Dog bashed to death

By Kimberly Spykerman

The dog was found in the void deck of an HDB block on Wednesday. Blood covered its muzzle and the inside of its ears.

-- PHOTO: SPCA

THE bloodied body of a dog was found in the void deck of an HDB block in Sengkang on Wednesday evening.

The dog, which appeared to be a Pomeranian, is believed to have been bashed to death.

A preliminary examination by a vet called in by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) noted that the animal had head injuries consistent with trauma. Blood covered its muzzle and the inside of its ears.

Police said they had been alerted to the dog's body by a member of the public, who had spotted the dog lying motionless with its leash still attached. The floor around it was blood-spattered.

A spokesman for the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) told The Straits Times that a post-mortem is in progress, and that investigations into the identity of the owner are ongoing.

Although the dog had been microchipped, the owner had not followed up the microchipping by registering the animal with the AVA.

Read the full story in Friday's edition of The Straits Times.

It's things like this that leave me speechless and lesser faith in the human race. Why must we be so cruel? I hope the person gets caught and punished severely. Acts like that shouldn't be condoned, I wonder why no one called for help. Imagine if it were a human life.

This case just happens to be one that was discovered, I can't even begin to imagine for those that go unnoticed. It's just so... sad...

Humans are funny beings. We contradict ourselves most of the time, being selfish and sometimes actually thinking we're being caring and considerate. It seems that everything that we do has an motive behind it. When will we truly understand that it really isn't just all about us... Frustration is never an excuse to bully those that are smaller and have no defenses against you.

Dog honored for leading troopers to fire

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Buddy the German shepherd was hailed as a hero for guiding Alaska State Troopers through winding back roads to a fire at his owners' workshop.

"Buddy is an untrained dog who for some reason recognized the severity of the situation and acted valiantly in getting help for his family," Col. Audie Holloway, head of the troopers, said Friday at a ceremony for the 5-year-old dog, who stood quietly before an adoring crowd.

Buddy, whose good deed was caught on a patrol car's dashcam video, received a stainless steel dog bowl engraved with words of appreciation from troopers for his "diligence and assistance."

Buddy also received a big rawhide bone, and his human family got a framed letter documenting his efforts.

"He's my hero," owner Ben Heinrichs said, his voice breaking. "If it wasn't for him, we would have lost our house."

The dashcam video shows Buddy meeting the trooper's vehicle, then dashing to their property about 55 miles north of Anchorage on April 4.

Heinrichs said he was working on parts for his truck when a spark hit some gasoline and ignited, lighting his clothes blaze. The 23-year-old man ran outside to stomp out the flames by rolling in the snow, closing the door to keep the blaze from spreading.

Heinrichs then realized Buddy was still inside the burning building and let the dog out. Heinrichs suffered minor burns on his face and second-degree burns on his left hand, which was still heavily bandaged Friday.

Buddy was not injured.

"I just took off running," Heinrichs said. "I said we need to get help, and he just took off."

Buddy ran into the nearby woods and onto Caswell Loop Road, where the dog encountered the trooper, Terrence Shanigan, whose global positioning device had failed while responding to a call about the fire. He was working with dispatchers to find the property in an area with about 75 miles of back roads.

Shanigan was about to make a wrong turn when he saw a shadow up the road. His vehicle lights caught Buddy at an intersection, and the dog eyed the trooper and began running down a side road.

"He wasn't running from me, but was leading me," he said. "I just felt like I was being led ... it's just one of those things that we're thinking on the same page for that brief moment."

The video shows Buddy occasionally looking back at the patrol car as he raced ahead, galloping around three turns before arriving in front of the blaze, which was very close to the Heinrichs' home.

From there, the trooper guided firefighters to the scene.

The workshop was destroyed and a shed was heavily damaged, but only some window trim on the house was scorched.

The Heinrich family said they knew Buddy was smart ever since they got him six weeks after he was born to a canine-officer mother and that he was brave, twice chasing bears away while Ben Heinrichs was fishing.

But saving their home beat them all.

"Downright amazing, I would say," said Tom Heinrichs, Ben's father. "Maybe there was some divine intervention."


AP

Dog survives being shot in the head with nail gun

MAX the boxer might have a thick skull, but nothing that a nail gun can't penetrate.

Tim Horvat said his dog was shot in the head while he was pumping nails into backyard decking he was building.

