ohmidog!

A Colorado Springs attorney accused of not allowing a disabled woman and her service dog into his office because he feared his new carpet might be soiled will pay $50,000 as part of a consent decree approved by a federal court today.

A November 2009 complaint accused Patric LeHouillier of violating the Americans with Disabilities act by barring Joan Murnane, a veterinarian with brain and other injuries that affect her balance, from entering his  law office because her service dog was with her.

The complaint says LeHouillier and his firm, LeHouillier & Associates, expressed concern that the Australian shepherd might soil its new carpet, according to a report in Westword.

That decision, under the consent decree, will cost him $50,000 –  $30,000 for Murnane, $10,000 for her husband and another $10,000 for a civil penalty.

“For almost two decades, the ADA has ensured that individuals with disabilities are guaranteed full and equal access to public accommodations, both large and small,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department is unrelenting in [eradicating] discrimination against people with disabilities and ensuring that owners and operators of public accommodations recognize their obligations to provide equal access.”

The consent decree was approved by Judge Marcia S. Krieger in U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.

Under its terms, LeHouillier and his firm will be required to adopt an ADA-compliant service animal policy and post the policy in a conspicuous location, post a “Service Animals Welcome” sign, and provide training to staff.

The press release noted that a service animal is any animal individually trained to work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability — and that the classification is not limited to dogs that assist the blind.

It includes, the press release says, dogs who alert individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing to sounds, warn persons about impending seizures or other medical conditions, perform tasks for persons with psychiatric disabilities and provide physical supports for individuals with mobility issues.

More information about the ADA, including how to file an ADA complaint with the Justice Department, is available on the ADA home page at www.ada.gov.

The Justice Department also has a toll-free ADA Information Line (800) 514-0301 or (800) 514-0383 (TTY).

(Photo: Cafepress.com)

The days of dogs bringing in the newspaper might be numbered — for reasons that have nothing at all to do with dogs — but until then there are those, like Nariz, who are eager to deliver.

Nariz, whose name comes from the Spanish word for nose, belongs to Deb and Roger Pyle, who get their local newspaper delivered to their home in Astoria, Oregon. Every afternoon, Nariz sticks her nose into the Pyles’ newspaper box, pulls out The Daily Astorian and delivers it to her waiting owners in exchange for a cookie, reports — who else — The Daily Astorian.

“We didn’t train her. She just likes to do stuff for us,” Deb Pyle explained.

The Pyles’ adopted the dog from the Clatsop County Animal Shelter when she was 10 months old.

“There was one day when she was acting like she wanted a job so I walked her out to the paper and put it in her mouth and then we walked back to the house together,” Deb Pyle said. Next, Roger Pyle taught Nariz how to put her head in the newspaper box and remove the paper herself.

After that, Nariz expanded into mail delivery. “The mailman has learned that he can hand it over to her and she’ll bring it to us,” Deb Pyle said.

Friends of the Animals, a non-profit group in North Carolina chaired by NASCAR driver Greg Biffle and his wife, plans to build a 1.5-acre no-kill animal and education center on the shore of Lake Norman in Iredell.

The center, which will include a low-cost spay and neuter clinic, will be in the planned $800 million Langtree at the Lake community off Interstate 77, according to Thatsracin.com.

Friends of the Animals hopes the center will open within two years.

The animal sanctuary will house 60 cats and 90 dogs that will be available for adoption.

The Langtree Group, a land development company, is allowing Friends of the Animals to use green space in the development for a community dog park and walking trails.

“Friends of the Animals searched for several years to find a location that would be easy for the public to access,” said Nicole Biffle, president of the Friends of the Animals’ board or directors. “ If the location is easy and friendly, we know it will increase adoptions and spay/ neuters for the animals.”

NASCAR driver Greg Biffle founded the Greg Biffle Foundation in 2005 to serve as an advocate to animals.

According to the old saying — at least as old as Shakespeare — every dog has his day. 

In California they just got an extra one.

