ohmidog!

 
If you’re wondering when the Locust Point Dog Park is finally going to become a reality, there’s a chance to find out the latest tonight at a meeting tonight of dog park supporters.

It starts at 7 p.m. at City Limits, 1700 E. Fort Ave.

The dog park committee will be discussing plans for the Locust Point Festival (Saturday, September 26) and sharing the latest information from the city about when the park will open.

Original projections called for the dog area at Latrobe Park to open this summer.

The project was initially being handled by the citizens group, but the city offered to take it over and make it the first city-funded dog park. Since then, construction has begun, but judging from my drive-bys, hasn’t progressed too speedily. While the city is paying for construction, the citizen’s group will be responsible for maintenance.

Michael Vick, in the first of what he hopes will be dozens of appearances around the country to urge low-income youths to avoid dogfighting, spoke to a small gathering  in Atlanta yesterday — but most press was banned from the event.

Vick’s visit to a suburban Atlanta community center was largely off limits — both to the news media and most members of the neighborhood it was supposed to be helping. Only 55 people and a crew from “60 Minutes” were allowed to attend, the Associated Press reported.

An Associated Press reporter, videographer and photographer were among the media banished from the property by police. Most people who live in the largely black neighborhood southeast of Atlanta were unaware of Vick’s appearance.

Wayne Pacelle, president of the Humane Society of the United States, said the group wants to be open and reach as many people as possible with its anti-dogfighting message, but Vick’s handlers insisted on tight controls on the meeting.

“We don’t want this to be a flash in the pan,” Pacelle said. “We are committed to transparency over the long run and having Michael involved in many community-based events to speak about the issue. I don’t want to put words in his mouth, but he wants the opportunity in a controlled setting to make his first statement on the issue. But I’m sure he’s going to be speaking out more based on what he had to say today.”

“We’re giving him an opportunity to plug into our community-based forums,” Pacelle said. “But he obviously has his own set of individuals who are working with him and want to present things in the way they want.”

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Anwar Sadat’s daughter has filed a complaint against the makers of “I Love You Man,” a 2009 Dreamworks film, for naming a dog after the former president of Egypt, her lawyer said Saturday.

“This is a disaster, a serious affront,” said Samir Sabri, the lawyer for Rokaya Sadat, daughter of the former president and peace Nobel prize winner.

Muslims believe dogs are impure and unclean, and calling someone a dog is taken as a serious insult in the Middle East.

Egypt’s prosecutor will look into the complaint, but it is unclear what sort of action Egyptian courts could take against the Hollywood movie company, the Associated Press reported.

In the movie, actor Jason Segel’s character has a dog — it appears to be a puggle — named Anwar Sadat. When asked if it’s because he likes the former president’s policies, the character replies it is due to the dog’s resemblance to the Egyptian leader. The name of the dog also appears in the credits as Anwar Sadat, playing himself, the dog.

When the film opened in Egypt last month, the scene with the dog was excised by the distributor, but it came to light anyway when the scene was publicized by an Egyptian website.

“This has caused serious psychological and moral damages to the plaintiff, as President Sadat is a prominent figure in the Arab history in general and in Egyptian history in particular,” the lawyer’s brief said. “Everyone agrees that he is a unique leader who was politically savvy, and has worked hard to serve his country.”

Commentators in Egypt have called the movie, which grossed more than $71 million in the U.S., another in a long series of slights against Arabs and Muslims in Hollywood, which kind of makes one wonder why it would end up in theaters there in the first place.

Sabri said he has also filed a libel lawsuit against the Egypt’s minister of information, demanding that copies of the movie be removed from the market, because it has “gravely tarnished the name and history of the leader … and symbol of the nation.”

Sadat ruled Egypt between 1970 and 1981, when he was assassinated by Islamic militants who rejected the peace deal he signed with Israel two years before.

 
Animal shelters, already swamped with dogs and cats, are bracing for an onslaught of guinea pigs as a result of the new Disney movie “G-Force.”

The movie depicts a squad of specially trained, guinea pig spies coming to the world’s rescue. But, says the Associated Press, it may end up being real-life guinea pigs who need rescuing.

Some guinea pig rescue groups, fearing a surge in guinea pig surrenders, already have posted pleas to the public to think twice before buying a guinea pig on the spur of the moment.

