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An extremely modest man was in the hospital for a series of tests, the last of which had left his bodily systems extremely upset. Upon making several false alarm trips to the bathroom, he decided the latest episode was another and stayed put. He suddenly filled his bed with diarrhea and was embarrassed beyond his ability to remain rational. In a complete loss of composure he jumped out of bed, gathered up the bed sheets, and threw them out the hospital window. A drunk was walking by the hospital when the sheets landed on him. He started yelling, cursing, and swinging his arms violently trying to get the unknown things off, and ended up with the soiled sheets in a tangled pile at his feet. As the drunk stood there, unsteady on his feet, staring down at the sheets, a hospital security guard, (barely containing his laughter), and who had watched the whole incident, walked up and asked, "What the heck is going on here?" The drunk, still staring down replied:... "I think I ju

DOWNEY, Calif. (AP) - Kobe the terrier is back with his family after a 1,400-mile trip. The small white pooch vanished from his Bellflower home last month and was found by a stranger in Denton, Texas. A microchip implanted in his neck contained his owner's information. AVID, a Norco-based company that produced the chip, flew Kobe from Texas to California and on Thursday he was reunited with his owners, the Ontiveros family, at the Southeast Area Animal Control Authority in Downey. "I'm really happy," said Stephanie Ontiveros, 12. "We're glad that there were plenty of good, helpful people out there," said her father, Jayson Ontiveros. Kobe got the chip when the Ontiveros family adopted him from the SAACA. How he got to Texas remains a mystery. A driver may have spotted Kobe wandering, thought he was a stray and took him along, animal control authority spokesman Aaron Reyes said. AVID Vice President Peter Troesch said his company's chips are implanted

Dogs, Ferret Among Pet Costume Winners NAVARRE, Fla. (AP) - More than 120 pet owners gathered this weekend for an annual Halloween pet costume contest organized by a local pet store. "It is a great community event where we can give back to our customers," said Holly Elassaad, who owns the store Pet Nation with her husband Abdul. "The event has more than doubled in participation every year. This year we were very pleased to have 127 registrations." The Elassaads had to create nine separate categories to cover all the different animals, according to the Panama City News Herald. Winners included a pair of dogs dressed like the Lone Ranger and Tonto, a ferret dressed like a princess, a hermit crab dressed like a pumpkin in a pumpkin patch and a chinchilla dressed like a cowboy. The top three pets in each category received a special certificate and an assortment of pet products. Filed under: News

KEY LARGO, Fla. (AP) - Ray Truche Jr. and Lisa Largrassa fished for hours and didn't catch anything - except a drowning dog. Motoring their 23-foot fishing boat earlier this month on Florida Bay, the two hit something unusual and turned around to check. "As we came back upon it, I realized it was a little fat dog," said Truche, of Manchester, Mass. "It was having trouble keeping its head above water. Its big eyes were looking at us. It was almost as if it was saying, 'Don't leave me here!'" The couple leaned over the boat and made their only catch of the day: a 5-year-old cairn terrier named Tigger, The Key West Citizen reported Monday. Tigger was apparently thrown from Diane and Richard Beckman's boat on their way from Key Largo to Marathon. The Beckmans searched frantically for 2 1/2 hours with no sign of the dog. "We went back and forth, back and forth," Diane said. "Finally we just gave up, because we thought he couldn't ha

Oct 23, 8:27 PM (ET) KEY LARGO, Fla. (AP) - Ray Truche Jr. and Lisa Largrassa fished for hours and didn't catch anything - except a drowning dog. Motoring their 23-foot fishing boat earlier this month on Florida Bay, the two hit something unusual and turned around to check. "As we came back upon it, I realized it was a little fat dog," said Truche, of Manchester, Mass. "It was having trouble keeping its head above water. Its big eyes were looking at us. It was almost as if it was saying, 'Don't leave me here!'" The couple leaned over the boat and made their only catch of the day: a 5-year-old cairn terrier named Tigger, The Key West Citizen reported Monday. Tigger was apparently thrown from Diane and Richard Beckman's boat on their way from Key Largo to Marathon. The Beckmans searched frantically for 2 1/2 hours with no sign of the dog. "We went back and forth, back and forth," Diane said. "Finally we just gave up, because we thoug

Scientists Probe Why Canines Who Worked At Ground Zero Aren't Sick Like Their Human Counterparts (AP) They dug in the toxic World Trade Center dust for survivors, and later for the dead. Their feet were burned by white-hot debris. But unlike thousands of others who toiled at ground zero after Sept. 11, these rescue workers aren't sick. Scientists have spent years studying the health of search-and-rescue dogs that nosed through the debris at ground zero — and to their surprise, they have found no sign of major illness in the animals. They are trying to figure out why this is so. "They didn't have any airway protection; they didn't have any skin protection. They were sort of in the worst of it," said Cynthia Otto, a veterinarian at the University of Pennsylvania, where researchers launched a study of 97 dogs five years ago. Although many ground zero dogs have died — some of rare cancers — researchers say many have lived beyond the average life span for dogs and

