A Microchip could be the difference between heartache and a happy ending.

Every dog or cat entering a Houston animal shelter is scanned for the presence of a Microchip. If a lost pet is identified with a Microchip, it can be quickly reunited with its family.

Now the Saving Animals' Pet Adoption Center and Home Again Microchips are teaming up to provide permanent identification and rabies vaccinations for Houston dogs & cats.

During a special Disaster Preparedness Promotion, a rabies vaccination and tag, along with the Microchip and registration are offered for just $20.

WHEN: Every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and every Sunday from Noon to 4 p.m. No appointments required. Walk-in service.

WHERE: Northwest Mall, Northwest Freeway (290) and 18th Street. Entrance D. Phone number (713) 680-0282.

The Microchips are the size of a grain of rice. They're inserted under the skin of your pet by a veterinarian.

Texas has plenty of both, offering lots of feeding opportunities for a bird that feeds on the decaying flesh of dead animals.

Zoo escapes are rare. Not recovering the missing animal -- dead or alive -- is almost unheard of in Texas.

The female vulture, which does not have a name, made its great escape last month. It continues to confound zoo officials who had hoped for a quick recovery.

That was not an issue Thursday.
A line of would-be adoptive owners extended from the shelter's front gate to the curb, as people came from as far away as Katy to adopt animals taken from what officials described as a puppy mill last week.
"Puppy mill" is a derisive term to describe a high-volume dog-breeding facility in which the animals are often confined in small cages and bred constantly until they can no longer do so. At that point, they are often killed, left to die or given to animal-rescue groups.
In all, more than 100 animals ended up at the shelter after the seizure. They went fast.
"We only have about 10 of the dogs left," said county animal services manager Kim Schoolcraft shortly after 4 p.m. Thursday.
As she looked out the shelter's front door, she added, "And I'm pretty confident we're going to be able to find homes for them."
The first person looking to adopt one of the animals showed up about 6 a.m. Thursday. By the time the animal shelter opened at 11 a.m., more than 100 were in line.
People who reached the front of the line received numbers and fliers. The shelter let people in three at a time to begin the adoption process.
The animal shelter won custody of all but four of the animals in a Wednesday hearing before Precinct 4 Justice of the Peace Mike Nelson. Animal-control officers described animals kept in filthy conditions with little or no food or water.
Nelson allowed former owner Kathy Nelson to keep four dogs, after she said her personal pets were among the seized animals.
Acting on an anonymous tip that a property in Algoa had dozens of animals, the officers last week seized 87 dogs, 10 sugar gliders and four cats. Some of the dogs were pregnant. Twelve puppies had been born in the shelter as of Thursday, with more due.
The four cats, each about a year old, were among the animals still waiting for homes late Thursday.
The shelter was so popular Wednesday that people were parking across Loop 197 to get there. Schoolcraft called the Texas City Police Department for help. Patrol officers went to the 3400 block of Loop 197 North to monitor traffic and ensure the safety of people crossing the road.
Seabrook resident Sheen-na Trahan Thursday morning had her number and was waiting to adopt a dog.
"I was hoping for a little Yorkie, but they're already gone," she said.
Still, Trahan said she was looking forward to finding a furry addition to her home.
Officials at the shelter said one encouraging sign was that some people had expressed willingness to take in older dogs taken from the Algoa raid after hearing the conditions that produced the puppies.
Schoolcraft some were also willing to adopt other animals at the shelter.
She said that was a good thing, motioning toward a stray dog found Thursday afternoon and being led into the shelter.
"Unfortunately, we still have animals coming in, and they will need homes, too," she said.
How to help
Nearly all of the animals seized in Algoa last week were adopt-ed Thursday. However, county animal services manager Kim Schoolcraft said the county's animal shelter still had plenty of animals in need of good homes.
She also said the shelter needed donations of canned puppy food and canned cat food.
To make a donation or learn about adopting an animal, visit the shelter, at 3412 North Loop 197 in Texas City.

Source: Scott E. Williams / Galveston County Daily News

Precinct 4 Justice of the Peace Mike Nelson awarded custody of all but four of the animals to the shelter after a hearing Wednesday morning in his Santa Fe courtroom.

Nelson allowed Kathy Wilson, who had kept the animals on her Algoa property, to keep four of the dogs. She had described them as longtime pets.

However, not among the four she picked Wednesday at the shelter was one of the oldest dogs. The dog was one she had described in court Wednesday as a pet — a blind dog with a terminal case of heartworms.

“Puppy mill” is a derisive term to describe a high-volume dog-breeding facility in which the animals are often confined in small cages and bred constantly until they can no longer do so. At that point, they are often killed, left to die or given to animal-rescue groups.

