People Shocked To Discover What Appears To Be Trash On Texas Beach Is Actually Sessile Animal
Things are not always what they seem… Beach goers often see seashells, seaweed, and trash on the sand that has washed ashore. Numerous people attempt to clean up the trash that is covering the beaches, but many are unaware that some of the things that appear to be trash are not. Photo: Pixabay Padre Island National Seashore recently posted a photo of what appears to be discarded yellow rope or fishing gear, but it is actually a living creature. Their followers were shocked to read that the photo was of sea whip coral, not trash....
Fred, The Dumpster Dog
We had just lost our two wonderful family members, Suie and Boomer, litter mates and lifelong companions. Suie had cancer, and when she passed, Boomer seemed to loose the will to live, following his sister soon afterward, leaving us feeling lost and lonely. Our daughter called us up and asked what she could do with a dog she found, telling us that she went to the dumpster to toss her trash, when something underneath it caught her eye. She’d thought it was a kitten, and returned with a handful of cat food. PHOTO: PEXELS A tiny head poked...
Zaphod’s Story
My daughter, Lisa, recently rescued an 11 year old, 3 legged kitty with a cleft palate. Lisa already has 2 other cats that she rescued. PHOTO: JVinVB Zaphod was found in December 2013 with his back left tibia bone broken and sticking through his skin. X-rays revealed he was shot and the bullets were still in his leg, leading to infection. The doctors estimated he had been living in that condition for about two weeks, based on how far the infection had spread. The leg was amputated in January 2014 to prevent it from spreading further. Article...
Scientists Discover World’s Smallest Known Reptile Which They Named The ‘Nano-Chameleon’
The island of Madagascar is known for its unusual wildlife, including a newcomer to the scene: the Brookesia nana. This unusual reptile, also known as the nano-chameleon, can fit on the tip of a human finger and they are the smallest known reptile in existence. As of this time, they have only found two nano-chameleons, but interestingly, one is a male and one is a female. They are able to analyze the difference between the sexes and there are some differences to be found. Photo: Scientific Reports For example, the female’s body is small...
Garbage Man Finds A Puppy Thrown Out With The Trash And Gives Her A Forever Home
The men who pick up the waste in our neighborhoods are often there and gone before we ever get out of bed in the morning. They sometimes see things that the rest of the world doesn’t see. Those early morning sights can be inspiring but they can also be distressing, and that was the case with a Rumpke Waste & Recycling truck driver. Aaron Kinsel was busy working the route outside of Cincinnati in Colerain Township when something unusual caught his eye. It was a backpack that was discarded beside the road. He could’ve simply...
Rescuers Race To Save Dog Who Was Flung From A Truck While His Owner Sped Away
According to American Humane, more than 100,000 dogs die every year because their owners let them ride in open truck beds. Some people mistakenly believe it’s safe for dogs to travel this way — at least until their pet is violently flung from the vehicle. Others, including the driver who sped down the highway with his dog balanced on a flatbed truck, are clearly too reckless to be responsible dog owners. But the person who refused to stop when their dog was flung from the truck bed is in a whole new category of cruel. Sadly, this...
An Old Dog Who Refused To Die
I found a photo of our Rocky on a Facebook status updated from a rescue group near my home. PHOTO: Ashlynn Berger They found three boxers that were starving to death and were attempting to nurse them back to health. Our Rocky was the worst, the vet on staff wanted to put him down. When they found him he was completely emaciated, covered in tumors, and at least 13 years old. The vet didn’t see the point in furthering his suffering, but the rescue group saw something in him that they felt was worth saving. Article continues below Our...
GreaterGood Is Helping UMN Fight Social Injustice with Scholarship for Underrepresented Students
Following the death of 46-year-old George Perry Floyd Jr. in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 25th, 2020, the nation and the entire world began calling for a change in the way African Americans and other minorities are treated by law enforcement and in general. It was an eye-opening experience for many that demonstrated that racism still exists in our country and reminds us that we’re all responsible, regardless of our race, ethnicity, or background, for doing something to fix it. While there are many causes of prejudice and...
Neighbors Sue Elderly Woman For Feeding Stray Cats
Cleo is an outdoor cat, but for years now, the Florida stray has been fed by an elderly woman who leaves food outside her condo in Tampa Bay. The pair have become so close that the 78-year-old condo owner, Joan, even took the tuxedo cat to the vet to be spayed. But now appears Cleo’s daily meal could be in doubt, according to the Tampa Bay Times. According to the condo association board, Joan’s daily habit of leaving out food out for Cleo is bringing a parade of unwanted community cats into the condo’s public spaces. This...
Troika’s Rescue Story
Back in 2009 my husband and I were having a rough time having suffered the loss of two of our cats to Feline Leukemia. Both had it before we adopted them but they each died within six months of each other. Needless to say we were devastated to lose two cats in one year. A couple of months later, a family friend told us about a stray cat that had given birth in a box-spring in a neighbors yard. PHOTO: Christina The litter appeared to be very healthy and the man who’s property it was on was going to find homes for all of them. A week or...
