Photo courtesy of Out of the Woods Rescue — River and his new owner play.

KRISHA WILLIAMS TURBEVILLE

RESCUE IN THE ROCK

No party is planned for the third anniversary of Out of the Woods Animal Rescue of Arkansas.

“We have too much to do!” said president Kathy Woods, who founded the nonprofit in 2007 to help animals other shelters in the area could not.

“We don’t turn people down. That’s what sets us apart,” Woods said. “We’ll help anybody who’s willing to take on the responsibility for the animals they’ve taken in.” (more…)

PHOTOS BY SUSAN LOESCH

KRISHA WILLIAMS TURBEVILLE

RESCUE IN THE ROCK

What began with a phone call to Animal Planet ended in the rescue of 25 dogs, a raccoon, four cats and a horse when four central Arkansas rescue groups helped an overwhelmed El Paso woman.

Animal Planet Executive Producer Dan Jackson said the footage would premiere sometime in July on a new, as yet unnamed show.

“It will be about helping people who have too many animals,” Jackson said. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

ATLANTA — The number of cats and dogs put down at metro Atlanta animal shelters is rising amid sharp budget cuts.

The number of cats and dogs destroyed at animal shelters in Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties has jumped 24 percent in the last two years. Those five core metro Atlanta counties killed almost 30,000 cats during that time.

Gwinnett County led the metro area with 7,588 dogs and cats put down in 2009. County officials say almost half of the animals were destroyed because the shelter could not house them. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

WILLIAMS, Ore. — The Howling Acres Wolf Sanctuary in the Southern Oregon community of Williams is closing.

Sherri and Charlie LaBat told the Mail Tribune newspaper in Medford they are out of money, time and energy to keep rescuing wolves and hybrids that were kept illegally as pets, for sale and for their fur.

Sherri LaBat says treating her leukemia has been expensive, the recession has cut into donations, and their house is in foreclosure. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

LOS ANGELES — For five years, the manager of a pet store in posh Bel Air met delivery trucks loaded with hundreds of ailing purebreds from Midwest puppy mills.

“They often got sick in transit,” Jamie Katz said. “They would put hundreds of puppies on a semi and if one got sick, they all got sick. I tried to fix the problems but it’s hard when you are the only one trying.”

Two years ago, she found herself with allies — protesters who showed up in front of the store in a high-end mall. They were working on a campaign of the Best Friends Animal Society to persuade people just like her to sell shelter animals instead, which is exactly what happened thanks to Katz. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

RUPERT, Idaho (AP) — The legal notice has been given: Pete the pup goes up for auction Tuesday.

The dachshund taken to the Rupert Animal Clinic in January after being hit by a car has recovered, but clinic officials say Pete’s owners haven’t responded to multiple calls to pick up their dog and pay the $400 bill.

So the clinic posted a legal notice in The Times-News that Pete will be put up for sale. (more…)

THE BAXTER BULLETIN

The Mountain Home City Council agreed Thursday to hold off bidding for animal-control services and instead assigned city police officers animal-control duties.

The city has been without an animal-control company since the first of the year, when the council decided not to renew a $32,500 annual contract with Mountain Home Animal Control Inc. and instead advertise bids for the service.

“Things seem to be going reasonably well,” Mayor David Osmon told the council. “We’re saving money. I would feel comfortable giving this a little more time.” (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SAN DIEGO — The city of San Diego says it will sell its seven police horses via an online auction as a way to help balance its budget.

The horse unit, started in 1983, is disbanding, and the officers have been assigned to other units.

About a third of the San Diego Police Department’s dogs are also being laid off. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

The owners of pets and horses seized by law enforcement would be required to pay for the animals’ care under a measure introduced in the Nebraska Legislature.

The bill (LB1084) by state Sen. Russ Karpisek of Wilber calls for a hearing to be held within 10 days of an animal’s seizure. At the hearing, the court will decide whether to return the animal to its owner or harborer. If the animal is not returned, the court will order the owner to pay all expenses related to the care of the animal, including shelter, food and veterinary care. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — Brand inspector Mike Walck won’t soon forget one of the worst cases of animal cruelty he has seen. In mid-November, between Rulison and Parachute, someone shot a horse in the head, leaving the gray gelding in his late teens or early 20s for dead. But the horse didn’t die.

“I don’t know why they were trying to kill the horse, but they damn sure shot it in the head,” Walck said angrily. “It’s a tough deal.”

