‘Nubs the Dog: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle’

Major Brian Dennis and Nubs the Dog today.
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

When Major Brian Dennis of the United States Marine Corps met a wild stray dog with shorn ears while serving in Iraq, he had no idea of the bond they would form, leading to seismic changes in both their lives. “The general theme of the story of Nubs is that if you’re kind to someone, they’ll never forget you — whether it be person or animal,” Dennis tells Paw Nation.

In October 2007, Dennis and his team of 11 men were in Iraq patrolling the Syrian border. One day, as his team arrived at a border fort, they encountered a pack of stray dogs — not uncommon in the barren, rocky desert that was home to wolves and wild dogs.

“We all got out of the Humvee and I started working when this dog came running up,” recalls Dennis. “I said, ‘Hey buddy’ and bent down to pet him.” Dennis noticed the dog’s ears had been cut. “I said, ‘You got little nubs for ears.’” The name stuck. The dog whose ears had been shorn off as a puppy by an Iraqi soldier (to make the dog “look tougher,” Dennis says) became known as Nubs.

Dennis fed Nubs scraps from his field rations, including bits of ham and frosted strawberry Pop Tarts. “I didn’t think he’d eat the Pop Tart, but he did,” says Dennis.

At night, Nubs accompanied the men on night patrols. “I’d get up in the middle of the night to walk the perimeter with my weapon and Nubs would get up and walk next to me like he was doing guard duty,” says Dennis.

The next day, Dennis said goodbye to Nubs, but he didn’t forget about the dog. He began mentioning Nubs in emails he wrote to friends and family back home. “I found a dog in the desert,” Dennis wrote in an email in October 2007. “I call him Nubs. We clicked right away. He flips on his back and makes me rub his stomach.”

“Every couple of weeks, we’d go back to the border fort and I’d see Nubs every time,” says Dennis. “Each time, he followed us around a little more.” And every time the men rumbled away in their Humvees, Nubs would run after them. “We’re going forty miles an hour and he’d be right next to the Humvee,” says Dennis. “He’s a crazy fast dog. Eventually, he’d wear out, fall behind and disappear in the dust.”

On one trip to the border fort in December 2007, Dennis found Nubs was badly wounded in his left side where he’d been stabbed with a screwdriver. “The wound was infected and full of pus,” Dennis recalls. “We pulled out our battle kits and poured antiseptic on his wound and force fed him some antibiotics wrapped in peanut butter.” That night, Nubs was in so much pain that he refused food and water and slept standing up because he couldn’t lay down. The next morning, Nubs seemed better. Dennis and his team left again, but he thought about Nubs the entire time, hoping the dog was still alive.

Excerpt, “Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle,”
Little, Brown for Young Readers

Two weeks later, when Dennis and his team returned, he found Nubs alive and well. “I had patched him up and that seemed to be a turning point in how he viewed me,” says Dennis. This time, when Dennis and his team left the fort, Nubs followed. Though the dog lost sight of the Humvees, he never gave up. For two days, Nubs endured freezing temperatures and packs of wild dogs and wolves, eventually finding his way to Dennis at a camp an incredible 70 miles south near the Jordanian border.

“There he was, all beaten and chewed up,” says Dennis. “I knew immediately that Nubs had crossed through several dog territories and fought and ran, and fought and ran,” says Dennis. The dog jumped on Dennis, licking his face.

Most of the 80 men at the camp welcomed Nubs, even building him a doghouse. But a couple of soldiers complained, leading Dennis’ superiors to order him to get rid of the dog. With his hand forced, Dennis decided that the only thing to do was bring Nubs to America. He began coordinating Nubs’ rescue effort. Friends and family in the States helped, raising the $5,000 it would cost to transport Nubs overseas.

