ohmidog!

The Portland Press Herald described Sherwood Campbell as a large man who adored his small dogs.

Sixty-four and living with his parents, upwards of 300 pounds, Campbell (shown above in a family photo from the 1990s) died Tuesday night while trying to save his dogs from his burning home in Canton, Maine.

Firefighters found Campbell’s body Wednesday morning at the entrance to his second-floor bedroom, the body of his dog Whomper with him, relatives told the Press Herald. His second dog, a Pomeranian named Little Dog, also died, as did his parents’ miniature pinscher, Muppet.

Campbell’s parents, both in their 80s, were not at home at the time because his father was hospitalized in Portland with a heart condition. The state Fire Marshal’s Office is still trying to determine what caused the fire, which started in the kitchen.

Mark Blanchette, Campbell’s brother-in-law, who lives across the street, said Campbell ran over Tuesday afternoon, his face covered with soot, yelling that the house was on fire.

Blanchette followed Campbell across the street, and tried to stop him from entering the home.

“He shoved me out of the way and went after the dog,” Blanchette said. “I kept telling him the dog’s not worth it.”

Blanchette said he grabbed Campbell’s leg, but Campbell, who he said weighed 300 to 400 pounds, kept going up the stairs, pulling Blanchette as he went.

“I held it as long as I could,” Blanchette said. “I had to let him go.”

Campbell was a fan of the Boston Red Sox and collected baseball cards, the Press Herald reported. He worked for 20 years in a nearby Bass shoe factory, but left due to health and eyesight problems.

“He just loved his dogs,” said his sister, Cindy Holland. “They were his world.”

A pit bull who helped show Baltimore the breed’s good side, inspired a blog and turned a young couple’s life around passed away at the end of last week.

Knox, only about 3, died from complications associated with a blood parasite for which he recently tested positive.

His final days, and his short but joyous life — at least since being adopted — are recounted on the blog Pittieful Love: Adventures in Fostering and Loving America’s Dog.

Knox was adopted by a young couple named Brian and Jess DeLeon in May 2010 from BARCS (Baltimore Animal Rescue & Care Shelter), the same shelter Ace came from.

Upon his arrival at BARCS, he’d been given the name Oil Change, because he (and his brother, dubbed Dipstick) came to the shelter from a gas station, where they apparently were leading pretty neglected lives.

His adoption would turn that around, as well as life for Brian and Jess.

“We went from young 20-somethings who wanted to rescue a dog, to two completely devoted owners who also are now completely devoted to this breed (which we didn’t know jack about before) … We brought home a “Baltimore Mutt” (aka a pit-mix) and had no idea how much of an influence he would have on us, on the world he lives in, the streets he walks, and the people he’d meet.  Not to mention the people whom he’d introduce us to.”

Knox was a regular participant in Pit Bulls on Parade, a series of weekend walks sponsored by B-more Dog, aimed at correcting public misconceptions about pit bulls. He was a friend and guide to the other fosters Brian and Jess took in, and a blood donor, as well. And he’d inspire the couple to fight for pit bulls city-wide, through their connections with B-More Dog, Mid-Atlantic Bully Buddies and BARCS.

Just before Christmas, Knox was diagnosed with the blood disorder, and, as Jess blogged, became a different dog — no longer as lively, or as willing to place his 68 pounds, at least half of that seemingly head, on your lap.

In her blog, Jess astutely reflects that, after the long fight, sometimes it’s best to let nature take its course — especially when the heroic efforts you’re making are, at their core, not for your dog but for yourself.

“It may sound horrible, but I refuse to string him along for no reason, not to mention waste thousands of dollars to keep him alive for my own personal benefit … Keeping him alive, barely…who is that serving?  Certainly we love him too much to be that selfish … We love him way too much.

We extend our condolences to Jess and Brian, and encourage them to keep focusing not on the loss, or the void, but on the substantial contribution Knox made, and the joys — big and little – he provided, both to them and others.

Judging from yesterday’s Pittieful Love blog post, that’s exactly what they’re doing:

“You, sneaky boy, were wild.  WILD.  But you loved us right away, and we loved you.  We met you at first in an escort room.  Small, tight space, but we weren’t intimidated by your jumping, your tail, your huge head and that awesome smile.  We wanted to take you outside to the run.  You were in HEAVEN.  And you loved to run!  But you kept coming right back to us, and sitting on our feet.  The fresh air, the open space, you loved it!  But you loved us too.  And that was a good sign to us.  We couldn’t stop smiling.”

(Photo courtesy of Pittieful Love)

He licked her face. He nudged her hand. And when his master regained consciousness after a fall on the kitchen floor, a miniature schnauzer named Danny not only brought her the phone, but a list of phone numbers as well.

