Some happy endings & Cool Papa

Ah, it's a good day for a sigh of relief in Dallas. We'll tell you about the Vanishing Cat and the Fate of the Reluctant Cattle Dog. And James "Cool Papa" Bell, the ballplayer. Read on:

SIGHS OF RELIEF: Particularly at the world famous Kim Dawson Agency talent and modeling office.

Cheetoh the Office Cat is home.

Well, maybe he never left -- the investigation is underway.

I'd gotten a note from the agency's Susan Karr that Cheetoh had "apparently slipped out the front door" of the office in Dallas on Wednesday afternoon. The folks at the agency were desperately searching for the beloved cat and calling on as many eyes as they could to help in the hunt.

When I called this morning to check on the status of Cheetoh, the agency's Connie Haselden replied with a great relieved laugh -- Cheetoh was found waiting inside the office when everybody showed up for work today.

Worried agency staffers and Cheetoh Fans had been out all hours looking for him in the area around the agency. And, yet, there he was, perhaps inside all the time. The only other possibility, Connie says, is that someone from the nocturnal cleaning crew saw him standing at the door and let him back in.

So, if you ever see a long-haired orange male cat thumbing a ride away from the Stemmons at Oak Lawn neighborhood near the modeling agency, it may just be Cheetoh going out for contraband -- pizza or dessert.

LEGISLATIVE NOTE: Word is skittering around through the animal community that HB 3930, motoring through the Texas Legislature, has some bad components and needs to be addressed.  It will, among other things, "make the seizure and disposition of cruelly treated animals much more difficult and much more expensive." Check out the details by clicking on the "Action Alerts" button at www.thln.org.

SAVING ERNIE: Gail Wheland of the Companion Animal Network is working on saving a dog that is in a local shelter.

He's on today's "put to sleep" list, she says.

His name is Ernie and he is, folks think, a boxer mix. This is Ernie in a picture-perfect pose with a great set of ears and a look on his face that says, "I'm looking for a home -- like now!"

He's 6 years old, heartworm negative, neutered and current on his shots. In other words, he's ready to take up the position of "household dog."

To help save Ernie, e-mail gailwhelan@companionanimalnetwork.org or call 214-808-3238. Gail's the "go-between" between outside folks and the shelter. She's the person to contact to either foster or adopt Ernie.

LITTLE FELLA? We got this note from Debbie Farrell of A Different Breed Rescue who describes the dog as the "little fella that followed me home last week."

Because ADB is currently out of fosters, the dog was taken to the rescue/adoption friendly Rowlett Animal Shelter (a pretty nice facility).

But, time is always of the essence when you're a critter in a municipal shelter.

The report to Deb from the shelter reads thusly: "Your guy has a mild case of kennel cough which we are treating with Baytril. He was not limping when the vet looked at him. He does have a few scars that have healed and the vet says he has an excellent personality and is very friendly. He is heartworm negative and has been given the DHPPC, Bordatella and started on Revolution. He is about 1 year old and weighs 42 pounds."

To adopt him, visit the shelter at 4402 Industrial St. in Rowlett or call 972-412-6219. An additional contract is Shelter Attendant Marnie Story at mstory@rowlett.com.

BO'S GOING WEST: Jeneva O'Connor, the local pet-sitting legend with N-Trust-Ur-Pet, sends us the happy news that Bo, the reluctant cattle dog discussed here Tuesday, is going out west.

And Karen Farmer, who managed to rescue Bo from certain death on a Kansas cattle ranch, happily reports that "I found Bo a home in Pala, Calif., late yesterday [Tuesday]." Aussie Rescue held the key.

"A lady who is the assistant coordinator for the Southwest and is the rep for the Southern California sector has decided that Bo is the dog for her. I had gone to their website and placed an application for Bo to be adopted.

"She contacted me because they do not have any reps for Texas. Bo will be a part-time therapy dog at an Alzheimer's facility and will be trained for agility trials."

How about that? From being the undervalued cattle dog that doesn't like cows to being a therapy dog and an agility dog -- all because one person cared enough to step up and say, "I'll help this dog."

HELPING A KID: We reported last week that there would be a blood drive in Ennis on Monday to help 3-year-old Faith Morrissey. That drive has inspired Wal-Mart to add Faith to the beneficiaries of its blood drive planned for 2 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday in Ennis, according to our tipster Audrey Merritt of Chrystie's Kids, one of the "publicists" for this effort to help Faith beat this awful disease.

FROM CORSICANA: Our reliable tipster Julie Maupin with the Humane Society of Navarro County reports that the Kaufman County Animal Awareness Project's "Critter Cruiser" will be in Corsicana on May 25. The "cruiser" takes dogs and cats from the pickup site for "fixing" under the auspices of the Kaufman County Animal Awareness Project's Low Cost Spay/Neuter Clinic in Crandall. (Info is available by visiting the City of Corsicana Animal Shelter or by calling the clinic at 972-472-3500 or by clicking HERE.)

Julie also includes this note: " If you or a friend or family member are  thinking of adopting a pet, please, PLEASE consider  a trip to the shelter to ask about kittens, cats, puppies and adult dogs.  The shelter is brimming with kittens right now - as well as gorgeous adult cats and puppies and dogs of every description.  The cat population is HUGE right now.  Please check out Petfinder.com or go directly to all our pets simply by going to www.corsicanapets.com.

That's where you can read about the dog pictured with this item, Shayla, an adorable Lab/Golden mix. Is that not a wonderful puppy face?

SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT: Watching TV this week I spotted a Coors Light commercial featuring Dallas' own championship runner Michael Powell. The script for the ad said that Mr. Powell was so fast he could "turn off the light and be in bed before it got dark."

There will now be an entire generation of TV watchers who think that such a great line was written specifically for this beer commercial.

We, however, must set the record straight. You can Google it for confirmation or talk to any fan of the old Negro League baseball teams. The quote is attributed most often to the great pitcher Satchel Paige about James "Cool Papa" Bell being "so fast he can shut off the light in the room and be in bed before the room gets dark."

Those guys in the Negro League had enough of a challenge getting recognition -- they don't need some ad agency "borrowing" their words. Baseball is too sacred for its legends to be corrupted by ad writers.