Oct 16, 8:16 AM (ET) GILFORD, N.H. (AP) - A Gilford police dog fell from a second-story window while searching for a robbery suspect during the weekend, but still got its man. Police were looking for a man who reportedly robbed a car driver at knifepoint Saturday night. Police say Michael Mount, 30, pulled a knife on the driver of a car in which he was a passenger, forced her off the road and stole her purse. Police called in their dog, Agbar, to track Mount. They say Agbar fell from a second-story window while on the hunt, but was not hurt, and led officers to Mount, who was arrested outside his apartment. Filed under: News

Oct 18, 5:34 PM (ET) FLORENCE, Ala. (AP) - When three smoke alarms failed to wake up Josh Coats during a fire that heavily damaged his home, his 4-year-old English bulldog's frantic barking turned out to be the wake-up call that saved his life. "If Princess hadn't woke me up, I don't think I would have woken up," said Coats, 25. Coats said he had put a load of clothes in the washer and another in the dryer around 2 a.m. Tuesday before going to bed. The fire is believed to have begun around the clothes drying. Coats said he awakened to the dog's frantic barking about 30 minutes after getting in bed. "I jumped up, pulled on my pants, grabbed Princess and went outside and called the fire department," Coats said. He also called his mother, Wilodean Coats, who shares the house with him and who had left a few minutes earlier to deliver TimesDaily newspapers. "People are asking me all the time how much I would sell her for," said Wilodean Coats. &

While sitting here awaiting the return of my favorite couch, I realize just how much I've missed it. It's been out getting reupholstered, which I've wanted to do for a long time now. This couch was inherited from a friend of mine who had cats that used it as a scratching post. (Dogs rule!) The couch is an extra deep one. When you remove the back cushions, it's as big as a twin bed. And during the week, that couch is my napping spot. The importance of comfy places to sit and lay becomes clear when you find you have to spend a large amount of time in a not-so-comfy chair. This past weekend I attended an Austin Herpetological Society meeting where I had to sit in a straight-back chair for a couple hours. It was agony. The meeting was awesome, and having access to pain pills during it helped, but I'm still recovering from having to sit in that chair. What to do? This meeting was held at someone elses home, so my choices were limited. I can't bring my comf

Cat Starts House Fire, Dog Saves Owner Oct 16, 4:16 PM (ET) RHINE, Wis. (AP) - After a disabled woman's cat started a house fire, her specially trained dog rescued her by bringing a phone to call for help. Jamie Hanson, 49, received third-degree burns on her arm in the fire that killed both of her pets, Sheboygan County Sheriff's officials said Monday. The fire started Sunday night when Hanson's cat knocked a candle onto a chair. Hanson's dog then brought her a phone, allowing her to call for help. Hanson, who lost a leg in a car accident, told the dispatcher she was disabled but would try to leave the house, Lt. Chad Broeren said. Firefighters found her standing in the doorway as flames engulfed the home, he said. She was taken to Sheboygan Memorial Hospital. Her injuries are not life threatening, Broeren said. --- Information from: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, http://www.jsonline.com Filed under: News

Oct 14, 6:05 AM (ET) DOWNEY, Calif. (AP) - Kobe the terrier is back with his family after a 1,400-mile trip. The small white pooch vanished from his Bellflower home last month and was found by a stranger in Denton, Texas. A microchip implanted in his neck contained his owner's information. AVID, a Norco-based company that produced the chip, flew Kobe from Texas to California and on Thursday he was reunited with his owners, the Ontiveros family, at the Southeast Area Animal Control Authority in Downey. "I'm really happy," said Stephanie Ontiveros, 12. "We're glad that there were plenty of good, helpful people out there," said her father, Jayson Ontiveros. Kobe got the chip when the Ontiveros family adopted him from the SAACA. How he got to Texas remains a mystery. A driver may have spotted Kobe wandering, thought he was a stray and took him along, animal control authority spokesman Aaron Reyes said. AVID Vice President Peter Troesch said his company's