Interpreting a regulation that sets the “holding period” for a stray dog impounded in a public or private animal shelter at “six business days” (or, if certain exceptions apply, “four business days”), a state appeals court in San Francisco has ruled that Saturdays don’t count as business days.

The ruling  was the first to interpret a 1998 California law that increased the holding periods for public and private shelters, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

The ruling will affect Contra Costa County Animal Services and all other counties and cities with similar policies.

The case goes back to 2006, when a miniature pinscher named Duke, was impounded at a county shelter in Pinole on a Thursday. The shelter held the dog until the following Wednesday, when another person took him. Duke’s owner, Veena Purifoy, went to the shelter the next day the following to find him gone.

She sued both the county and the new owner, who relinquished Duke in a settlement, Evans said. The suit against the county challenged its claim that the shelter had held the dog for the required four business days.

Overturning a judge’s ruling in the county’s favor, the appeals court said the state law did not define business days but was intended to increase holding periods from the pre-1998 law, which required a 72-hour hold.

Excluding Saturday as a business day serves “the legislative goal of access, because longer holding periods will often provide more opportunities for redemption and adoption,” Justice Martin Jenkins said in the 3-0 ruling.

(Photo from Cafepress.com)

Maryland’s  House of Delegates has approved a proposal that would allow dogs in the outdoor dining areas of restaurants in Frederick County.

An identical measure passed the Senate, but one of the bills still has to be approved by the other chamber before landing on the governor’s desk.

The measure lets Frederick County Commissioners create an exception to silly state health regulations that ban dogs — except service dogs — from dining areas, both indoors and out.

Allowing dogs at restaurants has been touted as a way to increase tourism in downtown Frederick, especially at the Downtown Frederick Partnership’s event, Dog Days of Summer, according to the Frederick News-Post.

If the bill becomes law, county commissioners would need to enact an ordinance or regulation to allow dogs in outdoor dining areas.

The bill passed the House of Delegates 130-3 with delegates Charles Jenkins of Frederick County, Emmett Burns and Stephen Lafferty opposed.

A jury has found the former owner of Pennsylvania’s Almost Heaven kennel guilty on several counts of animal cruelty.

Derbe “Skip” Eckhart was cleared on a number of other charges.

The jury, which began deliberating Monday afternoon, returned to the judge’s chamber twice and came back with a partial verdict just before 6 p.m.

Out of 13 total counts, Eckhart was found guilty of only four, WFMZ reported. Two of those were for animal cruelty; two were for license violations.

The jury found him not guilty on four other counts and could not make a decision on five more.

“We respect the jury, but we’re not satisfied,” said Eckhart defense attorney Jeff Conrad, when asked about the verdict. “We wanted a full acquittal.”

Prosecutors said Eckhart neglected hundreds of animals and kept them in deplorable conditions inside his Upper Milford Township, Lehigh County kennel. Eckhart and his attorney claimed the former kennel owner was well-intentioned, but got in over his head, and that televised raids which led to the trial were a ploy by overzealous animal law enforcement officials.

Eckhart’s sentencing is scheduled for May 18.

 
It’s an anus. Deal with it.

Having a curly-tailed dog, I’ve gotten used to the sight (though I’ll admit what’s known as Ace’s “winky” has a way of popping up in photos far more often than I’d like).

But for those who can’t tolerate the sight, for the sphincter-phobic among us, for those who find the anus especially heinous, there’s now a product designed to spare dog owners from catching a glimpse of the offending orifice.

It’s called Rear Gear – and it is, quite possibly, the silliest canine-related product we’ve heard of since the dog chastity belt.

Made in Oregon, Rear Gear comes in several designs including a disco ball, air freshener, heart, flower, biohazard, smiley face, cupcake, sheriff’s badge and dice.

The website offering it, which says they are made with recycled paper, recycled styrene and satin cord, doesn’t make clear how it is attached/installed — and I’m not sure I want to know. Apparently the cord is used as a noose around the tail.

