Jessica PhelanFebruary 13, 2013 12:34

Monkey-faced Joe beat six other prize-winning pooches to become America's top dog.

Affenpinscher Banana Joe is Westminster's Best in Show (PHOTOS)

Jessica PhelanFebruary 13, 2013 12:38

"He's a fantastic Affenpinscher, with a fantastic face, a great body," judge Michael Dougherty enthused. "I've never had my hands on a better Affenpinscher. Ever."

All dogs in Britain must have microchips by 2016, government says (VIDEO)

Faine GreenwoodFebruary 8, 2013 07:09

British dog owners must implant a microchip in their pets by 2016 or face a hefty $800 fine, in an effort to make owners more responsible for their pets.

Feral dogs kill four in Mexico City park

Faine GreenwoodJanuary 8, 2013 12:36

Four have been killed by wild dogs in a park outside of Mexico City over the course of two weeks, in a series of deaths that have horrified the Mexican public.

Jessica PhelanDecember 6, 2012 12:31

New Zealand: These dogs can drive cars (VIDEO)

It turns out you can teach an old dog new tricks.

Enlarge

This dog is driving a car. No, really. (SPCA Auckland/Facebook)

Dogs. Can. Drive.

This stunning, and vaguely terrifying, revelation is brought to us by an animal welfare charity in New Zealand, which has got at least three of its rescue pups ready to pass their driving tests. (N.B., they won't actually be taking tests. They are dogs.)

Erin Conway-SmithOctober 12, 2012 09:07

Carjacked wiener dog rescued by South African police

Police found Jesse the carjacked wiener dog "shivering" and "staring out of the back window" of her owner's Volkswagen Polo.

Enlarge

Pup of the year meets the press: 17-months-old Stanley, a Dachsund (aka "wiener dog") is mobbed by photographers after being named 'Pup of the year' in London, January 4, 2001. Stanley won the prestigous award beating 10 000 entrants and 31 finalists. (ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Images)

Andrew Beet was carjacked while collecting his mail Wednesday night near Pretoria, South Africa.

Beet, 48, found himself held at gunpoint by "a very friendly man who said he was going to take my car now," the Beeld newspaper reported.

His wiener dog Wally was ejected from the Volkswagen Polo before the carjacker drove off.

Jessica PhelanJune 20, 2012 12:10

Puppy diplomacy: Japan hopes to win Vladimir Putin over with Akita Inu dog

A two-month old Akita puppy is Japan's latest diplomatic weapon.

Enlarge

Oh hai, Mr President. (Leonardo Bighetti/Wikimedia commons)

Diplomacy has always been a carrot-and-stick game, but Japan's latest approach involves more sticks and bones.

The world leader in all things adorable is hoping Russia's top dog will fall for one of its cutest exports: an Akitu Inu puppy.

Jessica PhelanJanuary 18, 2012 14:25

Dogs and robots, the ideal search and rescue team (VIDEO)

Dogs equipped with "snake-like" robots could one day carry out search and rescue operations.

Enlarge

German Shepherd Freitag demonstrates the Canine Assisted Robot Deployment system. (Carnegie Mellon University/YouTube)

Scientists have come up with a new search and rescue team: dogs and robots.

And not just any robots: snakebots. Inspired by the movement of real snakes, the long, thin robots are equipped with a camera and programed to "wriggle" their way toward disaster victims, explained Innovation News Daily.

While the technology has been around for a while, what's new is that the search snakes are now being teamed with real live dogs.

It's an ideal pairing, according to IEEE Spectrum: the dog, with its keen sense of smell and running ability, detects the person trapped underground or in rubble, approaches as close as it safely can, then drops off the snakebot to slither in and take a closer look – which can then be relayed to human rescuers further away.

Emily LodishDecember 7, 2011 12:15

Taiwan's dog poop lottery

That's right. It was a success.

Enlarge

Maggie the dog looks to do her business. (Joe Raedle/AFP/Getty Images)

Among Taiwan's problems is, apparently, an abundance of dog poop.

Specifically, New Taipei City, which surrounds the capital, is full of the s**t.

In response, authorities have come up with what AFP called an "innovative" scheme to keep the streets clean.

More from GlobalPost: Taiwan gays prouder than ever

It's a "lottery" of sorts for which willing participants pick up dog poop and then receive one ticket per bag. The tickets are entered into a pool, and the winner selected gets Tw$60,000 ($2,000) in gold.

That's a pretty good deal.

More from GlobalPost: Taiwan green-lights red-light districts, sort of

The lottery got some press when it began in August. But four months on, no one could have predicted what a resounding success the scheme would be.

AFP reported today that more than 4,000 residents of New Taipei City signed up for the competition, and the city has so far collected 14,000 bags of the stuff.

"The outcome of the campaign beat all our expectations," Lai Lien-chueh, from the city's environmental protection bureau, told AFP.