Well folks, it has been a few weeks since the last round-up of Pet News stories, but have no fear, we are back this week with a supersized edition for you. Here are the best stories, in our opinion, from the past week.

Kitten Plays the Invisible Harp

This little kitten definite future as a professional harp player. Just check out those skills!

Earless Bunny Video Stokes Japan Nuke Fears

A new video that surfaced this week showing a bunny that was reportedly born in April without ears, has created concern about possible damage resulting from the devestating disasters Japan has suffered over the past year. Experts say there are other possibilities behind the oddity, but there is fear that nuclear radiation could be behind the unusual mutation.

A Dog’s Purpose According To A 6 Year Old

A veterinarian forced to put down a dying dog wrote a blog post detailing the event from a six-year-old’s perspective. This is definitely worth a read, and I recommend having a tissue in hand.

Lion Tried to Eat Baby, Parents Oddly OK With It

A lion at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs, Colorado, despite a valient effort, failed in his attempt to devour a child for lunch. What is most shocking about the video however, is the reaction from the child’s parents. Instead of pulling the child away in fear, the parents actually laugh and encourage the child to further provoke the lion.

Goose in Sandals

No real story here. Just a great picture.

Welcome to Week 6 of The Week Unleashed! We have quite a variety of animal stories for you today, ranging from a seeing-eye goose, to an update on the Royal Wedding, and all the way to some pretty freakin’ intense chewing.

Seeing-Eye Goose Befriends Blind Dog

We have all heard of a seeing-eye dog and have seen the remarkable work these animals do, but what is a dog supposed to do if he tragically loses his sight? Turn to his best goose friend, of course! Baks the Boxer suffered an unfortunate accident last year that left him blind, but thanks to his best friend, Buttons, he still manages to get around. Buttons leads Baks around with his strong neck and reassuring honks. (Story credit to Discovery.com)

Cat Ladies Love Prince William

To have not heard about the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton means you must have been living under a rock for the last several months. While most people have casually been following the wedding through the news, others have taken the unique event to a whole new level. According to a Banfield Pet Hospital study, the name “William” has been given to cats at an amazing rate. In fact, if the trend continues, there will be nearly a 70 percent increase in cat’s named after the prince by the end of 2011. Kate shouldn’t feel too jealous though, Kate/Catherine has also seen a growth in dog’s names and is actually more popular than William. (Disclosure: Banfield Pet Hospital a Coyne PR client. Story credit to CNN.com)

Capybara Chews and Chews and Chews…

To end this week’s edition, take a look at this video of a Capybara chewing. No matter what distractions confront him, be it a yelling audience, annoying roosters or a mystifying peacock, this furry creature does not break his chewing rhythm. Talk about determination! (Story credit belongs to PawNation.com)

Welcome to this week’s edition of The Week Unleased! As always, this week has been filled with interesting, unusual, cute and educational “tails,” so sit back, relax, and we hope you enjoy what we have put together for you.

Human Health Risks on the Rise in Animals

A story in New Jersey’s The Record talks about the growing human health risks that are being found in pets. For example, did you know that the diabetes rate in pets is growing at a faster rate than it is in humans? The study was conducted by Banfield Pet Hospital, and took into account more than 2.5 million dogs and over 500,000 cats. (Full disclosure: Banfield Pet Hospital is a Coyne PR client.)

Little Penguin Gets Tickled

Who does not love penguins, and who does not love watching them squirm around while being tickled?!?! Cookie, the Bird House mascot at the Cincinnati Zoo, gives us an “aww”-inspiring moment as one of the zoo workers makes him laugh. Listen carefully and you can hear an uber-cute noise that will force you to smile too. (Story credit to Pawnation.com)

Man Bites Police Dog, Sues Police

In a story that is sure to make you shake your head, an Arizona man who bit a police dog who caught him after he allegedly broke into a house, is suing the police force and two Arizona cities who were involved in his capture. Zeke, the police dog, was doing his job, capturing the invader by biting him on the shoulder, just as police dogs are taught to do. The burgler then hit Zeke in the face and bit him on the muzzle, and finally again over the right eye. The burgler is now serving an eight year sentence for the incident, but this has not stopped him from filing a $450,000 lawsuit claiming mistreatment. As for Zeke, he needed some medical attention, but as far as we know, he has fully recovered. (Story credit goes to Dogster.com)

Baby Laughs at Bubble-Popping Dog

I think the title pretty much explains it all.

