Yesterday it was a brave cat.  Today, it’s Italian canines.  With at least 300 fully trained dog lifeguards, about 3,000 people are saved each year from drowning according to MSNBC.com,

Hundreds of specially trained dogs form Italy’s corps of canine lifeguards, are deployed each summer to help swimmers in need of rescue.

These “lifedogs” wear a harness or tow a buoy that victims can grab, or a raft they can sit on to be towed back to shore, and unlike their human counterparts, they can easily jump from helicopters and speeding boats to reach swimmers in trouble.

I once dated a guy who was training to be a lifeguard. I learned quickly that I’d be a terrible victim because I couldn’t stop myself from struggling.  But if it were a dog who swam out to me, I think I’d be calm enough to just grab hold and kick.  Canine lifeguards - we salute you!

Photo from MSNBC.

Though I Can Has Cheesburger is the source of this story, the usual wit of the site should not downplay the serious awesomeness of this story.  A 97-year old woman was being attacked by a neighbor’s pitbulls and her cat came to her rescue,

Tiger ran out into the pack of dogs, and led them away from the Thomas, who was able to make it inside her home. Tiger soon showed up at the door, completely unharmed. Thomas says that Tiger probably saved her life.

Go to the link to see Tiger’s video salute.  KUDOS to Tiger!

A friend of mine linked on Facebook to an article from Colorado Springs where a photographer Nanette Martin covered Hurricane Katrina.  She took many photos of lost animals and put them online.  She saw when all the animals were adopted, it was good photography that helped them all find homes.

It was suggested that Martin take a picture of each of the animals and forward them through the internet. “By the time we got to Atlanta practically every one of them was spoken for,” says Martin. She realized her pictures could make the difference between a homeless animal living or dying.

Kudos to Ms. Martin for her new career in Shelter Me Photography, the Glamour Shots for Animals!

Visit the wonderful website, make a donation, or adopt one of these beautiful animals that need a home!

Photo from Shelter Me Photography.

Ron at PopFi does such a terrific job of finding interesting stories throughout the world that show just how crazy popular culture is.  He shared a story about how a tiger cub was found recently at Bangkok International Airport… found sedated in a pile of stuffed animals.

The tiger was taken to an animal rehab facility while officials try to determine if it was born in the wild or if it is born in captivity.  Despite its treatment, the tiger kitten seems to be in good health.  As for the smuggler, she was arrested and detained for her not-so-subtle animal smuggling attempt.

People. They are crazy!

Photo by J Tillery via Flickr Creative Commons.

By now, everyone has seen the video where the lady from England walks up to “pet” the kitty and then quickly picks it up and drops it in a Herbie Curbie.  Seriously? Who would do that?  She didn’t think it was a big deal,

Earlier in the day, the British-based Sun newspaper reported that Bale put the cat in the can as “a joke” and didn’t understand what the big deal was. “It’s only a cat,” Bale said, adding that she thought the cat would be able to wiggle its way out.

For sure, she’s a crazy cat lady but not the kind you usually think of.  Here’s the vid.

If this isn’t the most awesome exercise in the entire world, then I’m going to lay down and sleep for a thousand years.  There’s a new (well maybe not new new, but new to me) dance in town and disco it ain’t.  Called musical freestyle, it is a dog obedience and dance technique combination.  From Final Boss Form,

Musical canine freestyle—also known as musical freestyle, freestyle dance, and canine freestyle—is a modern dog sport that is a mixture of obedience, tricks, and dance that allows for creative interaction between dogs and their owner.

Want to see it? I thought so…

I may have found a new hobby for my daughter. 

H/T Brittney.

Photo by Travis Simon via flickr creative commons.

Gross!

Bedbugs have infiltrated even some of the nicest hotels, homes, fluffy beds, yucky beds, and average beds.  There seems to be an epidemic of them spreading across the country according to the latest news.

According to the Boston Herald, bedbugs are taking over throughout the city to the horror of many, especially in the Back Bay and South End where people are going out of their way to keep their critter crisis on the down low.

The Boston Herald reports that exterminators are told to show up in unmarked vehicles at times when neighbors won’t be able to catch on to what’s going on, as the clients pay huge sums of money to rid these creepy crawlies from their posh homes.

What cities have the most bedbugs?

Be grateful if you don’t live in

1. New York
2. Philadelphia
3. Detroit
4. Cincinnati
5. Chicago
6. Denver
7. Columbus, Ohio
8. Dayton, Ohio
9. Washington, D.C.
10. Los Angeles
11. Boston
12. Indianapolis
13. Louisville, Ky.
14. Cleveland
15. Minneapolis, Minn.

What really gives me the heebie-jeebies is that I’ve spent the night in most of these cities!  No! They weren’t brought by me!  I check my mattresses regularly - even when I go to hotels. Evidently they’re pretty easy to spot in the folds of the mattress.  According to the Harvard School of Public Health, here’s what to look for:

The bedroom and other sleeping areas should be carefully examined for bed bugs and signs of bed bug activity. Folds and creases in the bed linens, and seams and tufts of mattresses and box springs, in particular, may harbor bed bugs or their eggs. They may also be found within pleats of curtains, beneath loose areas of wallpaper near the bed, in corners of desks and dressers, within spaces of wicker furniture, behind cove molding, and in laundry or other items on the floor or around the room.

I hope you don’t find any!

Life with Gob - Kat’s new puppy - has been interesting.  I’ve ready about him tearing out of the house and Kat chasing the pup with a migraine.  This may be why the black dog was tethered to a leash all the while on vacation.

Now Gob is jealous of Kat’s knitting.  The proof is in the yarn…

Silly Gob. I can’t wait to see pictures!

Our cats have the best personalities.  The youngest and newest addition to our household Cali is already spoiled by Grandma.  Earlier today she was taking a cat nap when Grandma came into the room and sat down.  Cali JUMPED up and ran across the room so she could settle herself more comfortably on Grandma’s lap.

I really believe they try to talk as well.  Our old cat Pootster used to say “Out” and “Noooo.”  Apparently these cats talk squirrel.

Have a happy weekend!