Officials found the animals a week ago after responding to an anonymous tip about animals being kept for breeding in atrocious conditions.

Animal-control officer Joshua Henderson described the animals’ living conditions as “absolute chaos” — pens in which long-dry water bowls were full of excrement, large groups of animals shared sparse portions of food and filthy animals with matted fur.

Wilson told the judge she had not been able to care for the animals as well as usual because she had been ill.

“I got in over my head,” Wilson said.

She also said the animals appeared to have no food because feeding time was in the evening, and animal control came about 11 a.m. on Feb. 14.

The seizure made local headlines and received coverage on television news programs in Houston.

As a result, county animal services manager Kim Schoolcraft said the animal shelter had been bombarded with people looking to adopt the 87 dogs seized Wednesday and the 12 puppies born to seized dogs since then. She said she hoped that people not able to adopt animals from that group would pick other animals at the shelter.

“We’re going to end up with more people wanting to adopt these animals than we have animals from this case,” she said. “However, we also have plenty of animals here from other places, who would make wonderful pets and who also need homes. Our purpose here is to save the lives of these animals. They all deserve a second chance.”

Schoolcraft also said people who buy dogs from breeders should be wary if those breeders do not want to show them where the puppies came from.

“If they want to meet at McDonald’s to sell the puppy, that should raise suspicions,” she said. “If people saw the horrible conditions the parent animals are subjected to, in order to produce that cute puppy, no one with a conscience would be able to take one.”

The seizure included 99 dogs of varying breeds, including poodles, Maltese and mixed-breeds. Officials also took in four cats and 10 sugar glider squirrels. The squirrels will not go to adoptive homes. Instead, they will go to a sugar glider rescue group or the Houston SPCA, where doctors can sterilize them before releasing them.

How to Help:

Anyone interested in adopting an animal from the Galveston County Animal Shelter can visit the shelter at 3412 Loop 197 North in Texas City. Adoptions from last week’s puppy-mill seizure will be limited to one per family, and all animals will be spayed or neutered before adoption. The center opens today at 11 a.m.

"We're soaking wet and freezing," said one of two rescued women as she walked from a tracked snow vehicle to an ambulance.
One of the women, whose name was not released, was taken to a Portland hospital and being treated for a head injury, said Jim Strovink, spokesman for the Clackamas County Sheriff's Department.
"She's going to be fine," he said, noting that she had walked most of the way down the mountain.
Two others, Matty Bryant, 34, a teacher in the Portland suburb of Milwaukie, and Kate Hanlon, 34, a teacher in the suburb of Wilsonville, were taken to Timberline Lodge on the mountain to rejoin five other members of the climbing party, he said.
Rescuers using an electronic locating device found the three climbers and their black Labrador, Velvet, on Monday morning in the White River Canyon, where they had holed up overnight at about 7,400 feet, officials said. The crew hiked with them down the east flank of the 11,239-foot mountain; on the way down, the climbers got into a tracked snow vehicle that took them to the ambulance.
"The dog probably saved their lives" by lying across them during the cold night, said Erik Brom, a member of the Portland Mountain Rescue team. He described the wind in the canyon as "hellacious."
The two women left the snow vehicle first, followed by Bryant and the dog. The three climbers boarded the ambulance, and Velvet leapt in after them.
In addition to the dog, who provided warmth and comfort, rescuers attributed the happy outcome to the climbers' use of an electronic mountain locator unit that guided searchers to their exact position.
"That's why it is a rescue, not a recovery," Lt. Nick Watt of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office told a news conference at Timberline Lodge, a ski resort at 6,000 feet. "They did everything right."
The three were in a party of eight that set out Saturday for the summit, camped on the mountain that night and began to come back down on Sunday when they ran into bad weather, officials said.
As they were descending at about 8,300 feet, the three slipped off a ledge. They slid about 500 feet down an incline and later moved from the site of the fall, rescuers said.
"They're lucky to be alive after that," Strovink said.
Trevor Liston of Portland, who was among the five who made it off the mountain Sunday, said at a news conference at Timberline Lodge that he saw the three fall, but he didn't say how it happened.
Someone in the party used a cell phone to place an emergency call to authorities. Rescue officials maintained regular cell phone contact overnight with the three who had fallen.
Brom, a member of the team that found them, said the climbers had traveled miles from the site of the fall, descending.
Battling winds up to 70 mph and blowing snow, rescue teams had worked through the night trying to locate the climbers, said Russell Gubele, coordinating communications for the rescue operation.
Teams made it close to the missing climbers overnight, but decided to wait until daylight Monday because they couldn't see anything, Gubele said. Rescuers moved cautiously during the night because of "very severe avalanche danger," he said.
Gubele described the trio as "experienced rock climbers, but not necessarily experienced in mountain climbing."
In December, three climbers who did not have mountain locator units went missing on the mountain. Authorities searched for days, but were able to recover the body of only one climber, Kelly James of Dallas, who died of hypothermia. The bodies of Brian Hall of Dallas and Jerry "Nikko" Cooke of New York have not been found.
In the past 25 years, more than 35 climbers have died on Mount Hood, one of the most frequently climbed mountains in the world.

