ohmidog!

It’s not just Los Angeles, and not just California whose shelters are awash in Chihuahuas.

Phoenix is, too. Maricopa County Animal Care and Control shelters received 821 Chihuahuas in the last two months, according to the Associated Press.

 That’s 230 more than during the same period last year.

As of yesterday, there were 84 Chihuahuas awaiting adoption.

The shelter is offering a special deal this weekend with a Chihuahua adoption fee of only $36.

Chihuahuas are becoming the most common dog in California’s animal shelters, replacing the pit bull as the breed most often forsaken by owners.

The “101 Dalmatians” effect that many predicted the movie “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” would lead to seems to have come to pass, exacerbated further by the Paris Hilton effect and, maybe even moreso, the yukky economy effect.

About a third of the dogs in San Francisco’s animal shelter are Chihuahuas or Chihuahua mixes, Kat Brown, deputy director of City and County of San Francisco Animal Care & Control, told Robert Siegel on NPR’s “All Things Considered” Wednesday.

About 60 percent of the Chihuahuas coming into the shelter are owner-surrendered, she said.

“I think it’s because a number of things. Some movies featured Chihuahuas. Also, a pocket pet kind of thing, from some of the movie stars, Paris Hilton. Also, the economy. I think we’re seeing more owner-surrendered animals generally across the board,” she said.

“But Chihuahuas unlike other dogs are more difficult to handle sometimes. People think of them as something, they’re like stuffed animals or whatever. But in fact they’re like a little dog, and they need all of the things that a big dog needs.”

Brown said the phenomenon seems to be California-wide:

“We have shelters from the Bay Area who also have the same sort of problem. Oakland, Contra Costa, Peninsula Humane Society. Silicon Valley. San Jose. LASPCA (in Los Angeles) said to us we don’t have time to count, there are so many of them.”

You can listen to the interview here.

Twenty-five west coast Chihuahuas were flown to the east coast in hopes of finding new homes, courtesy of actress Katherine Heigl.

The dogs were transferred from Kinder 4 Rescue in Los Angeles, where there is a surplus of Chihuahuas, to the Humane Society for Greater Nashua in New Hampshire, where the breed is in greater demand.

Humane society executive director Karen Bill and Kinder 4 Rescue director Laurel Kinder had been trying for about three months to move the dogs from Hollywood to the northeast. They contacted the Jason Debus Heigl Foundation — founded in honor of the “Grey’s Anatomy” star’s late brother — and it offered $25,000 to fly the dogs to Boston.

“It was amazing,” Bill told PEOPLEPets.com. “The ideal situation come true.”

Bill called the abundance of Chihuahuas in California a ”Hollywood-made crisis …From ‘Beverly Hills Chihuahua’ to Paris Hilton, people see these dogs and think they’re cute accessories, but they’re not. They’re living beings that need attention.”

Before the dogs even arrived, more than 40 people contacted the humane society in New Hampshire about adopting the dogs, who range in age from about 1 to 4 years old.

This episode of National Geographic Channel’s “The Dog Whisperer,” recaps Cesar Millan’s Chihuahua conquests, leading up to his experience with El Diablo, described as the latest contender for “America’s meanest Chihuahua.”

Texas police and Humane Society officials seized 500 to 600 dogs and about 15 cats Tuesday in a raid on what they say is a puppy mill in Kaufman County, Fox News reported.

The Humane Society began investigating the kennel when someone came to them inquiring about dog food donations for the operation. Authorities found poor living conditions and sickly animals when they visited the location.

The kennel operated in a large metal building in a rural area near the Prairieville community, about 45 miles southwest of Dallas.

The animals seized are mostly Chihuahuas, poodles and other small-breed dogs. They were examined by vets to determine which ones needed medical attention.

The seizure was conducted by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), in conjunction with the Humane Society of Cedar Creek Lake and the Kaufman County Sheriff’s Department.

“This day marks a new beginning for these animals, who are suffering from a variety of serious health conditions and have been kept in constant confinement their entire lives producing puppies for the profit of the mill owner,” said Scotlund Haisley, senior director of Emergency Services at HSUS.

The dogs were found to be living in filthy conditions. Many were severely matted and suffering from chronic infected wounds, internal and external parasites and serious skin and eye infections, officials said.

All of the animals were being transported to a nearby emergency shelter.

