What does every little girl want as a gift? A pony!! Two little girls got their wish when their father, Eric Reid, found a baby horse in desperate need for help.
Eric is the manager of the Bureau of Land Management facility in Delta, Utah. The facility takes care of wild horses and helps families adopt them. One of the horses passed away one week after giving birth. The young baby horse needed immediate help in order to survive without its mother so Eric called his wife Lisa, and their two girls…who were more than happy to help!
The baby horse needed milk every 3 hours so the family happily rotated shifts. Now the beautiful horse, Jazz, is a young healthy animal!
And that's what's good,
Jon
Damian Aspinall, a British conservationist, raised a young gorilla named Kwibi since he was an infant at Howletts Wild Animal Park in England.
When Kwibi reached the age of 5, Damian released him into the wild in Gabon, West Africa.
Damian's "Aspinall Foundation" has been releasing captive gorillas back into the wild in West Africa for 10 years.
Five years after Kwibi was released, Damian went back to Gabon to see if he could find his old friend. The short video is very touching!
And that's what's good,
Jon
Good News - The Baywatch supermodel, Pamela Anderson has made another rescue!! She has been an avid animal supporter since her youth. Now a vegan, Pamela was only in her early teens when she became vegetarian. The blonde beauty actively campaigns and poses for the animal protection organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). She is definitely showing that she has a big heart!
So how did she end up saving a homeless dog in India? We are guessing that she ran through India in slow motion wearing that red lifeguard outfit and scooped the cute little canine up in her arms and boarded the first plane back to The States. In actuality, she first discovered all of the homeless dogs in India during a promotional trip and asked one of her PETA India peers to help her adopt one. They found an adorable dog at a construction site in Mumbai. Pamela has named her Pyari.
Pamela Anderson states: "I'm thrilled to be able to give Pyari a loving home. I already have rescued dogs, and I urge everyone to join me in adopting a homeless dog from their local animal shelter or the streets instead of buying a so-called 'pedigree'."
Great work Pamela! We are proud of you at Good World News!
Peace & Love,
Jon
- The Good World News
Standing at 7 ft 6 inches, Yao Ming, the former NBA star from China is a rarity with respect to height. Yao Ming is now protecting another increasingly rare population - rhinos and elephants. He is using his fame and big heart to convince his fellow Chinese citizens and the rest of the world to stop purchasing rhino horns and ivory from elephants.
Most efforts to stop the killing of these beautiful animals focuses on protecting them from poachers. Yao Ming is taking a different approach which attempts to stop the demand of ivory and rhino horns. According to Laura Walubengo of Kenya radio's CapitalFM, "China is the world's most prominent destination for rhino horn and ivory, whith projections suggesting there will be an added 250 million middle class consumers over the next 10 to 15 years".
Populations are dwindling -There are only 400,000 elephants and only seven white rhinos are left in the world. With an average size rhino horn earning a poacher an average of $250,000, it seems as if there is not much hope. Fortunately, Yao Ming is helping the conservationists bring worldwide attention to this issue. This attention is needed in his homeland of China, and Yao Ming knows it. This is why he is not only giving wide spread attention through interviews, but he is also creating a documentary about it!
Yao Ming observes elephants. Image Credit: Kristian Schmidt for WildAid, via yaomingblog.com
With images as awesome as this, we have no doubt that his documentary will be a worldwide success! Yao Ming takes it a step further by creating a blog about his adventures in Africa: http://yaomingblog.com/
Yao Ming face to face with an endangered rhino.
In his blog, Yao Ming jokes: "These are immense and powerful creatures. As one of them pushes me, I’m reminded of the immense pressure I used to feel when I had to guard Shaquille O’Neal. You knew that pressure while guarding Shaq, and you know it when a rhino leans on you."
Yao Ming's work will truly help protect the lives of these beautiful animals. Thank you Yao Ming!! Good World News is looking forward to watching your documentary. The world is grateful for everything that you have done!
Peace & Love,
Jon
- The Good World News
DeeDee Murry loves her longhaired dachshund, Hallie. She found Hallie at an animal rescue in 2001. You can say it was love at first sight. DeeDee took her home and never looked back.