Sep 29, 11:21 PM (ET) FORT MEYERS, Fla. (AP) - A pit bull who was recently adopted by a family after wondering onto a construction site may have saved a teen girl from a house fire on Friday. Jerrica Seals, 17, was already safely out of the house by the time firefighters arrived, the News-Press of Fort Meyers reported. "She called me screaming," said Leticia Vega, 36, the sister of Seals' boyfriend Javier Garcia, 23, who owns the home. "She said the dog woke her up barking, jumped on the bed and bit her on the leg." Seals was taken to the hospital for a checkup, but Garcia said she was going to be fine. Deputy fire Chief Steve Clyatt said blaze appears to have been caused by a bad extension cord on a window air conditioner. Vega said her oldest brother, Gabriel Garcia, found the dog while he was working. "He didn't pay no mind to it," Vega said. "He just kept working and the dog just stayed there so he brought it home. He doesn't usually b

Oct 2, 8:45 PM (ET) MARION, Ind. (AP) - A woman who spent 30 days living in a 4-by-7-foot kennel to raise money for an animal shelter emerged after collecting more than $8,000. Cheryl Walker, 42, a member of the Marion-Grant County Humane Society board of volunteers, came out of the kennel Sunday after raising $8,162 to finance a new shelter. She said she hopes people will still donate as her goal is $3 million, which she said she believes can be raised. "I'm so happy to be home," she said Monday from her home. "But I so miss my kennelmates. I was crying when I left." She said she wanted to bring attention to the area needing a new shelter. During her stay in the kennel, 110 animals were adopted or rescued from the shelter, which is a high number, she said. She said gained a greater appreciation for the work of humane society staff members during her stay. "I have such a respect for the job that they do, and in here it is not just about cleaning kennels.&qu

Oct 5, 5:32 PM (ET) MONTEREY, Calif. (AP) - A menagerie, some 86 critters in all, were found in a Fort Ord home. Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals officials, called to the home after receiving a call that the household was exceeding the two animals per dwelling limit, were surprised by the number of animals. "We took our van. We really didn't know what we were getting into," said Judi Adams, humane investigation supervisor for the SPCA of Monterey County. The woman in the house had accumulated the critters over time and was trying to find homes for them. There were 56 fish, six cats, six rats, five frogs, four geckos, three ferrets, two lovebirds, two lizards, one guinea pig and one dog. "She knew she'd gotten in over her head. She was more than happy to surrender them to us," Adams said. SPCA spokeswoman Beth Brookhouser said she does not believe charges will be filed against the woman. Filed under: News

I am incredibly blessed to have excellent health insurance via the hubby's job with IBM and my Medicare to cover the 20% his coverage doesn't pay. We certainly pay the big bux every month for this coverage, but I never gripe about that aspect of it. At least we have the option to get this type of medical coverage. But ever since Katrina hit and I saw the utter lack of care from our government, I've been under the realization that if similar devistating event were to effect my area, I'd be screwed. I'm am lucky that I can walk a bit, but I mean "a bit". But I never would have survived the conditions Katrina victims were left in. I simply cannot walk my way to safety. Without assistance, I would have been left for dead. Very scary. Whatddaya say, Canada, here we come?! Filed under: Coping Disability

Oct 3, 10:53 PM (ET) LOS ANGELES (AP) - Stage mothers for a Rottweiler and other dogs have sued a company called Hollywood Paws for failing to turn their pooches into stars. More than a dozen pet owners contend the company collected tens of thousands of dollars but never delivered on promises to get film and television auditions for their pets. "I lost a lot of money," said Rachel Armstrong, owner of Goliath the Rottweiler. Armstrong said she believed her dog had the "cool" factor that would get him into music videos and paid nearly $2,000 to Hollywood Paws LLC for training. All she got was a rejection from "The Tyra Banks Show." Attorney Cynthia Mulvihill filed the suit in Superior Court last month. "Who wouldn't want to be told, 'Hey your member of the family is beautiful and should be in the movies'?" she asked. Hollywood Paws offers training in such media skills as getting a pooch or cat to crawl, freeze or scratch on command. On

Oct 2, 12:03 PM (ET) By JIM FITZGERALD CORTLANDT, N.Y. (AP) - Describing abandoned puppies as "terrorists" in a classified ad doesn't seem like a good way to get them adopted. Unless you're in the animal-rescue world of Paula Young. Young, director of Mount Vernon's animal shelter, learned last month that four rat terrier pups were about to be euthanized in New York City. So she swooped in, picked them up and brought them to her five-acre spread in Westchester County. Then she called The Journal News and ordered a two-week, three-line ad that says, "Twin Rat Terrorists; 11 months, adorable, full of fun." You don't often see "terrorist" and "adorable" in the same description, but Young said she was just being honest. "They can be little terrors," she said of the 8- to 12-pound, white-butterscotch-and-black short-haired terriers named Jack, Jackie, Milo and Dino, who were playing happily on a second-story deck on a recent