pets

May 12, 2023 2:00 PM CDT

Pope Francis: I Told Off Woman With Dog

Pontiff warns against pets replacing kids amid Italy's demographic crisis

(Newser) - In numerous countries in the EU, birth rates are declining, including in Italy, which could lose nearly 20% of its residents by 2050. Those stats are apparently putting Pope Francis on edge, enough to spur him to warn Italian citizens not to let their anxieties about the future keep them...

Our Pets May Not Be
as Happy as We Think

Apr 22, 2023 8:02 AM CDT

Our Pets May Not Be as Happy as We Think

Kenny Torrella at Vox makes the case for a world with fewer, but happier, pets

(Newser) - It's easy to denounce the mistreatment of animals at the extremes: physical abuse, dog fighting, etc. But as Kenny Torrella writes at Vox , it gets trickier when even self-described animal lovers do things that fall into the realm of "everyday neglect and cruelty" in regard to their pets....

They've Raised 'Neuty' From Infancy. The State Wants Him

State Relents on Taking
'Neuty' From Couple

updated

Mar 18, 2023 4:50 PM CDT

State Relents on Taking 'Neuty' From Couple

Louisiana family's nutria is invasive species that needs to be kept at zoo, wildlife officials had said

(Newser) - After a public outcry, Louisiana officials have decided a couple can keep their pet. Denny and Myra Lacoste had afoul of state law by having a 22-pound nutria—a beady-eyed, orange-toothed, rat-tailed rodent commonly considered a wetlands-damaging pest—as a pet that frolics with their dog, snuggles in their arms,...

Zoo Volunteer Allegedly Stole Gator Egg. It's Now 8 Feet Long

Zoo Volunteer Allegedly Stole
Baby Gator—20 Years Ago

Mar 8, 2023 12:06 PM CST

Zoo Volunteer Allegedly Stole Baby Gator—20 Years Ago

Tewa is back home after theft was uncovered in Central Texas, authorities say

(Newser) - An alligator, stolen as an egg or hatchling from a Texas zoo two decades ago, is back in the first home she knew. The 8-foot alligator named Tewa was returned to Animal World & Snake Farm Zoo in New Braunfels on Friday, months after she was located on rural property...

Couple Likely Gave
Monkeypox to Their Dog

Aug 16, 2022 12:16 PM CDT

Couple Likely Gave Monkeypox to Their Dog

WHO's Rosamund Lewis says it's first apparent case of human-to-animal transmission

(Newser) - What appears to be the first known human-to-pet transmission of monkeypox has surfaced in France. A nonexclusive, cohabiting couple developed symptoms of the virus, which has been appearing mostly in men who have sex with other men, a few days after sleeping with other partners, reports CBS News . Twelve days...

10 Most Popular
Dog Breeds in US

Mar 15, 2022 12:09 PM CDT

10 Most Popular Dog Breeds in US

Labs are still king, but poodles are gaining

(Newser) - Labrador retrievers are still tugging hardest on US dog lovers' heartstrings, but poodles just strutted back into the American Kennel Club's top five most popular dog breeds for the first time in nearly a quarter-century, per the AP . The club's annual popularity rankings came out Tuesday, drawn from...

Woman Says She
Searched a Week
Before Service
Told Her Dog Died

Jan 14, 2022 1:13 PM CST

Woman Says She Searched a Week Before Service Told Her Dog Died

Liz Giorgi is warning others away from pet-sitting company Wag after what happened to Fran

(Newser) - "We're committed to the safety and happiness of all dogs in our care, and peace of mind for pet parents." That's the promise of pet-sitting and -walking service Wag, as seen on its website , but one pet owner says her dog is now dead after being...

Pope: Having Pets
Instead of Kids Is 'Selfish'

Jan 5, 2022 8:57 AM CST

Pope: Having Pets Instead of Kids Is 'Selfish'

Francis calls it a 'denial of fatherhood and motherhood'

(Newser) - Pope Francis isn't happy with people who forego having children and opt for pets instead. While discussing parenthood at the Vatican, Francis called the idea of being childless "a form of selfishness," per AFP . "We see that some people do not want to have a child,...

CDC Relaxes Dog Import Ban

UPDATED

Nov 26, 2021 1:19 PM CST

CDC Relaxes Dog Import Ban

You'll need valid US vaccination certificate to get your pooch home from 113 countries

(Newser) - Update: Six weeks after banning the importation of dogs from 113 countries over fears of fraudulent rabies vaccination certificates, the CDC is bending a little. It will now allow dogs to return to the US from those countries as long as they are healthy, microchipped, at least six months old,...

