The DogChannel Newswire (12-19-08)

Lake Oswego, Ore., Dog Owners Warned: Poop Fouls Our Waters
In a city known for its private lake and love of pets, a canine culprit is sullying Lake Oswego’s pristine waters: dog poop. Dog owners who fail to pick up after Max are contributing to roughly 15 percent of fecal bacterial in local waterways. The problem can prove especially troublesome in the autumn, when the first rains sweep a summer’s worth down the storm drains and into the nearest stream, river or lake, OregonLive.com reports.
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‘Marley & Me’: A Mischievous Treat
For comedy writer and director David Frankel the making of his latest film, “Marley & Me,” based on John Grogan’s bestseller, gave him a newfound appreciation for animals on set. Frankel, whose major credits include “The Devil Wears Prada,” “Sex and the City,” and “Entourage,” got to change things up a bit with a partly canine cast, CBS News (N.Y.) reports.
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Hernando County Issues Rabies Alert
The county health department is warning the public about a rabid raccoon that fought two dogs in the area of Kirkland Avenue in Spring Hill, the Tampa (Fla.) Tribune reports.
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Australian Pet Ambulance Finds Growing Niche
When veterinary nurse Niccole George heard the sobs on the phone, she felt incapable of doing her job because the collapsed Great Dane’s owner was too frail to take the dog to her. That was the phone call that inspired George and her partner Gareth O’Connor to start PetMedics, a 24-hour pet ambulance service for pet owners unable to get their animals to help when an emergency arises, Agence France-Presse reports.
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Newly Released Books: Nose Down, Eyes Up
The plot of the talking-dog book, “Nose Down, Eyes Up,” involves four dogs who have the power of speech and their owner’s discovery of this fact, as well as a girlfriend who is an animal communicator, the New York Times reports.
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