More than 75 potential adopters wrote essays describing why they would be the perfect parents for Chip, a Husky puppy found in an SUV after a high-speed police pursuit last month.
When the pursuit ended, the puppy’s former owner, John Garcia, shot California Highway Patrol (CHP) Officer Felix Serpas, who survived and is recovering. The puppy was named Chip in honor of Serpas, according to a news release.
Garcia was taken into custody and charged with attempted murder. Chip was taken to the Riverside County Animal Services shelter in Jurupa Valley, Calif., where there was an outpouring of adoption offers. The shelter asked all potential adopters to write a short essay explaining why they wanted the energetic Husky.
The winner: Mike Ventura of Covina, Calif., who’s a detective with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD).
“His heartfelt words resonated with a team of employees here at the main shelter who helped select the adopter,” said Animal Services spokesman John Welsh in a written statement, the Press Enterprise reports.
As for everyone else who wrote an essay, they will be receiving a special offer from the shelter, according to its Facebook page. I’m guessing/hoping it’s an adoption fee discount, to encourage every one of those dozens of potential pet parents to adopt another lovable homeless dog.
A 6-month-old Husky puppy found in an SUV after a high-speed police pursuit last month is now available for adoption from the Riverside County Animal Services shelter in Jurupa Valley, Calif.
When the pursuit ended, the puppy’s former owner, John Garcia, shot California Highway Patrol (CHP) Officer Felix Serpas, who survived and is recovering. The puppy has been named “Chip” in honor of Serpas, according to a news release.
Garcia was taken into custody and charged with attempted murder.
As you can imagine, the shelter has received many offers to adopt Chip, who is energetic and should be with someone who enjoys an active lifestyle. In other words, couch potatoes — and apartment dwellers — need not apply.
For the special adoption price of only $1 instead of the usual $105 fee, Chip can be yours. However, animal services staff is requesting that his adopter donates at least $104 to the nonprofit California Highway Patrol 11-99 Foundation, which provides financial assistance to CHP employees and their families in times of crisis.
“We believed that this puppy offered us a unique opportunity to do something for a fallen officer,” said Animal Services Director Robert Miller. “This incident was a horrible act against a peace officer. We hope this small gesture on our part – and the prospective adopters’ part – helps raise awareness about the dangers all officers face.”
Potential adopters are welcome to visit Chip at the Western Riverside County/City Animal Shelter, and are also welcome to write a short, 500-word-or-less essay about why they want the Husky. Essays will be accepted through Sunday. They can be emailed to shelterinfo@rcdas.org or dropped off at the shelter, located at 6851 Van Buren Blvd. in Jurupa Valley.
Chip’s new pet parent(s) will be announced Monday, Oct. 5.
Karma, a 4-year-old Siberian Husky who Orange County Animal Care Director Jennifer Hawkins insists is a wolf-dog hybrid, was given a reprieve today from his death sentence.
Hawkins wanted Karma to be euthanized because the dog killed a cat in 2012 and was therefore “vicious.” When a DNA test showed he was part wolf (as are all Siberian Huskies…and all dogs), Hawkins said the “wolf-dog” could not be vaccinated against rabies.
“Ultimately, it was determined that euthanasia is necessary to ensure public safety,” Hawkins said in a statement, according to ABC7.
Karma had been impounded by Orange County Animal Care in Orange, Calif., after his owners, Joshua and Tiffany Ogle, were arrested for domestic violence May 24. The Ogles appealed Hawkins’ decision, but Orange County Superior Court Judge Corey Cramin initially upheld it.
As Karma’s plight became known on social media, more than 350,000 outraged animal lovers signed an online petition urging his life to be spared.
Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer was also opposed to Karma’s death sentence. Yesterday he successfully convinced the Orange County Board of Supervisors to vote 3-2 in favor of asking Cramin to reconsider his ruling.
“You have to convince me personally that there is more aggressive behavior before I’m going to end the life of a beautiful dog,” Spitzer told ABC7.
This morning, Cramin overturned his original ruling. Karma will spend the rest of his life at the Full Moon Farm wolf-dog sanctuary in Black Mountain, N.C.
When Nancy Brown, who owns the sanctuary, found out yesterday that Karma’s life could be spared, she told the OC Register she was “so joyful.”
“I agreed to the terms, as absurd as they are,” Brown said.
Christina Garcia, the Ogles’ attorney, said she had papers proving Karma is a purebred Siberian Husky.
“We would hope in a best-case scenario Karma returns home to his guardians, but if that’s not possible we would like the dog to live out the rest of his life happy in a sanctuary,” she told CBS Los Angeles.