Source: Associated Press

Investigators say the victims, a man and woman, were inside a burgundy Buick and were moving slowly on the southbound side of the 610 East Loop and Clinton.
Accident on the southbound lanes of the 610 east Loop at Clinton has traffic stopped.
It happened just before 1 p.m. Monday.
When emergency crews arrived on the scene they could see smoke coming from one of the vehicles.
Witnesses tell police the accident occurred when the driver of a two-door Honda hit the couple's car at a high rate of speed.
The Buick, they say, was pushed into a concrete barrier and then burst into flames.
Several drivers stopped and tried to pull the couple out of the burning vehicle, but the flames proved to be too much.
"I ran up and I tried to grab his arms, but he was fraying the flames away from his hair" said Rick Coglianese.
He was was among those who tried to save the couple inside. "I reached in and grabbed him and tried to pull him, but I couldn't get him to budge. Couldn't get him to budge at all."
The victims, officials say, were charred beyond recognition.
Passerbys did manage to save a dog that was inside the burning vehicle.
"I hard a bunch of yelping and screaming, it sounded like a little baby. I said somebody else is in this car," said Coglianese.
Domingo Ruiz saw that a dog was making all that noise and pulled it out. "I went on this other side and I opened the door on the other side and it just so happens that a little dog stuck his head out. I pulled him out."
The woman driving the Honda was taken to an area hospital.
She's expected to be ok.
The accident caused traffic to come to a standstill.
It would be an hour before vehicles were allowed through.
As for the dog, officials say it suffered some burns, but should get help at the SPCA.

The tiny pup, named Charlie by Humane Society volunteers, nurses alongside a jumble of black and gray kittens recently born to Satin, who was taken to the shelter by an owner unable to care for her.
Charlie's mother was found by the side of the road in Meriden a couple of months ago. She gave birth to two puppies, but one was stillborn. As sometimes happens with a stillborn in the litter, the mother refused to accept Charlie.
Volunteers bottle-fed him every two hours, but the effort was exhausting for them and insufficient for the puppy, volunteer Chris Chorney said.
Research indicated that a suitable substitute could be Satin, who had given birth to four kittens that have quickly warmed to Charlie.
To read more: Click here.

Source: Associated Press

They responded to the blaze Thursday morning at Barwood and Shadowdale.
Firefighters quickly put out the fire then they hurried to assist the two four-legged victims.
The cats needed oxygen after apparently escaping from the burning home.
Both cats are expected to be OK.
No people were hurt.

Click to watch raw video

Keep your cat inside. Outdoors, felines can freeze, become lost or be stolen, injured or killed. Cats who are allowed to stray are exposed to infectious diseases, including rabies, from other cats, dogs and wildlife.

During the winter, outdoor cats sometimes sleep under the hoods of cars. When the motor is started, the cat can be injured or killed by the fan belt. If there are outdoor cats in your area, bang loudly on the car hood before starting the engine to give the cat a chance to escape.

Never shave your dog down to the skin in winter, as a longer coat will provide more warmth. When you bathe your dog in the colder months, be sure to completely dry him before taking him out for a walk. Own a short-haired breed? Consider getting him a coat or sweater with a high collar or turtleneck with coverage from the base of the tail to the belly. For many dogs, this is regulation winter wear.

Never leave your dog or cat alone in a car during cold weather. A car can act as a refrigerator in the winter, holding in the cold and causing the animal to freeze to death.

Puppies do not tolerate the cold as well as adult dogs, and may be difficult to housebreak during the winter. If your puppy appears to be sensitive to the weather, you may opt to paper-train him inside. If your dog is sensitive to the cold due to age, illness or breed type, take him outdoors only to relieve himself.

Does your dog spend a lot of time engaged in outdoor activities? Increase his supply of food, particularly protein, to keep him—and his fur—in tip-top shape.

Make sure your companion animal has a warm place to sleep, off the floor and away from all drafts. A cozy dog or cat bed with a warm blanket or pillow is perfect.

