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<< Previous   of   Next >> Joe Day  (click to enlarge) Sumo, a Tibetan Mastiff and Rotweiler cross, has a new dog house in Darrington.   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Robert Frank, City Editor frank@heraldnet.com   Published: Wednesday, October 21, 2009 Pet stories that will give you the warm fuzzies By Kristi O'Harran, Herald Columnist An editor pointed out that my last two animal stories were about dead dogs. Let's rectify that dreary situation. Here are some fun pet stories — except there is one dead fish — but, all in all, a very upbeat offering. Joe Day in Darrington has a new doghouse for Sumo, 150 pounds of Tibetan mastiff and rottweiler. Don't try to slip in the gate, Day advised. “He's Mr. Softy in the house,” Day said. “My wife found an old, funky doghouse and dragged it home and I resurrected it.” As he was putting on a new cedar shingle roof, Sumo went inside, turned around and came out. The haughty dog looked as if he was saying, “Are you done yet?” When it was finished, the huge beast made his way inside the remodeled home, very dignified, Day said. Sumo flopped down with just his nose and paws visible. He was happy and home. Nice doggy. Happy home for a stray Tina the German shepherd chewed rocks. That hobby made it hard for her to eat dog food. It's no problem, said Dianna Biringer of Everett. “I buy meat scraps and cook them for her,” Biringer said. The Biringer family kept the doorstep stray after an exhaustive, but fruitless, search for her owner. “We have had her for about six years,” she said. “Whoever had her before taught her well. She is very well behaved but picks and chooses who she likes.” Two heroic cats The next two cat stories are worthy of being on a TV show about amazing animals. Norma Pilkenton of Everett was caring for a friend's chihuahua, and the tiny pooch wouldn't eat. The owner of Boo went into a nursing home, so Pilkenton was the kind dog sitter. Poor Boo was teeny to start with, so not eating wasn't good. “One morning, my cat, Snowball, who watched me for a while, got up, walked to the puppy, licked her, purred softly in her ear, picked up a small piece of hamburger and placed it in the puppy's mouth,” Pilkenton said. “Then Snowball talked to her.” The cat watched as Boo tasted the morsel, then began to eat from a bowl. “Snowball did this for two days until Boo began to eat voluntarily,” Pilkenton said. “This is the same cat that never left my bedside for five days after I had surgery.” Imagine a cat understanding human illness. Mardee Davis, 44, of Lake Stevens, has an 18-year-old cat named Rocky. Three weeks ago, Davis had been hospitalized with pneumonia, then was sent home to mend. She slowly got worse at home and could hardly get out of bed. With his master having trouble breathing, Rocky did something he's never done before. The cat jumped on the shelf above Davis' bed and dove on her chest, forcing air into her lungs. “I gasped and realized I had been slowly suffocating,” Davis said. Her neighbor rushed her back to the hospital, where she spent a week recovering. “Had Rocky not jumped on my chest when he did, I would have fallen asleep and died,” Davis said. “My cat saved my life.” All is well back at home, and Rocky doesn't leave her side. “He is my little hero. People claim cats are dumb. Well, they don't know Rocky.” A depressed goldfish Goldfish aren't known for heroics. Anxiety perhaps, but no empathy. Pam Osborne of Snohomish came home from a funeral and found her goldfish missing. “Now who on earth would kidnap a goldfish?” Osborne said. “My oldest daughter had been to the house prior to my return so I called and said, ‘Hey Liz, do you remember seeing the goldfish when you were here?' ” Her daughter, Elizabeth Hesseltine of Snohomish, said she hadn't seen the fish, but suggested her mother look on the floor. The floor? She told her mother that someday that goldfish would commit suicide. Osborne said she didn't know why a fish would get depressed swimming around and around in 8 inches of water in an 8-inch round vase. “Apparently I misread my little friend,” Osborne said. “Sure enough, there he was, 2 feet from his home, quite gray and dead, behind my family room chair.” She has no more pets. “That is it for me. No more harm shall I do another loyal pet.” Dogs go to Disneyland Pets are usually pampered members of the family, but this takes the cake. Linn Brooks, who lives in Darrington, took her dogs on a trip. They have a black-and-tan dapple male mini dachshund named Sammie, a black-and-tan female dachshund named Tootsie and a wirehair mini dachshund named Emma wiener dog. “This is why my life is ‘wienderful,' ” Brooks said. They took the dogs along to Disneyland. OK, they didn't go on the rides, but the weiners got to spend a day at a Disneyland kennel. “It was air conditioned,” Linn said. “They got special treats and a certificate from Pluto when they left that says they stayed.” Love your pets, she said, and treat them well. Kristi O'Harran: 425-339-3451, oharran@heraldnet.com. READER COMMENTS Be the first to comment. You must be a registered user and verify your e-mail address to post comments to blogs or articles on HeraldNet. To register, click here. To read other terms and conditions, click here. Log out

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