Just a couple of planks short of finishing the job, he ordered Max to move away.

As he resumed work with the nail gun, Max lunged at it and a steel nail blasted into his head.

"At first I thought I had missed him because he ran behind me," Mr Horvat said.

"But then I saw the tip just protruding from his head and I started shaking as I realised what had happened."

Mr Horvat and his wife, Rose, took Max to a local vet after which he was transferred to the care of surgeon Simon Kudnig at the Melbourne Veterinary Specialist Centre.

Dr Kudnig said it was the first time he had seen a dog injured by a nail gun.

"I was amazed he was still conscious and alert and I kept thinking it must not have gone into his brain cavity," he said.

But stunning X-rays showed the reality: Max had missed death by little more than a hair's width.

"I kept thinking it couldn't be, but the X-rays show the nail skimmed the brain and was in the cranial cavity," Dr Kudnig said.

He knew the nail had to come out, but carefully considered the risks of the delicate surgery.

"You can't just grab the nail and pull it out," he said.

"Craniectomies to remove part of the skull are not uncommon to remove brain tumors, but it was a first to remove a nail," he said.

The operation involved removing a piece of Max's skull and then drilling around the embedded nail to loosen and finally pull it free.

News.com.au

Golden retriever in the doghouse after eating £12,000 diamond

George Kaufmann brings his pet, Sollie, to his jewellery shop, Robert Bernard Jewellers, in Rockville, Maryland, every day.

Mr Kaufmann and his business partner, Robert Rosin, were meeting a diamond dealer in late January and perusing his gems when disaster struck.

The three men were looking at a 3-carat diamond, valued at $20,000, when the stone suddenly fell to the floor - landing right next to Sollie. Before anyone could retrieve it, the dog ate the gem.

They rushed the animal to a vet, who said nature would have to take its course, so they spent three anxious days waiting to see if the gem would turn up in the dog's stool.

"When we took a walk in the morning and evening I collected and went through everything," Mr Kaufmann said.

"It wasn't glamorous, but you gotta do what you gotta do," Mr Kaufmann told Fox News.

Eventually, his patience paid off, and Mr Kaufmann found the diamond - which he cleaned and returned to the dealer.

Telegraph

Dog adrift on ice saved from Baltic Sea

WARSAW (AP) — A frightened, shivering dog was rescued after floating 75 miles on an ice floe down Poland's Vistula River and into the Baltic Sea, officials said Thursday.

Now his saviors just have to figure out who really owns him.

Four people have already claimed him, but so far rescuers say there's been no wagging tail of joy from the miracle dog they nicknamed "Baltic."

The dog's frozen odyssey came as Poland suffers through a winter cold snap.Temperatures have dipped to below minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit.

The thick-furred male dog was found adrift Monday 15 miles out in the Baltic Sea by the crew of the Baltica, a Polish ship of ocean scientists carrying out research.

Researcher Natalia Drgas said Thursday that the rescue was difficult and at one point it seemed the dog had drowned.

"It was really a tough struggle. It kept slipping into the water and crawling back on top of the ice. At one point it vanished underwater, under the ship and we thought it was the end, but it emerged again and crawled on an ice sheet," Drgas said.

At that point, the crew lowered a pontoon down to the water and a crewmember managed to grab the dog by the scruff of his neck and pull him to safety.

Too weak to shake off the frigid water, Baltic was dried and wrapped in blankets. After he warmed up, he was massaged, fed and soon got on his feet to seek company, Drgas said.

A firefighter in Grudziadz, on the Vistula river 60 miles inland from the Bay of Gdansk, told the Associated Press the dog was spotted Saturday floating on ice through the city. Firefighters tried to save him but could not approach the dog due to shifting ice sheets, said the officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The Baltica crew, now moored in the port city of Gdynia, has been searching for the dog's owners, ship captain Jerzy Wosachlo said. So far four people have claimed him, but Baltic has not claimed any of them back, Drgas said.

The dog didn't welcome the first two people to come for him, keeping his distance and showing no recognition toward a couple on Wednesday and a woman on Thursday who both said he was theirs. Two other would-be owners were still en route to Gdynia for a possible reunion.

Once in port, the brown-and-black mongrel was taken to a veterinarian, who found him in surprisingly good condition and estimated his age at around 5 or 6 years old. Veterinarian Aleksandra Lawniczak said the 44-pound dog was clearly frightened but in strikingly good shape and had suffered no frostbite.