Have a great weekend everyone, and Happy Easter!

Wow, is it really Friday already?!?! The fourth edition of The Week Unleashed is back and ready to get you up to speed on the top pet stories from this week. Remember, if you hear or see any interesting stories featuring animals, send them our way and we will do our best to include you!

Mom, Mom, Look at Me!

I have been looking at this picture all week, and I cannot decide whether this Panda is scared, making a silly face or is just smiling for the camera. What do you guys think? (story credit to Pawnation.com)

Bo’s Second Year in the White House

Boy has Bo grown! It has been a year since the furriest resident of 1400 Pennsylvania Avenue has moved in, and although the human residents have had some ups and downs, you wouldn’t know it by looking at this dog’s face. To celebrate the anniversary, PEOPLEPets put together a slide show of the First Dog.

Bradley Cooper Remembers His Dog Samson — In a Big Way

Ladies, if you want the key to Bradley Cooper’s heart, look no further than hitting it off with his dogs. Cooper, who lost his German shorthaired pointer last year, installed a giant photo of Samson in his home to honor him. (story credit to PEOPLEpets.com)

Pets Preventing (and Assisting) Productivity

Have you ever had to work from home but were unable to accomplish much of anything due to the excitment of another family member who thought you were staying home to spend the day with them? Take a look at this “howl”-arious slideshow put together by Dogster showing some pets that put together a pretty convincing argument that work can be pushed off until a later time.

Welcome to this week’s edition of The Week Unleashed! Week #3 provides us with some whacky and rather unusual stories, but are rather successful at keeping us entertained. Did you come across any interesting pet stories this week? If so, we would love to hear about them!

Story #1: Baby Elephant Pool Party

Who doesn’t love a pool party on a warm spring day? Baylor and Tupelo, elephants from the Houston Zoo sure do! Take a look at this video, courtesy of Pawnation, of these two beasts splashing around in the water.

Story #2: MissingPug Inspires Local Facebook Frenzy

A family in Moline, IL is overwhelmed at the outpouring of support local neighbors have provided in an effort to find a lost pug. The search for Boris has attracted more that 1,400 Friends on Facebook, and while the family is holding onto hope that their dog returns home soon, their faith in people has already been re-affimed. Credit for story goes to WQAD.com.

Story #3: That’ll Do, Cow. That’ll Do.

For this story, no matter what you do, don’t tell Luna! Regina Mayer has always a jumping horse but her parents continue to say no. So Regina decided to get creative and now rides a jumping COW, named Luna. Regina tells NBCSports.com that Luna thinks she is a horse and acts accordingly.

Story #4: Man Barks at Dog…Gets Arrested For Animal Harrassment

The final story this week comes CBSNews.com and features an Ohio man who was charged with a misdemeanor for barking at a police dog. While investigating a car accident, police officer Bradley Walker heard his K-9 unit animal barking uncontrollably from inside his police car. When Officer Walker went to investigate he found Ryan James Stephens barking and hissing at the dog. Stephens’ excuse for his behavior: “the dog started it.” I wonder how that defense will hold up in court?

Welcome to Week Two of the Week Unleashed and boy do we have an emotional roller coaster of stories for you today! This week saw pet stories ranging from attention-grabbing to stomach-churning and all the way to downright annoying. Yet of course, there were heart-warming “tails” of cuteness and fuzzy-feelings too. So sit back, relax, and we hope you enjoy what we found to be this week’s most interesting pet news.

The Missing Cobra from the Bronx Zoo

Is there honestly a pet/animal blog in the country that did not mention that story at all this week? In case you have been under a rock, a 20 inch, pencil-thin Egyptian cobra managed to escape from the Bronx Zoo and spent nearly a week slithering around the zoo’s Reptile House before being found Thursday afternoon. While he was away, the cobra was able to master the concept of Tweeting and currently has over 200,000 followers! Zoo officials have said the cobra will be allowed to continue to Tweet from the confines of his exhibit, and fans can follow him @BronxZoosCobra. Story credit goes to the HuffingtonPost.