Walck said the horse has been nursed back to health and is recovering. No arrests have been made in the case. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A Greene County lawmaker wants to make the slaughtering of horses for human consumption legal in Missouri.

But state Rep. Jim Viebrock has a lot of hurdles to clear.

Viebrock, R-Republic, is sponsoring state legislation aimed at bypassing a federal ban on meat inspectors working in horse slaughtering plants by getting processors to pay for the inspections. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SALT LAKE CITY — Overstock.com Inc. has stopped selling watchbands, shoes and luggage made from the skins of exotic animals.

The Salt Lake City, Utah-based Internet retailer announced Monday that it pulled listings involving items with alligator, lizard, ostrich, stingray, eel, shark and kangaroo skin from its Web site. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

CLARKSTON, Mich. — Animals may not have any concept of holidays, but if they did, some local animals might find themselves thanking Kid Rock this holiday season.

“I’ve always tried to help out where I can locally; I do a lot of things nationally and worldwide, too, but if I can’t start out by helping in my hometown, then why bother?” said Robert Ritchie, the Clarkston area resident and Romeo native better known as musician Kid Rock. (more…)

KRISHA WILLIAMS TURBEVILLE
RESCUE IN THE ROCK

Feline Rescue and Rehome collected more than $1,000 Saturday night at The Afterthought, which featured the mellow, rockin’ stylings of Brenda and Ellis.

Alex, head library cat at the Arkansas School for the Blind and unofficial FURR mascot, greeted guests and passersby in his faux fur-lined green hoodie.

“He’s definitely attracted some people,” said Alex’s owner and FURR board member Susan Loesch. “He’s a little grumpy getting the jacket on, but once it’s on, he’s content.” (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

LOS ANGELES — The basset hounds at Daphneyland aren’t the only ones with long, sad faces.

Donations to the nation’s largest basset hound rescue have never been so low, bills so overdue, the need so crucial or the help so thin, said Dawn Smith, Daphneyland’s president and founder. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SALEM, Ore. — Tammy Thompson lives in a tarp-covered tent on Salem’s fringe, sharing her “little spot in the woods” with three much-loved dogs.

“They’re my children. They’re everything to me,” said Thompson, 44.

That’s why she was grateful for a local program that provides free exams, vaccinations and medications for the pets of homeless people. The aim is to improve public safety and show compassion for homeless people. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

RENO, Nev. — A new federal proposal to manage wild horses is rekindling debate over another fixture of the Western range: cattle.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar last week proposed moving thousands of mustangs to preserves in the Midwest and East to protect horse herds and the rangelands that support them. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

JOHNSON CITY, Texas — When an elderly Johnson City woman known as the “cat lady” died, leaving behind more than 100 felines, the question arose about what would happen to her precious pets.

Blanco County has no animal control agency or animal shelter, so the 72-year-old woman’s neighbors knew they had to step in and help. (more…)

McCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS

DETROIT — When someone shot Jose Cantu’s pit bull in broad daylight, Cantu didn’t call the Pontiac, Mich., cops. He called Pam Porteous and the Animal Care Network.

“I called Pam first because I knew she would come right out and take care of it,” said Cantu, 32, an unemployed construction worker who, like many Pontiac residents, has come to rely on the group for pet needs in the financially troubled city. (more…)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

PORTLAND, Ore. — Several groups are pushing to renew the slaughter of horses in the U.S., possibly starting in Oregon.

Proponents are pushing Congress to introduce a bill to allow the U.S. Department of Agriculture to resume inspecting horse meat for human consumption. (more…)

CONCORD, Calif. — On Monday morning, Debby Brown was ecstatic, having been reunited with her tiny dog Lexi 2 1/2 days after the pet was taken from her Cadillac Escalade parked behind a Concord, Calif., restaurant.

But it was a tough weekend for the Concord woman, who offered — and paid — a $10,000 reward to get back Lexi. (more…)

THE WASHINGTON POST

WASHINGTON — My dad figured he had all the time in the world to take care of Rocky. What he didn’t realize was that he needed quite a bit of money too.

My dad has a decent pension from his job as a cafeteria worker at St. Luke’s Roosevelt Hospital in New York. But all the pet food, veterinarian visits and other expenses are making a dent on his budget. Still, he loves Rocky and won’t give him up. (My mom is not as much of a fan, as Rocky is extremely rambunctious, but she puts up with him to please my dad.) (more…)