Entire Dog Blog

Only the pets were home when 3730 Old Philadelphia Pike in Lower Saucon Township (Pennsylvania) burst into flames Thursday morning, but that didn't stop hero Patrolman Scott Snyder from busting down doors in a search for life.

Joined by Township police Sgt. Gerald Young, Snyder found an unconcious Pug on the floor. Snyder shook the Pug awake, and rescued him from the burning home. The dog will be fine. Synder had to be hospitalized with breathing problems after the heroic rescue, but was later released and thankfully is "expected to return to work for his next shift."

Another pet escaped from the blaze on his own and required medical attention. Three additional pets died in the fire.

After the patrolman discovered the blaze, he called for firefighters but kicked in the back door before they arrived to make sure no one was inside. Thick black smoke in the kitchen made it difficult for him to see. He exited the home and went to the front door, which he also kicked in to gain entry.

Township police Sgt. Gerald Young then arrived and joined Snyder in the search of the home. No occupants were located, but Snyder found the pug on the floor. He removed it from the home and shook it. It became semi-alert and was then taken for treatment.

Steve Poole of Wichita (Kansas) owes his life to his dog. The dog, unnamed in the article with no breed or sex listed, alerted Steve to a kitchen fire by scratching on Steve's bedroom door. Steve made it out of the house, which sustained an estimated $25,000 in damage in the blaze, with only minor injuries. Steve's dog died in the fire.

Poole apparently used the back of his stove top to store things and the front to cook with, [Wichita Fire Department Captain Brad] Crisp said.

"We feel like he probably turned the wrong burner on," he said, then went to take a nap after eating. The kitchen caught fire and Poole's dog alerted him to the danger.

"It's just not a good idea to store things that are combustible on the top of the stove," Crisp said.

It was about 11AM this morning when Danville (Kentucky) resident Junquera Ricardo opened his door to let his two dogs out into the yard. That's when a man with a gun punched him and knocked him down. One of Ricardo's dogs wasn't going to stand for that.

The dog (unnamed in the article with no breed listed) bit the attemped home invader on the leg. The suspect fled empty-handed, and Ricardo was taken to a local hospital as a precaution.

Police say the suspect is described as a white man, possibly in his 30's, 5-foot-10 with a heavy build. Police say he also had dirty blonde curly hair in the back, he has facial hair and a mustache. He was wearing a knit cap, a dark blue coat, and dark pants.

Police believe the body of 19-year old Ann Madden has surfaced on the shores of Scotty's Beach in Sonoma County (California).

Madden was last seen wading into the rough surf at Portuguese Beach Saturday as she and her finacé struggled to save their dog (or dogs), which had been knocked into the water by a strong wave.

Reports vary whether one or two dogs were involved in the tragedy. The dog(s) and Madden's finacé Grant Kort survived the ordeal. Sadly, it appears that Madden did not.

The persistence of a Grand Haven (Michigan) resident has saved a female Golden Retriever / Labrador mix that is believed to have been stranded on a Grand River island for at least 5 days.

After failing to find the dog on Wednesday and Thursday, local police reportedly believed that the dog had saved itself by swimming back to shore. That wasn't good enough for one unnamed local resident, who took his canoe to the island Saturday morning and set up a humane trap baited with food to catch the dog. Residents reported seeing the dog inside the trap by Saturday evening, and authorities rescued the dog Sunday morning.

[Lt. Lee] Hoeksema [of the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department] said the dog growled at its rescuers at first, but eventually calmed down.

"Once they got her to shore, the dog was fine," he said.

The dog, which had no tags for identification, was taken to the Harbor Humane Society in West Olive after the rescue on Sunday morning, Hoeksema said.

Anyone with information about the dog's owner should call the Sheriff's Department at 738-4025.