“I can tell you, every single rescue in the United States and abroad took a look at that movie trailer and said, ‘Oh, God, here we go,’ ” said Whitney Potsus, vice president of the Critter Connection in Durham, Conn.

The fears are based on past experience — from ”101 Dalmatians” sending thousands rushing to buy black-and-white spotted pups to surges in Chihuahua popularity after the moves “Legally Blonde” and “Beverly Hills Chihuahua.”

“We can only hope … parents will all do their research before bringing any critters home. Otherwise, when the novelty wears off, rescues everywhere are going to have their hands full with surrenders,” Potsus said.

Activists say there are several waves of worry ahead: during the movie’s run in theaters, when it comes out on DVD and when the novelty wears off.

About 795,000 homes have guinea pigs as pets, according to the American Pet Products Association.

Disney is aware of the power of the movies and works to promote a strong pet responsibility message, a studio spokeswoman said. For “Beverly Hills Chihuahua,” Disney made sure most of the animals in the movie came from shelters and each was adopted when the movie was over.

For “G-Force,” a statement is posted on the movie’s website and on other promotional materials, advising viewers to  research any pet “to make sure that it is suitable for your particular situation” and consider adopting from a shelter.

Claiming he was gypped out of a five-legged dog, freak show owner John Strong is taking his case to court — TV court.

Strong’s breach of contract case against Calvin Owensby, who reneged on his offer to sell Strong the dog for use in his Coney Island sideshow, will be heard next Wednesday in the studio courtroom of the show “Judge Jeanine Pirro.”

The hearing will air on Sept. 21, the Gaston Gazette reported. Representatives of the program approached Strong about airing the case on TV.

Owensby, of Gastonia, agreed to sell Strong his five-legged Chihuahua puppy for $3,000 in late June.  The next day day Allyson Siegel, of Charlotte, offered Owensby $4,000 for the dog, hoping to spare it from life as a sideshow exhibit. Owensby, who’d acecpted a deposit from Strong, canceled the earlier deal, returned the deposit and sold the puppy to Siegel.

Siegel, who renamed the dog — from Precious to Lilly — had  the dog’s fifth leg amputated two weeks ago, immediately after hearing Strong planned to take legal action to prevent the amputation.

“I’m a very good talker. I can make my points come across,” Strong told the Gazette. “I’m just not going to stay quiet on this because I don’t want the general public to perceive me as a bad person, and this woman is perceived as a hero.”

The television show will pay Strong the $4,000 if Owensby loses the case, according to a spokesperson from the show.

Strong said he resents accusations that he would humiliate the dog and treat it poorly at his sideshow.

“No animal has the intelligence to know if they’re humiliated or not,” he said.

I’m not a big fan of justice being dispensed on TV shows, but here’s hoping Strong gets totally and publicly humiliated by Judge Jeanine — not that, judging from the case he’s presented so far, he’d necessarily realize it if he was.

Gabrielle, the 8-month-old cat a witness says was set on fire twice by two boys in northwest Baltimore, was the sixth animal torture case to surface in Baltimore this summer, according to Caroline Griffin, chairwoman of a task force set up last month to fight animal abuse.

The abuse was reported by a witness last week, but the cat, who appears to be recovering despite serious burns, wasn’t located until this week, said Baltimore Animal Rescue & Care Shelter director Jennifer Mead-Brause.

Two boys were seeing throwing rocks and bricks at the cat, then pouring liquid on her and setting her on fire. When the cat managed to roll around and put the fire out, the youths set her on fire again, BARCS says.

In addition to Gabrielle, at least five other cases of animal torture have been reported in the city this summer, starting in May when a pit bull was set on fire. A police officer put the fire out, but the dog, dubbed Phoenix, had to be euthanized several days later when the burns — over 98 percent of the dog’s body — led to other complications.

After that a dead cat was found with a blue cord tied around its neck, and another was found secured to a fence. It had apparently been killed with fireworks. Last month, two cats were found in an outdoor cellar in Elkwood Park, where they had apparently been stoned to death.

Jack Domm, who owned one of the cats, named Squeaks, said the cat had been missing two weeks when it another were found dead in the hole.

“These cats were put in the hole and stoned to death,” Domm told WBAL-TV. He said he thinks neighborhood kids threw the cats in the hole and battered them with broken concrete.

