And now, some heartwarming animal news before your weekend kicks off: this is Saber, a 10-year-old husky who lives with his human family in Little Egg Harbor, New Jersey. Saber, who suffers from arthritis, bolted out of his house today for reasons unknown and ran onto the ice in the pond behind his house, where he slipped and fell through the ice. But he's okay! more ›

There's a wolf running amok in Brooklyn! Or, there was a wolf running amok in Brooklyn until quite recently, when someone collared it and brought it to the Animal Care and Control center. S/he looks a little freaked out, and understandably so. Here's what we know so far: more ›

Every once in a while, an exotic animal gets blown way off course and winds up in New York, where confused locals point quizzically at the nature before them and wonder what the hell to do with it. Fortunately for the pink flamingo that wound up in Westchester, an actual wildlife expert was on hand to save the day. more ›

An adorable goldendoodle (that's a golden retriever mixed with a poodle, for dog noobs) named Lucy is at the center of an ugly Brooklyn divorce battle that's getting more ridiculous by the day. Here's what happening: more ›

It's the battle of the century: a bald eagle spotted on Staten Island is dueling it out with a flock of ospreys for food and "prime treetop space" in Chapin Woods in Dongan Hills. And things are getting intense! One local birdwatcher described the eagle taking on six ospreys, who were "switching trees and fighting over fish," while another neighborhood resident said he saw an eagle chasing after a large osprey who had caught a fish—they were both "huge, and flying so fast!" he reported. more ›

Well, this is just gosh-darn precious: a chubby beagle named Sammy saved his family from a late-night fire that broke out in their basement. more ›

During yesterday's coverage of flooded New York City streets, a WCBS 2 camera filmed an animal making a labored walk through muck. The people discussing Hurricane Irene don't comment on the creature, which looks like a rat, opossum, ferret, or a giant monitor lizard. Check out the footage: more ›

An alligator found on the Long Island Expressway near Exit 68 on Monday morning is now in the custody of the SPCA, but the questions are just beginning! The SPCA is offering a $1,000 reward for information about the alligator's origins—namely because keeping an alligator is illegal. SPCA head Roy Gross said, "This is not something that will be tolerated in Suffolk County and if you have something like this, you're not only endangering yourself or your family but you're endangering the public." more ›

Raccoons: when they're not breaking into Brooklyn brownstones, they're... breaking into Brooklyn brownstones. Previously it was unknown what they wanted in these brownstones: organic food from the Co-op? A copy of Freedom? But in light of a recent incident, we can say with confidence that these raccoons are after the cats. more ›

Last week bags containing animal parts were discovered in Prospect Park, upping the body count of slaughtered animals discovered there this year. But then an albino squirrel was spotted in the park, alive and well, and we forgot all about the gruesome discoveries... until now. more ›

Just in time for Halloween, the mysterious animal massacres in Prospect Park have returned, and they're more gruesome than ever! Earlier this week, local man Alex Gurevich found two bags in the park—one filled with animal guts and the other with a beheaded and gutted deer or goat carcass! The Brooklyn Paper reports that the bags were found at the edge of the park near Parkside Avenue and Parade Place, just 30 feet from each other. more ›

Yesterday morning a Canada goose was spotted around Prospect Park lake with an arrow, or dart, through its neck. This is sadly not very shocking considering the area has been plagued with animal injuries and deaths this year. more ›

A bull and cow somehow escaped from their farm and ended up roaming Long Island for a few hours. According to Newsday (subscription required), they were "dashing across backyards, jumping over fences, cavorting on train tracks and defying the herding heroics of the locals trying to capture them," as well as "grazing serenely as drivers on Montauk Highway looked on." more ›

The best thing about Google's April Fools jokes (well, except for this lame Topeka one), is that they put hours and hours of time and brainpower into really following all the way through with them. Like this one, for instance, which promises an app that can translate your pet's thoughts. more ›

Over the past few days, dolphins have been photographed swimming in the polluted Newtown Creek and the East River. The Fire Department provided Gothamist with additional images of the aquatic mammals captured by Bill Hannon of FDNY Marine Company 6. Despite some scary police scanner dispatches about an "animal rescue" involving a dolphin near the Brooklyn Navy Yard yesterday afternoon, the Post reports the dolphin—which was last seen in the waters off of Kent Street—appears to be doing just fine. Rob DiGiovanni, director of the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation, told the tabloid: "At this point right now, it seems the animal is free swimming and doesn't seem to be in need of assistance." more ›