DeeDee Murry, a Seattle native, is a professional painter who creates beautiful realistic animal portraits. Hallie always watches as DeeDee paints, often draping herself over DeeDee's shoulder watching intently as works of art are created. DeeDee decided one day to see if her dachshund would like to try painting and it turns out she loved it! As DeeDee states on Hallie's website, hallieart.com, "Within a few days she was picking the brush up out of the paint cup, going over to the paper and making strokes and dabs. She would never want to stop, if I set the brush down and told her how good she was and it was time to stop, she would quickly grab the brush back and start painting again."
Then in 2010, Hallie went blind literally overnight from SARD (Sudden Acquired Retinal Degeneration). DeeDee was devastated, but wouldn't give up on her beloved dog. She padded all of the walls to make it safer for her blind dachshund and Hallie decided that she'd get right back on her paws again! Hallie found her way around very quickly and she even learned to paint again! DeeDee said, "She amazed me on the first try, by reaching out and picking the brush up out of the paint cup just like she used to, as if she could see it. The only thing I had to do was tap the paper so she knew where to paint, but I'm having to do even that less and less now. She again will grab the brush when I tell her how wonderful she is but it's time to stop, and start painting on her own, she doesn't want to quit."
All of Hallie's paintings are put up for sale on her website, hallieart.com. All paintings come with Hallie's signature - an imprint of her nose :). The best part is that all proceeds go to the Purple Heart Rescue, a dog charity in Washington State!
Keep up the good work Hallie!
Peace & Love,
Jon
- The Good World News
Lions are known as some of the most ferocious animals on the planet, so a tender moment between a father and his cub captured on camera in the wilds of Africa is generating a lot of buzz.
"The lion photos have hit it quite big because it's the cub meeting his dad for the first time ever," said the wildlife photographer who captured the meeting, Suzi Eszterhas. "It's a major part of a lion's life growing up."
This particular cub met his dad for the first time after seven weeks with his mom.
"When lion cubs are babies, the mom keeps them in a den for the first six to eight weeks of life, and it's during this time that she keeps them very hidden," Eszterhas told Goodmorningamerica.com. "After, she will bring them out and introduce them to the pride. It's at that point they meet dad for the first time."
(Courtesy: Suzi Eszterhas)Eszterhas was able to capture such a rare moment by embedding herself with the pride of lions on the Masai Mara National Reservein Kenya for three months while she was living in Africa for three years. This particular series of photos was captured in 2008 or 2009, she said.
"That was literally the moment the cub first saw his dad ever," Eszterhas said. "He kind of walked up shyly and then the dad immediately tried to play with him and the mom is watching the whole time to make sure the dad behaves. The whole moment is really special."
The California-based photographer spends nine months of the year in the field, documenting wildlife around the world.
"I spent a lot of hours just sitting with these animals watching them from sunrise to sunset," said Eszterhas, who traveled alone around the reserve in a Jeep taking photos. "Very quickly you just become a part of the landscape and they don't notice you at all. You're always safe but you're quite close to them and they get quite used to you."
The lion photographs have been published in "Lion," the latest edition of her six-title series of children's books, titled " Eye on the Wild," which documents an animal's life from infancy to adulthood in photographs.
Other editions have focused on bears, gorillas and cheetahs.
Kindelan, Katie. "Lion Cub's First Meeting With Dad Captured on Camera" Reuters. 22 August 2012. Web.
View original good news article at yahoo.com:
PORTAGE - The North American Wood Bison is still on the endangered species list, but its numbers are thriving at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center.
The Wood Bison Recovery Program started at AWCC almost ten years ago with 13 bison from Canada. Now there are 120 and dozens more on the way.
Coming in at nearly 2,000 pounds, it’s the largest land mammal in North America. It was extinct in Alaska until AWCC started the program.
"For Alaska, it's returning the largest land animal in the western hemisphere to the region and it almost completes the story,” said Jordan Schaul, the Director of Conservation and Science.
Staff says so far the program is quite a success. The first calf of the spring was born Wednesday afternoon, another on Friday morning.
"This year is really exciting, doing the drive around every morning and spotting burnt orange specks out in the pasture is really fun to see,” said Lead Naturalist Erin Leighton.
There will be plenty of wood bison babies to see because AWCC expects up to 40 to be born this spring. But they aren’t the only ones attracting attention.
Two baby musk ox were born within the past two weeks, and they’re the first to be bottle-fed at the wildlife center.
“We post our bottle feeding times for the visitors to see so people usually come around those times, everyone really loves the babies,” said intern Jonathan Spear.
