ohmidog!

A Jefferson County woman says her dog saved her from being sexually assaulted by a man who forced his way into her home, the Kansas City Star reports.

Deputies said Tanya Kendell answered a knock at the door of her apartment Wednesday night. The man outside identified himself as “the cable man.” As soon as soon she let him in, the man forced her down and tried to sexually assault her, deputies said.

That’s when her German Shepherd, Grace, responded, attacking the intruder and biting his upper body. The man ran off. Police were looking for him.

Dog wardens, working with the Humane League of Lancaster County, shut down an illegal dog kennel Wednesday in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and removed 20 dogs from the facility.

The owner, Aaron Lapp, will not be permitted to obtain a kennel license in the future and will be required to keep fewer than 25 dogs per year. In Pennsylvania, any kennel housing more than 25 dogs per year is required to be licensed and inspected.

Wardens first became aware of the illegal kennel from a consumer tip and cited the kennel in August for operating without a license. Lapp pleaded guilty to those charges and was told he could not own or keep more than 25 dogs in a year.

A follow-up inspection of the kennel Wednesday showed a decline in sanitary conditions and dogs in the kennel were found to have matted fur. Wardens contacted the Humane League, which removed the dogs.

“Our state dog wardens are following up on any information about illegal kennels and they are making sure that those facilities come into compliance with the law or are shut down,” said Jessie Smith, Pennsylvania’s special deputy secretary of dog law enforcement. ”

Smith said all dogs in commercial breeding kennels will be better protected under Pennsylvania’s recently signed dog law. The new law doubles the minimum floor space for dogs, eliminates wire flooring, and requires exercise that is at least as good as unfettered access to an exercise area twice the size of the primary enclosure. The previous law did not require that dogs ever be taken out of cages.

In July, the state launched a toll-free hotline, 1-877-DOG-TIP1, to help anyone wishing to offer confidential tips about unsatisfactory or illegal kennels.

An Oregon man used a hammer to euthanize his daughter’s old and ailing dog, then buried it — only to later get arrested when the dog’s cries were heard by a neighbor, according to police.

Responding to that neighbor’s report, police found Molly, a 13-year-old lab mix, buried up to her neck in the family’s backyard, but still alive.

Hyrum Long, 75, and his daughter, 49-year-old Susan Johnson, were arrested Monday by Forest Grove police and charged with animal abuse and neglect, according to KGW News in Portland, Oregon.

Long admitted he made a mistake when he tried to euthanize his daughter’s dog, and said they thought the dog had cancer. Family members said they didn’t have the money to pay to euthanize their dog.

Forest Grove Police Capt. Aaron Ashbaugh said a necropsy report from the Oregon Humane Society indicated the dog had suffered from a chronic skin disease, body sores from lying down for prolonged periods of time, long-term malnutrition and chronic starvation. He said there were indications the dog had not eaten for at least four to five days.

The father and daughter were not at the home when police arrived and found the dog buried up to its neck with an obvious head injury. Officers dug Molly out of the ground, and she was taken by Washington County Animal Control to the Humane Society.

Spokesperson Barbara Baugnon said the 13-year-old dog was in extreme pain and in terrible condition when she arrived. “She couldn’t lift her head but her eyes were following people around the room; obviously she was suffering,” Baugnon said.

Baugnon said they decided the only “humane thing to do” was euthanize the dog.

Ratchet, the rescued Iraqi pup, arrived in the U.S. last week, and here’s the video.

His first stop in Washington is shown above. To see him arriving in Minneapolis, click on this Minneapolis Star-Tribune video.

Ratchet, for two weeks, was the subject of a tug-of-war between a Minnesota soldier in Baghdad and a military that prohibits soldiers from bringing pets home from abroad.

Ratchet was rescued from a burning trash heap by American soldiers in Baghdad and adopted by Army Sgt. Gwen Beberg of Spring Lake Park.

When Beberg tried to get the seven-month-old border collie mix out of Iraq, and to her parents’ home in Minnesota, with help from Operation Baghdad Pups, an officer confiscated the dog as he was on the way to the airport.

Grateful for the emotional support he gave her, and fearful of what might happen if she left him in Iraq, Beberg posted the story on Facebook. 

A college friend blogged about Ratchet’s situation, posted it on the website Digg, drawing attention to the cause. That led to Internet petitions and almost 69,000 signatures from people around the world. Minnesota’s members of Congress also pressed for the dog’s release.

The votes have been counted, and the results have been announced: The winners of The “My Dog Looks Like Obama or McCain” Dog-Look-Alike Photo Contest are Amore Francine and Ginny Doll.

 
The Obama Look-Alike winner, Amore Francine, is a 52-pound boxer, prone to tilting her head, from Mt. Clemens, MI. The McCain Look-Alike winner, Ginny Doll of Rochester Hills, MI, is a 7-pound Maltese with well-groomed white hair, and what contest organizers called a “relatable, friendly face.”

The winning photos, along with more information about each dog and the contest, are available at Rover411.com, a website that celebrates dogs and their owners.

The dogs were chosen from ten finalists in an online contest. Each week, one dog from each category with the lowest votes was eliminated. Over 4000 votes were received.

All this brings to mind my own comparison of presidential candidates and dog breeds, which appeared on my old Baltimore Sun “Mutts” blog.

For Obama, I chose this one …

“Walter the Farting Dog,”  the children’s book soon to explode on the big screen, originated in Canada, when author William Kotzwinkle told his friend Glenn Murray a story about a dog whose flatulence was so objectionable it once cleared out an entire stationery store in Fredericton.

