Animal House

Thanks Denise for that disgusting story. EEEEWWWWW

If I had ever witnessed an act like this as a kid, I think I would have been traumatized for life!!! I can't imagine it!!! Yuck!!

I agree Sue and Pam. There is nothing else to write about other than this? This makes me sick.

Those kids are gong to be traumatized for life... not kidding. I can still remember when my toy poodle was attacked by a german shepherd. Luckily, she turned out okay, but that happened 30 years ago and I still think about it.

Denise, just how disgusting can you get printing such a horrific story you must know would upset all of your readers on this blog. You must be really hard up for material to print....here's a suggestion for you.

How about an update on the search for Sargeant. and what has happened to Sniffles who is still in the shelter at SAVE. Here's a GREAT idea....how about an update on VIVI (IF you still remember her!). You managed to let the second anniversary of Vivi's loss go by without one single word to mark the day....SHAME ON YOU, DENISE! Yet, you see fit to print this disgusting story.

I cancelled by 18 year subscription to Newsday because I was SO pissed off with your omission of a word about Vivi on February 15th....after reading this, I know how right I was!

Yes, I was waiting for the 2nd anniversary of VIVI's disappearance, yet this woman Denise hadn't bothered to printing this story. That was why I stopped checking up on the latest updating anymore.....1 or 2 times every 2 weeks or so.
I still pray for VIVI ans am hoping that one day she will be found.

I Agree with ALL OF YOU about this article, This was disgusting! and was it nessecary to add in the line about the "Entree"?
Not funny at all Denise!

I Wonder if she would have thought this story was worth posting if the Dog that fell victim to this Python had been a Ridgback?

Lots of heartwarming and happy stories out there right now with our wonderful American troops trying to save abused and injured animals in Irag and managing to bring them home to a good life here in the USA.....not a single one has been reported by Denise Flaim.....you either post about your show dog world or crap that no one is really interested in....WAKE UP, DENISE!

I haven't even read the details of this story, just the headlines, and couldn't get the pictures out of my mind.....get a job with The Enquirer, you're better suited for that, IMO!

Remember, Denise, before our beautiful Vivi went lost, you weren't even a blip on the radar as far as Newsday was concerned. Just what in the hell would make you print such a sad and horrific story when this blog is read by dedicated animal lovers....WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?????

You people need to get a grip and a sense of priorities and move on. Its not like the kids were eaten. The stupid owners of this dog knew a snake was stalking it and did nothing. And I love how you regular posters are too cowardly to post your names. Ironic.

I don't think this story was printed to disgust people. Especially that we are all dog lovers. I'm thinking of it as more of an informative piece rather than one to annoy. Many people are not aware of the dangers that predatory animals pose to domestic pets. How many times have we heard about unsupervised pets that are attacked by alligators or other wild animals in seemingly suburban areas? Or pets that have been abducted from front yards? Or pets that go permanently missing because of a hole in the fence? Unfortunately there are many horror stories that are out there - but they must be reported or printed along with the happy stories. In as much as it is upsetting and unsetting, if just one person takes note, and keeps a closer and concerned eye on his/her pet, then perhaps eventually we will hear less and less stories about that hole in the fence.

I live in a very rural area, where coyotes and racoons and other wild animals are. My dogs never go out unless I am with them and I also carry a pistol with me. There have been attacks in the area on domestic animals by the wildlife and I don't take a chance. If you live in this sort of area please watch you pets as even rattle snakes can hide in leaves and wait. I also have to watch for owls and hawks as I have some very small dogs that would be easy prey for them.

Yes, the story upset me but I also took it as a "wake-up" call for pet owners. Pet owners should be as responsible to their pets as parents should be for their children. There are dangers everywhere...hidden or obvious.

The story about the snake and the little terrier is a terrible one, but one that happens nonetheless. Please do not bash Denise. She has always been very receptive to our requests to her to post certain topics. She cannot post them if she does not have them.
Denise has had topics before that have been upsetting, but we always bypassed them if we needed to. Why the insults now?
I like this Animal House blog and would hate to see it "go away".
Mila

DOODIES HAPPEN PEOPLE..LIFE ISN'T A BOWL OF GOOD STUFF..THE SNAKE STORY, DISGUSTING AS IT WAS, IS TRUE AND A REMINDER IN CASE YOU HAVE A PET BOA OR
PERHAPS A PYTHON...I'VE HEARD STORIES ABOUT DOGS WORSE THAN THE SNAKE STORY AND I HAVEN'T SEEN MANY COMPLAIN......I'VE STARTED DELETING THINGS I DON'T LIKE ABOUT DOGS, CATS AND HORSES......YOU'VE GOTTA GO WITH THE FLOW SOMETIMES... (0: ISN'T IT GREAT THAT WE CAN VOICE OUR OPINIONS?