The baby musk ox will be bottle-fed for about a year before they rejoin their mother. They’ll be on display for the public in mid-June.
As for the recovery program, AWCC staff says they’d like the bison herd to have more than 120 before they introduce them back into the wild. If 40 calves are born this spring, they should be on target to release 50 adults in spring 2014.
Hintze, Heather. "Endangered Wood Bison Thrive at Alaska Conservation Center". KTVA. 12 May 2012. Web.
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It's official--the goats of California are definitely the coolest in the country.These two from Southern California, Goatee and Pismo, fit the bill: The goats have taken to surfing with their owner, Dana McGregor, who takes the pets everywhere--even into the Pacific Ocean.
The goat whisperer told the Associated Press he "taught his goats to surf because he loves to ride the waves and thought they would like it, too."
The video shows beachgoers watching as the four-legged creatures catch waves on a calm day at San Onofre State Beach. Pismo and Goatee even ride tandem on the board. In another run, McGregor shares the board with one of the goats and a two-legged friend as the three catch a wave.
The famously sturdy legs of the animals certainly seem to be a natural for gnarly surf: The two goats hang loose--but not quite hang 10--and keep their balance as they ride.
McGregor, who originally acquired the nanny goat Goatee to eat unwanted plants on his property, began taking the goat to the beach with him, and eventually got her up on the board. Pismo has been a surfer goat for almost as long as he's been alive. He was born in March.
Zap, Claudine. "Surfing goats make waves". Yahoo News. 13 July 2012. Web.
View original good news article at news.yahoo.com:
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/surfing-goats-ride-waves-192003301.html?_esi=1
Molly, a two-year old American Bulldog, is one busy pooch. She gave birth to a litter of puppies only six weeks ago, and now she has a bunch of hungry kittens to look after too.
According to the Dothan Eagle, when mother cat "Kitty Kitty" was hit by a car, Molly allowed her four orphaned kittens to nurse. Both dog and cat were raised by Elbert Bristow, 84, of Columbia, Alabama. They gave birth only a day apart. "I've had dogs all my life. I've trained bird dogs and coon dogs," Bristow told the Eagle, "but this is the first time I've ever had a dog take a litter of kittens."
Bristow says the kittens, which include one orange, one white, one grey and white, and one with Siamese-type markings, follow Molly around just like she was their mom. She spends 5 to 10 minutes with them at a time, and lies down and lets them eat. Bristow keeps the puppies separated on another part of his property.
"It is unusual, very unusual," says Bristow. Still, it's not the first time a dog has adopted a kitten. Dogs have been documented mothering cats, piglets, and even baby tigers.
Weir, Sarah B. "Bulldog Adopts Litter of Orphaned Kittens". Yahoo News. 25 June 2012. Web.
View original good news article at yahoo.com:
http://shine.yahoo.com/parenting/bulldog-adopts-litter-orphaned-kittens-184200625.html
Three year old Olivia Hamilton from Gloucester has diabetes. Her blood sugar levels needs constantly monitoring. Too low and she needs to be given fast acting sugar. Too high and she needs insulin. Without treatment, she could fall into a diabetic coma, have a fit or long term damage could be caused to her body.
Jodie Steed testing her daughter Olivia's blood sugar levels Credit: ITV West
It's just emotionally and mentally tiring having to think constantly, have we done this do we need to check this? Can she eat this? Can we go for a walk? Is she going to be ok? The nights are the worst because if you are so tired from doing so many checks the night before, you sleep heavier and you are worried you won't wake up.
– JODIE STEED, OLIVIA'S MOTHER
Which is why Olivia's parents decided to buy and a puppy and train it to detect changes in the little girl's blood sugar levels. At just 15 weeks old, Bonnie's already proving a life saver.
Bonnie is only 15 weeks old but has picked up the skills she needs to save her young owner Credit: ITV West
She's done it about eight times now. On no occasion have we realised that Olivia was low or about to be low. Olivia is so young she has no awareness that she's hypo and she doesn't always show signs. In the background, Bonnie's going nuts and she doesn't calm down until we treat the hypo with fast acting sugar. It's a miracle, can't really ask for any more"
– JODIE STEED, OLIVIA'S MOTHER
Broxton, Rebecca. "The dog that is proving a lifesaver to a little girl with diabetes". ITV. 17 May 2012. Web.
View original positive news article at itv.com: