WHDH-TV
Nearly 17 U.S. Veterans take their own lives each day—a staggering and heart-breaking number.
But a New England group is pairing service members with service dogs, and both are getting the lifeline they need. Watchdog Mary shot, wrote, and produced this story for WHDH-TV.
Do you know how to perform pet CPR? It could save your dog or cat’s life.
This is a vet guided demonstration, but there are classes you can take in your local community to learn. Watchdog Mary tried it, and It’s harder than it looks, so be sure to learn from a pro.
Photo credit: U.S. Coast Guard Station Fort Myers Beach
The moment the Coast Guard station in Fort Myers Beach, Florida got the call they raced to their rescue boat, jumped in and headed out. They knew they had to act fast.
“We got a call saying there was a dog stranded a few hundred yards off the beach,” Coast Guard machinery technician, Ryan Brousseau told Watchdog Mary.
As the team sped offshore everyone on board had their eyes peeled looking for the pooch in the choppy water. “We all knew he was probably scared,” Brousseau said.
A few hundred yards off the beach they spotted a little head and sped over. There was a red-ish colored dog, paddling his way through the waves.
Posted by U.S. Coast Guard Station Fort Myers Beach on Wednesday, December 4, 2019
“He wasn’t panicking, he was kind of out there for a swim,” Brousseau said. “It was a light chop to the water and he probably couldn’t see too well, so he didn’t know which way he was going.”
Brousseau’s crew mate, Kevin Araiza reached down and initially scooped the dog out of the water. Then Brousseau helped grab the pooch’s hind legs. Together they lifted him into the boat.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief the dog was safe, but he was in a bit of rough shape.
“He was shaking pretty bad,” Brousseau said. “I’m not sure if it was because of the water temperature or being scared and nervous with new people. We just talked to him and tried to keep him as calm as possible. I think he knew we were there to make him safe.”
As they headed back to shore the team started trying to figure out who he belonged to. A number to a veterinarian’s office on one dog’s tags ended up being their biggest clue.
“We called and the vet’s office spent several minutes going through their computer system and found the owner who lives on Ft. Myers Beach,” Brousseau said.
As the crew was still trying to locate the dog’s owner they docked the boat and tried to warm the dog up. “We grabbed one of our wool blankets offered him water. He was still out of it,” Brousseau said.
Then they got good news: The owner was on the way.
And as soon as the dog saw his owner the pooch’s demeanor totally changed.
“He knew who he was and ran toward him,” Brousseau said.
For the Coast Guard Crew of Fort Meyers Beach, it was a successful case closed. And for Brousseau, it was his first canine at-sea rescue.
“It’s a great feeling,” he said. “I’ve done a lot of people rescuing, women, children, and adults, but animals are a lot different. They have no means of where they’re at and it’s scarier. It’s a great feeling, it’s my first dog rescue ever in 13 years.”
Hannah the Lab
It’s the sweetest story! When Kira Wilson dropped her beloved French bulldog, Laszlo, off at the vet's office for tests and surgery earlier this month, she was worried.
But when Wilson got home, she discovered another family member was more upset than she was — her rescued chocolate Lab, Hannah.
To read the rest of Watchdog Mary’s story check it out in The Dodo.
What’s the purrfect way to get a girl to say “yes” she will be your prom date? Enlist the help of some adorable kittens at the San Diego Humane Society.
The students in the video are from Torrey Pines High School and it appears, from the sign the Sebastian is holding, he may have waited until the last minute to ask his girlfriend, Sally, to the big dance, as the prom is this weekend. Hopefully she’s got a dress ready to roll!
And the Humane Society so appropriately hashtagged the video: #Purrposal
An incredible rescue was recorded on a police officer’s body cam— and you won’t believe what happened one minute after everyone was out of harm’s way.
Last Friday evening Austin, Texas police got a call about a woman crying on the Southwest side of the city.
When officers arrived to the area they saw a car trapped on a bridge. There were three young women and a dog inside the vehicle. Floodwaters were rising around them.
Officer Matthew Valli was one of the patrolmen who arrived on the scene. “I saw a female screaming from the passenger side window of the car. I was like, ‘We need to do something now, or it’s not going to end well,’” he said.
Valli put on a life preserver and tied a rope around himself, while two other officers held the other end of the rope.
“Officer Vallei, without hesitation, entered the rushing water and approached the vehicle as it was getting closer to going off the side,” Assistant Chief Richard Guajardo said.
The video shows the officers getting the first two women out. Then the third woman squeezes out the car window, with the dog, but they both got pulled under the strong current.
The situation grew dire.
Valli grabbed onto the woman, and the dog, and then the dog’s collar broke. “It just snapped right off,” Valli said.
The woman then grabbed the dog tightly, not letting go, while Valli tried to pull them to safety. Another officer entered the water and grabbed onto Officer Valli. But the current is so fierce it nearly pulls them all over the bridge.
Then things looked bleak: The woman lost her grip on the dog, and the dog got sucked back into the fast-moving water. You can hear her screaming for someone to help save the Boxer looking mix.
All three officers continued working to haul the woman and dog to safety.
Then another surprise: Right when the dog was close to drier ground he was like, “Oh no, I’m scared, and I’m not moving!
He remained in the water, hesitant to move. Everyone called the dog. You can hear the officers saying, “Come on puppy!”
The women then join in calling for the dog to come to them.
