Therapy dog motivates disabled child Arnie, the yellow lab, "is a regular at Euro-Peds, a physical therapy program that treats children with cerebral palsy or other neuromuscular disorders..." Children forget their pain and enjoy physical therapy, thanks to Arnie's patient interactions... [Free Press]

Lost dog reunited with injured owner NH A can of dog food, some hot dogs, a sausage and her master's dirty shorts helped collar a dog that eluded searchers for 13 days after a highway crash. [Portsmouth Herald]

When a dog is lost, it helps to know how to find it. Some techniques gleaned from this article: bait a live trap with the owner's scent: use owner's clothing; bait trap with food; enlist help from local societies and local people; publicize and track sitings; place traps at sightings. Related: Life as a Pet Detective

K-9 Training School enjoys international success IN Ken Licklider's K-9 training school graduates have served international events all over the world, from a papal visit to the US to to the Pan American Games. 'Licklider's methods are ... different from training techniques of the past. "Fifteen years ago, the dog training world was kind of a mess," Licklider said. "There were these archaic ideas, but I've tried to work and drive to change things." ' [Hoosier Times]

Animal Memorials: honoring a pet's passing An indepth look at how some families memorialize their family pet's passing demonstrates the integration of pets into the American family. "The International Association of Pet Cemeteries counts more than 600 "active” pet cemeteries in the United States, with Bide-A-Wee in Wantagh being the largest..." [Newsday.com]

Artists shed light on plight of disposable pets UT "Last year, 5 million unwanted pets were put to death in U.S. shelters.... that that breaks down to 13,800 every day, or 575 dogs and cats euthanized every hour." In a disposable society, where a new car or residence takes priority over continuing care for a pet, one artist has taken his silent animal activism to another level: Cyrus Mejia, a founder of the Best Friends Animal Rescue project in Utah, has "collaborated on an installation, The 575 Project, part of an art show called "Silent No Longer" at the St. George Art Museum which addresses the wordless plight of disposable pets...." [Hark the Herald.com] Related: Animal Workers See Death Daily: an inside view of what it's like to have to euthanize discarded pets

Mugger's dog helps rob motorist W.VA In Charleston, W. Virginia, a man and his pit bull have teamed up to rob unsuspecting motorists: when a car pulls up, the man opens the car door, sics his dog on the driver and demands money. In a recent incident, the man then punched his victim and demanded cash. "The victim gave the man money and he and the dog fled." [Staten Island Live]

Gini, poster dog, cheers up Zurich! If you can't take a holiday in Zurich, at least you can laugh at the amusing posters of a Jack Russell Terrier placed around the city for your amusement by a sympathetic businessman... [Ananova.com quirkies]

Spicy's spicy tale of danger and survival Spicy, a tiny chihuahua, fell from her owner's boat, broke her leg, swam three miles and survived for seven days under a house on deserted island. "Spicy's owner says one thing is clear: Spicy is no ordinary dog." [ABC Daily News]

While our dog recovers from his knee injury, we take him on car rides as a replacement for his daily walks. Chows love to go for car rides and he is no exception; once he gets his seat belt on, he's ready to roll; he leans on the car door and looks out at the scenery to see if he can spy anything or anyone interesting. In order not to disappoint him, we drive along Sligo Creek Parkway or Rock Creek Parkway, which winds through three states (DC, VA, MD). At dawn and dusk, rabbits line the grassy banks just outside the trees and deer graze on the grass. He trills in excitement (he doesn't bark; he trills like a bird). There are stables nearby too, so we take him there and he cries in soft trills at the horses and their riders, who don't know what to make of a dog who sings like a bird. After our evening ride with our doggie, we stopped at a grocery store and got him a Frosty Paw (doggie ice-cream). It was the perfect way to end a perfect ride.

Meet the dog (the genius) behind 'Shockwave' Rider. (Have a dog blog? Tell Dog News  )