The malodorous mutt, the main character in the series of children’s books co-authored by the pair, will be featured in a new Fox Studios film, starring the Jonas Brothers, slated to begin production next year.

“It has been amazing,” Murray, of New Brunswick, said of the Walter phenomenon in an interview with the Canadian Press. Since it was published in 2001, the book and its four sequels have sold millions of copies worldwide.

Murray says the stories grew out of tale that Kotzwinkle once told about meeting a dog in the 1970s whose farts were especially malodorous.

The movie will be produced by Bobby and Peter Farrelly, with a screenplay written by Alec Sokolow (“Toy Story,” “Garfield”) and Joel Cohen (“No Country For Old Men,” “Fargo,” “O Brother, Where Art Thou?”).

Murray says he still can’t believe that a story about a chronically flatulent dog could become such a media sensation.

“It seems to me the post-9-11 world needed some innocent laughs,” he said. “It’s like the world needed a farting dog.”

The Walter books are more than bathroom humor. Instead the focus is on how Walter always manages to transform his embarrassing flaw into a virtue. Murray says he has heard many stories about children who have laughed their way through the book while facing terminal illnesses and other personal tragedies.

Last week, Murray received a series of emails from St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, where children undergoing cancer treatment use the book to take their minds of their painful ordeal.

“These kids are going through a lot of stuff,” he says. “The procedure room where they go through this is totally decorated with pictures of Walter.”

Of farting, Murray says. “Science tells us we all do it 17 to 23 times a day. … Everyone can connect with it on a certain level.” He once spent 90 minutes on a radio calOl-in show talking about dogs that pass wind.

The fifth book in the Walter series, “Walter the Farting Dog: Banned From the Beach” (Penguin), was published last year.

Like the other books, Murray co-wrote it with Elizabeth Grundy and Kotzwinkle, who also wrote “E.T., the Extra-Terrestrial.” The books, illustrated by Audrey Coleman, have been translated into at least 16 languages.

Murray has already talked about farting-dog mugs, lunch boxes and — say it ain’t so — a new line of scratch-and-sniff books.

The Jonas Brothers have signed with 20th Century Fox to star in the movie version of the popular children’s book “Walter the Farting Dog.”

For the boy band — Nick, Joe and Kevin Jonas, and their younger brother Frankie — it will be their first feature film.

Variety reports that the movie, based on the bestselling series of books by William Kotzwinkle and Glenn Murray, will begin shooting next spring.

The title character in the “Walter” books is a fat dog with severe flatulence. The brothers play musicians whose parents are asked to care for the dog by an aunt just before she passes away.

While his brothers play music, Frankie and the gaseous hound get involved in a plot that involves liberating a koi fish and thwarting jewel thieves.

One last doggie costume, and some final words of advice and — in a couple more nights, anyway — we can put Halloween behind us.

To find this one, I had to venture into the unfamiliar yet very tidy confines of marthastewart.com, where I came across this elaborate headless horsemen outfit that requires PVC pipe, children’s clothing, plenty of stuffing and lots of work.

Modeling it is Bob, who, according to his owner and the costume’s creator, is a Rottweiler-Lab mix that loves to get dressed up.

Keep in mind that not all dogs do. Some dogs enjoy the extra attention, and if the costume presents no hazards, go for it. If you dog resists efforts to put him in costume, don’t push it. On top of the other stress the night brings, putting him into something uncomfortable is asking too much.

Give him time to gradually get used to his costume — and your’s. Your dog may not immediately recognize family members when they’re disguised. Allow your dog to see and scent the costumes beforehand, and let him know who’s behind the mask.

And be wary of the other dangers the holiday poses for canines.

“We hear about more dogs dying or straying during Halloween than any other holiday,” said Liam Crowe, CEO and master dog behavioral therapist of Bark Busters USA. “…By being more sensitive to dogs’ fear-driven ‘fight or flight’ instincts, we can help keep our furry friends safe this Halloween.”

Bark Busters offers these tips: 

– Don’t leave your dog outside. Even if you have a fenced yard, bring your dog inside where it is safe. If your dog is usually kept outside, bring him in a few times before the big night to get him used to being indoors. Your dog may be used to strangers, but remember that it is a natural instinct for dogs to protect the family from strangers, and on Halloween there are likely to be some pretty strange strangers.

– If your dog is timid or scared, or if he tends to love people a little too much, it is best to put him in a separate room away from the front door to limit his excitability, aggression, and chance of running outside and becoming lost.

– Reassure your dog. The best thing you can do for your dog when he is feeling unsettled by Halloween activities is to act as you normally would, and giving him a little extra reassurance and attention.

– Check your dog’s ID tag. Be sure identification tags are secure on your dog’s collar.– Keep candy away from your dog. Many candies — especially chocolate–are toxic to dogs.

– Protect dogs from candles and pumpkins. Excited or agitated dogs can easily knock over a lit candle or pumpkin. Be sure those items are away from your dog’s reach, or consider a battery-powered candle that does not burn.

– Be prepared. If you take your dog with you while trick-or-treating, be prepared at all times. Dogs do not understand that the person jumping out at you will not hurt you; they often think they can only help you by acting aggressively. Neither children nor adults in costumes should approach a dog without the owner’s consent.

Leo, a Jack Russell mix, is being hailed as a hero in Australia for refusing to leave the side of four kittens during a fire at the family home they shared in Melbourne.

The kittens and Leo were rescued by firefighters who revived him with oxygen and heart massage.

“Leo wouldn’t leave the kittens and it nearly cost him his life,” one firefighter said.