I love writing at Patheos and I love meeting my fellow bloggers. What better way for all of us to get to know each other than through our pets! This is Patheos blogger Carl Gregg with his two dogs, both rescues: the black and white, 20 lb. terrier mix named Dobby Templeton (“She’s our house elf”, says Carl) and the 15-week-old, (already!) 19 lb. hound/boxer with a brindle coat named Scout “Boo Radley” (“Think To Kill a Mockingbird”, he says). Carl’s... Read more
Since I asked readers to share photos of their pets I thought I’d share one, too! This is my dog, Scout. Back in May, when he was just five years old, he was diagnosed with canine lymphona. It was in his spleen, his lymph nodes and likely his digestive tract. Without chemo, the doctors gave him 30 days to live. Knowing my pup and how much he hates going to the vet, plus the grim prognosis that even with three months of... Read more
Oh, that we could learn to get along with each other the way Fum and Gerba have! Fum (which means “smoke” in Catalan) and Gerba (“frost”) are both about a year old. The pair live and romp together in Tarragona, Spain. You can see more from them on their Facebook page. Read more
“Still, there is a growing awareness that how we treat animals is a measure of our own humanity—that violence inflicted on animals is inexorably linked to human-against-human violence, that compassion is a big enough idea to encompass animals as well as humans.” Christine Gutleben, senior director of the Faith Outreach program of The Humane Society of the United States, in a piece about animal welfare and the church Read more
Even though the story broke in October, it’s still making the rounds on Facebook – just in time for Christmas: retail developer Macerich announced that it will no longer allow pet stores that sell animals in more than 70 malls nationwide. According to a story from October at GlobalAnimal.org, “This new humane policy designed to break the puppy mill business chain is taking effect nationwide within 30 days. Macerich confirmed that they will not renew the leases of existing pet stores that... Read more
I love that the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) has launched a faith outreach dedicated to engaging people and institutions of faith with animal protection issues, recognizing that religious values call upon us all to act in a merciful way toward all creatures. And to launch that outreach, the HSUS held a contest and invited people to submit a video of themselves performing their interpretation of the hymn “O God Your Creatures Fill the Earth,” by lyricist Pastor Carolyn... Read more
Earlier today I shared with you a story about some juvenile black-tailed deer who hopped aboard a fishing boat last year for a ride to safety. This week comes news that on Monday, a black bear hitched a ride on top of a garbage truck and ended up in downtown Vancouver. Silly old bear. Conservation officer Alex Desjardins told the Vancouver Sun that its believed the bear was inside of a dumpster that was picked up in North Vancouver on... Read more
Photos of these deer hitching a ride on an Alaskan fishing boat are making the rounds on Facebook. I love when stories make the rounds on Facebook, because they’re often very inspiring. But oftentimes they’re not completely true. The latest story making the rounds is about four deer who hitched a ride on an Alaskan fishing boat. True story, but not recent. It was October 2010 when captain Tom Satre, along with his daughter Anna Satre, brother Tim Satre and... Read more
The Animal Legal Defense Fund this week released its annual report ranking animal cruelty laws across the nation, and according to the report Kentucky, North Dakota, Idaho, Iowa, and South Dakota are the five best states in the country to be an animal abuser. Based on a detailed comparative analysis of more than 4,000 pages of statutes, tracking fourteen broad categories of provisions, the report recognizes the states where animal law has real teeth and calls out those like Kentucky... Read more
Holiday season got you a little tense? Relax with a little cat yoga! Breathe in … breath out … meow! And if you’re new to yoga, why not let Shorty the kitten demonstrate some poses? Read more
Heavenly Creatures
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