Finally, it was all arranged. Nubs was handed over to volunteers in Jordan, who looked after the dog and sent him onto to Chicago, then San Diego, where Dennis’ friends waited to pick him up. Nubs lived with Dennis’ friends and began getting trained by local dog trainer Graham Bloem of the Snug Pet Resort. “I focused on basic obedience and socializing him with dogs, people and the environment,” says Bloem.

A month later, Dennis finished his deployment in Iraq and returned home to San Diego, where he immediately boarded a bus to Camp Pendleton to be reunited with Nubs. “I was worried he wouldn’t remember me,” says Dennis. But he needn’t have worried. “Nubs went crazy,” recalls Dennis. “He was jumping up on me, licking my head.”

Dennis’ experience with Nubs led to a children’s picture book, called “Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle,” published by Little, Brown for Young Readers. They have appeared on the Today Show and will be appearing on The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien on Monday.

Was it destiny that Dennis met Nubs and brought him to America? “I don’t know about that,” says Dennis. “It’s been a strange phenomenon. It’s been a blessing. I get drawings mailed to me that children have drawn of Nubs with his ears cut off. It makes me laugh.”

by Helena Sung – PawNation Nov 3rd 2009 @ 6:00PM

Nubbs:  The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine, and a Miracle

Great Gift for Any Child, Veteran and Animal Lover!!

Order Today: Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle

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Posted:  Just One More Pet

Adopt Just One More Pet… There Is Always Room For Just One More

THIS IS BUDDY NOW!!!!!

Tracey’s Photos – Buddy, my sweet and handsome foster (slash that) adopted boy

I got Buddy about 4 weeks ago. Initially I was getting a black female pitty…and after paying for basic vetting, I heard nothing. Then one Saturday I get a call that a brindle will be delivered on Sunday. He was perfect when he went into vets’ in Georgia, she told me, but has nicks from an aggressive dog that they crated him with. So I thought nothing of it. Then it appeared to spread. Turns out it was Demodex.

I had him on a probiotic as well as awesome dog food and gentle essential oils. It didn’t help. I took him to vets’ and they gave me a strong anti-biotic (because of infection), a medicated shampoo and Demodex med. It got worse in just two days..LOOK AT HIM!!! I called several vets including my own, who said that it would indeed get much worse before getting better. The mites are freaking out and the infection is working it’s way out..thus the hugely swollen jowls and throat. I wonder would it have gotten to this had I known he had Demodex. He is in pain and I am now broke!! It CAN be very costly, especially if it becomes infected. So far it has cost $800., not including initial vettiing. I got it covered, but this is PRECISELY why pitty’s get returned if they have skin disease. It isn’t as easy to clear up as one might think.

I HAVE BEEN SLEEPING WITH HIM ON HIS DOG BED EVERY NIGHT!!! I AM WITH HIM ALL DAY LONG. HE IS GETTING MUCH LOVE AND PROPER CARE.

Good job Tracey!!  We would do it for our newborn baby and these fur babies are just as much our family once we commit!!

This is a great story!!  You are feathering your nest in Heaven!

As story goes…  “At the head of the Rainbow Bridge waits every animal that he/she encountered during his life time.” ~ some of us will need a lot of room at the bridge; sounds like you will!

Ask Marion – Just One More Pet

Let us all adopt just one more and help many more find a home!!

Rainbow Bridge

Important Dangerous Dog Warning for Children

Please read this!

If you are an owner of a dog that belongs to a ‘dangerous breed’ category, and you also have a child, or there is a small child visiting, please take this as a warning.

Don’t leave your dog with a small child unattended under any circumstances!

Only one brief moment was enough for the following to happen.

See the photo below …

Source: Dr. Mercola

Posted:  Just One More Pet

13-Pound Pooch Takes Hero Pet of the Year

Meet Chi Chi, this little Chihuahua mix is 13-pounds of attitude and now the Reader’s Digest Hero Pet of the Year!  Seems this little guy was out basking on Indian Beach on North Carolina’s Outer Banks with his owners, Rick and Mary Lane, when he became an unlikely hero and savior.

Hanging out in his own little beach chair, restrained because it seems he has a habit of chasing people, I did mention he has an attitude, right? Well, the little noticed something amiss and took off… still attached to his chair, dragging it down the beach behind him and making a yapping sound his owners had never heard before.

It didn’t take long for Chi Chi’s “mom” to spot the problem.

“There was a storm surge, and there were two elderly ladies — one had fallen on her back headfirst into the surf,” she said. “The other lady — a little bitty lady about 90 pounds — was trying to hold her head up, and she was in danger of being washed out.”

And no, the little pooch didn’t dive into the water and valiantly pull the struggling ladies out but he did set off the alarm that sent the Lanes into the water as rescue proxies for Chi Chi. After making sure the ladies were fine, a little shaken but otherwise okay, they headed back only to find the little yapping hero sound asleep in his chair, his job done.

Now Chi Chi has become the little celebrity in his home town and also captured enough hearts with his story to take be crowned Hero Pet of the year! But be wary if you meet this little guy on the street, he’s not into the petting thing, you’ll see on the video! LOL

Way to go Chi Chi!!

Chi Chi Received the Hero of the Year Award for his rescue work

Source:  For the Love of the Dog Blog

Posted:  Just One More Pet

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Under-bite Helps Pabst become World’s Ugliest Dog

AP – Pabst competes in the World’s Ugliest Dog Contest at the Sonoma-Marin Fair on Friday, June 26, 2009 …

PETALUMA, Calif. – A prominent under-bite, scrunched face and floppy ears are the hallmarks of a winner.

The winner of the World’s Ugliest Dog contest, that is.

Pabst, a boxer-mix rescued from a shelter by Miles Egstad of Citrus Heights, Calif., won the annual contest on Friday at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Northern California.

It was an upset victory for Pabst, who beat former champion Rascal, a pedigree Chinese Crested.

Pabst’s owner took home $1,600 in prize money, pet supplies and a modeling contract with House of Dog.

Miss Ellie, a blind 15-year-old Chinese Crested Hairless, won the pedigree category.

But beauty is in the eye of the beholder and his owners love Pabst just the way he is.

___

On the Net:  http://www.sonoma-marinfair.org/uglydogcontest.shtml

Posted:  Just One More Pet

Concerns lead to ASPCA raid at Wisconsin shelter

ASPCA Rescues Over 300 Animals!

Was it an animal shelter, or a puppy mill, or perhaps a little of both?

Whatever the case, the Thyme and Sage Ranch in Wisconsin is no more after 300 dogs were seized and owner and founder Jennifer Petkus was charged with 11 misdemeanor animal cruelty charges. The story sounds a little similar to the one we told you about earlier this week – Pendragwn Chow Rescue in Pennsylvlania.

In the Wisconsin case, the Richland County Sheriff’s Department executed a search warrant Tuesday at the ranch, seizing the first 100 dogs, eight horses and a goat. At least six dog carcasses were discovered and a ram needed to be euthanized, according to the Wisconsin State Journal.

According to a criminal complaint, Dr. Lisa Kerwin-Lucchi, a veterinarian with the Dane County Humane Society, used a hidden camera and temperature probe to record conditions at Thyme and Sage Ranch in rural Cazenovia in March, documenting dogs without access to food and unfrozen water, dogs with severely matted fur and inadequate bedding for unheated buildings.

Petkus was charged with one count of improper shelter to animals and 10 counts of intentionally mistreating animals — all misdemeanors. In addition, she faces five counts of unlawful deposit of animals carcasses.

Court records also show that Thyme and Sage, which has a contract with Richland County to serve as a shelter for lost and found animals, had already transferred 68 dogs and 10 cats to the Dane County Humane Society between Feb. 1 and March 27.

Kerwin-Lucchi started collecting the criminal evidence as early as February to obtain a search warrant and file charges “to make sure (Petkus) can’t do this again.”