The 6-year-old certified therapy dog with a preference for
chicken-and-garlic treats won best in show at the Westminster Kennel Club event Tuesday night, denying Bill Cosby the prize he's always coveted.
Diamond Jim jumped into handler Kellie Fitzgerald's arms after the victory over a Dandie Dinmont terrier co-owned by Cosby and five other finalists.
"Bill Cosby and I are good friends," she said. "We're both competitive. We both wanted to win."

Raw video:
Top dog named | Cosby's dog

The victory at the country's premier dog event prevented Madison Square Garden from turning into "The Cosby Show."
At the arena where the New York Knicks play, the dog commonly called James celebrated with a few loose rebounds. Fitzgerald said he did not eat before the show; once it was over, he snacked on goodies that fell on the floor.
Dressed in a glittering copper top that perfectly matched her brown-and-white pet, Fitzgerald cuddled her champion. She said it was a coincidence that her outfit coordinated with her dog's coat.
"It was just the first thing I grabbed," she said.
Diamond Jim beat out Cosby's dog, as he did at the big AKC/Eukanuba event in December. The springer was the nation's No. 2 show dog last year behind Cosby’s entry—Fitzgerald also repeated, having gone best in show at Westminster in 2000.
"I'm over the moon," she said.

Cosby's run of bad luck on the green carpet of the Garden continued. He'd lost with several top dogs in the past, and avoided coming this time to stave off the jinx.
Judge Robert Indeglia said he wished he had ribbons to give to all the contenders.

Source: Associated Press

Why not give a little love to your pets today? Give your dog a few extra minutes at the dog park this afternoon. Or how about a little cuddle session on the couch? Let your pets know that you love them, too, by giving them a little extra attention today.

Want to wrap up a little gift to show your love? Target has a great selection on valentine's toys for your pets. Or head on over to Petco or Petsmart and get some special treats to help you say "I love you!"

(Remember, though, to keep any chocolate out of your dog's reach. Chocolate is toxic to dogs and can even be fatal!)

It was just one demonstration by animal rights activists who have organized protests across the world today against China's fur industry.

We told you last week how some Chinese fur farms slaughter domesticated dogs and cats and use their fur to line clothing.

The mislabeled products often end up getting sold in the U.S., where the sale of such fur is illegal.

Houston has lots of opportunities where you can help out our animal community! One great way is to volunteer your time with the Food for Pets Program with Meals on Wheels for Greater Houston. In an effort to help seniors maintain their independence and assist them as they care for their best friend, Meals on Wheels for Greater Houston has launched a new program to provide donated pet food to the pets of Houston area Meals on Wheels recipients. Volunteers are needed to help deliver pet food to homebound seniors once a month. And deliveries only take 1 1/2 to 2 hours!

Want to help? Contact Tiffany Harris at 713-533-4922 or tharris@imgh.org. Or stop by the Interfaith Ministries offices and donate cat or dog food! They're located at 3217 Montrose at Westheimer.

Looking for other ways to help out? The Houston Zoo is always looking for volunteers. Go to www.houstonzoo.org for more information. Or you can donate money to an area rescue or shelter. Just get creative! And watch the Animal Attraction Blog for more ways that you can help!

But in some cases, the substitute is unfathomable.

Dogs and cats are being used to make coats that are bought and sold right here in Texas.

At Chico's on West Gray, you'll find lots of different fashions. What you won't find, is fur.

But in some stores in Houston, that is not the case.

Here in the U.S., dogs are seen as a source of companionship, not clothing.

But in China, which provides more than half of all fur products sold in the U.S., dogs and cats serve another purpose, as a recent disturbing video shot by the Humane Society of the United States gruesomely reveals.

"We went to warehouses with stacks and stacks of pelts from golden retrievers and other dogs. Millions of dogs and cats killed for their fur, with that fur finding its way into fur trim sold in Western markets," Wayne Pacelle of the Humane Society said.

Although dog and cat fur were banned seven years ago, the HSUS recently purchased either online or in person 25 coats with fur trim from 17 retailers – two of them based in Texas, Neiman Marcus and JC Penney – and some of the testing came back domesticated dog.

German shepard, collie and the like, and consumers were unwittingly and unknowingly buying domesticated dog fur, even though it’s forbidden in this country.

In many cases, the fur had come from raccoon dogs, which resemble raccoons but are K-9s. Some of the consumers in question were under the impression they were buying faux fur.

Currently, if the value of the fur is under $150, the law doesn't require retailers to label the species or country of origin.

Neiman Marcus and JC Penney did not return 11 News’ calls on the matter.

