ross Harwood said he had been asleep on his couch around 1:30 a.m. Wednesday when he heard someone breaking down his front door in the 10000 block of Robilee Drive, in South Reno. He awoke to see two men reaching into a nearby dog pen, snatching two of three puppies.

The thieves had used either a sledgehammer or device that unhinged the door. Harwood ran after them, and Wendy, the mother of the pups, followed. The suspects’ dark red small sports utility vehicle struck Harwood during their flee, knocking him down. Then they ran over Wendy, who had been at the rear of the vehicle. She soon died.

The couple had been advertising the puppies for sale in the Reno-Gazette Journal for the last few weeks. On Tuesday a couple had stopped by to look at the $1,800 puppies, but did not buy one.  Arlene and Ross Harwood suspect this is the couple who broke into their house.

What a sad story, these thieves need to be caught.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact detectives at (775)334-2115. Secret Witness is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the suspects. They can be reached at (775)322-4900.

In Tampa, FL the PM Tinies breeding facility owner is facing criminal charges.

Two weeks ago the Department of Animal Services stepped in and seized over 30 dogs, of various small breeds.

Starting today at 11a.m. the Hillsborough County Animal Services, located at 440 Falkenburg Road in Tampa, will place approximately 30 of the dogs for adoption.

Those wishing to adopt dogs from the breeder seizure may be subject to special restrictions, home visits or other screening by Hillsborough County Animal Services.

Most of the dogs will require spay/neuter surgery and may not be available to leave immediately.

The dogs offered will range in age from 8 weeks to 14 years of age, and many suffer medical issues such as heart worms, heart murmurs and periodontal disease.

For the first  24 hours priority will be given to Hillsborough County residents.

Out-of-County residents (non-Hillsborough) are encouraged to consider other adoptable pets or visiting the shelter on Thursday, November 20th to check availability of these dogs.

If interested stop by the Hillsborough County Department of Animal Services, there you can get contact information and adoption paperwork.

A breeder in Parkersburg, W. VA. area  has surrendered 1,000 dogs to the humane society.

While there were no signs that the purebred dachshunds had been abused, officials say it would be impossible for any human being to properly care for that many animals.

The board president for the Humane Society in Parkersburg, Carrie Roe, stated many of the dogs have never been touched by a human.

Sheriff’s deputies investigating possible dog-related pollution found the dogs Saturday while executing a search warrant on the property.

Wood County Prosecutor Ginny Conley says the owner hasn’t been cited for animal neglect but has agreed to never operate a dog-breeding business again.

The rescue operation could cost over $100,000 placing a tremendous strain on the Humane Society of Parkersburg. Below is information for anyone who would like to make a donation or potentially adopt one of these precious dogs.

If you would like to assist the HSOP at this time of great need, we are accepting monetary donations to help cover the costs of this effort. We are also in need of clean towels and rolled newspapers. All donations should be taken directly to the main Shelter at 29th and Poplar.

People interested in volunteering for the effort should call the Shelter first at 304-422-5541 and leave a message on the Volunteer line. We appreciate all volunteers, but in order for things to work smoothly we must schedule volunteers for needed jobs. So PLEASE call first and leave a message of what you can do and when you are available. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

While some of the surrrendered animals will be made available for adoption locally, they will not be available until August 30th and will be adopted out using our normal adoption process. See Adoption Process on this website. Many of the animals will be going to rescues around the nation that are better equipped to deal with puppy mill animals, but animals that we feel are appropriate for local adopiton, will be available beginning on that date.

I know certain breeds of dogs are predisposed to having certain conditions but I had never given it much thought as to why.

A new study from researchers at Imperial College London shows the extent of inbreeding in purebred dogs and how this reduces their genetic variation.

Inbreeding in pedigree dogs arises because certain dogs, prized for exhibiting the characteristics desirable for that breed, are used to father many litters of puppies. When dogs from these litters come to be mated, some will be paired with dogs having the same father from other litters. Over generations, more and more dogs across a particular pedigree are related to one another and the chances of relatives mating increase.

The researchers’ analysis showed that, for example, Boxer dogs were so closely related to one another and had such little genetic variation between them that genetically, 20,000 dogs looked like a population of about 70. In the Rough Collie breed, 12,000 dogs looked in genetic terms like a population of about 50.

Interesting stuff.

For those of you that get the BBC One, the researchers will discuss the study on “Pedigree Dogs Exposed” which airs on Tuesday 19 August 2008 at 21.00 BST.