So says Bethe Bennett, of Glendale, Arizona, who’s now recuperating from her painful tumble.

Bennett fell on her tile floor Friday and broke her femur. Once she regained consciousness, with help from Danny, she hoped the dog remembered some of his old tricks, because she wasn’t expecting any visitors until Tuesday.

“I was scared. I really thought I was going to die,” Bennett told ABCNews.com. “I knew I was going into shock because I’m a nurse.”

But Danny, a trained service dog who used to care for Bennett’s now-deceased mother, was able to remember his training.

“I started asking Danny to get me the phone,” Bennett said. “He ran back and forth a couple of times barking and finally jumped up and knocked the phone over and pushed it with his nose toward me.”

She called for an ambulance, but then realized the paramedics might not be able to get into her locked house. She decided to call a neighbor, but didn’t remember the phone number.

“Paper!” she yelled, and Danny brought over five sheets, one of which had the phone numbers of Bennett’s neighbors. They arrived in time to let the paramedics in.

She is now recovering at Banner Thunderbird Medical Center in Glendale, with Danny by her side, ABC reported.

“Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be the one he’d have to rescue,” she said. “He was my little hero.”

A trainer and rescuer of birds who once worked for the National Aquarium in Baltimore is being sought for questioning in connection with the deaths of 40 animals found in her Columbia townhouse, about half of which may have been abandoned while still alive.

Howard County animal control officers found 19 dead animals inside a freezer at the home, including birds, rabbits, a guinea pig and a hermit crab, according to the Baltimore Sun. Twenty one more dead birds, cats, rabbits and a snake were inside cages or loose in the home with no food or water. Four animals were found alive.

Howard County police on Wednesday left a letter at the home of Beth Lindenau, on the 9600 block of Lambeth Court, requesting she come in for an interview.

National Aquarium officials confirmed that Lindenau worked there from December 2004 until November 2009.

A police spokesperson said charges likely won’t be filed at least until after they have results of lab reports that show how and when the animals died.

Officers entered the house Monday after a property manager reported odors coming from the home. The electricity and heat had been turned off, and while food was left for some animals, those in cages had no access to it.

Several neighbors at the Lambeth Court townhouse said they had suspected that animals were inside the house and not being looked after, but officials with the county’s health department said they never received any complaints at that address.

Police said they are investigating whether she was involved with a nonprofit animal rescue group. A trailer belonging to the Bailey Foundation, a Columbia-based bird rescue organization was in the driveway.

WJLA reports that Lindenau is executive director of the organization.

According to the Bailey Foundation website, it was established in 2004, and has taken in dozens of birds, from finches to macaws, in hopes of finding them adoptive homes.

“Many of these birds will need care for up to 80 years or more,” the website says. “…Space is running out for the care of large birds like macaws and cockatoos. We will need to expand our available space soon. Our long-term goals are to purchase land on which large aviaries can be built to house the various species of birds as well as serve as an educational center. In our current location this is not possible…

“It is our goal to always have a place for one more bird in need.”

Two women who were moving their rescue operation from California to Virginia were arrested after police discovered more than 100 dogs in the back of their rented U-Haul truck.

Bonnie Sheehan, 55, and Pamela A. King-McCracken, 59, both of Long Beach, Calif., were each charged with 128 counts of aggravated animal cruelty, a Class E felony, and were jailed on $100,000 bond each in Fayette County, Tennessee.

Sheehan

King-McCracken

West Tennessee highway troopers found 127 dogs in all, including one who had died. Most were locked in the back of the truck — some in crates, some not.

A few dogs and one cat were in a minivan being towed behind the truck.

Sheehan is the founder of Hearts for Hounds, which describes itself on its website as a non-profit organization that has rescued and placed more than 17,000 dogs into permanent homes.

“We are a pack of humans trying to make a difference in the dog world!” says the website, which was offline yesterday. “Our goal is to find a loving home for every dog we rescue.”

A state trooper pulled the truck over Tuesday for tailgating, and inspected its cargo area after detecting a foul odor coming from it. Upon finding the animals he moved the truck to a Pilot Travel Center parking lot off Interstate 40′s exit 42 in Fayette County, where the dogs could be dealt with away from the Interstate.

Officers described seeing urine and feces all over the cargo compartment and no food or water for the animals, according to a district attorney’s office press release.

Sheehan and King-McCracken, who both showed California identification, told investigators they were en route from Long Beach, Calif., to Roanoke, Virginia.

“I have seen animals like this when we raided a puppy mill a few years ago,” Fayette County Animal Rescue agent Gina Thweatt told the Memphis Commercial Appeal. “But as far as transporting them like this? No… not where they literally could not get any air or circulation.”

The dogs had been locked in the truck and van since Saturday without food or water, police said.

Animal shelter officials said the dogs and cat would be taken to shelters in the Memphis area.

