The next day, hikers discovered the pup three miles from her home, far up in the nearby mountains. She was visibly shaken, dehydrated, and suffering wounded paws. They contacted the local fire department, who sent a team hiking up the trail.

After providing her with much-needed water, they noticed she was too worn out and in too much pain to make the trek down herself.

So crewmember Tony Stowe hoisted her up onto his shoulders, carrying her the whole way back.

Taking in the view from the comfort of Stowe’s shoulders.

It’s baffling how far she was able to rush herself away in all her panic.

Thankfully, they were able to scan her microchip as soon as they arrived at Animal Services and return her to her anxious owners.

Hopefully this sweet girl stays inside the next time there’s such scary celebrations. Maybe with a nice teddy bear to keep her calm.

The post A Firefighter Carried This Injured Dog All The Way Down A Mountain appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

As part of his therapy, Caleb was introduced to Colonel, a specially trained Golden Retriever. Prior to this, he’d been unresponsive and lacking in energy. Seeing the dog, who was about the size of Caleb himself, perked Caleb right up. There was a noticeable change in his motivation and awareness, and he began to steadily improve.
When Colonel was brought in, Caleb’s attention and alertness were immediately sparked, and his progress improved dramatically.

With the help of a therapist, Caleb works on his motor skills, throwing a ball for Colonel.

Even though he’s young, occupational therapist Lisa Barnes says that kids like Caleb who have suffered these devastating injuries often get depressed and lack motivation to try and regain mobility. Colonel helps with that problem, as Caleb finds plenty of motivation to try and play with the patient, friendly dog. His grandmother agrees. “I noticed that every time he would see Colonel, he was more alert,” she says “There was a little step in his awareness and [Caleb]…would do a little bit more than what he’d already been doing.”
Watch Caleb’s incredible story below.

After a month of intense therapy and with the help of Colonel, Caleb had become much more aware and alert, and his motor skills were vastly improved. He’s also grateful for Colonel’s companionship. “I guess he likes me a lot!” he says with a smile.

Caleb still has a way to go, but his father says that animal therapy continues to be an amazing form of healing for people, especially children.

The post This Little Boy Was In Bad Shape, But A Special Friend Helped Him Get Better appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

When asked about how she felt having her dog back after such a long time, Phoenix said, “Really happy and excited!”

Jennifer, Phoenix’s mom had learned that Tilly had been located only a day or so before the Friday reunion.  She had been in the vehicle at the time the call was received, and could barely contain her excitement.

“I actually had to pull over, because I got the word on my way home from work,” she said.  “I think I screamed in my car.”

When Tilly was first lost, the family spent as much time as they could looking for her.  They searched everywhere, but she was nowhere to be found.  Tilly did have a collar with identification on it.  She was also chipped, and the information on that was up-to-date as well.  It seemed as if they would never see Tilly again.

Tilly was finally located and brought to Lost and Found Pets of Lexington, Kentucky.  This is where Tilly came in contact with Christine Stoops, who would eventually drive Tilly all the way to Salt Lake City, Utah for the happy reunion.

“This is one of the best experiences I could ever be involved in,” said Christine.  “It was absolutely worth it.  I can’t ask for anything more than seeing Phoenix’s face, along with Jennifer, and just being a part of bringing Tilly home.”

Christine said the trip home for Tilly was covered by donations.  For Phoenix and her family, they feel a bit more complete having their Tilly home, safe and sound, with them.

The post Utah Girl Reunited With Dog After Two Years appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

But her work never stops. There are always dogs being overlooked for various reasons (like unfair breed stereotypes). Shuster aims to allow their true, lovable personalities shine through her lens.

Each of these precious faces was passed over time and again while living at the shelter…until these fun photos changed their lives forever.

Caroline

Franco

Bay

Princess

Vivian

Toby

Trinity

Trigger

Peter

Enzo

Raven

Monroe

Bram

Harry

May

Teton

Is it weird that these are the same faces I make in a photo booth?

How could anyone pass up an opportunity to cuddle those cuties?? Happily, each and every one of them has been adopted into their forever homes, some after less than a day of their photo being uploaded to the shelter’s Facebook page! All it took was a small change in perspective.

The post A Simple Photo Booth Changed Everything For These Previously Un-Adoptable Dogs appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

Happy Shylo, a six-year-old pit bull available at the Humane Society of Utah gives smooches to coordinator Lexi Stringfellow.

New Year’s Day officially marks the end of breed specific legislation in Utah. The bill was passed months ago, but the new law allowing residents to have pit bulls takes effect today.

Bully breeds were banned in 10 Utah cities and towns, but House Minority Leader Brian King, D-Salt Lake City, sponsored a bill to overturn their ordinances, saying the breeds have been unfairly targeted because of the behaviors of some.

“Some of you can remember the day when it wasn’t pit bulls,” King had said. “It was German shepherds. They were associated with World War II and Germans and being attack dogs. That went out of style. Then it became Dobermans and Rottweilers. They were the stigmatized breed. Now it’s pit bulls.”

South Jordan, Utah banned bullies in 1997 at citizens’ request after a young girl was attacked while walking home.

“Any dog breed has the potential of being vicious,” contested Gene Baierschmidt, executive director of the Humane Society of Utah. “Local government shouldn’t jump to the conclusion that perhaps a breed that’s been in the media a lot for being vicious will be vicious… Even a Chihuahua can be a vicious dog. It doesn’t matter on the size or the breed.”

Shylo hams it up for the camera as she poses for a treat.

King was initially reluctant to sponsor the bill out of fear that he would receive criticism for micromanaging municipalities.  However, he says he was convinced when retiring Representative John Mathis, R-Vernal, a veterinarian, said, “It’s wrong to target a specific breed. There are aggressive pit bulls, but there are lots of dogs that are more aggressive than pit bulls.” … He thought the bill was a good idea.”

In addition, dovetailed well with arguments that it would help protect private property interests” of people who want pit bulls.”

The new rep is glad his bill is taking effect because “it moves us away from stigmatizing specific breed of dog,” and shifts the focus to owners who determine their dogs’ behavior.

“If you ill-treat an animal or you teach them to be aggressive because you want to breed a junk-yard dog, that’s not right,” King said.  “You’re doing the dog a disservice, and you’re doing your neighbors a big disservice.”

When the bill was passed to ban the bans, South Jordan created a new animal ordinance.

“We focused on behavior of certain dogs, not breeds,” said chief of staff Paul Cunningham.  “We updated the whole ordinance at the same time. If someone has a dog that becomes a danger to the community, we put some pretty restrictive kinds of things, including some insurance requirements and signage requirements to try and protect the public.”

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