ohmidog!

The San Marcos police chief has reprimanded the officer who delayed two college students as they tried to rush their dying dog to a veterinarian, the San Antonio News-Express reported today.

Officer Paul Stephens, who said, “It’s just a dog,” as, he held the pair beside Interstate 35, received an oral reprimand and counseling, Police Chief Howard Williams said Tuesday.

“We sustained the complaint that was filed,” Williams said. “We made him watch the tape with his supervisor and he was counseled on how to improve his performance.”

But Williams said he believed his officer’s assessment that the dog was not alive when he pulled over Michael Gonzales for going 95 mph on the highway after midnight Aug. 5.

Gonzales and his girlfriend Krystal Hernandez, both Texas State University students, were rushing their teacup poodle, Missy, from San Marcos to an all-night vet clinic in New Braunfels after the dog choked on her food and went limp.

The couple pleaded with Stephens to allow them to get the dog to the clinic and then turn themselves in later, or to let Gonzales stay and get his speeding ticket while Hernandez completed the trip alone. Instead, they were kept at the scene for almost 20 minutes waiting for Stephens to issue the ticket as he chatted with two other officers who arrived.

The students say the dog died while they waited.

Gonzales said Tuesday he thought an oral reprimand was not sufficient.

“That’s not really a punishment at all,” he said. “I don’t feel a person like that should be working in law enforcement.”

A pit bull mix at shelter in Reno discovered a box full of abandoned kittens while being taken for a walk by shelter volunteers.

And, after one of the kittens darted away, Angel, a 2-year-old female boxer and pit bull mix, tracked it down. All six kittens, described as frightened and hungry, returned with Angel to the Nevada Humane Society’s shelter

Shelter spokeswoman Diane Blankenburg credited Angel with saving the kittens.

Angel was on a walk with Frank Gomez and his 9-year-old stepson Joel Fontes when it became obsessed with something in the bushes and refused to move on.

When the volunteers looked into the bushes, they found a box full of 3-week-old orange tabby kittens.

Angel is currently up for adoption but the kittens won’t be available for about four to five weeks, Blankenburg said.

“Angel is a sweet, playful dog who can now add hero to her repertoire,” Blankenburg said. “Angel, herself a rescued dog, has paid back six-fold by rescuing these six little abandoned kittens.”

(Photos courtesy Nevada Humane Society)

Rather than carry their little dogs in a handbag, American celebrities might want to look into carrying the contents of their handbag in a little dog. Or so Stuffed Ark, a maker of dog handbags — like this Yorkie  ($38.50) – might suggest.
Stuffed Ark says of its fuzzy plush Yorkshire Terrier handbag, “Just shake ‘n fluff and you’re sure to turn heads.”
The bags, which come in about every small breed you can think of, also have removeable straps and collars, zippered pouches inside for keys and lipstick and, in the case of the Yorkie, a rhinestone hairclip. No word on whether they shed, but they are reportedly exceptionally good at “staying.”

(Photo courtesy of stuffedark.com)

  
Sainsbury’s Finance —  a British bank that, among its other services, offers pet insurance — believes that the publicity around celebrities such as Paris Hilton, Britney Spears and Jessica Simpson has fueled the rising public demand for “handbag dogs” like Chihuahuas, Yorkies and West Highland Terriers.
Between 2006 and 2008, the number of small dogs insured by Sainsbury’s Pet Insurance has increased by 41.3 percent This includes a 417 percent increase in the number of Chihuahuas it insures and a 248 percent increase in the number of West Highland White Terriers.

The financial institution — though it’s not turning customers with small dogs away — says choosing a pet for its fashion value is wrong, and warns that carrying a pet in a handbag could distress the animal.

“A pet should never be seen as an accessory and people should not be guided by fashion trends when purchasing a pet,” said Neal Devine, pet insurance manager for Sainsbury’s. “It’s important that you understand the physical and mental needs of a particular breed, such as how much exercise it needs, when you purchase it, and that your lifestyle enables you to accommodate this.”

Devine made the comments in a press release.

Of the 10 most popular small pedigree dogs insured by Sainsbury’s Pet Insurance, most (23.7 percent) are Cavalier King Charles Spaniels. West Highland White Terrier are second and Yorkshire Terriers third.

“Generally speaking, the cost of looking after a pedigree animal is more expensive than for a cross breed,” Devine said. “Indeed, the most frequent claim for a small pedigree dog is for cardiac disease, which can run into thousands of pounds.”

UK pets are the second most insured in the world, according to Tesco Pet Insurance, another British insurer of pets.  Last year, 23 per cent of pets were insured whereas only 12.2 per cent of the UK human population had private medical insurance, the company said.

Allan Burns, head of Tesco Pet Insurance said: “I’m not surprised by this finding. We have known for a long time that us Brits are pet mad.”

The only country with a higher rate of insured pets is Sweden.