I realize times are hard, but that’s when help is needed the most. I know there must be someone looking to adopt an adorable dog (look at those faces) or a rescue group that can step in and help this person.

Hello rescue friends-

This is a plea to help 3 stray dogs in my neighborhood in Decatur, GA. They need rescue or adoption. So far, Canela (left) is in a temporary foster home, but Ossa (middle) and Beethoven (bottom) are still in their respective yards.

The brief story is that these are dogs taken in off the street by one of my neighbors, who has a big heart but not the best situation to be taking in animals. Her husband is not an animal lover to say the least and would not allow her to keep them on their property. She has been keeping them in the back yards of 2 separate houses that have been vacant for some time. She feeds and visits with them daily, and they all at least have a rabies shot. Canela is spayed but due to my neighbor’s lack of transportation, the other 2 are still intact (they stay in separate yards).

My neighbor has limited resources to place the dogs – no car, no computer, limited command of English – and she also has a turbulent home life. I want to help place the dogs for their own sake, but also so that she can focus on her own problems. She was assaulted and ended up in jail about 2 weeks ago, which is when I was asked to feed the dogs. She was bailed out a few days later, but has a court date coming up and could be incarcerated again. Hopefully together we can find these dogs a better situation. I can help with vetting / transport for anyone who can take them.

Ossa (my neighbor says this means “little bird” in Spanish) is a fluffy black border collie mix (my best guess). She is about 2 years old and is playful and friendly. She is maybe 30 pounds.

Beethoven is a shepherd mix puppy who is just under a year old. I thought he would be bigger than he has turned out to be (a thick but compact 35 pounds or so), so maybe he is mixed with a smaller breed as well. He is extremely playful and enjoys belly rubs and lots of affection.

Canela (”cinnamon” in Spanish) is a beagle mix and her tail is cropped because something was wrong with it when she was found, like the others, tied to a tree or a building. She is learning manners in her foster home and is getting along with both dogs and cats. She is also about 30 pounds.

I would take these dogs myself but I already have 7 animals in my house. I appreciate your concern and thank you for your efforts. Any interested parties may contact me at this email address.

Please feel free to post and crosspost this message, time is of the essence.

A  small puppy was tied to a tree in Boston’s Back Bay area and left there. I guess this is just another sad sign of the times.

BOSTON (WBZ) -Investigators are trying to find the person who abandoned a puppy in the Back Bay Wednesday afternoon, according to a published report.

Boston’s animal control unit told the Boston Herald someone tied up the little pup to a tree outside the Westin Hotel at the corner of Dartmouth and Stuart Streets.

A hotel manager noticed that no one had picked up the dog, so he called police.

One man claimed to be the pup’s owner, according to the paper, but he couldn’t provide proof and left.

It’s believed the puppy is between three to six months old, and possibly a shepherd-lab or shepherd-akita mix. Whatever he is, he’s adorable. The pup is now at the local animal shelter and will be adopted out if not claimed within a week.

If the pup was stolen, which is a possibility, then he should be given back to the rightful owner. If this was an intentional act the owner should not get the dog back.  A small puppy tied to a tree for over an hour, the person responsible doesn’t deserve to own an animal. Who knows what would have happened if the wrong person got a hold of him, scary to even think about.

* Pic courtesy Boston Herald

Fancy’s fortune happened when she was adopted after being dumped in a drop box at the Elkhart County Humane Society. Darlene Guthrie’s good fortune occurred when she adopted Fancy.

Fancy, a 3-year-old Kai Ken-shepherd mix, was adopted by Darlene Guthrie in 2005, when Fancy was just 5 weeks old and weighed less than 3 pounds.

Guthrie, Elkhart Police Department’s animal rescue officer at the time, saw Fancy while dropping off a couple of other neglected dogs. It was love at first sight.

It wasn’t long until Guthrie noticed Fancy had a special talent – the ability to sense seizures in other dogs before they happen.

When Guthrie’s old Labrador dog began having seizures, Fancy would come to Guthrie and her husband.

Guthrie researched procedures to have a dog become a certified work dog and has been working with Fancy for the past several years. Fancy is registered with the United States Service Dog Registry and is considered a service dog.

But Fancy really did have a special talent, apart from being intelligent, and it wasn’t just sensing seizures in other dogs. Guthrie found that out when she developed epilepsy and began having seizures herself in September.

“I knew it was coming when she’d come up to me,” said Guthrie, who owns other dogs. “All you can do is lie down. She would actually stand over me, so my other dogs wouldn’t step over me. She literally stands over me and pushes the dogs off.

Guthrie had to retire early from the Police Department due to her condition, Fancy is now her full-time service dog. What a wonderful story.

* Pic courtesy South Bend Tribune Photo/MARCUS MARTER

Timber, a 13-year-old boxer-shepherd mix, was at Durham County Animal Shelter after biting someone. The dog was there for a 10-day quarantine, then his owner could retrieve him.

Unfortunately, that was not what happened. When Jeff Kessler walked into the shelter he was told his dog was accidentally put down.  A horrible mistake, which both Kessler and the Durham County Animal Shelter agree didn’t have to happen.

Timber bit a woman’s leg in front of Kessler’s Ventura Drive home after he was accidentally let out of a gate March 6. As is standard procedure in biting cases, Timber was taken to the shelter to be quarantined for 10 days, and Kessler had to pay a $500 fine.

“There was no possible misunderstanding that we were giving the dog up,” he said. “I made it very evident that I was coming to get the dog.”

Kessler, 51, went to the shelter to pick up Timber on March 16. The dog was supposed to be in cage 77. Another animal was there instead. Kessler searched the entire shelter, but Timber was not to be found. He had been euthanized March 12.

The shelter has a policy that is supposed to be followed before any dog is euthanized. Every animal has an impound sheet, a card is attached to the animal’s cage, which matches the information on the sheet. The technician who euthanizes is supposed to verify both documents before putting an animal to sleep. In Timber’s case the technician didn’t follow procedure, causing the wrong dog to be put down.

It’s hard enough putting animals to sleep, Price said, but to do so accidentally is a burden shared by the entire shelter.

The technician responsible has been suspended indefinitely from euthanizing, and from the shelter for a week. That punishment hardly seems sufficient, seeing as Timber got life.

* Pic of Timber courtesy newsobserver.com