Congratulations to puppy-mill survivor Harley, who was announced last night as the American Humane Association 2015 American Hero Dog.
The 15-year-old Chihuahua spent 10 miserable years of his life living in a cage. During that time the little dog suffered heart disease, a fused spine, broken tail, gnarled toes, deformed legs and rotted teeth.
He lost an eye when his cage was power-washed while he was still in it (believe it or not, this is a common practice in puppy mills).
Harley was finally rescued and is spending the rest of his days with his loving forever family in Berthoud, Colo. He was the inspiration for the “Harley to the Rescue” campaign, which for the past two years has raised funds to rescue and provide medical care for more other puppy-mill dogs. Harley goes along on the rescue missions to comfort the sad, scared dogs.
He also makes appearances across the country as a spokesdog against puppy mills.
Harley was the finalist in the Hero Dog Awards’ Emerging Hero Dogs category, for “ordinary” dogs who do extraordinary things.
The purpose of this annual national competition is to recognize dogs who unconditionally help humans. The winners in eight categories were selected from more than 1 million online votes and a judging panel.
“These courageous canines have gone above and beyond the call of duty, saving lives on the battlefield, comforting the ill, aged and afflicted, bringing hope to those who have lost it and reminding us of the powerful, age-old bond between animals and people,” said Dr. Robin Ganzert, AHA president and CEO, in a press release.
“We hope that Harley’s story will inspire people to shut down puppy mills once and for all.”
Along with the Hero Dog Award finalists, the celebrities attending last night’s sold-out gala event at the Beverly Hilton included Fred Willard, Lea Thompson, Michelle Beadle andBruce Boxleitner.
Mark your calendar: The American Humane Association 2015 Hero Dog Awards will air on the Hallmark Channel Oct. 30 at 8 p.m.
For the first time ever, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced today it is establishing requirements for the current good manufacturing practice (CGMP) for food for animals.
“In addition, we are adding requirements for certain domestic and foreign animal food facilities to establish and implement hazard analysis and risk-based preventive controls for food for animals,” the FDA stated.
It’s about time.
After thousands of dogs and cats in the United States died eight years ago as a result of eating contaminated pet food, Congress passed the FDA Amendments Act of 2007. It requires improved regulations for pet food safety, including stronger labeling requirements, an early warning system for tainted food, and establishing standards for ingredients and manufacturing.
“However, eight years later, most provisions of the pet food safety law have not been implemented and protections Congress enacted are not in place,” wrote U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein and Dick Durbin in a letter to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg in March.
The senators were requesting an FDA investigation into the class-action lawsuit filed in February claiming that thousands of dogs were sickened or died after eating Beneful dry kibble.
“To our knowledge, the FDA has not issued any investigations, warnings, consumer guidance or product recalls to address these alarming issues,” the senators wrote.
Regarding its new CGMP requirements, which go into effect Nov. 16, the FDA stated, “We are taking this action to provide greater assurance that animal food is safe and will not cause illness or injury to humans and animals, and to implement new statutory provisions in the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).
“The rule is intended to build an animal food safety system for the future that makes modern science- and risk-based preventive controls the norm across all sectors of the animal food system.”
The Preventive Controls for Animal Food Rule is one of two rules finalized today that will implement the FSMA. The other is the Preventive Controls for Human Food Rule, which will create new safety requirements for facilities that process, package and store food for human consumption.
The good news: Here in Los Angeles, we got some much-needed rain this morning.
The bad news: Because it’s been so long, some people apparently forgot how dangerous the Los Angeles River can become when there’s a downpour.
At least four people and two dogs had to be rescued today from the raging river, including David Quinones and his Pit Bull. They were both able to climb a tree before a swift-water rescue team arrived.
Quinones, who is homeless, told ABC7 he was surprised by the storm this morning. He was with his dog in the riverbed near Shoredale Avenue in the Elysian Valley area.
“Me and my dog got caught by the rising water,” he said. “We basically had to climb up a tree to wait it out. We didn’t know if the water was going to rise. We were just kind of clinging on for dear life.”
He said his dog was “pretty banged up” and her paws were badly bruised. Quinones was treated by a paramedic. According to the Los Angeles FD Facebook page, the dog remained with Quinones.
Farther south down the river, a stray dog and three people who’d befriended him were rescued in Long Beach this morning after they all became trapped in the rising water.
Using ropes, firefighters pulled each of them to safety, the Long Beach Press Telegram reports. The dog, who has some health issues, was taken to Long Beach Animal Care Services for treatment.
The L.A.P.D. and L.A.F.D. are warning people to stay away from the L.A. River today — or whenever there is heavy rain.
Please click here for information on how to help pets displaced by the fires burning in Northern and Southern California in November 2018.
Two major wildfires continue to burn in Northern California, forcing the evacuation of thousands of people and their pets.
As of early this morning, the Butte Fire, which is 37 percent contained, has burned 71,660 acres and destroyed 166 homes. About 10,000 people have been evacuated.
Farther north, the Valley Fire, which is only 15 percent contained, has already burned 67,000 acres and destroyed 585 homes. About 13,000 people have been displaced.
