Dogs! In the News! This week, North Miami Beach K-9 Troops get Bullet-proof Armor! An Ancient Dog Cemetery in Siberia! Sherlock Holmes gets a New Sidekick? and Pokemon Goes… to the Dogs! Scroll down right away to read these stories and more in Dogs! In the News!
North Miami Beach K-9s Suit Up!
North Miami Beach police dogs have a new weapon in their arsenal: bullet proof vests. The Miami Herald reports:
… five NMB K-9 officers [have been outfitted] with new Kevlar Level 2 vests from Protect the Paws, an organization dedicated to vesting as many K-9 officers as they can. So far, that’s 1,600 nationwide and 82 in South Florida, according to… Kathe Holmes, one of the organization’s [founders]
You can read more from the paper here.
A Hero in India
A loyal dog is being honored in India after sacrificing himself to save his family.
People Magazine reports:
The Doberman and his eight-member family were relaxing in their home in India’s Sebekapur village, when four mountain cobras tried to slither in from outside, reports the Deccan Chronicle.
The venomous snakes were soon stalled by the family canine, who started attacking the reptiles to protect his family. In a battle that reportedly lasted hours, the Doberman mercilessly fought the cobras until all of them were slain.
Sadly, shortly after emerging triumphant, the dog died from the numerous snake bites he received during the fight.
Click here for all the details.
Can You Deduce Who Sherlock’s Bloodhound Is?
It looks like one of my favorite television shows is getting a new cast member.
The amazing BBC show, Sherlock, a riff on the 19th century detective set in modern times will soon have a canine listed in its credits.
And as befits the genre, the dog in question is a Bloodhound!
The Inverse website reports:
Fans of BBC’s Sherlock were given one tiny snap from the production of the show’s fourth season today; an image of Benedict Cumberbatch in his Holmes-costume hanging out with a dog. At a glance, this could mean nothing, but if we apply some Holmesian deduction, we can infer quite a bit. Sherlock has gone on the record condemning wild speculation (“DATA DATA DATA! I can’t make bricks without clay!”) but the picture does give loyal fans a fair amount of information.
There’s quite a lot of information about canines in Sherlock Holmes stories, giving us a some ideas as to which of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s original stories the modern-day BBC adaptation may be drawing inspiration from next.
For clues as to the dog’s identity, click here.
2,000-Year-Old Pet Cemetery
Scientists have discovered a 2,000-year-old cemetery for dogs in Siberia. The Live Science website reports:
The carefully buried remains of five dogs were recently found in a 2,000-year-old doggy graveyard near the Arctic Circle in Siberia, according to archaeologists.
This discovery at the Ust-Polui archaeological site, in Salekhard, Russia, reveals close relationships between the region’s people and their animal “best friends” two millennia B.C. The dogs likely served as pets, workers and sources of food — and possibly as sacrificial offerings in religious ceremonies, the researchers said.
“The most striking thing is that the dog remains are really abundant compared to all other sites in the Arctic — there are over 115 dogs represented at the site,” [Scientist Robert] Losey said. “Typically, sites have only a few dog remains — 10 at most.”
For more, click here.
Pokemon Goes to the Dogs!
Okay… bear with me… there’s a lot going on in the following story!
It appears that animal rescue organizations from Muncie, Indiana to Juneau, Alaska are taking advantage of the Pokemon Go craze. They’re appealing to players to help walk shelter dogs while they search for Pocket Monsters. The Your Alaska Link website reports:
An animal shelter is calling on players of Pokemon Go to stop by and take a dog on a walk. Juneau’s Gastineau Humane Society employees say it’s a good way for people to hunt for Pokemon creatures around the city while allowing the dogs to get exercise. The shelter put out a call for volunteer Pokemon Go dog walkers on Facebook last week. The six dogs that are up for adoption at the shelter are available for a walk Monday through Saturday.
The game is sort of like a complicated scavenger hunt. You walk around your neighborhood hunting down and capturing Pokemon. I have to confess I play the game while walking Bodhi. Take a look at the picture below.
Have NO idea what I am talking about? Here’s an article from the Life Hacker website on Pokemon Go. Maybe it will help you understand better.
Here are some cute dog-based Pokemon you can hunt for, starting with Vulpix…
Ninetails …
Houndoom…
And the elusive Vaporeon…
How rare is Vaporeon? Just watch this video to see crowds of New Yorkers streaming into Central Park to catch one! It’s INSANE!
