Wednesday, May 23, 2012 | 12:42 a.m.

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Latest Pets News

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Doggy couch surfing? Website has lodging for dogs

When you travel and have to leave your dog behind, you can call a kennel, hire a pet sitter — or find him a new friend online. The website DogVacay debuted in New York and Los Angeles in March and, just in time for the summer travel season, is now ...

Leading insurer pays $109M for dog bite claims

Dog bites man does not get a lot of attention in the news, but it costs insurance companies hundreds of millions in claims every year. State Farm Insurance, one of the nation's largest home insurers, paid more than $109 million on about 3,800 dog bite claims nationwide last year, spokesman ...

Betty White heads to Washington to see the animals

Betty White is headed to Washington to see the wildlife — not the donkeys and elephants on Capitol Hill, but the animals in the National Zoo. After a stop at the Smithsonian on Thursday, White will visit the zoo one day later to indulge her passion: animal watching. She's looking ...

Senior living centers across US accept more pets

Shirlee and Nathan "Nick" Horowitz faced one serious health crisis after another before their doctor said they had to move into an assisted living center. They had only one condition — they weren't going anywhere without their dog. Hundreds of retirement communities across the country now allow seniors to live ...

Colleges go to the dogs for stress busters

Just down the hall from the reference desk at Emory University's law library in a room housing antique legal texts is Stanley the golden retriever puppy, barking his head off. Stanley rolls around on the floor and chews on a squeaky toy while zombie-like law students wander in, a giant ...

USDA seeks change to regulate Internet pet sales

Dog breeders who skirt animal welfare laws by selling puppies over the Internet would face tighter scrutiny under a rule change proposed Thursday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The change would subject dog owners who breed more than four females and sell the puppies electronically, by mail or over ...

Kidney disease a leading killer in cats

It's one of the leading causes of death for cats, but there is no cure and no known cause: kidney disease. One in 12 older cats has chronic kidney disease, according to Banfield Pet Hospital's just-released 2012 State of Pet Health Report. Banfield, the largest veterinary practice in the world ...

In this May 6, 2012 photo provided by the Wolf Conservation Center, a litter of eight new born Mexican wolf pups snuggle at the Center’s facility in South Salem, N.Y. The eight pups born at the preserve on Sunday, May 6, could aid the federal program that has reintroduced the endangered species to the wild. In 2011 it was believed that there were 50 Mexican wolves living wild in the United Sates. (AP Photo/Wolf Conservation Center, Maggie Howell)

Endangered wolves at NY preserve produce 8 pups

Eight rare Mexican wolf pups have been born at a preserve in the New York City suburbs, a development that could aid the federal program that has reintroduced the endangered species to the wild. The Wolf Conservation Center in South Salem announced Monday that five males and three females were ...

Dogs make good listeners at local libraries

Kids can overcome their reading fears with the help of Dwayne the library dog. Dwayne visits the Bella Vista Library for scheduled appointments for children to read to him and also for monthly story times. The 3-year-old therapy dog is a yellow Labrador and golden retriever mix, owner Faye Pyatt ...

Dennis Stone of Independence, Mo., holds his four-month-old Chihuahua, Cherry, Saturday, May 5, 2012 in Kansas City, Mo. Hundreds of tiny dogs dressed up like tacos, ballerinas and a variety of other things fell short of setting a world record, but organizers say they're encouraged by the turnout for the inaugural Cinco de Mayo Chihuahua parade. (AP Photo/The Kansas City Star, Jim Barcus)

Chihuahua costume party falls short of record

Hundreds of tiny tacos, ballerinas and other costumed dogs fell short of a world record Saturday morning in Kansas City, but organizers said they were encouraged by the turnout for the inaugural Cinco de Mayo Chihuahua parade. Mark Valentine, the president of the group that organized the parade, said 500 ...

Salmonella in dog food sickens 14 people in US

Fourteen people in at least nine states have been sickened by salmonella after handling tainted dog food from a South Carolina plant that a few years ago produced food contaminated by toxic mold that killed dozens of dogs, federal officials said Friday. At least five people were hospitalized because of ...

Workers transport an animal from the Columbus Zoo in Columbus, Ohio on Friday, May 4, 2012 as Marian Thompson, center, touches the cage, to bring it back to Zanesville, Ohio. Thompson is the widow of Terry Thompson, who released 56 animals, including black bears, mountain lions and Bengal tigers, from his eastern Ohio farm Oct. 18 before he committed suicide. Five of the surviving animals, two leopards, two primates and a bear have been held at the Columbus zoo since October, when state officials had ordered that the animals be quarantined on suspicion of infectious diseases. That order was lifted on Monday by Ohio's agriculture director. (AP Photo/The Columbus Dispatch, Tom Dodge)

5 wild animals back on Ohio farm; safety debated

Five exotic animals are back on the eastern Ohio farm where they lived months ago before their owner abandoned them and released dozens of other wild animals into the rural community, then killed himself. The widow of Terry Thompson picked up two leopards, two primates and a bear from the ...