Shelters have been made available for all two- and four-legged evacuees. Donations of supplies for both have been pouring in.
“People are really stepping up,” Meagan Delaware, manager of the Paws Inn in Sonora, told the Union Democrat. The boarding facility is overflowing with pets displaced by the Butte Fire. “This community is awesome.”
Animal rescuers in the Valley Fire area had the exact same thing to say about the good Samaritans there.
“Teamwork! Petaluma Animal Services, Wine Country Animal Lovers, Compassion Without Borders and countless individuals and local businesses have demonstrated what it means to care,” the Sonoma Humane Society wrote on its Facebook page yesterday.
“We are so grateful to be a part of this compassionate community, and so thankful that people and their pets have supplies and support during this difficult time. You are not alone.”
Although many shelters currently have all the supplies they need, that may soon change, especially in the Valley Fire area.
Because that wildfire moved so quickly, some pet parents had to evacuate without their pets. Starting today, those pets and other animals will, hopefully, be rescued.
“We are briefing a strike team of expert animal handlers to go into burned-out areas and handle injured, sick, or fearful/hysterical animals — and get them out of there safely,” Petaluma Animal Services wrote on its Facebook page this morning. “We’ve learned overnight that there are dogs and cats everywhere, livestock — horses, too.”
Here are a few ways you can help pets who have been affected by the wildfires.
Donating Pet Supplies and Cash
The good news is that thanks to so many generous donations, most shelters currently have more than enough supplies, but these will eventually need to be replenished.
Cash donations are especially needed.
For information about donating supplies and money, visit these sites (their current needs are indicated below):
American Red Cross Disaster Relief — Make a donation to via its website, by calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or by texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Specify that you want it to go to California Wildfires.
Temporary Pet Foster Homes Needed
If you live in the Butte Fire area and can foster a pet whose home was destroyed — or if you’re a fire victim who needs a foster home for your pet, the Friends of the Animal Community (FOAC) Facebook page suggests calling Burson Church at 209-772-9310 for a list of referrals.
In the Valley Fire area, contact the Sonoma Humane Society for information about fostering displaced pets. Foster homes for medium- and large-sized dogs are especially needed.
Some especially sweet news: To make room for a Lake County shelter’s influx of pets during the Valley Fire, volunteer foster parents rescued all the dogs and cats who were scheduled to be euthanized, thus sparing their lives and helping to save fire victims as well. Hooray for these heroes!
Helping Horses
Along with families and their pets, fairgrounds in the Butte Fire and Valley Fire areas are also sheltering displaced horses and livestock.
A shelter has been set up at the Napa County Fairgrounds in Calistoga for families, pets and animals displaced by the Valley Fire. For information about helping horses there, check the Lake County Horse Council website.
“There has been an outpouring of donations, but everyone’s needs will be different,” the council wrote on its Facebook page yesterday.
Updates on What’s Needed
For the current needs of pet rescue organizations in the Butte Fire and Valley Fire areas, check the websites above and these Facebook pages:
Seven police dogs died of heat exhaution in hot cars this summer. Four of them died when the air conditioners and heat alarms in K-9 patrol cars apparently failed to work.
One of those victims was Wix, a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois who was a K-9 officer with the Brown County Sheriff’s Office.
Wix died while on duty Aug. 12 at the PGA Championship golf tournament in Kohler, Wisc. His handler, Deputy Austin Lemberger, had left him in the patrol car with the engine and air conditioner running. When Lemberger checked on Wix around 12:30 p.m., the engine and air conditioner were off, and Wix was dead.
Bob Dye, general manager at Ace K9, which manufactures the Hot-N-Pop Pro alarm used in Lemberger’s patrol car, told HLN last month that a challenge in keeping police dogs safe is a device that officers will remember to use.
“These guys, they might have to run from one side of the city to another, from one type of situation to another. They’re under a lot of stress,” Dye said. “It’s human error, and they are devastated when that happens to these dogs.”
But according to the Green Bay Press Gazette, based on an investigation by the Brown County Sheriff’s Office, it wasn’t human error that caused Wix’s death. Lemberger had, in fact, remembered to use the Hot-n-Pop Pro. The device, however, failed to work.
When the car’s interior reaches a temperature set by the officer, the Hot-N-Pop device should “activate a S.O.S. horn honk signal, siren and light-bar activation and dual window drop,” according to the Ace K9 website.
In tests by the Brown County Sheriff’s Office, the Hot-N-Pop repeatedly failed to work, shutting itself off when the temperature rose inside Lemberger’s patrol car.
Dye has not yet commented on the test results.
To prevent more tragedies in K-9 patrol cars, the Brown County Sheriff’s Office’s investigative report suggested safety improvements such as mounting a fan in the window; leaving the rear windows open if the handler will be away for a long period of time; testing the alarm on a daily basis; and inspecting the air conditioner on a monthly basis from May to August.
Most importantly, at least based on the test results, the report suggested upgrading the heat alarm system.
Photos via Facebook; Brown County Sheriff’s Office
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