Latest news with #Collie
Irish Daily Mirror
3 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Man and woman jailed after dog found dead in yard with plastic in stomach
A man and a woman have pleaded guilty to number of animal neglect charges at Navan District Court. On July 18, 2025, Kevin Horace and Kayla Rafferty with an address at 20 Oaklawns, Clogherboy Park, Navan, Co Meath pleaded guilty to six offences each under sections 11, 12 and 13 of the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013. The charges related to two emaciated dogs, one of which died, due to its neglect. The court heard evidence that ISPCA Inspector James McCormack called to the defendants' address on February 26, 2024, in response to a report received. He saw two dogs in the back garden, both of which were in poor condition and one of which was already deceased and lying by the back door. There was no food, water or shelter available, and there was a black discharge from the dead dog's rear. The Inspector spoke to Horace and Rafferty under caution, and they admitted joint ownership of the dead dog, a long-haired Terrier that had been named Bruno. Ms Rafferty claimed ownership of the other dog, a Collie pup called Sheba. They conceded that the dogs had not been checked since the previous day, although it was lunchtime when the Inspector called, and they were not aware that Bruno had died. There was dog food and a bowl of water inside the house, but the dogs did not have access to them. The two dogs were removed for veterinary assessment, and both were found to be extremely underweight with body condition scores of just one out of nine. Their bones were prominent, and the stomach of the deceased dog was found to be empty other than for sharp pieces of plastic and dark black digestive juices. Their conditions were attributed to starvation. The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week The court was furnished with photographs taken by Inspector McCormack and heard that there was clear evidence that the two canines had been neglected, in total disregard as to their health and welfare, and exposed to unnecessary suffering over a prolonged period of time. It was also revealed that the two accused were offered the opportunity to take part in a formal interview but refused, stating that they were "too busy". Ms. Justice Eirinn McKiernan decided that the only appropriate sentence for the offences was a custodial sentence and sentenced both defendants to imprisonment for a term of two months on one offence with all other charges taken into consideration. She refused requests from Ms Rafferty's defence solicitor to suspend her sentence, even temporarily. Judge McKiernan also made two disqualification orders banning both Mr. Horace and Ms. Rafferty from owning, having any interest in, keeping, dealing in or having charge or control, directly or indirectly, of an animal, for life. Sheba the collie cross. (Image: Irish Mirror) Reflecting on the case, Inspector McCormack commented: "It was shocking to find Bruno dead in the yard, lying against the back door. His only hope was the occupants of the house, and they never came. Instead, he died in the yard from starvation, with only plastic in his stomach. He was failed utterly - a loyal companion left in the yard like unwanted trash'. He added: 'Sheba the pup was lucky that the call was made. Although very underweight, she got out in time, recovered fully, and now lives in a loving home. Sheba got a chance that her companion did not. I would encourage anyone to report any incidents of cruelty. We are there to help, sometimes the only voice they have." The ISPCA urges the public to continue reporting any suspicions of animal cruelty or neglect to its National Animal Cruelty Helpline by calling 0818 515 515, email helpline@ or report online here: If you can, please support the ISPCA by making a life-saving donation today to help rescue more animals from appalling situations just like this one: Get all the big crime and court stories direct to your phone on our new WhatsApp service. Sign up here.
IOL News
16-07-2025
- General
- IOL News
Dogs on the trail of South Africa's endangered tortoises
A conservation official, working as part of the Endangered Wildlife Trust's Dryland Conservation Project, talks about a critically endangered female Geometric tortoise, that they found with specially trained dogs on a private reserve in the Boland district of the Western Cape. Image: RODGER BOSCH / AFP Snout pressed to the ground, a border collie named Delta zigzagged through the shrubs on a private nature reserve near Cape Town, frantically sniffing for critically endangered tortoises. The dog stopped abruptly in front of a small bush and lay down, signalling a find as Delta's handler moved in to search the surrounding area. Hidden in the tall grass was a tiny reptile, its shell marked with yellow star-like patterns - a clear sign it was a geometric tortoise, a species found only at the southern tip of Africa. "It's an adult female, you can tell by its flat belly," said Esther Matthew, the dog's handler and a conservation officer for South Africa's Endangered Wildlife Trust. She explained that the organisation uses canines to sniff out the endangered species by "building positive association with the tortoises' odour", throwing Delta a foam frisbee as a reward. Dogs are five times more effective than humans at this type of search and "also help us find the smaller tortoises which are often overlooked, the hatchlings and the juveniles", Matthew said. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading Dog-handler Esther Matthew, and Collie dog, Delta, working as part of the Endangered Wildlife Trust's Dryland Conservation Project, play a short game of frisbee as a reward for locating a critically endangered Geometric tortoise on a private reserve in the Boland district of the Western Cape. Image: RODGER BOSCH / AFP "We've seen a dramatic increase in the number of finds with the dogs." The help has become crucial in studying and protecting the geometric tortoise, found only in South Africa's Western Cape province and on the verge of extinction. The species' population was already as low as 1 500 individuals in the wild in the early 1990s, according to biologist Andrew Turner, who works for the conservation authority Cape Nature. It is now estimated at only several hundred animals with "declines pretty much across the entire remaining range of this species", he said. On the nature reserve, Delta and Matthew - helped by colleagues searching the bushes with sticks - found a dozen of the hardy reptiles. "We record all the tortoises we can find, all the data, measurements and weight," Delta's handler explained. With the species' natural habitat shrinking due to agriculture and urban expansion, these surveys have become all the more critical, Turner said. "There are very few places left in the Western Cape that still support these tortoises. It's really just a couple of nature reserves and pieces of good habitat left on people's private property," he added. "The remaining patches of vegetation are not really connected to each other anymore. There are farmlands in between, roads, towns and industries so there is limited ability for the tortoises to disperse and rescue other populations." This fragmentation makes them all the more vulnerable to droughts, predation and fires, which scientists argue have become more frequent and intense thanks to climate change. Poaching - of the tortoises and the plants they feed on - is also a threat, Turner said. "They are down to such small levels that they actually need as much assistance as they can get," he said. To save the species, the Endangered Wildlife Trust has looked at building "partnerships" with landowners and communities living in the animals' habitat. "The biggest thing is... creating corridors where species can work through," said Zanne Brink, who leads the organisation's dry lands conservation programme. "Our biggest challenge is to get enough information to prevent critical biodiversity areas from being lost to unsustainable land use." | AFP
Kuwait Times
15-07-2025
- General
- Kuwait Times
Dogs on the trail of South Africa's endangered tortoises
Dogs on the trail of South Africa's endangered tortoises Snout pressed to the ground, a border collie named Delta zigzagged through the shrubs on a private nature reserve near Cape Town, frantically sniffing for critically endangered tortoises. The dog stopped abruptly in front of a small bush and lay down, signaling a find as Delta's handler moved in to search the surrounding area. Hidden in the tall grass was a tiny reptile, its shell marked with yellow star-like patterns -- a clear sign it was a geometric tortoise, a species found only at the southern tip of Africa. 'It's an adult female, you can tell by its flat belly,' said Esther Matthew, the dog's handler and a conservation officer for South Africa's Endangered Wildlife Trust. She explained that the organization uses canines to sniff out the endangered species by 'building positive association with the tortoises' odor', throwing Delta a foam frisbee as a reward. Dogs are five times more effective than humans at this type of search and 'also help us find the smaller tortoises which are often overlooked, the hatchlings and the juveniles', Matthew said. 'We've seen a dramatic increase in the number of finds with the dogs.' A critically endangered Geometric tortoise walks through the bush on a private reserve. A conservation official talks about a critically endangered female Geometric tortoise, that they found with specially trained dogs on a private reserve in the Boland district of the Western Cape. A general view of flowers in the genus, Oxalis, growing on a private reserve. A conservation official, working as part of the Endangered Wildlife Trust's Dryland Conservation Project, talks about a critically endangered female Geometric tortoise. Collie dog, Delta, working as part of the Endangered Wildlife Trust's Dryland Conservation Project, works to sniff out critically endangered Geometric tortoises. Dog-handler Esther Matthew, and Collie dog, Delta, working as part of the Endangered Wildlife Trust's Dryland Conservation Project, play a short game of frisbee as a reward for locating a critically endangered Geometric tortoise on a private reserve. Shrinking numbers The help has become crucial in studying and protecting the geometric tortoise, found only in South Africa's Western Cape province and on the verge of extinction. The species' population was already as low as 1,500 individuals in the wild in the early 1990s, according to biologist Andrew Turner, who works for the conservation authority Cape Nature. It is now estimated at only several hundred animals with 'declines pretty much across the entire remaining range of this species', he told AFP. On the nature reserve, Delta and Matthew -- helped by colleagues searching the bushes with sticks -- found a dozen of the hardy reptiles. 'We record all the tortoises we can find, all the data, measurements and weight,' Delta's handler explained. 'Creating corridors' With the species' natural habitat shrinking due to agriculture and urban expansion, these surveys have become all the more critical, Turner said. 'There are very few places left in the Western Cape that still support these tortoises. It's really just a couple of nature reserves and pieces of good habitat left on people's private property,' he added. 'The remaining patches of vegetation are not really connected to each other anymore. There are farmlands in between, roads, towns and industries so there is limited ability for the tortoises to disperse and rescue other populations.' This fragmentation makes them all the more vulnerable to droughts, predation and fires, which scientists argue have become more frequent and intense thanks to climate change. Poaching -- of the tortoises and the plants they feed on -- is also a threat, Turner said. 'They are down to such small levels that they actually need as much assistance as they can get,' he said. To save the species, the Endangered Wildlife Trust has looked at building 'partnerships' with landowners and communities living in the animals' habitat. 'The biggest thing is... creating corridors where species can work through,' explained Zanne Brink, who leads the organization's dry lands conservation program. 'Our biggest challenge is to get enough information to prevent critical biodiversity areas from being lost to unsustainable land use.'—AFP