Shanghai’s dog owners could find themselves facing stricter guidelines after the city’s lawmakers finish drafting new rules governing pet ownership.

Even small dogs may be forbidden on public transport and in shopping malls and supermarkets. Other provisions could restrict where dogs can be walked and make owners responsible for any messes they leave behind, according to Xinhua, the Chinese news agency.

Shanghai People’s Congress has started research on the issue and will work with the Public Security Bureau to develop comprehensive new dog ownership rules, local lawmakers said.

Shanghai’s current dog regulations were issued in 1993, and though amended in 1997 and 2002, they aren’t sufficiently detailed to cope with the city’s modern-day canine concerns, the security bureau said.

“If dog management is not strengthened, these pets may still bring pleasure to their owners but could pose trouble or even danger to the larger population,” said Deng Zixin, a member of Shanghai People’s Congress.

Economic prosperity has allowed more people to own pets in Shanghai, and the sight of dogs romping in parks and greenbelts has become increasingly common. Current regulations don’t specify what neighborhood committees can do to deal with those concerns, Deng said.

He said more than 10,000 Shanghai residents are bitten by dogs each year, and the new rules are expected to hold owners liable in such cases.

The new regulations might also order owners of “aggressive breeds” to keep their dogs out of the downtown area, reports said.

A woman in Poland is suspected of fattening up her dogs, then slaughtering them and selling their lard as a health supplement, according to an AFP report.

Polish police were questioning a woman at a farm near Czestochowa, in southern Poland, whose 28 dogs include St. Bernards and several puppies, found living in cages on the farm.

Police also founds bottle of lard, which they are testing to see if it came from dogs.

An animal welfare group tipped off the police after buying some lard at the farm.

Some of the dogs “were overfed to the point of no longer being able to walk,” according to a spokesperson for the organization For Animals.

The For Animals group’s undercover inspector, Renata Mizera, said the farmer had stressed the health benefits of the lard and told her that she herself added a spoonful to her daughter’s evening meal.

The police are checking whether the lard – which was found in bottles in a refrigerator at the woman’s farm – comes from dogs.

The 37-year-old farmer could face up to two years in jail for animal cruelty and distributing an unsafe substance, Poland’s TVN24 reported.

The dogs were seized and are being cared for by a vet while For Animals seeks to find new homes for them.

The North Carolina Senate narrowly passed a bill that will require licenses and set of basic standards for large dog breeding operations.

S.B. 460, intended to crack down on abusive puppy mills, passed the state senate by a vote of 23 to 22.

The bill calls upon the Department of Agriculture to establish basic humane care standards. It requires facilities with more than 10 female dogs and more than 30 puppies to register with the state, undergo yearly inspections and provide proper veterinary care.

The Humane Society of the United States applauded the bill’s passage.

“Citizens in North Carolina want to see the state crack down on puppy mills,” said Amanda Arrington, The HSUS’ North Carolina state director. “We urge the House to move quickly to enact this important legislation to prevent further animal suffering and protect consumers.”

In February, The HSUS and local authorities rescued more than 300 dogs from two abusive North Carolina puppy mills. The dogs were housed in filthy, cold, cramped cages without access to exercise, adequate veterinary care, or human contact. Many of the dogs were covered with feces and suffered from severe skin and eye infections. Some had chain collars embedded in their necks.

A similar bill was passed in Virginia in 2008 after a large puppy mill raid there.

An 8-month-old cat deliberately set on fire — twice — by what a witness described as a group of young people was treated for serious burns and is now being montiored at Baltimore Animal Rescue & Care Shelter.

The city office of Animal Control received a call from a citizen who said she saw several children throwing rocks and bricks at the cat in the Garrison Avenue neighborhood. The witness said the children then poured liquid on the cat. The witness said she turned away, but when she looked back the cat was burning.

The cat was able to roll and put the flames out, but the children caught it and set it on fire a second time.

Despite her condition the cat, now named Gabrielle, was purring as the BARCS staff evaluated her, according to Jennifer Mead-Brause, executive director of BARCS.

BARCS, using money from its Franky Fund, sent Gabrielle to Everhart Veterinary Hospital for further evaluation.

Gabrielle is back resting at the shelter now, and a local animal rescue organization, Recycled Love, has agreed to take over the care of Gabrielle.

This case is being referred to police for further investigation.