Dog on the Roof: A 100-Pound Pup Helps Thatch Rooftops in England

And you thought a fiddler on the roof was unusual... (Image: BBC)

Axel the dog is high on life. Thirty or 40 feet high, in fact.

He spends most days perched on beautiful thatch rooftops as his owner fixes old roofs or installs new thatch roofs in Norfolk, England.

The 5-year-old Newfie-Lab-Rottie mix hasn't missed a day of work since owner Richard Haughton found him as a homeless 6-week-old pup.

"We were sitting eating a packed lunch. Axel was on one side of the scaffolding, we were up over the ridge on the other and he managed to come up the ladder," Haughton told the BBC. "We saw him up on the ridge -- basically he thought he was going to get some food -- and he's been up with us all the time ever since."

These days Haughton often carries the nearly 100-pound dog up the ladder. 

"He sits on the ridge and moves along it as we're working," says Haughton.

Charlie Tedder, who works with Haughton, says he loves having Axel on the team. "He's a lovely guy to have around, such a good dog. He keeps an eye on us -- he's like a site manager."

"He'll let you know when he wants to come down -- he'll come to the top of your ladder and look at you, wag his tail -- so we'll pick him up and bring him down," says Tedder.

Awww! I love Axel! If I had the money, I'd buy a house in Norfolk with a thatch roof badly in need of repairs and I would feast my eyes upon his royal high-ness.

(Check out a sweet BBC video of Axel here. All above images are from the BBC.)

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In-Shape Professional Dog Walker Helps Nab Burglar

Jolienne Antonino couldn't let the big one get away (Image: NECU.com)

Hire Jolienne Antonino to walk your dog, and you could end up with your very own built-in crime fighter.

Antonino, who runs New Leash on Life in West Roxbury, Mass., walked into a client’s home to take a dog to an afternoon play group and noticed a second door was open. She walked in and said “Hello?” just as she saw a man running out the back door with a duffel bag over his shoulder.

Many people at that point would call 911. Not Antonino. She instinctively ran after him, yelling “Police! Police!” (She didn’t have her cellphone on her.)

“He was slowing down from time to time and he kept dropping stuff on the ground and I was picking up her jewelry,” Antonino told WHDH. “When he really started slowing down his pace, I didn’t want to get too close to him so I told him if he dropped the bag I’ll just let him go: ‘If you drop the bag I won’t follow you anymore.’”

She says she wasn’t planning on tackling the thief, so it was fortunate that Boston police happened to be driving up the block as she got really close. She flagged them down, and they took over and arrested the man.

“They went right through the yard, one of them jumped a fence and they went and they tackled him and they got him,” she told NECN.com.

Antonino’s clients got back all their stolen goods, including a laptop, and were very grateful.

Police and Antonino’s dad told her she shouldn’t have done what she did. What if the thief had a gun, or turned on her? She promised she wouldn’t do it again, but something tells me this instinctive crime fighter would have a hard time letting the big one get away.

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Help Spread the Word: Organization Helps Pets of Deployed Soldiers

Dozer and Staff Sergeant Steve Meduna reunited after 13 months apart. Dozer was in the caring hands of a Guardian Angels for Soldier's Pet foster family during Meduna's long absence. For a video of their joyous reunion, scroll to the end of this post.

When soldiers are deployed, most do their utmost to find care for their pets. But try as they might, some can’t find anyone willing to take the pets for a protracted period. To make matters worse, soldiers can be given a very short time to report for duty. Those who can’t find long-term care have little choice but to relinquish their beloved pets to a shelter or rescue group. Some are adopted. Many are euthanized.

Six years ago, friends Linda Spurlin-Dominik and Carol Olmedo set out to put an end to this heartbreaking scenario. They founded Guardian Angels for Soldier’s Pet (GASP). The nonprofit organization has placed hundreds of pets in loving foster homes, and has a list of about 2,500 great foster homes nationwide. GASP matches dogs and fosters. The fosters tend to keep in regular contact with the deployed soldiers, sending photos and videos and updates on their pets. When soldiers return, from three to 13 months later, fosters return the pets — hard as that can be.

GASP can always use more foster homes, but what GASP really wants to do is spread the word about its services to military personnel. Apparently there’s a dearth of awareness about this program in the military. Too many dogs of soldiers are still ending up in shelters. If you know of any military service members who might need GASP’s services, either now or in the future, please forward this article to them and have them click on the link to submit a pet for fostering. Also, if you happen to know any military bloggers, that’s proven to be a really effective way of letting troops know about the program.

Check out the video below for a look at how the program helped a soldier and his best friend.

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(A big Dogster thank-you to tipsters Cookie Dog and Steven M. Greene who each recently wrote to tell me about this great program!)

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Dog Helps Save Owner Paralyzed in Biking Accident

Talk about man’s best friend. Yogi the Golden Retriever may not have ever seen any Lassie reruns, but he took a cue from the heroic collie when his owner, Paul Horton, crashed off his mountain bike and became paralyzed from the chest down. Experts say the dog probably saved Horton’s life. Horton is clearly filled with love and admiration as he hails Yogi as his hero. Check out the news video above for their story. We wish Horton a speedy recovery, and send many ear scratches to Yogi.

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