- Eleven-year-old Cole Hein has a very special relationship with his Jack Russell terrier: Bingo is his service dog. Cole has a potentially lethal form of apnea, a medical condition that causes him to sometimes stop breathing. Bingo, trained by Canada's National Service Dogs organization and the MSAR Search and Rescue Association, is certified as a hearing, medical service, and therapy dog. He's trained to alert people if Cole needs CPR.

Cole and Bingo
"In the first 6 months, she saved Cole's life three times," wrote Cole's mom Mandi Hein. "A constant companion, Bingo has given Cole freedom and safety, devotion, and friendship."
Bingo was honored for saving Cole numerous times by being inducted into the Purina Animal Hall of Fame in 2010, reports the Winnipeg Free Press.
And now, Bingo is dying. And he has a Bucket List. Or as Cole calls it, a "Lick-It List."
Related: LOL! 8 hilarious photos of pets pretending to be emoticons
After being told that Bingo only has weeks to live after bein...Read More » By WebVet.com

Photo by Monslave
There were firemen on hand, but it was a German Shepherd mix named Amanda who was saving lives on the scene of a horrific fire in Chile last week.
Amanda saved the lives of her 10-day old puppies after a car bomb went off, setting her nearby house on fire. Firefighters noticed the brave mom using her mouth to carry the puppies one by one from the burning house and place them on the side of their truck. Once all five puppies were in place, Amanda curled up around them.
After they were done on the scene, the firefighters rushed Amanda and the puppies to a local vet.
All but one of the puppies survived, and the remaining four -- along with Amanda -- have been put up for adoption.
5 More Amazing Hero Dogs
1. Eve: In 1992, Kathi Vaughn, a paralyzed paraplegic, was driving along an interstate when her truck caught on fire. She pushed her rotweiller, Eve, out of the vehicle so she would be safe. However, the dog came back. Pulling her owner by the ankles, E...Read More »
...Read More »
Animal Nation recently visited the Georgia Aquarium, where Bridget got to dive with whale sharks. They may be the largest fish in the ocean, but these sharks are gentle giants: filter feeders who rely on plankton and fish eggs to survive.
The Georgia Aquarium is the only place in the United States where you can see whale sharks in captivity. They're a part of the aquarium's Ocean Voyager exhibit, a football field-sized, 6.3 million gallon tank which features not only whale sharks, but manta rays, eagle rays, tiger sharks, sawfish, guitarfish, groupers and other tropical fish that are found in warm open ocean waters throughout the world.- Introducing the latest in medical technology: robot pets. They offer everything a regular pet can offer, except for the pooping, peeing, biting, and scratching, making them perhaps more reliable candidates for pet therapy.

Paro, a robotic seal, was used to comfort elderly patients after the Japanese tsunami.
Multiple studies are about to begin to evaluate the effects of robot pets on patients with dementia and those undergoing chemotherapy.
A study in Australia aims to determine if robot pets can help patients with dementia learn to communicate and express joy again. Lead researcher Wendy Moyle told The Herald Sun that robot seals have already been used in Japan to help comfort elderly survivors of Japan's devastating tsunami.
One patient, who had not spoken in two years, surprised his caretakers when introduced to one of the mechanical seals."He started speaking to the robot after five or ten minutes," Ms. Moyle told The Herald Sun.
"It was a very emotional lesson for staff, because they watched this man who they knew had not been speaking suddenly start
...Read More » By WebVet.com

Schoep
Photo by Stonehouse Photography
A touching picture of a man floating in the water with his sleeping dog has gone viral. And the story behind the snapshot has melted hearts.
John Unger credits his 19-year-old dog Schoep with his saving his life -- and now he is doing everything in his power to make Schoep's twilight years as comfortable as possible. Schoep suffers from arthritis and hip dysplasia, which causes pain John eases through their lake sessions.
Understanding Dog Arthritis and Pain Management | Webvet
Hannah Stonehouse Hudson, who snapped the now-viral photo of the two, told the Huffington Post of their watery routine, "Shep falls asleep every night when he is carried into the lake. The buoyancy of the water soothes his arthritic bones. Lake Superior is very warm right now, so the temp of the water is perfect. I was so happy I got to capture this moment for John. By the way, John rescued Shep as an 8 month old puppy, and he's been by his side thr...Read More »
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