In Riverside, CA 14 Lhasa Apsos died of smoke inhalation when a fire broke out in the house of a hoarder. The firefighters couldn’t get to the fire in the kitchen and porch because clutter blocked their way. The house was filled from floor to ceiling with junk making it hard to get to the dogs who were all caged in a room.

This is such a sad story because it was so unnecessary, those dogs should not have died.  Obviously this person was a hoarder so there were other issues going on, but it’s so important to know about fire safety.

A few days ago I  posted about the dogs that set fire to their mobile home, in the article I included a link to some fire safety tips. After reading this story I’ve decided to repost them for everyone to see.  Here are some great tips from VPI Insurance.

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It’s official, a pit bull has won the 2009 ‘Dog of Valor’ award.

D-Boy won the award given by the Humane Society of the United States for saving his family from an armed intruder.

D-boy suffered injuries in December after the intruder shot him three times. Oklahoma City residents came to the support of the heroic dog, helping the Shoemaker family with D-boy’s medical expenses.

The Humane Society of United States held an online poll. After more than 6,000 people voted, the Dog of Valor, People’s Hero Award was given to D-Boy.

It was just six months ago, D-boy was recovering after an intruder shot him three times. The dog scared the man out of his family’s house and kept the Shoemakers safe.

“If he wouldn’t have distracted the guy, the guy probably would’ve shot me,” said Roberta Shoemaker. “I didn’t know what to do he told me to get down on the ground, and I was so scared, I couldn’t move.”

D-boy saved the lives of everyone there on that fateful day.

“If he wasn’t there and wouldn’t have done what he did, I could’ve came home to no family,” Angelic Shoemaker said.

The family knows how special D-Boy is and now the rest of the country is showing its love for a dog who went beyond the call of duty. Out of 15 finalists, D-Boy walked away with the Humane Society of the United States’ Dog of Valor award.

“D-boy’s story really touched the heart of the majority of the voters and he won the dog version of the People’s Choice Award,” said Cynthia Armstrong, director of the Oklahoma Humane Society of the U.S.

It’s an honor his family hopes will change people’s views of pit bulls.

“All pits are not bad,” Roberta Shoemaker said. “I mean, just because of the breed of the dog, doesn’t mean they’re bad.”

D-Boy showed the true heart of a hero when he put himself between the gunman and his owner. I can’t think of a more deserving dog to be honored with the Dog of Valor award.

* Pic of D-boy w/family and Cynthia Armstrong of the Oklahoma Humane Society courtesy NewsOn6.com.

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As most people know, Michael Vick has been released from prison. What you may not know is the Humane Society of the United States is considering allowing him to get involved in an anti-dog fighting outreach program.

Supporters of this program believe that Vick has served his sentence, apologized for his actions, and that he is ready to share his prison experience and the lesson he learned, with urban community youths who may otherwise travel down pathways to crime and inappropriate street activity.

What’s interesting is that the HSUS was the very first organization to petition the National Football League to indefinitely suspend Vick from the NFL and as well, they were the leading voice behind influencing all of Vick’s sponsors to dissolve their contracts with him. Both efforts were successful.

While numerous ex-convicts (or shall we say “ex-con’Vicks’”) serve their sentences, and then receive a clean slate – some deserving, some…not so much, one cannot ignore the most observable fact of all – Michael Vick has never shown any ‘genuine’ remorse for his actions – he just knows what to say, how to articulate it, to whom he should appeal, and exactly what avenue to travel, that will best pave his way back to the NFL.

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You can  help choose the HSUS 2009 Dog of Valor, the polls are open and they want your vote.

Vote for your favorite Dogs of Valor Finalist!

The Humane Society of the United States created the Dogs of Valor Awards to honor and celebrate dogs who have performed an extraordinary act of courage by heroically helping a person in need. Finalists for this year’s award, sponsored by PetPlan Pet Insurance, were chosen based on the significance and impact of their heroic actions.

Our panel of celebrity judges, including Benji (with the help of her humans, Joe and Kathleen Camp), Ron Burns, Randy Pobst, and Judge David Young, will choose a Valor Dog of the Year and three Runners Up. Now we want to hear from you!

Cast your vote for your favorite heroic hound before the voting closes on Friday, May 15 2009 at 5 PM Eastern Time. The Finalist who receives the most votes will be named this year’s People’s Hero winner!

Go to the HSUS website to learn about the 15 finalists in contention. All of their stories are amazing,  this is going to be a very tough decision.

You know what won’t be a tough decision after reading the stories?  Going out and adopting a dog from a shelter. As I’ve mentioned before, when you adopt from a shelter you save a life, you’ll see from these stories it may be your own.

*Boo, renamed Hero, is one of the finalists, pic courtesy HSUS site.

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Articles abound on the internet about Bo, the new First Dog. I chose to comment on the Tails Of The City post because author Amelia Glynn seems to share my feeling of disappointment over the choice of a non-shelter dog.

Bo is adorable, and I’m happy there is a dog in the White House, but I can’t help feel an important opportunity was missed here. One that could have had great impact for other rescue dogs.

While this new, cute (and hypoallergenic) First Bundle of Canine Joy prepares to move into his new home at the White House this Tuesday, some shelters and rescue organizations across the country including Adopt-a-Pet.com are expressing disappointment at the Obamas’ choice to acquire a dog from a breeder – a decision that is in sharp contrast to the President’s earlier pledge to adopt from a shelter.

“This is a missed opportunity to set a pet-adoption trend among Americans,” says Abbie Moore, executive director of Adopt-a-Pet.com. “With pet relinquishment up 20 to 30 percent due to the poor economy, pets in shelters can use all the help they can get.”

So, now there is a purebred in the White House, perpetuating the myth that rescue dogs aren’t good enough, have too many issues, or that you won’t be able to find the dog you’re looking for. I am happy that Bo was at least a re-homed pup, things didn’t work out at his first place of residence.

Bo was born in October, along with nine littermates. His breeder was already a big Obama supporter and gave the litter a “Hope and Change” theme. Consequently, all of the puppies had registered names that had something to do with Hope or Change. Bo’s registered name is Amigo’s New Hope – perfect for President Obama’s dog, don’t you think? Senator Ted Kennedy, who also got a puppy from this litter, has a puppy with the registered name Amigo’s Change to Believe In.

When he was old enough Bo was sold to a woman in Washington DC who had just lost her old Portuguese Water Dog. But she still had another old Portie. She thought that the puppy, whom she named Charlie, would be good company for the old girl. Unfortunately, Charlie proved a little too much. For one thing, he tried to nurse on the other dog, which some puppies will do. The other dog was not happy about this situation. And, sometimes bringing a puppy into a home with an old dog, especially if they may be grieving, can be a problem. So the owner decided she couldn’t keep Charlie.

Although Bo is technically re-homed, he is by no means a rescue. He was sent back to the breeder she bought him from and would have been sold again, he is an AKC-registered purebred dog from champion breeding.

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