SEPT. 30, 2015 UPDATE: This morning, Orange County Superior Court Judge Corey Cramin overturned his original ruling to have Karma euthanized.
A dog named Karma is on death row. Why? Because he killed a cat.
Yes, it’s terrible that the cat died, but most other dogs who have done the same thing have not been ordered to be euthanized.
Why Karma? Because the Husky mix is allegedly a wolf-dog hybrid.
Karma was taken in by Orange County Animal Care in Orange, Calif., after his owners, Joshua and Tiffany Ogle, were arrested for domestic violence May 24.
Jennifer Hawkins, director of OC Animal Care and its chief veterinarian, decided Karma should be euthanized. After all, Karma had killed that cat in 2012 and was therefore “vicious.” Also, a DNA test showed he was part wolf, and it’s not known whether rabies vaccines are effective on wolf-dog hybrids.
“OC Animal Care staff took great care to weigh all the facts of the case and does not take lightly the euthanasia of any animal, wolf-hybrid or domestic,” Hawkins said in a statement, according to ABC7. “Ultimately, it was determined that euthanasia is necessary to ensure public safety.”
The Ogles appealed, but Orange County Superior Court Judge Corey Cramin upheld Hawkins’ decision.
Animal experts argued that any dog could test positive for having wolf DNA. And as for Karma being a danger to public safety, a hearing officer determined in June that he was not vicious — but that decision was reversed by Hawkins.
As news of Karma’s impending death spread on social media, more than 350,000 outraged animal lovers signed an online petition urging his life to be spared.
The effort apparently worked. The Orange County Register reports that Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer, who opposes Karma’s death sentence, successfully convinced the Orange County Board of Supervisors yesterday to vote 3-2 in favor of asking Cramin to reconsider his ruling.
“You have to convince me personally that there is more aggressive behavior before I’m going to end the life of a beautiful dog,” Spitzer told ABC7. (That’s him visiting Karma in the photo below.)
Joshua Ogle’s sister, Ruby Sanford, told the OC Register she was relieved by the board’s vote. Her three children grew up with Karma. “I’m overwhelmed and nervous,” she said. “I want her to live so badly.”
Sanford’s 8-year-old son, Vincent, thanked Spitzer. “Karma never did anything wrong,” he told him.
Cramin will hear the case tomorrow. If he decides to spare Karma’s life, the dog will be taken in by the Full Moon Farm wolf-dog sanctuary in Black Mountain, N.C.
Nancy Brown, who owns the sanctuary, told the OC Register she was “so joyful” when she heard the news. “I agreed to the terms, as absurd as they are,” she said.
Spitzer told the OC Register that while he respected Hawkins’ decision to have Karma euthanized, the board of supervisors “are the ultimate decision makers when it comes to the county.”
Brown said wolf-dog hybrids are “the bastards of the canine world.”
“Wolf people don’t want them because they think they’re dogs, and dog people don’t want them because they think they’re wolves,” she told the OC Register.
He doesn’t want to be identified, but a police officer in Kansas City, Mo., truly deserves a Compassionate Cop award.
As the officer rode his motorcycle on a U.S. 71 off-ramp yesterday morning, he saw two stray dogs — a Husky and a German Shepherd — standing in a grassy area alongside the busy freeway.
The officer contacted animal control. Then, instead of just driving off, he sat down beside the dogs, petting them and preventing them from running into traffic.
Debbie Downs happened to see the officer performing his good deed. She snapped a photo that has gone viral.
“As I pull up, it’s a motorcycle cop sitting in the cold grass with two stray — or what appears to be stray dogs, just sitting there petting them,” she told FOX 4. “It’s over and above for anyone. Most people wouldn’t look twice at some dogs running around.”
“Love this!” wrote the Kansas City Missouri Police Department, which shared the photo on its Facebook page.
The dogs were taken to KC Pet Project, a local shelter. Neither one was microchipped, and a phone number on the Husky’s tag was outdated. Fortunately, their concerned pet parents, Austin and Ashley Mozingo, had contacted local shelters after the dogs escaped from their yard Monday night. They soon were reunited with the lucky pair.
KC Pet Project spokeswoman Tori Fugate told KCTV the shelter wants the officer to be recognized for going out of his way to save the dogs.
Their pet parents are very grateful and feel the same way.
“It’s good to know there are still police officers out there who still enjoy helping out the community, especially in helping out such sweet dogs,” Austin Mozingo told FOX 4.
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