I WOULD HATE TO SEE THE VIVI BLOGS TURNED OFF, I'D MISS THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY.. "THIS WOMAN DENISE" IS OK IN MY BOOK.
SHE'S DOING US A FAVOR...
XOXOROOBY/MA

One of the things in suburban areas and rural areas that people should be aware of, especially with small dogs/cats, are predatory birds. My sister lives in a suburb, and was out with her dog and saw a large bird sitting on a nearby house (?turkey vulture?). It was watching a pair of unsupervised Yorkies in a neighbor's yard. My sister called the owners, and they brought the little ones in immediately. This bird was definitely large enough to carry off a small dog. And I have heard of it happening before, although rare. Anything not much bigger than a rabbit is fair game. Just something to keep heads up about.

My neighbor's mom has a little Min Pin who was almost taken off by a turkey vulture..She had claw or talon marks on her chest...
rooby

I have to agree, this story is not a happy ending one - but it does serve to remind people of the wildlife dangers to their domestic animals. I was as horrified there were two children 5 and 7 years of age - close enough to this snake to see this occur. Where were the parents who were supposed to be watching these children! What if this thing had wrapped around one of these children?

Kay, my friend who owns Camp4Paws lives in a wooded area with lakes and wildlife. She always allows the small dogs out separately and guards them very carefully in a more confined area because of these type of risks from vultures, etc. Also, my son and his family in Texas are renting a home in Muleshoe with a large backyard and see lots of wildlife there as well. I have been so afraid of the children playing in this backyard because of the dangers of the rattlesnakes in Texas. Do you see these very often in Texas close to homes?

DON'T KNOW IF THIS WILL ALLOW ME TO POST THIS SO SOON, BUT HERE IS THE LATEST UPDATE ON MADISON. PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR HER. OUR PRAYERS ARE BEING ANSWERED WITH EACH DAY!

February 27
Posted by Gina at Wednesday, February 27, 2008 1:32 PM and is filed under uncategorized
I know you guys are dying for an update. This month has flown by. For the first time since Madison's accident, I am doing something for ME. I was very involved in community theatre before her accident and had not done a show since. So, 5 weeks ago, I got involved in a musical called Jekyll and Hyde as the music director. It's consumed me because I care for Madison all day and then my hubby comes home and takes over while I go to rehearsal. So, I'm sure you understand why I haven't updated. The show is over this weekend though, so I should be updating more often.
On to Madison....there isn't a ton that is new actually. She is showing improvements with her eye movements and tongue movements. The chiropractor neurologist explained that she is getting more reaction in parts of her brain that were not responding before. He is very excited about this. Today, Madison had a swallow study. The speech pathologist puts barium in different textures...pudding (thickest), applesauce, Nectar texture (kind of like elmer's glue but a little runnier) and thin (water). The last study they did, she had penetration in the three thickest textures so they couldn't even try the water. Penetration is when the food or liquid starts to go down to the lungs but comes back up before aspirating. It's still a risk though because it is penetrating into an area that food is not meant to be in. Today however, Madison did not have any penetration on the pudding, applesauce or nectar!! This is really great! She does have a delayed swallow though. She gets the food to the back, pauses with it above the entrance to her airway and then swallows a few seconds later. This should improve with time and therapy. As for the thin fluid (water), she aspirated. Her swallow is too delayed, so it went right into the lungs before she could swallow. I expected it, but it is still scary. I went ahead and kept her home today after the test so I could do extra breathing treatments and chest therapy to clear her lungs. All in all, the test was a success and we can continue doing therapy with baby foods. YAY

that's about it from the Randolph Household. We are plugging along and Madison is still fighting. A good friend of mine told me yesterday when I referred to madison as eventually being a walking testimony, that indeed Madison is already a rolling testimony. I love that

Until next time...B+ for Madison!

I don't understand. If you know that a boa is stalking your dog, why the carelessness? And the children weren't being watched over either. I don't understand people in this world

My husband killed a six foot rattle snake in our back yard last summer. We keep all leaves and anything that they can hide under off the ground and also around the outside of the fence so we can have a good view. The people across the way have seen much larger snakes so I am always watching. There are also scorpions which are out mostly at night so it not only big things but small as well.

OMG KAY - Now I am REALLY WORRIED. I'm going to send your post to my son so he will be careful with the kids. I wish they would let me get a large dog to help watch for things like this too.

WHAT A BUNCH OF ANONYMOUS COWARDS BASHING DENISE.