Meanwhile, the HSUS says unless legislation pending in Congress is passed, consumers will continue buying blind.

Click to watch Brad Woodard's video (Warning: Some images may be disturbing)

If you have ever doubted the power of a pit bull bite, Mitchell Stevens
has the proof on his SUV.

"It was very loud and very vicious," he said.

"The teeth marks went all the way through the wheel shroud - this is a
pretty thick shroud. If you put your hand under here you can see they
went all the way through."

Stevens encountered two full grown pit bulls attacking his SUV parked on
the driveway.

The dogs' teeth shredded two fenders and their claws scratched the paint
in an attempt to get to the family's cat who was hidden in the engine.

The cat survived but Stevens and his wife now fear if the dogs could do
this to an SUV, imagine what could happen to their son.

"They have the most incredible strength, I mean, what if this was
Mitchell outside playing," said Jillce Stevens.

The 3-year-old likes to play in his sandbox but now his parents don't
think he's safe.

"There's so many pitbulls in this neighborhood, that we're very scared
to have out kid come out." said Mitch Stevens.

This pit bull lives down the street.

It was behind a fence but Dallas animal control officers say two-thirds
of the 30,000 dogs and cats that they picked up last year were stray pit
bulls.

The Stevens have warned other parents in the neighborhood about what
happened to their SUV.

"I described the dogs in great detail, and said look in your neighbors'
back yard and watch out for them," Jillce Stevens said.

The pit bulls ran off and have not been seen since the attack.

State law prohibits cities from banning specific breeds of dogs.

But the Stevens would like city council members to consider harsher
penalties against dog owners whose dogs get loose.

Click to watch video

The dog adoption kennel is filled to capacity, which means incoming dogs have nowhere to go once their three-day hold periods are up.

If homes aren't found for some of these animals, they'll have to be put down.

There are three ways you can help:

1. Adopt from BARC

2. Foster a dog from BARC until a permanent home is found

3. Financially sponsor a dog to off-site kenneling until it can be adopted out.

Can you or someone you know help?

For every dog that is adopted, fostered or sponsored, space is made for another dog!

Please let me know if you can help and please forward this e-mail to every dog and animal lover that you know!

Other Houston area shelters are also full of dogs, cats and other animals that desperately need homes.

If you've been thinking about taking the pet plunge, this would be a good time to open your heart and your home.

The mob of meerkats emerged from their burrow Friday morning and
predicted six more weeks of winter.

Instead of looking for their shadows, the meerkats made their forecast
by selecting between a pile of sand and a pile of snow.

“At first they appeared to be evenly divided between the sand pile and
the snow pile,” said Houston Zoo animal trainer Brett Posey. 

But their interest in the sand pile was brief and they quickly
concentrated on the mount of snow. 

Slideshow: Meerkats at Houston Zoo

“It’s clear to everyone who was observing that the “mob” has spoken and
they’re calling for six more weeks of winter,” said Posey.

The meerkats are highly sociable members of the mongoose family.

They inhabit the drier regions of South Africa, Namibia, southern
Botswana, and Angola where they live in family groups called mobs. 

Over the years, several Houston Zoo animals have tried their hand at
weather prediction - Masai giraffes, spectacled bears, and Guinea hogs. 

Groundhog Day has its roots in the ancient believe that hibernating
creatures were able to predict the arrival of springtime by their
emergence. 

German immigrants brought the tradition to America in the 18^th
century.

Raw video: Meerkats at Houston Zoo

The fire broke out about 8:40 a.m. in the home in the 2000 block of and 34th Avenue North.

Fire Marshal Kelly Rothrock believes the fire may have started when one of the woman's seven cats knocked over a candle in the living room.

They believe Mary Lou Henry, 77, was in the kitchen when the fire started because the faucet was still running.

Rothrock theorizes she ran out and tried to put out the fire and rescue her pets.

Her body was found still clutching one of her lifeless cats.

A second cat also perished in the fire which gutted two rooms.

One of the dead felines was badly burned, leading Rothrock to believe it might have caught fire after knocking over the candle.

Two others were given oxygen by Texas City EMS crews and taken to a local animal shelter.

Henry's daughter said two cats are missing.

Firefighters said when they arrived on the scene a sticker on the house door read, "In case of fire save the cats."

Source: The Daily News

The onlookers snapped photos of the sight with cell phone and digital cameras.
All afternoon, people gathered around the tree on Diamondhead Blvd. near Newport Elementary to see the eagles in action. 
Thanks to Christy Maxwell who sent in the photos.

Slideshow: Eagles mating