In Florida, it’s illegal to save your pets from a burning house
OK, it’s not exactly illegal to save your pets from a burning house. But it can get you arrested if you’re in Florida.
Henry Morgan’s house was on fire, and he tried to go back in to save his wife, relatives and pets Firefighters stopped him. He tried again, and they stopped him again. After this back-and-forth hubbub went on and on, everyone got hot, so to speak. Morgan got mad, and so did the firefighters. The firemen apparently had to stop fighting the fire to keep Morgan (shown here) out of the burning building. Eventually, they just arrested him.
I can see both sides of this one. If your Morgan, you want to do everything you can to make sure your pets survive. If your the firemen, you want to do everything you can to make sure everyone survives, even the guy climbing in the window of his burning house.
So I’m with them on arresting him. It was for his own protection. But charging him with several crimes? Really? Totally unnecessary. They lost five cats and four dogs. Thankfully, all his relatives survived.
The man lost everything he owns, including nine pets. Don’t add insult to injury.
Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
Speaking of hoarding …
This might be the worst case ever: 800 dogs in a triple-wide trailer in Arizona.
We were just discussing hoarding on the blog yesterday.
Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
Paloma storms the Caribbean
Today, people in Cuba and Hispaniola are coping with tropical storm Paloma.
She’s fierce, they say, and could strengthen rapidly into a hurricane.
I’ve been living with a hurricane named Paloma for almost four years.
She’s a gray and white Italian greyhound whose full name is Paloma Belladogga and is a force of nature unto herself.
She barks like a hurricane’s wind blows — that is to say, constantly.
And she is fast. Very fast. Like here:
To see how fast the breed is in motion, here’s a video of an Italian greyhound running:
But the storm, like its 11-pound counterpart, has a calm spot. She can be content and motionless for hours. As long as she is being petted and loved on. Or is sitting for a portrait, like here:
Perhaps the Caribbean Paloma will fly through without wreaking much havoc, or she will graduate to a hurricane that will not soon be forgotten.
Either way, Paloma and I will be watching.
– Amy Raymond, Assistant News Editor
Pets in the paper
Animal stories in The Oklahoman today -
Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
Tigers use training to escape flames
Three Siberian tigers, using their circus training, jumped over a wall of flames to safety recently after the truck they were riding in caught on fire in Germany.
The tigers were trained to jump through hoops of fire and 
used that experience when their ringmaster ordered them to jump over the wall of flames in the truck, said circus owner Daniel Renz.
Rescuers saved three other tigers left behind in the 43-foot wagon during the fire. Circus workers coralled the tigers on the highway and police closed the road to traffic.
Renz said one of the tigers suffered some smoke inhallation, but the other five were in good condition. The circus was scheduled to go on as planned Thursday, but the six tigers involbed in the fire will get a rest while some of the show’s other tigers perform.
Renz said an overheated suspension system on the truck is suspected as the cause of the fire.
- Staff Writer Bryan Dean
Stillwater employees rescue dog from drain
Last week Stillwater employees found something other than water in a city drain.
They found Amy.
The chow-retriever mix had disappeared , and her owner, Sharon Ore, called city workers because she suspected Amy might be trapped in a drain, according to the city.
Turns out, Sharon was right. Amy, a delightful puff of yellow fur, was trapped. (No word yet on how the heck that happened.) City workers were able to retrieve the retriever. Check out the city Web site for more pictures of Amy’s rescue.
Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
Man charged in bird deaths
An Oklahoma City man has been charged in connection with the deaths of 187 baby cliff swallows.
Gregory Owen, 58, has been charged with taking the nest of a cliff swallow, a misdemeanor. Owen faces up to six month in jail and a $15,000 fine.
Owen declined comment to Oklahoman reporter Randy Ellis.
Read our past blogs about this story:
- - Law enforcement should set example with bird killer
- - Breaking news: Last baby bird dies
- - Progress made in bird deaths case in Oklahoma City
Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
Chinese food kills 1,500 dogs
The chemical responsible for causing illness in thousands of babies throughout China is responsible for killing about 1,500 dogs in one province of China, the Associated Press is reporting.
The chemical, melamine, was what caused the death of dozens of animals across North America last year when tainted wheat gluten was found in imported dog food.
Scientists researching what happened in the new dog deaths, which reportedly have been happening for the past few months, discovered horrifyingly high rates of melamine in the animal feed. The rates reported are 500 parts per million. The Chinese legal limit is 2.5 parts per million.
The dogs that died are racoon-like pups bred for their fur.
Check back to the Pet Show blog as we continue following this story.
Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
Evicted residents leave pets to die
A few weeks ago, I looked in anger down my street: at least three Jack Russells running loose.
A neighbor of mine owns three, sometimes five, sometimes more terriers, and he never really kept track of them. One time one of his dogs even wound up digging under two fences to find her way into my back yard. Many times his dogs got loose and ran in the streets, dodging cars and neighbors trying to corral them.
But this time was different. He’d be evicted from his rental home, and in a rush to leave before the sheriff’s department showed up, he left his dogs. He opened his gate and let his dogs out.
I was furious. His track record of irresponsible pet ownership culminated in this.
Apparently, he’s not the only person who does such things. I saw a story from an Australian newspaper about tenants who left two dogs and a cat locked inside an apartment. (This photo shows one the dogs and a vet who’s helping take care of them.) The owners have a few days to pick up their animals from the pound, but I doubt that will happen.
In these times of financial crisis, many of us have seen neighbors who’ve lost their homes to foreclosure or eviction. We have to keep our eyes open for animals who might be caught up in the chaos.
Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
Meet Owen and Mzee, your daily dose of cute
If you’re looking for cute, meet Owen and Mzee.
A coworker of mine forwarded me an email full of pictures of this unlikely pair, along with their story. I’d never heard of this unlikely pair before. They are incredible.
In 2004, a baby hippo was separated from his mother during a tsunami. He was rescued and taken to an animal reserve in Kenya, where he met Mzee, a 130-year-old male tortoise. Mzee sort of adopted Owen, who follows his every move. They’ve been inseparable since. They’re friendship has resulted in children’s books, a documentary movie and lots of press coverage, not to mention their own fancy Web site.
So that’s it – you’re daily dose of cute.
Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