A dog with thick fur and a layer of fat can survive such cold conditions for as long as eight days if it has water to drink, Lawniczak said.

She described Baltic as a friendly dog who was clearly well treated before getting lost.

Wosachlo said the research team is prepared to adopt Baltic if his original owner is never found.

USA Today

Rattling dog had eaten 13 golf balls

A dog had 13 golf balls removed from his stomach after his owner noticed his stomach was rattling.

Chris Morrison noticed an unusual sound from the stomach of his black labrador, Oscar, who he regularly walks on a golf course near his home in Dunfermline.

When he took the five-year-old to a vet, he was stunned to find 13 balls were lodged in the dog's stomach, reports the Daily Telegraph.

Mr Morrison, a planning administrator, said one of the balls had been in her stomach so long that it had turned black and was decomposing.

He said: "He finds golf balls like truffles. We're not sure how long exactly this happened over - but it must have been a fair period, several months at least.

"I felt his stomach and heard them rattling around. He normally brings a few home, but I had no idea he had eaten so many.

"It is normally around the ninth and twelfth fairways that we go around - and he just goes and searches for them wherever the golfers lose them."

The balls were removed two weeks ago in an hour-long operation conducted by Bob Hesketh, 40, a vet from Rosyth.

He said: "It was like a magic trick. I opened him up and felt what I thought was two or three golf balls. But they just kept coming until we had a bag full."

Oscar is now on the road to making a full recovery after a special post-operation diet of watered down food, but he now has to wear a muzzle during his walks.

Ananova

Dog washed out to sea has lucky escape

WARSAW (Reuters) – A dog had a lucky escape when a Polish boat rescued him from an ice floe that had carried him more than 100 miles up a river and out onto the icy waters of the Baltic Sea.

"My crew saw... a shape moving on the water and we immediately decided to get closer to check if it was a dog or maybe a seal relaxing on the ice," Jan Joachim, senior officer aboard the Baltica, told Reuters Television.

"As we got closer to the ice floe we saw that it was a dog struggling not to fall into the water."

Ship engineer Adam Buczynski managed to scoop the dog off the floe onto an inflatable dinghy and wrapped him in a blanket.

"He didn't even squeal. There was just fear in his big eyes," said Buczynski.

The dog was first seen on the ice floe some 100 km (70 miles) inland to the south on the Vistula river but firemen were unable to rescue him. When the Baltica crew found him, he had already drifted some 24 km (18 miles) out to sea.

"We were in the right place at the right time," said Joachim, noting that they rescued him shortly before night fall.

The crew are now trying to locate the dog's owner.

Poland is in the grip of bitterly cold weather, with night temperatures in some areas falling as low as -34 Celsius (-31 Fahrenheit).

Reuters

Chihuahua only four inches

A micro-Chihuahua has measured up as one of the world's smallest dogs, measuring only four inches.

Jean Tindall noticed her puppy Lulu was not growing like her sister and two brothers.

The 76-year-old, from Bradford, West Yorkshire, who has bred Chihuahuas for five years, said: "I didn't think anything of it when her mum gave birth to the litter, she looked the same size as all the others.

"But puppies grow quickly and I soon realised that her brothers and sisters were all over taking her.

"I don't want to sell her because she will need so much extra care and attention being so small.

"She is so tiny shes only 4 inches. She can fit in my hand shes so tiny. You can't believe she's out of the same litter because the rest are twice as big as her.

Ms Tindall, who named Lulu after the Scottish singer, said the dog, part of the smallest breed in the world, makes up for her lack of size with her big personality.

The mother-of-two added: "She sleeps all day long on a hot water bottle I give her to keep her warm then when I'm ready for bed she wakes up and runs rings around me. I can barely keep up.

"Even though she's small she's got so much love to give and is a little bundle of joy. She hasn't developed a bark yet but when she does I'm sure it'll be as loud as a normal sized dog."

Ms Tindall said she even thought Lulu could be the smallest in the world as in more than 50 years of breeding she has never seen a smaller one.

"I've seen a lot of chihuahuas but I've never seen one as small as Lulu. Even among other tiny dogs she really stands out because she is so tiny.

