Gee...No Shooting the Dog In the Yard, bummer dude.....

ANNAPOLIS, MD - A new bill inspired by a local case would make it illegal to shoot your neighbor's dog if it runs into your yard while chasing a deer.

The bill comes after a Williamsport man was sentenced to jail time in November for shooting two of his neighbor's dogs.

Jeffery Hurd's defense was that he shot the dogs after they ran into his yard chasing wild animals.

The law is already in effect in seven other Maryland counties.

"There are not too many dogs that I know about in Hagerstown or Washington County that might be able to catch a deer, so they might be chasing them off, but I don't think they're going to harm the deer. I don't think there's a need to kill the dogs," said Delegate LeRoy Myers (R - District 1C).

The Washington County delegation voted to send the bill forward and will now go to committee for consideration.

Credit: your4state.com (WHAG-TV 25)

Small Dogs Loose & Freezing in Frederick, MD

FREDERICK COUNTY, MD - More dogs have been found wandering the streets in Frederick County.

On Thursday, 23 small breed dogs were rescued from the bitter cold temperatures along Sundays Lane and up through Walkersville.

Animal Control says they have found five more dogs, bringing the total of rescued pups to 28.

Only one has been killed; it was hit by a car.

The shelter has to hold the dogs for a few days while they try to find someone who owns them. After that, they'll likely be put up for adoption.

Credit: www.your4state.com (WHAG TV25)

The Family Dog

The family's dog was bought to guard,
Chained to a post in a chilly backyard,
House in a shed that was airless and dark,
And every few weeks had a run in the park.
When boredom set in with no fun and no work,
One day it broke loose and went quietly berserk,
Pa couldn't fathom just why it went wild,
As it flattened his wife and then bit his child.
The police were called in to sort out the mess,
And the whole sorry tale was revealed in the press,
The Rescue Society was really annoyed,
So the dog was re-homed, and the owners destroyed.

~Author unknown~

Widdle Wabbits

A little girl walks into a pet shop and asks in the sweetest little lisp: "Excuthe me, mithter, do you keep wittle wabbits?"

And the shopkeeper gets down on his knees, so that he's on her level, and asks: "Do you want a wittle white wabby or a soft and fuwwy bwack wabby or maybe one like that cute wittle bwown wabby over there?"

The little girl puts her hands on her knees, leans forward and says in a quiet voice: "I don't fink my pyfon really giveths a thit."

Crethit: comedy-zone.neth

Update on the "Duct Tape Dog" Case - Martinsburg WV

Pet-Abuse.com provides the following update in the Martinsburg WV "Duct-Tape Dog" case:

If you wish to contact the prosecutor in this case to urge for vigorous prosecution, contact:

Pamela Jean Games-Neely, Prosecuting Attorney for Berkeley County
380 West South Street, Suite 1100
Martinsburg, WV 25401
ph: 304-264-1971; fax: 304-263-6092

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This is the original newstory from www.your4state.com (WHAG-TV 25):

BERKELEY COUNTY, WV - November 14, 2008

Animal control officers are calling it one of the worst cases of animal abuse they've seen.

A pit bull was found in an attic with evidence that its mouth had been duct-taped shut and chained.

The three-year-old dog was emaciated, neglected and abused, with open wounds on its face that are too graphic to show.

Witnesses say the abuse had gone on for weeks.

Berkeley County Animal Control and city police found the dog Wednesday.

On Thursday police arrested Randall Siford, Jr. and Breshannon Devereux.

Angela Brown moved into the neighborhood recently and has two pit bulls of her own. She says she never knew the two had a dog because she never saw them with one before.

Statements given to police say the dog named Ice was beaten repeatedly.

“That saddens me because pit bulls already have a bad name, and it's because of stuff like that I think that's why half of them are viscous,” Brown said.

Ice is now getting a warmer reception in the hands of Berkeley County Animal Control until the case goes to court.

Riford and Devereaux are charged with felony animal cruelty. If they're not convicted, Ice will be turned back over to them.

Felony animal cruelty carries a maximum five-year sentence in West Virginia.

Crime Doesn't Pay

A burglar broke into a home and was looking around. He heard a soft voice say, "Jesus is watching you". Thinking it was just his imagination, he continued his search.

Again the voice said "Jesus is watching you". He turned his flashlight around and saw a parrot in a cage.

He asked the parrot if he was the one talking and the parrot said, "yes."

He asked the parrot what his name was and the parrot said, "Moses."

The burglar asked, "what kind of people would name a parrot Moses?"

The parrot said, "the same kind of people who would name their pit bull Jesus".

Credit: comedy-zone.net

What Is Animal Cruelty?

Animal cruelty covers a wide range of actions (or lack of action), so one blanket answer simply isn't possible. Each type of abuse has displayed certain patterns of behavior that we can use to help understand more about why people commit the crimes we encounter today.

Animal cruelty is often broken down into two main categories: active and passive, also referred to as comission and omission, respectively.

Passive Cruelty (Acts of Omission)

Passive cruelty is typified by cases of neglect, where the crime is a lack of action rather than the action itself - however do not let the terminology fool you. Severe animal neglect can cause incredible pain and suffering to an animal.

Examples of neglect are starvation, dehydration, parasite infestations, allowing a collar to grow into an animal's skin, inadequate shelter in extreme weather conditions, and failure to seek veterinary care when an animal needs medical attention.

In many cases of neglect where an investigator feels that the cruelty occurred as a result of ignorance, they may attempt to educate the pet owner and then revisit the situation to check for improvements. In more severe cases however, exigent circumstances may require that the animal is removed from the site immediately and taken in for urgent medical care.

Active Cruelty (Acts of Comission)

Active cruelty implies malicious intent, where a person has deliberately and intentionally caused harm to an animal, and is sometimes referred to as NAI (Non-Accidental Injury). Acts of intentional cruelty are often some of the most disturbing and should be considered signs of serious psychological problems. This type of behavior is often associated with sociopathic behavior and should be taken very seriously.

Animal abuse in violent homes can take many forms and can occur for many reasons. Many times a parent or domestic partner who is abusive may kill, or threaten to kill, the household pets to intimidate family members into sexual abuse, to remain silent about previous or current abuse, or simply to psychologically torture the the victims, flexing their "power".

Credit: pet-abuse.com