Finally, the pooch decided walking away from the rushing water was the best option, and the dog was saved too.
But it was a narrow escape for everyone, a minute after everyone was safe, the car went over the side of the bridge.
“I’m just extremely ecstatic and happy that everyone came out of this alive,” said Guajardo.
Police now have this reminder for anyone driving and they see floodwaters ahead: Turn around and don’t drown.
Merlin the duck is from Goats of Anarchy animal sanctuary. Walkin' Pets custom-made a wheelchair for Merlin, and he is the first-ever duck to use the wheels! @GoatsOfAnarchy
If you want to see the picture of happiness you just have to look at Merlin’s face.
This very lucky duck is sporting a brand new cart made just for him. You can see Merlin is loving being able to get around.
Merlin the Duck, Walkin' Pets by HandicappedPets.com
Merlin had trouble walking due to a leg deformity. After he was rescued he went to the Goats of Anarchy sanctuary in New Jersey.
And can we just take a moment to say, if you want more laughs and smiles, you have to see the farm’s adorable goats. Seriously. This article should just be called, “The cutest rescued animals you have to meet!”
Goats of Anarchy farm, credit: Walkin' Wheels wheelchairs. Who also donated a small blue Walkin' Wheels wheelchair to a baby goat named Lawson, who is currently suffering from heart failure. It was an incredible experience to see these little guys in action.
But back to the duck: Walkin’ Pets, a company that’s outfitted dozens of rescued animals with carts to help them walk, made their first ever wheels for a duck just for Merlin.
The company says this is only the beginning and they plan on making more duck carts in the future.
Merlin the Duck, Walkin' Pets by HandicappedPets.com
Pup saved from Harris County Animal Control. Shelter says former owner poured motor oil on her because she had noncontagious mange
Just looking at her face sparked outrage from everyone who saw this Facebook post about Gabriella. The pup ended up in the Harris County Animal Control shelter over the weekend.
The post said, “Poor Gabriella was surrendered today in terrible shape. She was covered in motor oil in an attempt by her owners to treat her Demodex mange. A nice vet tech was kind enough to stay after hours to give her a bath and clean her eyes, which seemed to be the cause of her pain. Can you HELP ME?”
The pup cried out in pain as shelter workers tried to clean the oil off her face.
Soon after the post went up Lucky Lab Rescue and Adoption saved the dog.
Volunteer Erin Woodkotch offered to foster Gabriella and raced her to the animal hospital today.
Woodkotch with Gabriella
At first the pup seemed defeated and to have given up. But Woodkotch spent hours with her and stayed with her through all her exams and treatments at the vet’s office, giving her lots of love. Eventually a spark of life came across Gabriella’s face, and Woodkotch observed what she thought may have been a brief tail wag, “Her spirit isn’t broken. She looked me in the eye and I told her how safe she is. I think she’s got fight left in her,” Woodkotch told Watchdog Mary.
Gabriella is also suffering from a severe staph infection and will remain hospitalized for now. In this video she is receiving a medicated bath.
Now many people are asking if the owner face charges for this? Watchdog Mary is trying to find out. We’ll update this story as more information becomes available.
Pop quiz: How often should you brush your dog’s teeth? And how the heck do you do it well?
Have you ever tried to brush your dog’s teeth and ended up fighting a losing battle? Even given up?
Some of us have even tried using tactics like beef flavored toothpaste (so gross!) to try to help make fighting plaque a little easier.
Seriously though, as you’ll hear in this video, having a dog with nasty teeth can cause health problems, and not just in their mouth. The bacteria that builds up can travel to other parts of their body and cause infections and illnesses.
The video gives some good tips on how often to brush, how to brush without a battle and how it can help your pet’s health.
This video was shot moments after Rosa, a rescue dog, who was missing, scared and on the run for a week was found! She managed to escape from her new adopters in San Marcos, Texas.
Dozens of volunteers from Lucky Lab Rescue and Adoption worked to find her. They set up humane traps, field cameras and search parties. Just as they were getting discouraged and depressed— they found her at 2am inside one of the traps the day before Christmas Eve! They’re calling this a holiday miracle.
Rosa is back in her foster home resting and doing just fine. Her foster mom, Marie Guadagno, searched for her each day and night, calling her name, hoping Rosa would recognize her voice.
Another volunteer, Amy Te Grotenhaus, who lives close to where Rosa ran off, checked the traps every couple of hours for the dog. She was stunned to finally find Rosa and took this video.
All the volunteers say this was truly a team effort.
It’s a move that could save your pet’s life if they inhale an object or even get food stuck in their throats.
You know some dogs just love to gobble things down as soon as they spot some random garbage lying on the ground. It happens in a split second and if they end up choking on it, you’ve got big problems.
This is a vet guided demonstration on how to perform the maneuver. If you’re interested in learning how to do it search for pet CPR and Heimlich maneuver classes in your community.
Do you know how to perform pet CPR? It could save your dog or cat’s life.
This is a vet guided demonstration, but there are classes you can take in your local community to learn. Watchdog Mary tried it, and It’s harder than it looks, so be sure to learn from a pro.
What are the biggest myths and misunderstandings when it comes to getting your pet spayed or neutered? What is the right age to spay or neuter a pup? Can a dog or cat ever be too old to be spayed or neutered?
We tackle what’s fact and what’s fiction, and how spaying or neutering your pet can help save the lives of other animals.