Newark woman pleads not guilty to abusing pit bull thrown down trash suit

Shifting gears to something more serious, earlier this week, Patrick, a beautiful one-year-old pit bull was found in a trash shute, extremely malnourished and very close to death. It has been nothing short of a miracle that he is alive today, and I am happy to report that he has gained two pounds, has started to wag his tail and is even barking. However, the woman accues of tying Patrick to a staircase and then fleeing the state is not in such good shape. She faces two counts of tormenting and torturing a living creature by failing to provide sustenance and two counts of abandonment. If convicted, the woman faces 18 months in prison, a $3,000 fine and community service (a pretty light penalty if you ask me, but that is a different matter for a different day). Please keep Patrick in your thoughts as he continues to fight every day to get back to being a healthy pup again. Story by nj.com.

Dog Welcomes Mom Home From Afghanistan

A video on BuzzFeed.com showing how emotional a dog becomes when his owner returns from Afghanistan is guaranteed to bring a tear to your eye. I would recommend grabbing a tissue or two before you watch this.

Loudest Cat in the World?

A cat in England has officially been named the world’s loudest cat. Smokey, who is able to purr at a decible level that is comparable to a idling semi-truck, not only annoys her owners while they try and talk on the phone, but also has the ability to completely drown out the TV. Check out this interesting segment from ABC’s Good Morning America for some cool demonstrations showing just how loud Smokey can be.

Twin Polar Bear Cubs Debut At German Zoo

Finally, to end the week on an uplifting note, a set of polar bears were unveiled to the public this week at the Nuremburg Zoo in Germany. Only a few days after the tragic death of the legendary and beloved Knute, these 45-pound cubs were a welcomed sight for the mouring polar bear community. So what do four-month-old polar cubs do on their first day in the eyes of the public? Well Aleut and Gregor took swimming lessons from their mother Vera and pawed around their new surroundings. It already appears that the love people had for Knute has been passed along to these new cute white balls of fur. Story credit to pawnation.com.

As another week comes to a close, it is time once again to take a look at some of our favorite pet stories from the past several days. We invite you to look over the pet team’s favorite stories, and if you ever see an interesting pet story that sticks out to you, please send it our way so we can take a look too!

To read the full story click on the headline.

Mini horse gets lifesaving prosthetic leg

Even though the news is often filled with stories of people abusing animals, every now and again, a story comes out that recognizes the love a human has for his best friend. A Yahoo! News video tells the tale of how a mini horse named Midnight was given a second chance at life after his owner paid to have a prosthetic leg made to fit the horse.

Elizabeth Taylor’s Furry Friends

In the wake of Elizabeth Taylor’s death this week, PEOPLEPets put together a slide show of her dogs through the years. Check out her many furry friends that she had through the years.

Yale Law School to Counter Stress With a Dog

According to a New York Times article, Yale Law School is hoping to help alleviate the stress students are under by letting students “check out” a dog. Studies have shown that walking and spending time with a dog can relieve stress, as well as help with a human’s overall emotional well-being, and it is probably safe to say that Yale students may be some of the most stressed people out there. There is no word yet on how the school will work to alleviate the stress placed on the dog now that his schedule will be filled with playdates.

Welcome to The Week Unleashed here on Paws…and Give Thanks! We’d love to start back up and round up our favorite pet stories of the week. If you have any suggestions as the week goes on, feel free to send them along! Below are the pet team’s purr-fect picks for this week! Click on each headline to read the full stories:

Dolphin Saves Doberman
Gotta love a good heroic pet story – This week, according to the Marco Island Sun Times online, a Doberman named Turbo was in grave danger when a friendly dolphin did him a solid and caused a ruckus until someone noticed the pup was in danger of drowning. We applaud this courageous sea creature for doing her part for her fellow animal friend!

AbraCATabra

Poof! The blink of an eye is all is takes to lose sight of this “feline Houdini” named Ksyusha. This tricky kitty loves to slip into confined spaces, like the one below, and find her way out, according to Catster.com

A Noble and Loving Companion

Fully disclosing the facts here, our client Milk-Bone has been tracking a special dog named Noble on their Facebook fan page for over a year as he progressed into a grown-up service dog from the non-profit organization Canine Assistants. Although we have a vested interest in this story, we guarantee if you read the AP’s coverage of of Sam, who was in the Marines and now a paraplegic, and Noble, you’ll understand why this is on our week’s top stories list! When asked what he would say to Noble’s thousands of fans as they say goodbye to him, Sam replied “Just know I’ll take good care of him, just like he’s taking care of me.”

Heidi the Possum = Oscar Expert?