ITV News
15-07-2025
- Sport
- ITV News
Puppies rescued in Co Antrim named after top golfers playing in The Open
Meet puppy Rory is searching for a loving new home, just like his near a river, the litter of malnourished pups were found dumped in a bag in Broughshane last one of the six Collie cross pups broke free and was found wandering, which alerted a dog walker to the plight of the siblings - and in stepped the Dogs pup has already found his forever home, now the other five, including Rory, are on the lookout for Park, of Dogs Trust Ballymena, said: "We found these pups at the end of June. So we were sort of forward-thinking saying, 'Oh, we can get some really good strong names'. "So they were all boys and we named them after some of the golfers at the Open."We have Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Shane Lowry, Tom McKibbin and Padraig Harrington. So adopters may not have to keep those names, but we thought we would give them a really good strong name that's destined for success."They are typical puppies. We call them little baby dinosaurs. At this stage, they are going through all the fun stages where they are learning, socializing, and they're learning how to be brave and a bit more outgoing and also this is a really good age for them to start learning a bit of basic training."So for Rory, Shane, Justin, Padraig and Tom what's the ideal forever home?Sarah explained: "Basically, with puppies, we sort of say that if people are home a lot all the time because puppies need a lot of attention, they need four feeds a day, and a puppy that is left to its own devices tends to be a bit of a rascal. "So ideally, someone who's home runs a lot of the time to help with house training to help with socialization, and to be able to put in the basic training to help turn them into nice, well-rounded adult dogs."These pups, a bit like their namesakes, have got their eyes on the comes as puppies are needed for ground-breaking research in Northern here, who have recently bought or adopted a puppy are being asked to sign up to the first ever study to follow dogs of all breeds throughout their lives to help us understand contributing factors to dogs' health and Pup, operated by Dogs Trust, has almost reached the milestone of recruiting 10,000 puppies and is on the hunt for the final few hundred pooches under 16 weeks to join the collecting information about puppies such as their environment, family, health, behaviour and experiences, the charity can build a picture of a whole generation of dogs across the UK and the Republic of Ireland. This means that researchers can investigate whether aspects such as environment, social interaction, diet, exercise or daily routine may be important in the development of a range of health and behaviour conditions which impact on the welfare of our dogs.
Newsweek
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
Woman Sees Scared Doberman Outside of Home, What She Does Next Warms Hearts
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A woman who discovered a terrified Doberman pinscher crouched outside her home the morning after Independence Day celebrations has touched viewers online with her compassionate response. A TikTok video captured the Texas-based woman helping the visibly trembling dog, letting viewers online know that the canine was eventually reunited with her family. The short clip had been posted under @avpmems on July 6 and has been viewed more than 2.2 million times to date. "July 5, the morning after the fireworks and we find this scared Dobie girl next to our house," read an on-screen text in the video. "We were able to reunite her with her family who was looking for her all night." Viewers were able to see the Doberman tucked into the corner of the woman's garden, too frightened to move. "Broke my heart how scared she was," the caption added. "But her family was so relieved to have her back, they insisted on paying us, but we insisted they didn't. "Just happy we were able to get her home safely." The post sparked a wave of emotional reactions from animal lovers online, with several viewers acknowledging the impact of fireworks on animals. Many commented on the apparent distress the Doberman experienced, with some sharing similar stories about their own pets fleeing or shaking in fear during firework displays. "I hate fireworks," one viewer said. "They should be banned." "My husky escaped and broke her leash during fireworks, and a woman kidnapped her," another added. "My dog was of an extraordinary beauty, that woman didn't want to give the dog back, I only got her back two weeks later and I had to pay a ransom. "So yeah, I hate fireworks." "When I was a kid out Collie got out during fireworks," a third posted. "He was missing for 6 days and was found 15 miles away. "He had porcupine quills in his mouth and was so filthy he looked like a different dog … He cried (yes cried) when he saw my dad … Thank you for helping this baby." "This is why fireworks should be banned," a fourth added. "Waste of money. "Pollutes the air and scares many humans and animals alike." In the U.S., fireworks are a common feature of July 4 celebrations, but they can be deeply distressing for animals. The American Kennel Club says that the noise from fireworks often leads to anxiety in dogs, sometimes causing them to run away in fear. Pet advocacy groups routinely warn owners to secure their pets indoors during the holiday and update identification tags in case of escape. The video posted by @avpmems captured the reality of those warnings. The Doberman had apparently bolted during the night and sought refuge in the stranger's yard. The woman's quick thinking and refusal to accept a reward from the grateful owners stood out to viewers as an act of kindness. Newsweek reached out to @avpmems for more information via TikTok. Stock image: A Doberman pinscher dog sits in a rustic urban alley. Stock image: A Doberman pinscher dog sits in a rustic urban alley. Getty Images Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@ with some details about your best friend, and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.