"I've been breeding and selling chihuahuas for most of my life and I've had a few inquiries about Lulu because she's such a wonderful, cute little thing. But to me she is priceless, I would never sell her. She is a little star and loves all the attentions she gets."

Telegraph

Dog leads owner to elderly, unconscious man

PINE CITY, Minn. – Police credit a 15-year-old German Shorthaired dog with saving the life of an elderly, unconscious man in Pine City. Brett Grinde said he took Effie out for their usual walk on Monday evening, but within a couple minutes she started pulling on the leash, wanting to go in a different direction.

Effie then took off running, leading Grinde to a neighbor's house where a 94-year-old man was on face down on the driveway. The dog started licking the man's face. Grinde called 911, then started CPR.

KARE-TV reported the eldery man, William Lepsch, regained consciousness and is in serious condition at North Memorial Medical Center.

AP

Priest's parish pooch 'never barks' at Mass

BADEN, M.O. — Our Lady of the Holy Cross Catholic Church got a new priest last summer, the Rev. Don Buhr.

With Buhr came Elijah, also known in this North Side parish as the Church Dog.

Elijah is a Labrador and border collie mix who attends every Mass that Buhr celebrates.

"A dog in church — I know it doesn't sound right and doesn't seem right," Buhr said. "But this dog is a gift from God."

Elijah is slim and black with white paws and a splash of white fur on his chest in the shape of a cross that, Buhr said, marks the animal as "a real priest dog."

Buhr, 69, insists that Elijah smiles at people he likes. "But it's the stupidest smile you ever saw," he said, stretching his lips and gritting his teeth in imitation.

When Buhr came to the church, he asked the parishioners if it would be all right if Elijah attended Mass. He said he didn't want anyone's prayer to be disturbed. So far, he said, no one has complained.

Buhr's last assignment was at a country parish where Elijah was allowed to roam the fields and woods.

The dog has made a smooth transition to the inner city. He is the terror of squirrels and other animals that trespass on the parish grounds, at 1018 Baden Avenue.

Inside the church, however, Elijah is as gentle as a lamb.

During Mass, he tends to quietly meander.

He may stroll onto the altar to sit beside Buhr or server Brittany Pfaffenback, 16. At one Mass, Brittany petted Elijah with one hand and rang the bell with the other.

"I'm a dog lover so I'm glad to have him around," she said.

Elijah occasionally wanders down the aisle and sticks his nose into the pews, seeking affection.

In the summer, he prefers lounging on the cool terrazzo tiles of the high altar.

On a recent cold Sunday, he favored a spot beside a radiator to the side of the altar.

When the crowd lined up to receive Communion, he took up his regular post in front of the first pew on the left. From there, he watched as Buhr distributed the Eucharist.

"He loves that little space and plants himself there every Communion," said a parish deacon, Gerry Quinn, 63, of Affton. "We do worry sometimes that someone will trip over him, but we've all adjusted fine."

At the end of Mass, Elijah trotted ahead of the servers, deacons and priest as they filed down the main aisle.

Growing up, Buhr always had a dog. But he wasn't sure a pet would fit into the lifestyle of a priest.

Then, eight years ago, he decided to give it a try.

He had heard that border collies were supposed to be the smartest and black Labs the gentlest of dogs.

"I told a friend one day that that was the mix I wanted," he said. "The very next day, I saw an ad in the paper. A guy was moving and had to get rid of his dog — a 1-year-old border collie and black Lab mix."

Buhr named the dog Elijah because he came into his life like a whirlwind, "the same way the prophet Elijah went up to heaven," Buhr said.

Buhr knows of no other dog that attends Mass.

Elijah, in fact, had never tagged along to church with Buhr until the priest came to Our Lady of the Holy Cross.

Buhr was an associate pastor at his previous parish, St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Villa Ridge.

Elijah was not allowed inside that church.

"It was not my decision to make," he said.

But at Our Lady of the Holy Cross, the congregation has embraced Elijah, said a longtime member, Charlotte Flowers.

"We have a true church dog," said Flowers, 68. "He's a joy and so well-behaved. The children especially love him. And he never barks in church."

Buhr points out that Elijah is not the only unusual element at the church.

The church, built in 1909, was designed by two architects from Cologne, Germany, in a 13th-century motif.

It has a 185-foot spire visible for miles. Renowned artist Emil Frei designed the 10 stained glass windows, each 25 feet high and 6 feet wide.

Amid the historic features is a distinctly modern touch: The processional cross bears an African-American figure of a crucified Christ.

The priest hopes that word of the Church Dog will spread and perhaps draw people to the parish.

"Maybe there are some dog lovers out there who haven't been to church in a while," Buhr said. "And they will come and meet this special dog."

USA Today

2 dogs fed on owner's body

PAPILLION (Nebraska) - THE Nebraska Humane Society is seeking a new home for two small dogs that police say fed on their owner's body after he killed himself.

Police in the Omaha suburb of Papillion found the pugs named Harry and Sally late last week. Lt. Chris Whitted said on Wednesday an autopsy showed the man was dead for two weeks of a self-inflicted gunshot before his body was found.

Humane Society spokesman Mark Langan says he can't verify the dogs had fed on the body, but he says it would be normal behaviour for dogs left without food or water for two weeks.

He says the dogs appear to be well-adjusted and in excellent shape. He says they're unlikely to suffer from long-term psychological effects because 'they don't have memories like people.' -- AP

Source : The Straits Times

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Two rescue dogs 'get boob jobs

A pair of rescue dogs have been given breast lifts costing £1,200 to help them secure new owners.

Chocolate labradors Morgan and Emma had sagging skin that left their mammary glands nearly brushing the ground due to years of overbreeding, The Daily Telegraph reports.

Shelter co-ordinator Teresa Bartholomew from Wallace Kennels in Stondon Massey, Essex, said: "It is very unusual.

"You don't get many people having cosmetic surgery on dogs and we could be one of the first. But if we hadn't had it done, we would not have been able to rehome them."

She added: "Everybody wants a labrador but when people saw the 'undercarriage' as we called it, they would ask if they could see one of the other dogs.

"It didn't look very nice and people just could not see past that - you could see it in their faces. It was definitely worth it because it meant the dogs were rehomed and there was a happy ending."

DS

Hero dog saves heart attack victim

A special cattle dog in Maryborough in south-east Queensland will receive the RSPCA's animal achievement award.

Two years ago, Jim Touzeau suffered a heart attack and collapsed at his Tinana glass factory.

His cattle dog Teka jumped up and down on his chest with her two front paws and barked in his face, causing Mr Touzeau to wake up.

Teka also ran outside and jumped up and down on the kerb to attract attention.

The RSPCA's Michael Beatty says he is amazed at what the dog did to save Mr Touzeau's life.

"I'm sure, as Jim says, he doesn't know for certain and neither [do] the doctors - whether or not Teka jumping up and down on his chest actually kick-started his chest," he said.

"But if he had not woken up, he would have been dead.

"So that is one young cattle dog that's receiving the best of attention, as I'm sure you can imagine."

Mr Beatty says Teka will enjoy the award.

"A very large, very impressive bone will come with the award," Mr Beatty said.



ABC News

Fisher-dog catches attention

A Chinese man says his dog has become something of a local celebrity - after taking up fishing.

Mr Lin, of Wuchang in central China's Hubei province, told the Wuhan Evening Post that Ding Ding had always loved water.

"I often swim in Donghu Lake, and used to leave him on the bank to take care of my clothes and valuables. But he couldn't stop jumping into the water and swimming with me," he said.

"When he was swimming, he would bite anything floating in the water, like bottles, foam rubber, or dead fish, and bring them back to the bank.

"But several days ago he suddenly started catching live fish from the lake. Within 10 minutes he had brought back three big fish, weighing more than 3kg."

Lin says Ding Ding now regularly leaps into the lake and comes back with a live fish in his mouth - to the amazement of passers-by.

"He can tell where the fish are located by seeing the bubbles coming from the water," he added.

Shocked local angler Mr Zhao commented: "I've been fishing in Donghu Lake for decades but this is the first time I've ever seen a fishing dog."


Ananova

Dogs save life of owner who slipped and broke his neck

A man who slipped and broke his neck while walking his dogs was kept alive overnight after his two pets cuddled up to him to keep him warm.

Father-of-two Michael Dyer, 66, fell down a 30ft slope at a remote beauty spot as he exercised Jack Russells, Mickey, three and Boz, five.

He fractured an elbow and broke his neck in the fall and lay unconscious in temperatures as low as 7C (44F).