Still, you’d think they’d become a little problematic when the time comes for the dog to poop. Even if they don’t interfere with the function, they probably — unless removed and reattached — come out a little worse for wear

The makers of Rear Gear — “No more Mr. Brown Eye,” is their slogan — say they are also happy to work with you on a custom design. They sell for $5 each.

Tater Tot, a 6-year-old yellow lab, was found alongside the northbound side of Interstate 93 in New Hampshire, not far from where she had bolted after the car she was riding in rolled over Thursday evening, the Union Leader reported.

On Thursday, Trish Dale of Warren, Vt., suffered a concussion and a broken nose when she fell asleep and lost control of her car. Two of her four dogs, Tater Tot and Buddy, were in the back seat, and both ran from the car after the accident.

Buddy was found quickly, but Tater Tot disappeared.

When Dale’s husband, John Dale, put out word that he was going to search for the dog about 100 people, including Cassandra Gatsas, wife of the city’s mayor, showed up to help look.

John Dale said Gatsas, who is on the board of directors of the Manchester Animal Shelter, had sent out e-mails to people and had posted messages of Facebook.

“I thought how wonderful this is,” John Dale said. “Where in the world could something like this happen?”

The search party produced results: Judy and Bob Sylvia, a Manchester couple who decided to help look for the dog after reading about Tater Tot’s disappearance, spotted Buddy curled up near a fence by Exit 9, about a mile north of where the accident occurred.

He was reunited with his family Monday.

Gory Bateson and Dougie Mac chose what they call “the famous dog poop sculpture in Beverly Hills” to record this “public service announcement” — a musical reminder to pick up your dog’s poop.

The sculpture isn’t really of dog poop (though there is some resemblance), it’s just modern art.

Similarly, “Gory Bateson” isn’t really Gory Bateson – he’s a modern-day artistic creation, as well.

Gateson is the internet persona of Nick Trujillo, a California State University, Sacramento, communications professor  who, a la Spinal Tap, established an alter ego as the burned out former lead singer of the mythic band The Ethnogs.

It’s all aimed at exploring how viral media works — how popular sensations emerge within the new media landscape. Trujillo has posted more than 70 videos on YouTube under the guise of Gory in hopes of seeing the character go viral.

Gory said he was inspired after he happened by the silver sculpture ( “Erratic,” by artist Roxy Paine, on Santa Monica Boulevard, across from Beverly Hills City Hall). “It looked like dog poop to me. I had dogs for 25 years so I tend to see the world in dog terms.”

Gory points out that he was not paid by Beverly Hills to make the announcement, but undertook it on his own, with his fellow Ethnog, ”Dougie Mac” (who’s really Dr. Bob Krizek, a professor of communication at St. Louis University.)

The song may be a fake public service announcement, performed by a made-up characters, in front of a sculpture that’s open to interpretation, but its message, Gory says, is real:

Pick up that poop.

 
A retriever mix named Juanita was rescued from an otherwise empty yacht off the coast of New Zealand yesterday.

Juanita reportedly poked her head out of a hatch when a rescue vessel pulled alongside the drifting yacht Tafadzwa, which had been at sea for 17 days.

The 2-year-old dog belonged to the yacht’s missing owner, Paul Janse van Rensburg, according to the New Zealand Herald.

“When we pulled up alongside, she poked her head out for a bit, but went down below again,” said fisherman and diver Floyd Prendeville, of the fishing boat Legionaire, which towed the Tafadzwa to the Chathams.

Prendeville said the dog was shaking and silent as he approached. “She was very wary of me, and then I just pulled her in and gave her a couple of comforting pats, and she was shaking, and then she came right.”

Juanita somehow managed to fend for herself after Janse van Rensburg, 40, was lost overboard within days of setting sail from Tauranga for Gisborne on March 12. The boat drifted from the East Cape to the Chathams.

Juanita was carried to dry land, and after trotting around the wharf for a while, was led to a vehicle and taken to the local constable’s house.

(Photo: New Zealand Herald / Mark Mitchell)