Nature Knows

Chris Evans says adopting his dog Dodger was the ‘best decision of my life’

No matter who you are, adopting a dog is always a great decision. When you adopt a dog from a shelter you’re not only giving them a great new life, you’re getting plenty of unconditional love in return.

Even major Hollywood celebrities have spoken about how their rescue dogs changed their lives.

Recently, one star spoke about how adopting his furry best friend was the “best decision” he’s made.

Chris Evans is best known for playing superhero Captain America in a hit series of Marvel blockbusters. But he became a real-life superhero for a boxer mix named Dodger, who Evans adopted in 2017.

It all started while Evans was filming the movie Gifted, and he realized the kennel they were filming in wasn’t just a movie set.

“I foolishly walked in and I thought, ‘Are these actor dogs or are these real up for adoption dogs?’” the actor told People in 2017. “And sure enough they were, so I was walking up and down the aisles and saw this one dude and he didn’t belong there. I snagged him and he’s such a good dog.”

“I had no intention of rescuing a dog that day, but the minute I saw him I knew he was coming home [with] me,” Evans wrote in an Instagram post marking National Rescue Dog Day.

In a recent interview with BuzzFeed Celeb, Evans said that he imagined adopting a puppy, and never planned on taking home an older dog like Dodger. But after seeing Dodger, it was love at first sight.

"Dodger was a full-grown dog,” he told BuzzFeed, saying the dog was about 2 at the time. “It wasn’t the story I had in my mind but it ended up being the best decision of my life.”

The actor now says more people should consider adopting older dogs, who need homes but are often overlooked. “I just think a lot of adult dogs and older dogs get overlooked, and that’s a shame,” he said. “Let’s give them some love, too.”

If it wasn’t clear that Evans loves dogs, he also got to play with puppies throughout the whole interview — and couldn’t contain his excitement:

Evans didn’t plan to adopt a dog that day on set, but it clearly changed his life. Dodger is beloved by the actor’s fans, and frequently appears on his social media. Dodger has become such a big part of Evans’ life, in fact, that he got the dog’s name tattooed on his chest.

“I mean that’s probably one of the purest relationships I have,” Evans said in an interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in October 2020. “[Getting my tattoo of his name] didn’t take much convincing. I’ll never regret that tattoo. I’ve regretted a few in my life, not that one.”

While Dodger is an older dog than Evans planned on, he was still quite a handful, as playful as a puppy.

“He acts like a puppy, he’s got the energy of a puppy, he’s just such a sweetheart, he’s such a good boy,” Evans told People. “He loves dogs, he loves kids, he’s full of love.”

“God dogs, they’re such great animals. I really can’t say enough about dogs, I’m a dog lunatic.”

A dog’s love can be the most valuable thing in the world, even for people who are rich and famous.

We’re so glad Chris Evans found such a perfect pet, and thank him for spread the word about adopting dogs, especially older dogs.
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Little girls are moved to tears after deputy reunites them with their missing dog

It’s always heartbreaking when a dog goes missing, but one family’s tears of sorrow turned into tears of joy after being reunited with their lost pet.

Last May, a dog named Max disappeared from his home in Bexar County, Texas. His worried family searched everywhere, putting up signs throughout the neighborhood, hoping their dog would return.

Flyers described Max as a mixed-breed dog who was “super friendly” and “very calm and sweet.” “We miss him dearly,” his family wrote.

Max was nowhere to be found, leaving his family worried sick — but that July, there was a break in the case.

Deputy Perez of the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office got a call about a dog that was “found wandering in the neighborhood,” according to the department.

Arriving on the scene, Perez recognized the dog as one she had seen on the missing flyers around town. He contacted the family, and sure enough, the dog was Max, finally found after many weeks away from home!

Not only did Deputy Perez making the sweet reunion possible, he also got to witness the heartwarming moment the family’s children reunited with their pet.

Photos shared by the sheriff’s office show the family’s two little girls embracing Max, with one of them so overwhelmed with joy that she can’t hold back tears:

“Max and his family were reunited and as you can see on the children’s faces, they could not be happier,” the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office wrote.
The sweet story went viral on Facebook, with nearly 2,000 shares and hundreds of comments, many of which praised the deputy for making this sweet reunion possible. “That sweet, thankful face says so much!” one comment reads.
“To see these little girls face this is priceless!” another wrote. “These little critters have major impacts to our hearts.”
Thank you to Deputy Perez for helping to reunite Max with his worried family — it must’ve been some moment to see this emotional reunion in person, a reminder of the importance of pets in our lives and how important it is to get lost animals back to their families.
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Animals

The Largest Snail In The World, Grow As Long As A Human Arm

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Animals

Baby elephant given prosthetic leg after losing leg to landmine

When elephant Mosha was only seven months old, the worst happened. She stepped on a land mine and lost her right front leg.

The pretty little elephant’s life seemed to be destroyed forever, and no one thought she’d be able to walk again.

Thailand is a popular tourist destination, and the country is often associated with golden beaches, swaying palm trees, and beautiful scenery.

But what many do not know is that the country also has a extensive problem with landmines along its borders to Cambodia, Lao, Malaysian, and Myanmar.