But amazingly, Mr Dyer survived after his two dedicated dogs snuggled up to him for 16 hours and helped stave off hypothermia.

They stayed with him all through the night as he slipped in and out of consciousness and thereby kept his core temperature high to ensure his survival.

The retired lorry driver says at one point he let them off their leads to get help but they refused to leave him.

The brave dogs were given to Mr Dyer by his family after his wife Catherine died of cancer.

Friend Barry Robinson, 48, who is now looking after the dogs said: 'Since Michael lost his wife the dogs are his whole life. They are like family to him - his only companion.

'He loves those dogs and the fact they wouldn't leave him is amazing.'

Mr Dyer was spotted at 9.30am on Friday at Fishcombe Cove in Brixham, Devon, by another walker who thought he had stumbled across a body and called emergency services.

Emergency services airlifted Mr Dyer to hospital where he underwent surgery but is expected to make a full recovering.

Mr Robinson said: 'Michael slipped and fell down a steep bank and broke his wrist and his neck.

'He tried to let the dogs off the lead so they would go and get help but they wouldn't leave him. Instead they stayed with him and cuddled him, keeping him warm.

'He was virtually conscious the whole time, about 16 hours. It must have been horrendous.

'He broke his neck in two places and he is being operated on but he'll be okay. His dogs have saved his life.'

Mr Dyer left his home at 3pm on Thursday and fell down the wooded embankment shortly afterwards.

He was found halfway down the slope and was taken by Devon Air Ambulance to Torbay Hospital in Torquay.

Sgt Jacqui Rees, who attended the scene, said his dogs had saved his life.

She said: 'The man was not as cold as we expected after lying there all night.

'The dogs, who were still with him when we arrived, had cuddled up to him and kept him warm.

'He was very lucky. Once we arrived the shock of what happened started to affect him and he did get quite cold quite quickly.

'It was fortunate that the tree stopped him falling further, although he may have fractured his elbow when it happened.'

Daily Mail

Deaf puppy learns sign language

A tiny eight week old puppy is learning sign language in Australia after it was discovered that she is profoundly deaf.

Pixie the border collie is currently being taught to recognise hand commands by trainer Liz Grewal in Coffs Harbour.

Liz has been an owner of deaf dogs for six years and so far she has taught the clever youngster to sit, drop and come forth.

"Dogs understand your body language, your hand gestures, they read all of that. They know," Liz comments.

"Consistency is the key to training any dog but you have to emphasise it more with a deaf dog. You've to train them in a different way, they train quicker than a hearing dog as there are no noise distractions."

In order to get the attention of her four deaf dogs, one of the techniques that Liz uses is to squirt them with a little water bottle.

She adds: "I want these dogs to have a fantastic life, and I know they can do it."


Ananova

Dog survives being shot 4 times

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A 2-year-old yellow Labrador mix is recovering at a Kansas City shelter after being shot four times. And workers at Wayside Waifs have dubbed him Bullet. Waifs spokeswoman Ashlee Parker said Bullet was found several weeks ago in Caldwell County, shot once in the head, once in each front shoulder and once in the neck.

The Kansas City Star reported that the Cameron-based rescue group Safe Haven took in the dog, paid for his treatments and nursed him mostly back to health. Parker said Bullet still has some pain in one of his shoulders and one leg.

Bullet arrived at Wayside Waifs Tuesday. He got X-rays and was neutered and currently is not up for adoption.

Officials don't know who shot the dog or why.

AP

what is the world coming to?!

Dog given parking ticket

An Australian traffic warden fixed a parking ticket to a dog's lead after it was 'parked' illegally outside a shopping centre.

The dog was tied to a fence outside Darwin's Rapid Creek market when it was approached by two city council traffic wardens, the Northern Territory News reports.

One of the inspectors wrote out a ticket - and taped it to the dog's lead.

Witness Ray McEvoy said he couldn't believe his eyes.

"I watched an elderly lady and her very faithful blue heeler roll up at the market. The lady tied the dog to the fence and gave him a bowl full of water. And off she went into the markets," he said.

"Then two traffic inspectors came along. They had a bit of a talk and, to my amazement, wrote out a warning infringement notice for the dog and taped it to his lead rope."

Council spokesman Grant Fenton said a dog was considered to be "at large" if the owner was not there.

"You can't tie up a dog and leave it," he said.


Ananova