Stray Cat Who Lost Ears Finds Perfect Forever Home
This story originally appeared at Shareably. It absolutely breaks our hearts to see the lifelong implications that living out on the streets can have for some animals. Often, it’s not a simple as taking a stray animal to the vets to get them treated- as we found out when we read one very special little cat’s story. But before you click away, we can assure you that this story has a happy ending. Phew! What do you call a no-eared cat? No, this isn’t actually the beginning of a joke – this dapper-looking puss lost his...
Emaciated Dog Fighting For His Life After Being Dumped In Shelter’s Parking Lot
On January 29, someone dropping off donations to Kentucky Humane Society noticed an emaciated dog in the parking lot and immediately notified staff. The dying dog was so weak he couldn’t even lift his head and was rushed to the shelter’s Veterinary Services department. He weighed just 38 pounds, over 40 pounds underweight, and was started on IV fluids and wrapped in warm blankets. Photo: Facebook/Kentucky Humane Society “He is the thinnest dog we have ever seen that was still breathing,” wrote the shelter in a blog...
Starting today, join us for 8 great Return to Home huddles!
Starting today and through the end of the month, we are hosting eight huddles that focus on Return to Home practices. While these huddles are meant to be used as part of the No Place Like Home Challenge preparation, anyone can participate and learn more about Return to Home (traditionally known as Return to Owner). Held every Tuesday and Thursday in February, these huddles will have a 20-minute presentation followed by a 20-minute Q&A session (except for the one on technology, which will have four speakers and run a little longer). All...
Twin Polar Bear Cubs Born At Detroit Zoo
Suka, a polar bear living at the Detroit Zoo, has given birth before, but sadly neither cub survived more than a few days. But the third time appears to have been the charm for this mama bear. According to the Detroit Zoo, the 8-year-old bear has given birth to not just one, but two healthy cubs! At time of writing, the twins were 2 months old and quickly growing, leaving caretakers excited about raising their first bear cubs since 2004. But although the cubs are now getting stronger, growing teeth, and even learning to walk, their early days...
Threatened Swan Pete Suddenly Dies, Dealing Another Blow To His Species
The Trumpeter Swan is one of North America’s largest flying birds, but sheer size didn’t save this waterfowl from a near brush with extinction. Fortunately, the swan’s numbers have rebounded in recent years, following wildlife breeding programs and concerted efforts to conserve the bird’s rapidly disappearing wetlands habitat. The Trumpeter Swan remains threatened, but the success these efforts has helped populations rebound across Alaska, Canada, and many Western/Midwestern states. Now an estimated 16,000 Trumpeter...
Giant Pandas Frolic In The Snow At Smithsonian’s National Zoo
Do you love playing in the snow? Well, probably not as much as two giant pandas at Smithsonian’s National Zoo. Snow covered the Washington D.C. area this past weekend to the delight of children and two giant pandas, Mei Xiang, age 22, and Tian Tian, age 23. Screenshot: Facebook/Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute The mama and papa bear embraced the change and were seen somersaulting through the white fluff. One of the pandas slid down a hill head-first with all of its limbs spread out in the shape of a...
Ruby, The Puppy Mill Rescue
My husband and I have volunteered with a shiba inu rescue for a few years now. We were asked by the rescue if we could make some room in our home for another shiba inu – coming from a puppy mill in Wisconsin. PHOTO: Janel Scott She was a breeder mama who most likely lived her whole existence in a cage. She was about 5 years old and knew no kind touch from a human hand. When we met her at the rescue’s transport location, we found a little red hair ball in the back of a crate, shaking in fear. She had no name at the mill, she had...
Drugs To Hugs
My amazing sister is a pediatric critical care nurse who works nights at her client’s home. The family of the little girl she was taking care of often talked about the group of guys living next door and their brindle, Rhodesian Ridgeback mix dog. The neighbors were drug addicts who would inject their dog with heroin to see how it would behave. PHOTO: Anonymous On top of that, the dog was often beaten and kicked as well as given whatever drugs the group of guys were on as a way to entertain themselves. After listening to these stories...
Dogs Were Woman’s Best Friend Before Man’s Best Friend, Study Finds
Dogs are commonly called man’s best friend, but a new study reveals they were woman’s best friend first. Anthropologists at Washington State University noticed a lack of research on the coevolutionary relationship between dogs and humans and performed an in-depth study to find some answers. They found that dog-human coevolution was ‘disproportionately’ influenced by dogs’ relationships with women. “We found that dogs’ relationships with women might have had a greater impact on the dog-human bond than...
Maddie’s Weekly Roundup: Safety net fostering, CARE webcast series and more!
Below is a brief round-up of new blog posts and resources we’ve added over the past week. 5 tips for recruiting safety net fostersAs we move toward community-centric animal services practices, many shelters and rescue organizations are considering creating safety net fostering programs. These programs provide temporary care for pets whose owners are in crisis, but who would like to keep their pets in the long term. “I think there’s been a growing interest for programs like this… Learn More Check out these Return...