She said she’s not sure what led to the conditions of her shelter because Many of the seized dogs look to be “retired breeders from puppy mills,” and the fact that she was adopting out large number of young puppies raised the suspicion she may also have been breeding, Kerwin-Lucchi said.

On Tuesday morning, May 19, the ASPCA was on hand in Cazenovia, WI, to assist in the raid of an animal sanctuary, the Thyme and Sage Ranch. The ASPCA Forensic Cruelty Investigation and Disaster Response teams, as well as our Mobile Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) Unit, are currently working alongside the Richland County Sheriff’s Department to collect evidence and evaluate the animals found at the site.

Cloner’s Ark: Ten Notable Cloned Animals

 

Researchers in Dubai made news this week by announcing the arrival of the world’s first cloned camel, a singular achievement in a region where top racing camels are prized.

Iran followed two days later with the birth of the country’s first cloned goat, though many other cloned goats have been born elsewhere.

Most cloned mammals now lead regular lives, but as recently as 10 years ago they often died young of lung malformations, a problem that appears to have been largely overcome. Healthy cloned dogs and cats are the most recent significant achievements.

Many researchers are getting closer and closer to human cloning by trying to clone monkeys.

Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, all attempts at cloning monkeys from adult donor cells have failed, with one researcher deeming the resulting embryos “a gallery of horrors.” (Splitting newly formed regular monkey embryos does work, but that can be seen as just inducing natural twins.)

The following is a list of significant animal species cloned from adult cells, in chronological order — plus one that’s even more remarkable.

Frog: The first amphibians cloned from adult cells were made in 1962 by John Gurdon, a British biologist at Cambridge University. His experiments showed that cloning adults was theoretically possible (clones made from embryonic cells had been created a decade earlier).

But his tadpoles didn’t survive to full adulthood, and it wasn’t until years later that he was able to get cloned frogs that lived full lives.

Carp: Way back in 1963, a Chinese researcher named Tong Dizhou apparently created the world’s first cloned fish when he transferred the genetic material from an adult male Asian carp into a carp egg, which developed and was born normally, and even sired children.

But since his work took place behind the “Bamboo Curtain” at the height of the Cold War, Tong’s achievements went unheralded in the West. He died in 1979.

Sheep: The famous Dolly was born on July 5, 1996, in Edinburgh, Scotland, the first known mammal of any species to be cloned from an adult donor. She was the only one of 277 cloned embryos to survive.

She quickly became a media sensation, yet went on to live a short but quiet life, bearing six lambs naturally. Cloned cattle, genetically similar to sheep, followed within the next year.

In February 2003, suffering from a virus-borne form of lung cancer common among sheep, Dolly was put to sleep. Some experts wondered whether she was already “old” at birth, due to her genes coming from an adult animal, but her creators disputed that.

Goat: The world’s first cloned goat was born on June 16, 2000, the result of work by scientists at Northwest University of Agriculture and Forestry Science and Technology in Xi’an, China. Unfortunately, the kid, nicknamed “Yuanyuan,” died after a day and a half from lung defects.

On June 22, 2000, another cloned goat was born in the same facility. Named “Yangyang,” she lived at least six years and had kids, grandkids and great-grandkids.

Housecat: CC, or Copy Cat, the world’s first cloned domestic cat, was born Dec. 22, 2001 on the campus of Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. Though she was the clone of a calico, her surrogate mother was a tabby, and CC’s coloring was a mixture of the two.

She currently lives in the household of one the scientists who worked to create her and has had naturally conceived kittens of her own.

White-tailed deer: The same Texas A&M team responsible for CC the cloned cat also created the world’s first cloned deer, which was born on May 23, 2003. Dubbed “Dewey,” he was cloned from a dead buck. Three years later, he became the father of female triplets, who were conceived the old-fashioned way.