Many areas of this country also have wildlife that you need to be careful about. Ever hear about rattle snake avoidance seminars and such in the west? And some posting about the birds of prey? It might have been falcons. I live in a city that has introduced peregrine falcons into downtown urban areas and they nest on tall buildings. There were none of these magnificent birds east of the Mississippi River and now they are thriving in major eastern cities. They are afraid of nothing. I had an encounter with one the other day when I was out putting seeds out for small songbirds because it was cold and snowy. I'm only a few miles outside of downtown, and well within hunting territory of the peregrine. It swooped down right over my head as the little songbirds were gathering for seed. It perched on top of my nextdoor neighbors house, then swooped again as the birds scattered. If you were ever raked by claws from one of these birds you would be seriously injured. It is what they kill small game with. They are sharp and exert power comparable to a dog bite. These falcons will go for more than other birds too. I would be wary of falcons too if you had a very small toy breed of dog. In fact, the show Nature on PBS just had a special last week on the raptors. The peregrine is the fastest and most skillful and can even kill larger raptors as it's speed and force of strike is so powerful. Magnificent birds.

Anyway the point of this is everyone is in favor of wildlife, and reintroducing and protecting endangered species and such, but you have to share the planet with them then. You need to know what can happen to you and your pets. Life is a risk for everyone and every creature every day. Get a grip and stop your anonymous criticizing.

Note to myself::::::::KathleenSssssss has finally acknowledged her name with the Sssssssssss on the end so as not be confused with Kathleen A,B,C,D, E or F...heh..........xoxorooby

Roooby - You are so funny! I will try to remember the S in the future for clarification. How is Dante doing?

Rooby, Turkey vultures have small claws and rarely kill their own prey. They prefer carrion -- the more rotten the better. They are vultures. They will kill weak animals when no other opportunity presents, but that's not their preferred meal.

Peregrines, like all raptors, are another story. They hunt live prey.

There is a cooper's hawk that occasionally hunts our area feeders where I live. I doubt it would try for my Scottie, but I'm sure it would go for voles and the like, maybe even gray squirrels. We have red-tailed hawks not so far away, and they make me more nervous. They are quite high up over my area though, and I think the trees and fences make it tough for them to get in as easily as the smaller hawks. There was, however, a golden eagle found less than a quarter mile from my house, in an area where I often walk my dog. You absolutely have to keep an eye on smaller dogs. Even though I am in the middle of suburbia, there's a lot of nature around and not all of it is going to ignore your pet.

ANYONE IN OR NEAR MARION, OHIO WHO CAN HELP ME??? I RESCUED A 6 MO. OLD LITTLE GIRL - BOXER/AM. BULLDOG. SHE WAS TO BE SEIZED AND EUTH'D BY THE DOG WARDEN AS HE SAID SHE WAS A DANGEROUS PIT BULL!!!!! WHAT AN "EDUCATED" MORON. MY TEMP. FOSTER NEEDS TO GIVE HER UP TONIGHT AND MY B.F. CANNOT GET FROM ERIE, PA TO OHIO UNTIL THIS WEEKEND!!!! I AM DESPERATE FOR HELP - SHE NEEDS A PLACE TO CRASH FOR A FEW DAYS. SHE IS UTD ON SHOTS, POTTY/CRATE TRAINED, HEARTWORM AND LOVES, LOVES, LOVES OTHER DOGS TOO!!! PLEASE, IF ANYONE KNOWS ANYONE WHO CAN HELP ME, I WOULD OWE YOU BIG TIME!!!!! THANKS :)

SECOND TRY TO POST THIS MESSAGE...FOR SOME REASON I CAN'T POST LATELY......AM I TALKING TOO MUCH? haaaaaa

Val in Bflo,
Could be that the Min Pin wasn't hurt by a turkey vulture..I think the gal assumed thats what it was because we have so many of them..We also have a LOT of red tailed hawks and other birds of prey. I
live in Northern California, not far from Lake Tahoe Ca...

My daughter had an owl nest with 2 babies last year. One lived! She's also had a heron of some sort. I've have 2 Northern Flickers for the past 4 years who sleep in the eaves of my house, front and backyards...(just commenting on the birds around here..)

I also have a Whippet with a high prey drive! She's a squirrel killer so I've had to quit feeding squirrels..)o;

Thanks for the info!

People: Don't forget to light a candle for our dear Vivi.
Dante Whippet is going to a new Holistic vet and doing much better and will be here, at my house on the 10th to romp with my dogs and his sibs...He still needs candles as do many of our furries and humans.
Darlene is still having a problem with her foot/leg so light up for her and have a beer!
xoxorooby

ME TOO ROOOOOBY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YOU BLABBERMOUTH!!!!!
Daisy is hitching to Erie tonight - all is well :)