Rourke Loses Dog Who Was 'Love of His Life'

Animal control takes actor's four dogs into custody

(NEWSER) - Four dogs belonging to actor Ving Rhames mauled a man to death today, the LA Times reports. The victim, who has not yet been identified but was apparently a caretaker for the dogs, and was found lying dead on Rhames' front lawn this morning. Rhames is currently abroad working on a film. More»

Could get 4 years for fit of anger fatal to dog

(AP) - A Maryland man who tossed a stranger's Chihuahua off a bridge in a fit of anger faces up to more than four years in prison after pleading guilty yesterday to theft and aggravated animal cruelty. David Beers, 35, snatched the 4-pound Zoey after her owners ordered him off their property, and threw her out his car window driving over a bridge last June. Beers, mistaking the couple's quarter-mile-long driveway for a utility road, had stopped to make a cell phone call, the AP reports. More»

(NEWSER) - Farrah Fawcett left the vast bulk of her estate to her troubled 24-year-old son, Redmond, and nothing to Ryan O'Neal, sources have told KTLA-TV. Most of her $6 million estate was left in trust to Redmond in the will, which Fawcett updated in 2007. The fund will be controlled by two trustees, and Redmond will get money to purchase a home and a monthly allowance once he finishes a prison sentence on a drug charge. Fawcett also left money to her alma mater, the University of Texas. More»

Gidget charmed viewers in ads for chain

(NEWSER) - Gidget, the iconic chihuahua of Taco Bell ads, died of a stroke last night at 15, her trainer tells People. “She made so many people happy,” Sue Chipperton says. Largely retired, the canine spent most of her time basking in the sun and appearing in photo shoots, where she showed off her pep. “Gidget always knew where the camera was,” says Chipperton. More»

Japanese toymaker debuts dog translator next month

(NEWSER) - Ever wonder what your dog is thinking? The “Bowlingual Voice” from Japanese toymaker Takara Tomy claims to be able to tell you just that, the Telegraph reports. The device is made up of a microphone and transmitter on the collar that categorizes the dog’s utterances into one of six emotions—such as sadness, anger or happiness—and plays an appropriate sample of speech from a handset. More»