The Columbian

Pets & Wildlife

Jackson and Hershey, who belong to Mike Bortz of Felida, play fetch Saturday at Ike Memorial Park in West Minnehaha. DOGPAW, or the Dog Owners Group for Park Access in Washington, held a beautification event to make the park more inviting and safe for visitors and their dogs.

Doing their duty for Clark County’s dog parks

June 1, 2019, 8:11pm Clark County News

Call it a comeback story for DOGPAW, the nonprofit maintaining dog parks in and around Clark County. Read story

Oregon Horse Rescue seeks support

May 31, 2019, 6:05am Life

A year and a half after putting out a call for more donors, Oregon Horse Rescue is still kicking. Read story

A painted lady butterfly lands on a daisy Wednesday in a garden in downtown Denver.

Once common in Eastern Washington, the monarch butterfly is rare. But the Painted Lady remains easy to find.

May 28, 2019, 12:45pm Northwest

A Washington State University butterfly expert described painted ladies as a “cosmopolitan” butterfly because they can be found on every continent aside from Antarctica. The ladies are coming to town, and Spokane residents can expect to see them in droves this year due to California rains. Read story

In this May 7, 2019 photo, student Jessie Show works with Luna, a springer spaniel whom she has trained to sniff out a fungus sample placed in a scent box at the State University of New York, Cobleskill, in Cobleskill, N.Y. Cobleskill’s canine program was a major deciding factor in choosing a college, said Show, who grew up near Scranton, Pennsylvania. She said she plans to train service dogs for people with physical handicaps.

Sit. Study. Fetch a bachelor’s degree in dog training.

May 27, 2019, 10:10am Life

Luna the springer spaniel is learning to sniff out a troublesome golf course fungus in return for a tennis ball while helping her handler fetch a new breed of bachelor’s degree. Read story

Gray lesser flamingo chicks flying joining a wild adult flock in South Africa. The Dallas Zoo sent several staff members to South Africa to help save a group of lesser flamingo chicks that were abandoned in January. After months of assisting in their rehabilitation, the zoo on May 8 helped release 49 of the birds back into the wild.

Flamingo chicks released into wild in South Africa

May 24, 2019, 6:04am Life

After months of helping rehabilitate a group of lesser flamingo chicks abandoned in South Africa, the Dallas Zoo has released dozens of the birds back into the wild. Read story

Photos of shelter animals attract adopters

May 24, 2019, 6:03am Life

Nowadays, adopting a pet from your local shelter is like online dating: call up the site, check out the pictures and arrange a meet-and-greet. Except you might get kisses, there and then. Read story

If your cat has no medical difficulties that necessitate a special diet and the cat will eat anything, don’t bother with homemade cat food, researchers say.

Rethink homemade cat food

May 24, 2019, 6:02am Life

Making homemade cat food may sound like exactly the kind of special care feline friends deserve, but according to a first of its kind study from researchers at UC Davis, such home-prepared diets may not be healthy or safe. Read story

FILE - In this March 3, 2013 file photo elephants drink water in the Chobe National Park in Botswana. Botswana's government says it has lifted its ban on elephant hunting, a decision that is likely to bring protests from wildlife protection groups.

Botswana lifts ban on elephant hunting, to some anger

May 23, 2019, 12:08pm Life

Botswana has lifted its ban on elephant hunting in a country with the world's highest number of the animals, a decision that has brought anger from some wildlife protection groups and warnings of a blow to lucrative tourism. Read story

Leaping Lizards: Florida wildlife officials catch big lizard

May 17, 2019, 9:13am Life

Wildlife officials have finally captured a large invasive Asian water monitor that had been running loose in the Florida Keys for more than a year. Read story

FILE - This Dec. 1, 2015 file photo shows Grumpy Cat posing for a photo in Los Angeles. Grumpy Cat, whose sour puss became an internet sensation, has died at age 7, according to her owners. Posting on social media Friday, May 17, 2019, her owners wrote Grumpy experienced complications from a urinary tract infection and “passed away peacefully” in the arms of her mother on Tuesday, May 14.

Grumpy Cat, who entertained millions online, dies at age 7

May 17, 2019, 8:30am Life

Grumpy Cat, whose sourpuss expression entertained millions on the internet and spawned hundreds of memes, national television commercials and even a movie, died at age 7. Read story