CORRECTS THAT VOVKOVINSKIY IS FROM ROCHESTER, MINN. INSTEAD OF MINNEAPOLIS - Igor Vovkovinskiy, of Rochester, Minn., currently the tallest man in the United States at seven feet eight inches, right, speaks with Trevor Kirby, center, a shoe engineer, at Reebok headquarters, in Canton, Mass., Thursday, May 3, 2012. Vovkovinskiy, who has a shoe size between 22 and 26, says he's had 16 surgeries in six years to fix problems created by shoes that didn't fit. Reebok is providing a pair of sneakers to Vovkovinskiy at no charge. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Tallest man in US in Mass. seeking shoes, normalcy

Finding shoes for the nation's tallest man takes more than a trip to the mall; more like a trip across the country. Igor Vovkovinskiy flew to Massachusetts on Thursday from Minnesota so shoe engineers at Reebok could try to custom build shoes strong enough to support his massive frame. He's ...

FILE - In this Oct. 19, 2011 file photo obtained by The Associated Press, carcasses lie on the ground at the Muskingum County Animal Farm in Zanesville, Ohio. More than two dozen tigers, leopards and lions were hunted by sheriff's deputies after Terry Thompson freed the animals on Oct. 18, 2011 before killing himself. Legislation has been proposed in Congress that would ban private ownership of exotic cats. Ohio and other states are also looking to outlaw the animals or to keep them more tightly controlled. (AP Photo, File)

Ohio wild animal stampede ignites vast law review

Of all the beasts set free by the suicidal owner of an exotic animal farm in Ohio last year, few were as scary or as lethal as the big cats. Tigers, leopards and lions — more than two dozen — were loose before being hunted by sheriff's deputies. While the ...

FILE - This file photo provided by the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium and shows one of three leopards that were captured by authorities, a day after their owner released dozens of wild animals and then killed himself near Zanesville, Ohio on Oct. 18, 2011. Officials say five exotic animals will be returned to Marian Thompson, the woman whose husband released dozens of wild creatures last fall before killing himself. The Ohio Agriculture Department announced the decision Monday. It's unclear when the animals would be released to Marian Thompson. (AP Photo/Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Grahm S. Jones, File)

Ohio officials to return 5 exotic animals to widow

State officials will return five surviving exotic animals to a woman whose husband released dozens of wild creatures before committing suicide. The Ohio Department of Agriculture announced the decision Monday at an agency hearing in which the state was to defend its authority to quarantine the animals — two leopards, ...

SW Ohio students learn Heimlich move in new course

The Heimlich maneuver, a well-known emergency technique for preventing suffocation when an airway becomes blocked by an object, is being taught to sixth-graders in a southwest Ohio school through a new curriculum that organizers eventually hope to roll out across the state and possibly the nation. The Heimlich Heroes course ...

Puppy on runway delays flights at NY airport

A puppy named Byrdie delayed several flights at New York's LaGuardia Airport when she escaped from her crate and ran around a busy runway. The Port Authority says the dog was loose for about 10 minutes Wednesday while authorities unsuccessfully tried to catch her. The agency says they had to ...

Puppy on runway delays flights at NYC airport

A puppy named Byrdie delayed several flights at New York's LaGuardia Airport when she escaped from her crate and frolicked around a busy runway. The Port Authority says the 30-pound Rhodesian ridgeback scampered around the runway for about 10 minutes on Wednesday while authorities unsuccessfully tried to collar her. The ...

Pet rehab helps transform four-legged survivors

Snarf was underweight with a heart murmur and a possible ulcer when he was rescued from a Kentucky puppy mill. He had hookworm, fleas and ticks, infections in his eyes and ears, red skin and patchy hair. The 10-year-old Japanese chin wasn't house trained and didn't know how to play ...

Share a story of your “Less-Adoptable” pet to win fantastic prizes

Have you ever loved a cranky kitty, taught an old dog new tricks, adopted a painfully shy pet, or cared for a specially-abled animal? If so, Nevada Humane Society would love to hear your story. In conjunction with Nevada Humane Society’s “Less-Adoptable, But Still Lovable” adoption promotion, now through ...