 
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.

Police in Dearborn, Mich., found about 150 dead dogs packed in freezers in the basement of a Michigan house  where more than 110 live dogs, mostly Chihuahuas, were rescued last week.

Police Chief Ronald Haddad said an investigation is continuing into the case of a 56-year-old man found living in the suburban Detroit home, which was littered with feces and trash, according to the Associated Press.

“The house was in complete disarray, very cluttered and, with 100-plus dogs running around in there, very filthy,” he said. He said the case could be forwarded to prosecutors for possible animal-cruelty charges.

The man living in the house was taken to a local hospital for observation. He had no health insurance and a mental impairment, and had lived for years alone in the home after his parents retired to Florida.

Forty-two  dogs were rescued Wednesday. Crews returned Thursday and found more than 60 dogs, and about 10 more were rescued Friday, when police also found the dead dogs in freezers.

The rescued dogs were taken to the Dearborn Animal Shelter.

Nine of the 32 dogs removed last week from the Wizard of Claws — a Pembroke Pines, Florida, store that was notorious for selling puppy-mill-born designer dogs — were put up for adoption over the weekend, and they all found homes.

Dozens of people lined up outside the Broward County Humane Society to adopt, many returning home empty-handed after learning that most of the dogs taken from the store aren’t ready for adoption yet.

The dogs were removed from The Wizard of Claws on Thursday after an anonymous donor purchased the entire stock of the store, which had declared bankruptcy and closed its doors Monday. The shop was the subject of a class action lawsuit claiming it had sold sick and dying pups.

When The Humane Society of the United States learned the bankruptcy trustee intended to auction off the remaining puppies housed at the store, an anonymous donor stepped in to sponsor the dogs, and The HSUS brokered a deal to have all 32 dogs placed for adoption.

The dogs include Yorkies, Chihuahuas, Maltese, Pomeranians, dachshunds and Shih-tzus. Read more »

Penny, an 8-year-old sheltie, was one of 202 small dogs that Prairie Bark Kennels, a large commerical breeder of dogs in Colorado, needed to unload in connection with the company’s plan to relocate.

All breeding stock – Yorkies, papillons, dachshunds, pugs and Chihuahuas among them — Penny and the other dogs were crated, loaded on a truck and driven 788 miles from the Denver breeding operation to be put on the auction block in Missouri, where they were mostly likely to be bought by other commercial breeders.

But the little dogs weren’t the only ones headed for Missouri.

A group of animal welfare organizations, hearing of the Denver breeder’s plans and hoping to spare the dogs from continued lives in puppy mills, had contacted the company, offering to take the dogs and find them homes. The breeder declined the offer, so the animal welfare groups started a fund drive, raised $16,000, and sent a representative to Missouri to purchase as many of the dogs as their finances permitted.

As a result, 66 of the dogs, Penny included, ended up making the trip back to Denver — all tolled, a 1,500-mile journey to end up just 8 miles from where they’d started out a few days earlier.

USA Today’s Sharon Peters told the fascinating story in her “Pet Talk” column yesterday.

It started in early May, when Prairie Bark Kennels decided to sell many of its 250 dogs in advance of relocating, according to the seller statement filed with the auction company.

When Last Chance for Animals and Rocky Mountain Animal Defense heard the dogs would be sent to auction, they offered to pick them up. “The dogs are perpetually pregnant or nursing; they live their lives in cages,” Last Chance’s Julie Sarff says. “We wanted something better for them.” When the offer was turned down, Peters writes, the animal welfare groups flew into action.

Read more »

American Idol judge — and Chihuahua owner (times four) — Paula Abdul has signed up to help raise money for guide dog programs.

Abdul will be helping Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance, Petco, and independent pet stores raise awareness and money for guide dog organizations across the country, according to Dogchannel.com.

Her role involves getting the word out to the public about the time and effort that goes into training a potential guide dog puppy — an18 to 20 months process, followed by another six months in formal guide dog training school. After about six months of school, the dog gets matched with a blind person. For 28 days, more training takes place at the guide dog facility so the person can learn how to handle their dog.

Learning about the amount of time and money it takes to train these dogs inspired her to join the nonprofit side of raising awareness so that more guide dogs are made available. Abdul said. “I have always been amazed at how it transforms people’s lives.”