PEOPLE Pets | Sit. Stay. Play!

A week has passed since Oreo the dog was put down, but her death is still reverberating with animal agencies and the public, many of whom have criticized the ASPCA's decision to euthanize her because she was too aggressive. The outrage reached the offices of New York state Assemblyman Micah Z. Kellner, who has introduced legislation, nicknamed "Oreo's Law," that would give rescue groups the right to request the transfer of an animal to their care if another shelter was opting to euthanize the animal.

"I think what this law will do for animals that could possibly be euthanized for temperament reasons is create a second opinion," Kellner tells PEOPLEPets.com. "It also encourages different groups to work together on these issues, and clearly we do need a law for that to happen."

Kellner, an animal lover and dog owner who fosters cats, says that he has been in contact with many animal agencies and wants to see them work more collaboratively. He is optimistic about Oreo's Law based on the success of similar legislation in California and other states.

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Two weeks ago we introduced you to Marvin, a one-eyed tuxedo cat living in Dearborn, Mich. He'd been at the Friends for the Dearborn Animal Shelter since June, after he was rescued out of a hoarding situation. Well, good news: Just two days after we profiled him, the little guy was adopted!

Dearborn-area resident Robert Muczynski had recently put one of his two cats down, and was ready for a new feline friend. "I only had him for three years," he tells PEOPLEPets.com. "I got him after I had to put another cat down. Last month, he developed some complications, and the vet diagnosed him with liver failure. Sadly, the writing was on the wall."

Once he felt "psychologically ready" to welcome a new cat into his home, Muczynski, a big supporter of Friends for the Dearborn Animal Shelter, went on the organization's Web site to look for the perfect cat — by his standards. "I joke that I generally go for the 'biggest loser,' the cat who's been there the longest," he says.

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These stories are worth a click:

An animal behavior expert has found that Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony's German shepherd, a military-trained guard dog, was a known menace and that the couple is to blame for the dog's 2006 attack on a flight attendant. —New York Daily News

Two lions at a zoo in the Czech Republic broke into a rare white tiger's enclosure and killed her. —BBC News

New York State Assemblyman Micah Z. Kellner has introduced a bill, Oreo's Law, that if a rescue group deciding to euthanize an animal receives an offer by another group to take the animal into its care, it must release it. —AP via WCAX.com

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As pet lovers, we know having an animal around makes life better, but now there's even more data to prove our point. Researchers at Chicago's Loyola University announced this week that adults who use pet therapy while recovering from total joint-replacement surgery require 50 percent less pain medication than those who do not.

"Evidence suggests that animal-assisted therapy can have a positive effect on a patient's psychosocial, emotional and physical well-being," said Julia Havey, R.N., of Loyola University Health System. "These data further support these benefits and build the case for expanding the use of pet therapy in recovery."

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Don’t have your cat declawed in San Francisco, or West Hollywood, or you could face fines up to $1,000 and six months in jail. This month, the city by the bay became the first major metro area in California to outlaw the veterinary procedure, and was soon joined by Santa Monica, Berkeley and Beverly Hills. Los Angeles is expected to enact the ban next week.

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Horrifying news out of Lithuania: Internet footage posted by a young man, believed to be 22-year-old Svajunas Beniukas, caused such outrage that a grassroots manhunt ensued, and Beniukas eventually turned himself in to police. Why the anger? According to the Daily Mail, Beniukas threw a wiry-haired dog named Pipiras ("Pepper") off a bridge and onto a busy road, and joked before the toss that "dogs can fly."

The footage (which PEOPLEPets.com has decided not to show) includes a shot of fallen Pipiras, howling in pain. Amazingly, the dog (pictured above) survived the fall, and is expected to live. The Daily Mail reports that he is being treated for fractures and internal injuries. Beniukas, meanwhile, turned himself into police after learning that viewers of the video worked with local authorities to find the bridge's location and identify the man. He has been charged with animal cruelty, and could face a year in jail.

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Barney the Dalmation once weighed more than many people do. No thanks to an owner who fed him fatty treats and chocolate bars, he tipped the scales at a whopping 154-lbs. Barney's condition was so severe that the obese dog could barely move, and in June, the RSPCA in England raided his owner John Green's home, taking custody of the 8-year-old pup. Good news: Barney has now slimmed down to 88 lbs. with diet and exercise, and is ready to be placed in a new home.

Green pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering by failing to address the cause of his dog's chronic obesity, and on Wednesday, a British court banned him from keeping animals for 10 years. Green was also ordered to pay nearly $1,300 and to perform 200 hours of unpaid work.

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