[UPDATE]: Dolphins are everywhere! The day before a dolphin was photographed in the putrid Newtown Creek, a fireboat captain says he saw two dolphins swimming in the East River. Captain Bill Hannan told the Daily News he spotted the animals near the Brooklyn Navy Yard on Tuesday. On Wednesday, Urban Assembly New York Harbor School educator Roy Arezzo and a colleague were "just amazed" when they saw a 7-foot dolphin in Newtown Creek. "We just stood there in awe—shouting, telling it to go back the other way. ... This is a once-in-a-lifetime sighting." more ›

After increasing the cost of pooper scooper fines from $100 to $250, city inspectors issued far fewer tickets to dog owners who didn't pick up after their pooches last year. The number of pooper scooper violations plummeted from 903 in the fiscal year of 2008 to just 580 in 2009—but experts say the decline in tickets has nothing to do with the higher cost of the violations. more ›

While bald eagles fly over Fairway in Harlem, and rabid raccoons run rampant in Central Park... we can't help but wonder what's become of the coyote in the area. We've received several more reports of sightings; one three days ago at 5:30 p.m., another two days ago in the afternoon... and now a NY Times reader has sent in some great photographs of the little guy! The UWS resident spotted him walking past the pond in Central Park on Tuesday when "the animal came out of the Hallett Nature Sanctuary and walked across the frozen pond several times. It seemed timid and skittish and kept retreating back to the sanctuary—avoiding humans? It kept a watchful eye on me." The Parks Department still hasn't responded to our requests for comment about the coyote, so since he's still out there—why don't we give him a name? The 2006 Central Park coyote (RIP) was named Hal. more ›

Once a year PETA really turns up the crazy to 11. Last January they wanted us to call fish sea kittens, and now they want us to replace Puxsutawney Phil and Staten Island Chuck—and presumably the rest of the nation's groundhogs—with robots. One PETA activist would like for the animals to be brought to a sanctuary and replaced with electronic groundhogs, noting that the "large, screaming crowds, flashing lights of cameras, and human handling" are no way for an animal to live. Hmm... actually, maybe Chuck was trying to make this very point when he bit Bloomberg last year. more ›

This isn't really as exciting as the recent MIdtown macaw rescue, but last week the Brooklyn Paper spread the word that an African Grey Parrot had gone missing near Flatbush Avenue in Park Slope. The bird—named Gracie—belonged to Lora Myers, who kept him as a pet for 12 years. more ›

The Long Island mother accused of torturing and killing cats and dogs and forcing her children to take part in the abuse might plead not guilty by reason of insanity. After getting hit with additional felony charges of animal cruelty and child endangerment yesterday, the lawyer representing Selden resident Sharon McDonough said he is "considering an insanity defense" for his client, who so far has pleaded not guilty, according to 1010WINS. Investigators uncovered the remains of 42 animals in her backyard after her son alerted authorities, claiming his mother "would buy the dog, treat it like it was the greatest dog in the world for a few days, then they would sit in the cage until she decided to kill them." more ›

The Long Island woman accused of torturing at least 42 cats and dogs and burying them in her backyard has been indicted on four additional felony counts of animal cruelty — as well as dozens of counts of child endangerment for allegedly forcing her kids to take part in the abuse. Sharon McDonough, 43, is expected to be arraigned on the new charges on Thursday. She has already been indicted on felony charges of aggravated cruelty to animals, and misdemeanor charges of torturing and injuring animals and endangering the welfare of a child. Her attorney told Newsday that "she continues to stand by her not guilty plea." The Post reports that McDonough remains in jail with bail set at $100,000. McDonough's son has said she ran a "concentration camp for the animals." more ›

Well, this is depressing. The 10-month-old puppy, named Brooklyn, who jumped off the roof of his building over the weekend... has died. The pup originally survived the 5-story plunge, but now it's being reported by PeoplePets that the family euthanized him today. more ›

Tonight Animal and Mother bring the mysterious B.N.E.'s work off the streets and into a gallery in Manhattan. In anticipation of the event, the NY Times tried to dig a little deeper into the still-anonymous street artist's life. Have you seen his pieces around town? They are simply the letters B N E, and he told the paper that while they have personal meaning, "at this point, it means whatever you need it to mean.” more ›

Pet abandoners: please do not leave animals tied to the FDR! Jennie Min of NJ says: "I went to Manhattan today and found somebody tied a small pitbull right on the FDR Drive! She looked so afraid and was crying when I found her." Min waited an hour to see if the owner would show, then tried three non-kill shelters, all of which had no space. Since she can't take on another dog, she left her with Animal Care & Control... which means it doesn't have much time to live. She asked the ACC to contact her if they are forced to put her to sleep, and is hoping someone will save her before that happens. [via GirlieGirlArmy] more ›