It is estimated that Thailand still has 360 km2 of landmine and explosive remnants of war in 10 provinces. The authorities do their best to eliminate all landmines, but it’s a tough job because the mine-infested land includes villages, agricultural lands, and parts of national forests.

Unfortunately, many are still out there. Over the years, humans and animals have been seriously injured. One of them was the elephant Mosha.

Only 7 months young, she stepped on one of these mines and lost her leg. Her situation caused immense stress on her spinal column as well as her other 3 limbs.

But when a doctor named Therdchai Jivacate heard about the terrible tragedy that Mosha had gone through, he realized that he had to act.

Doctor Therdchai Jivacate is an orthopedic surgeon who rehabilitates injured elephants. And for a long time, he’s worked at the world’s first elephant hospital, located in Thailand.

When he heard about Mosha’s situation, he didn’t hesitate for a second to intervene.

With the help of his team, Dr. Jivacate developed the world’s first artificial elephant leg. It’s a prosthesis that makes life easier for Mosha and has given her the ability to walk again.

And as Mosha grows and gets older, Dr. Jivacate makes new prostheses for her.

Thanks to Dr. Jivacate and his team’s wonderful effort, Mosha has gotten her life back and is finally able to live a normal life again.

Watch the video below to see more about Mosha and the kind-hearted Dr. Jivacate.

Please share this video if you’d like to let more people know about Dr. Jivacate and the good work he’s doing for elephants like Mosha.
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Animals

FedEx driver finds loose dog and ‘delivers’ her back home, carrying her in his arms

There’s nothing worse than finding out your pet has gone missing. You immediately fear for the worst, worrying that you’ll never be able to track them down, or that something terrible will happen to them.

Luckily, there are plenty of good people out there who will go out of their way to help a missing pet reunite with their owner.

That’s what one family discovered when they got the most unexpected “package delivery” at their front door. Lisa Menzies, from Castle Pines, Colorado, is the owner of a three-year-old golden retriever named Catcher.

Recently, while the family was out of town while having some home repairs done, the wind blew their front door open and Catcher escaped.

They couldn’t get home in time to track him down, and they feared for the worst: “She could have wandered out to a busy road and you hate to think what’s going to happen then,” Lisa told KDVR.

Luckily, an unlikely hero stepped up to save the day: their FedEx driver! Lisa got a message saying that the driver found the dog, and he would bring Catcher home using the address on her collar.

Video captured on the family’s Ring doorbell camera revealed just how seriously this driver took his mission: he carried the dog to the door, like something out of a movie.

“He put her in the house with such care,” Lisa said. “In my head, I was thinking of the theme song from the Titanic.” “He was taking such care and love with her that it was really amusing.”

The driver even put the dog inside the house, making sure she would be safe and secure. Lisa was incredibly touched—not only did he keep the dog from getting into danger, he took time out of his own schedule to do it.

“He interrupted his day and his package delivery schedule to pick her up,” she told KDVR. “I don’t want to think about where else she could have ended up,” she said, “He is certainly our family’s hero.” But she doesn’t know her hero personally, not even his name.

She’s thanked him via text and reached out to FedEx, wanting to thank him in person, but hasn’t heard back yet. Still, she’s forever grateful for his good deed.

Thank you to this FedEx driver for going above and beyond to help this dog! It goes to show the big difference a small act of kindness can have.
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Animals

Dog born with short spine and no neck finds a family to love him just the way he is

All dogs are beautiful in their own way, and are deserving of good, loving homes — even the ones that look a little unusual.

Like one very unique dog born with no neck and half a spine, who struggled due to his differences but ultimately found the perfect home.

Cooper, an American foxhound, has a genetic condition referred to as “short spine syndrome” in which his vertebrae are fused together and compressed.

According to Daily Mail, he’s one of only 30 dogs in the world with the condition.

“[His spine] is fused in two places – on his neck and on his rear,” owner Elly Keegan explained, per the Daily Mail “He looks like he has no neck and to look behind him he has to turn his whole body.” The unique-looking dog had a rough start to life.

He likely came from a puppy farm in Halifax, Virginia and was abandoned due to his birth defect. It’s also likely his disability was the result of inbreeding at the puppy mill.

Rescuers found him in 2017, and he was taken to Secondhand Hounds, a shelter in Minnetonka, Minnesota.

Unfortunately, things didn’t work out in the first home he was placed in, as he liked to chase their cats. But Cooper soon found his perfect home with Elly Keegan and her family.

While many people would pass over such a unique-looking dog — or even worse, he could’ve been euthanized for his disability — Elly has a warm heart towards differently-abled dogs and committed to giving Cooper all the love and help he needs.

Elly says she was aware Cooper would need medical attention but had the support of Secondhand Hounds.

Early on, the dog had a few medical setbacks, including a fall that fractured his neck in five places and a bone infection.

But in other ways Cooper’s condition has seen improvements. Elly says that his birth defect left it so he essential had his “butt on his back,” but a surgery has made it easier for him to go to the bathroom on his own.

Elly says that despite everything, Cooper is the “happiest dog,” and people are always happy to see him, too. “Wherever he goes he draws attention but he really revels in it. He has a lot of fans on Facebook,” Elly told Daily Mail. “He’s such a friendly dog.”

All dogs deserve love and care, even the ones that look a little different or have special needs. We’re so glad Cooper now has a perfect home to love him just the way he is.
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