Today is the fifth annual National Mutt Day, which celebrates and encourages the adoption of shelter dogs and provides donations to local shelters. This year's goal is to save 10,000 mutts from euthanasia or a lifetime in a shelter. National Mutt Day founder and animal behaviorist Colleen Paige spoke to Paw Nation about why she created the day and ways you can help.
Paige has long invested her time in educating the public about the reality of strays, puppy mills and shelter dogs, and the idea of establishing National Mutt Day came out of her desire to do something on a grand scale. "National Mutt Day has helped save over 50,000 dogs since its inception," Paige explains.
The first goal of the event is to find forever homes for shelter dogs, but that's not your only way to participate. "People forget that if they aren't adopting, they can still help local shelters," Paige says. She suggests donating blankets, food, crates or your time as a volunteer. Of course, simple cash donations are always helpful, and Paige recommends asking your neighborhood shelters for their wish lists.
National Mutt Day is closely aligned with other humane causes -- like the importance of spaying and neutering pets, choosing responsible breeders rather than pet shops or puppy mills, and other issues.
To participate, please contact your local shelter directly. More information is available on National Mutt Day's official site.
Read about another worthy cause at Good News Now.
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Elizabeth Brady
Elizabeth Brady loves staring at pictures of cute creatures as well as blogging about animal news, viral video, pet products and more. She lives in Brooklyn with her Great Pyrenees, Lola, where they go bar hopping and take naps together. Elizabeth also writes for FREEwilliamsburg.com and Asylum.com.
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SchmittyTheWeatherDog.com
Age: 50+
Job Title: Meteorologist With Schmitty the Weather Dog
How did you end up working with Schmitty?
During the 2008 presidential election, I traveled 8,000 miles across the country with Schmitty and "entourage" on the Bark the Vote tour to help get out the vote, raise awareness and visit animal shelters across the country. I started including Schmitty on my daily "Climate of the Election" weather reports as we crisscrossed the U.S.A.
When and how did Schmitty's talents get discovered?
We were doing a weather report on top of a mountain in Trinidad, Colo. I was holding Schmitty, preparing to talk about the temperature and the wind, when I suddenly got this vibe from Schmiitty that the unusually warm weather was all about high pressure. It was an ESP kind of a moment. That's when I found out Schmitty the Weather Dog has a nose for the weather.
How does Schmitty predict the weather?
The correct term is "pawcast." Psychics "predict" things. Schmitty has a nose and an ear for the weather. Schmitty has focused that very keen canine sense of smell and hearing on detecting pressure changes in the atmosphere and the movement of air masses around the planet. Her forecasts, which are communicated subliminally to me, are 99 percent dead-on accurate. Schmitty helps me be a better meteorologist.
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We've all heard the rumors of mythical or beastly creatures roaming the planet. From unicorns to Bigfoot, nearly every culture on Earth has its legendary monsters, and many of these have persisted into modern times, most often as tourist attractions (see: Loch Ness Monster, Jackolopes).
But what happens when these animals turn out to be more than just folklore? Those who track down and uncover the creatures are called cryptozoologists. It's an emerging field that hasn't exactly been embraced by all members of the scientific community. But when the fabled animals are studied more closely, the outcome is sometimes the discovery of a new species.
Check out the gallery below for a look at some animal legends, with explanations of their true identities.
But what happens when these animals turn out to be more than just folklore? Those who track down and uncover the creatures are called cryptozoologists. It's an emerging field that hasn't exactly been embraced by all members of the scientific community. But when the fabled animals are studied more closely, the outcome is sometimes the discovery of a new species.
Check out the gallery below for a look at some animal legends, with explanations of their true identities.
Gail Posner recently left millions to her dogs. Famous Chihuahuas / AP
A few months ago, millionaire heiress Gail Posner made news when she left $3 million to her chiuhauhas, Conchita, Lucia and April Marie. Their inheritance included diamond accessories and life in an $8 million Miami mansion (complete with a live-in caretaker who also inherited millions).
Conchita, Lucia and April Marie are in good company. Over the years, other pet lovers have made it a point to leave their riches to their animal companions. Here are a few of the stories:
$12 Million Maltese: Leona Helmsley, New York's infamous "Queen of Mean," amassed billions of dollars during her lifetime. When she died in 2007, she left $12 milion to her Maltese, Trouble, while opting to completely cut several of her grandchildren out of her will.
$80 Million Chimp: Kalu the chimpanzee inherited what reports have claimed was anywhere between £40 million to £53 million in South Africa from her owner Patricia O'Neill. O'Neill had a soft spot for the chimp, who she rescued in Zaire in the 1980s. But Kalu often caused disturbances in O'Neill's marriage, since her husband Frank was not a fan. He reportedly disliked Kalu's penchant for smoking his cigarettes and drinking his beer.
Kim Laughton
Over the course of several updates and a few captions, Laughton's photographs sketched out the story of how he rescued the adorable kitten that was soaked and crying in a Shanghai gutter during a rainstorm. We were intrigued by the pictures and wanted to know more.
Paw Nation contacted Laughton to find out about his photography and his foundling cat:
What's the kitten's name?
Utopia.
How old is Utopia now?
Around 8 or 9 months.
Tell us about the day you found her.
It was pouring, the kind of weather that soaks you even if you have an umbrella, and she was crawling along in the gutter mewing loudly. I picked her up after thinking about it for all of 30 seconds, and then had to walk home without her climbing away. She was making such a noise, people must have wondered what on Earth I was up to!
What happened once you had the kitten safely home?
When I got inside, I realized I had no idea what to do with a kitten, and spent the next couple of hours on the Internet trying to find out what to feed her. I couldn't buy any cat food in the nearby convenience stores, perhaps because most Chinese people feed their cats human food. In the end, she had some processed sausage and raw egg.
Do people frequently adopt pets in China?
I'm not sure. There aren't adoption centers as far as I know, but it wouldn't surprise me if kittens are fairly often picked up. You often see old women putting food out for stray cats, especially in parks. There are very few stray dogs, however. I think the government rounds these up to help stop the spread of rabies.
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