Cats May Have a
More 'Profound Mind'
Than We Thought

Cats May Have a More 'Profound Mind' Than We Thought

Research shows cats track their owners' movements around the house

(Newser) - If you've ever sensed that your aloof cat, who appears to ignore you, nevertheless seems to know just where you are at all times, you may be onto something. A new study out of Japan shows that cats may actually track their owners as they move around the house,...

Woman Looking to Adopt
Pet Finds Her Own Lost Dog

Jul 11, 2021 4:50 PM CDT

Woman Looking to Adopt Pet Finds Her Own Lost Dog

Aisha Nieves had given up hope of ever finding Kovu

(Newser) - When Kovu disappeared, Aisha Nieves was heartbroken. Her dog had been her constant companion for years, and her best friend. Until one day she came home from work to find Kovu gone, having escaped from a hole in her fence caused by a car driving through it, CNN reports. She...

Chance You'll Pass COVID
to a Pet Is 'Surprisingly High'

NEW STUDY

Jul 9, 2021 12:29 PM CDT

Chance You'll Pass COVID to a Pet Is 'Surprisingly High'

Cats appear to be more susceptible than dogs

(Newser) - There's a "surprisingly high chance" people who contract COVID-19 will pass it on to their pets, according to the author of a yet-to-be-published study, with cats especially susceptible. Researchers searched for antibodies in 48 cats and 54 dogs from 77 households where a prior COVID-19 infection was confirmed...

Pet Boom During
Pandemic Strains
Veterinarians, Staffs

May 13, 2021 4:05 PM CDT

Pet Boom During Pandemic Strains Veterinarians, Staffs

Overwork, compassion fatigue already were problems

(Newser) - During the gloomiest stretches of the pandemic, Dr. Diona Krahn's veterinary clinic has been a puppy fest, overrun with new four-legged patients. Typically, she'd get three or four new puppies a week, but between shelter adoptions and private purchases, the 2020 COVID-19 pet boom brought five to seven...

Mar 2, 2021 1:09 PM CST

Biden Plans White House Surprise

CBS Sunday Morning teases news of a feline

(Newser) - Major, Champ, and ... pussy-kitty? Looks like Joe Biden's hope for reuniting America will extend beyond Democrats and Republicans, the Guardian reports. A CBS Sunday Morning tweet teased the fact that the new first family—which includes the two aforementioned German shepherds—will be "joined by a cat."...

Petco Won't
Sell Product
That Brings
Pain to Pets

Oct 7, 2020 8:44 AM CDT

Petco Won't Sell Product That Brings Pain to Pets

Pet supplies chain also wants its competitors to stop hawking electronic 'shock' collars

(Newser) - A pet product that's been labeled "controversial" by the Humane Society will no longer be sold by one major chain. Petco announced Tuesday that consumers won't find human- and bark-activated "shock" collars—devices that administer electronic pulses of varying intensity and duration to help train animals...

Thousands
Mourn Charlie,
a Very Good Boy

Thousands Mourn Charlie, a Very Good Boy

Obituary for stair-hating, banana-loving dog goes viral

(Newser) - Sallie Hammett wrote an obituary for her dog, thinking it would help her sort through some tough feelings. Having now gone viral, the write-up—designed to look like it would appear in a newspaper —has thousands mourning along with her. "Born July 15th, 2013, in Easley, South Carolina,...

We May Be
Doing Our Pets
More Harm
Than Good

We May Be Doing Our Pets More Harm Than Good

Esther Woolfson writes about the ways humans unintentionally hurt the animals they love

(Newser) - Esther Woolfson was at a street corner waiting for the light to turn when she noticed that the young dog being walked by the man next to her was wheezing. Might have been a pug or French bulldog, "but he’s one of those that now form a widespread,...

First Dog in US
to Test Positive Is Dead

Jul 30, 2020 4:33 PM CDT

First Dog in US to Test Positive Is Dead

Buddy, a 7-year-old German shepherd, contracted COVID in Staten Island

(Newser) - The first dog to be diagnosed with the coronavirus in the US has died. Buddy, 7, had tested positive in April in Staten Island, National Geographic reports. The family pet "was the love of our lives," Allison Mahoney said. "I can’t wrap my head around it....

China Pulls a 180
on Its Dog Policy

May 30, 2020 4:45 PM CDT

China Pulls a 180 on Its Dog Policy

Beijing says it's following 'the progress of the times'

(Newser) - Looks like China has a new official dog policy—namely that people can no longer raise and trade them for commercial purposes, People reports. "With the progress of the times, people's civilization ideas and eating habits are constantly changing, and some traditional customs about dogs will also change,...