Well, we all remember Paul the psychic octopus who swept the nation during the World Cup with his dazzling charm and correct predictions, but do you know Heidi…the Oscar winner-picker? Neither did we until this PEOPLE Pets article this week. I guess we’ll have to stay tuned on Sunday to see if Heidi can put her money where her paws are and claim to be as accurate as Paul and his tentacles.

Happy Friday everyone! what are some of your favorite pet stories this week?

Paws of Steel

A British cat named Oscar is making headlines this week after being fitted with prosthetic limbs.  Oscar was involved in a horrific accident and lost both of this back paws.  Now, the kitty’s luck has reversed, as a groundbreaking surgery has given Oscar his mobility back.  Skin and fur have already begun growing over the pegs, which were drilled into the cat’s bones.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100625/wl_uk_afp/britainhealthcat

Just call it the FUR Seasons

The Happiest Place on Earth just became a little more pet friendly.  Walt Disney World just opened a luxury pet resort.  Dogs and cats can now take their own Florida vacations.  While their pet parents are touring Cinderella’s Castle, Fido and Fluffy can relax in an air conditioned suite, play in the water park and snack on ice cream and tuna.  The Best Friends Pet Care Resort has 50,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor runs, play area and rooms.   Your pet may just come back from vacation more relaxed than you!

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hz0AWFa_Gs5q5b2UyiZzbjLJlxZgD9GHU9MG2

The Purrfect Scent?

Researchers at the Bronx Zoo have found that captive cheetahs are attracted to the scent of Calvin Klein’s “Obsession for Men” cologne.  When the scent was sprayed on a tree, some of the big cats would wrap their paws around the trunk rubbing their face about it.  Others would drool and half close their eyes as in a trance.  The experiment did not have similar effects on big cats in the wild.  Maybe they prefer Polo Sport?

A Not-So-Terrifying Turtle

A two-inch turtle is causing an uproar across the country, as AirTran Airways has to defend their decision to force a 10-year-old girl to abandon her pet.  Carley Helm was trying to return home to Minnesota with her new turtle and was initially told by airline employees that she could bring the animal onboard.  The plane has already begun to taxi when the flight crew returned back to the gate, forcing Carley and her sisters to go back into the airport and leave the turtle in the trash.  Luckily, a soft-hearted employee retrieved the turtle and later returned it to Carley.

Some of the week’s top headlines in the animal world…

Peek-A-Boo, I Hope No One Sees You!

According to a story from Tribune Media Services, many travelers are attempting to sneak their pets onto flights and into hotels.   While there are no exact numbers (because if no one noticed, it didn’t happen, right?), many travelers are hissed off at the high surcharges that airplanes and hotels force on their compawions.   The story goes on to state that airlines charge such high rates because they are trying to “discourage” passengers from bringing pets, while hotels are worried about people that are allergic to animals.  Hmm, I may be a little biased here, but I would rather sit next to a dog or a cat than most people on an airplane.  You can check out the full article here:  http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/05/13/travel.with.pets/index.html

Shelters Gaining Popularity

The majority of Americans now say that they plan on adopting their next pet from a shelter.  An Associated Press-Petside.com poll found that only 8 percent plan on purchasing a pet from a pet store, while 23 percent will purchase a pet from a breeder.  If accurate, the poll could mean that shelters will be seeing more adoptions in the coming years, as only 30 percent of those polled said their current pet was a rescue.

http://www.usatoday.com/life/lifestyle/pets/2010-05-12-pet-store-shelter_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip

Beware of Katherine

Think it’s OK to abuse animals?  Think again.  Not only is the law coming after you, so is Katherine Heigl.  The superstar is using her fame to fight animal abuse.  The Jason Debus Heigl Foundation, founded by Heigl and her mother, is offering rewards to people who come forward with information about animal abuse.  Katherine spoke about the plan last week after learning of a pit bull who was discovered last month with his legs tied together in a muddy field.  The Heigl Foundation helped find a new home for the pup and his owner was arrested.

Poor Little Piggy

A pot-bellied pig may get an eviction notice unless an Arkansas judge decides otherwise.  Wilferd Kallhoff is fighting to keep his pet pig Joker.  The town of Mountain Home, Ark. is demanding that Joker leave, saying that he isn’t allowed to reside within city limits.  Kallhoff, who is 78, keeps Joker indoors most of the time.  Neighbors complained, however, and now the town is demanding the pig leave the premises.   The local police gave Joker five days to find a new home, but Kallhoff is going to court, hoping that a judge will let his best buddy stay.