(Top photo by Kyle Kurlick / Memphis Commercial Appeal)

A bomb-sniffing dog who had worked at both the U.S. Capitol and the White House escaped during his trip to a new home, but was recovered a few hours later.

The five-year-old shepherd — retired from duty early after killing a cat — slipped out of his collar and ran off from Detroit’s Metro Airport while his new owner, a Toledo woman, was taking him for a bathroom break.

It took animal control officers and police — two of whom were bitten in the process — about two hours to capture the dog, named Arco, after he was spotted running near train tracks in Romulus yesterday afternoon, the Detroit Free Press reported.

Arco is now at the Romulus Animal Shelter and will be quarantined for 10 days before being released back to his new owner.

The dog had arrived on a flight from Arizona, where he’d been under the care of Rescued Helpers, Inc.,  in Tucson for the past seven months.

According to WXYZ, the rescue organization stepped in when they heard Arco, after his government service was over, was to be euthanized.

Rescued Helpers vice president and founder Nadine Karsevar said Arco wasn’t aggressive and that, while under the organization’s care, had taken part in parades and other events.

It was five years ago when strange things started happening at the Battersea Dogs & Cats Home.

Somehow, the same group of dogs were escaping from their pens at the shelter at night and proceeding to raid the food area, where they ate, played and partied all night long.

The shelter at first suspected staff wasn’t propertly closing the gates. Then they thought maybe it was a practical joke.

Finally, to find the answer, they installed three cameras. The first couple of nights, nothing happened, but then the cameras caught a greyhound mix named Red in the act — first freeing himself, then freeing his friends from their cages.

In Great Britain and Ireland, they call the mixed breed “lurchers,” and they’re known for their stealth and cunning.

Red certainly fit that bill — and better yet, shortly after shelter staff brought an end to the late night parties, Red got adopted.

In a tragic story out of Florida, a recovered dog is providing a lone note of solace to a grieving family.

Barney, a Vizsla, was jogging with his owner, Donna Chen, a mother of three, when she was killed by a drunk driver.

Somehow, Barney ended up in the Gulf of Mexico after the accident, where he was found by a kayaker, about a half mile offshore from Sarasota.

“I thought maybe he had fallen off a boat or something” Rory O’Connor told KIRO 7 Eyewitness News. “I knew it was probably trouble, because you know, he was coming straight toward me and he had a look of terror in his eyes.”

O’Connor, of Bellingham, Wash., inadvertently recorded the rescue and put it on YouTube, before knowing anything about the rest of the story:

Through his microchip, Barney was reunited with the Chen family, members of which say his presence is helping them through the grief.

“This is our one piece, our one link to Donna,” said Chen’s sister-in-law, Colette MacPhail. “For Barney, he’s going to have his own adjustments. He’s just a piece that came back for us.”

A 2.5-pound dog in New Jersey has been named by the Guinness Book of World Records as the ”world’s smallest working dog,” wresting the honor from the former title-holder, a 6.6-pound search and rescue dog in Japan.

Lucy, a 3-year-old mini Yorkshire terrier who works as a therapy dog, received the certificate — which is considerably larger than her – on Saturday.

Just 6 inches long, and 5.7 inches high, Lucy belongs to Sally Leone Montufar, of Absecon. “She gets a lot of attention already,” Montufar told the Camden Courier Post. “She stops traffic.”

Lucy, who was homeless two years ago, now works as a therapy dog through the Cherry Hill program Leashes of Love, visiting hospitals, nursing homes and schools.

“She had to be trained to sit for long periods, lay for long periods, not be flustered when there’s wheelchairs and walkers all around, and she has to be able to walk for me and be nonaggressive,” Montufar said.

Montufar used to run a pet boutique called Paw Dazzle, and one day a woman came in with several dogs — all headed for an animal shelter.

“She was so pitiful and lethargic, I couldn’t leave her,” Montufar said of Lucy. “I didn’t know if I could save her or not.”

Montufar, a former teacher, hopes Lucy will serve as an advocate for rescuing dogs.

“There’s a lot of people out there who are desperate for companionship,” she said.

Vito is supposed to find the missing, not go missing, but that’s what he did Thursday during a search and rescue exercise in Maryland.

The 3-year-old, mostly black German shepherd was working with his handler at White Marsh Park off Route 3 in Bowie when he got distracted by a fox and ran off, according to his handler,  Sonja Heritage, of the Fairfax County, Virginia, search and rescue team.

WTOP radio reports he has since been found and reunited with his handler.

Heritage, who put up fliers and contacted local animal shelters after he went missing, said it was little embarassing since Vito is a highly trained search and rescue dog. But, she added, even the best-trained dogs can get distracted.

“A dog is a dog,” she said.