Horse: Five days after Dewey, the world’s first cloned horse was born in Italy. A female named “Prometea” — presumably after Prometheus, the god who gave man fire in Greek mythology — news reports from the time indicate she was healthy.

Dog: Snuppy, an Afghan hound born April 24, 2005, was the world’s first cloned dog. He was created by a team led by Korean genetics researcher Hwang Woo-suk, who also claimed to have cloned human stem cells, later found to be untrue; Snuppy was the sole part of Hwang’s work that was untainted.

Snuppy has since fathered 10 puppies through artificial insemination of two cloned female dogs.

Pyrenean ibex: The world’s first extinct mammal to be “resurrected” was a subspecies of the more widespread Spanish ibex, or mountain goat. The last known Pyrenean ibex was found dead in early 2000, but tissue samples that had been taken when it was alive led to a joint Spanish-French cloning program.

After hundreds of failed attempts, a live Pyrenean ibex was born in January 2009, for the first time in more than a decade. The surrogate mother was a domestic goat. But the achievement was short-lived; the kid died 9 minutes after birth due to malformed lungs.

Camel: Injaz, the world’s first cloned camel, was born April 8, 2009 in Dubai, one of the United Arab Emirates. Her name means “achievement” in Arabic, and she likely won’t be the last cloned camel, as camel racing is very popular in the Gulf states and certain animals are prized.

However, Injaz won’t ever get to know her older “twin” — the donor animal was slaughtered for its meat in 2005.

And last but far from least:

Fatherless mouse: Japanese researchers went beyond cloning in 2004 to create the world’s first fatherless mammal.

The mouse, nicknamed Kaguya, was born in 2004 and was a “parthenote” — she literally had two mommies. Genetic material from two mouse eggs was modified and combined so that one “fertilized” the other.

Kaguya has almost certainly died of old age since, but bore at least one litter of naturally conceived pups.

Source:  Fox News

Posted:  Just One More Pet

Bat and Ball Dog Ejected From Game By Umpire

A quick potty break got Master Yogi Berra, pictured, thrown off his baseball team’s field during a game last Tuesday. (Photo Courtesy of the Greensboro Grasshoppers)

GREENSBORO, N.C. — The Greensboro Grasshoppers weren’t the only ones that took a major hit during last Tuesday’s 6-9 loss to the Asheville Tourists.

The baseball team’s mascot, Master Yogi Berra, a bat and ball fetching dog, was ejected off the field during the fourth inning. The male mutt was reportedly shamed after he relieved himself on the field.

“When you gotta go, you gotta go,” Donald Moore, the Grasshopers’ general manager, told the Greensboro News and Record. Trouble started when Yogi was fetching a ball launched to center field in between innings. When he was running back to homeplate, he stopped and squatted. Homeplate umpire Jason Hutchings reportedly did not look lightly on the incident.

Yogi is thought to be the first dog ever ejected from a professional game. He made his first appearance at NewBridge Bank Park in June 2008, at the ripe age of 8-weeks-old. An active interest in baseball apparently runs in the family — Yogi is the little brother of Miss Babe Ruth, another Grasshoppers’ canine mascot.

Though Yogi has been scorned by some, Moore expressed sympathy for the embarrassed dog.

“Yogi’s had a tough start to his season and I hope this doesn’t get him down,” said Moore, who also owns the team. “He clearly couldn’t control himself out there. He’s such a competitor and he wanted to do his duties as he’s been trained.

“We all hope Yogi feels better soon and he returns to us ready to entertain our fans. You know, he’s volunteering his time out there, so I hope he doesn’t get fined too much … Let’s hope this is an isolated incident and Yogi can learn from this experience.”

Moore also jokingly said that Yogi had been feeling under the weather last week, which could have accounted for his momentary lapse of bladder control. Yogi is now being listed as day-to-day on the team’s injury report.

Source:   ZooToo/Greensboro News and Record and The Wall Street Journal

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