Pets

Maine apparently loves dogs as much as lobsters because the state's governor issued a pardon for a dog that was sentenced to death.

The dog -- a Husky named Dakota -- will live after Gov. Paul LePage reportedly issued a full pardon to the pooch that was set to be euthanized for killing a small dog. The pooch had also shown violent behavior toward other dogs, according to Bangor Daily News.

Dakota had been sent to a shelter and later adopted ... with the family having no idea he had been sentenced to death. Dakota reportedly showed no aggression while in the shelter.

Steph Curry's got a brand new family member -- he's adorable, he's furry and he ain't cheap!

TMZ Sports has learned Steph and Ayesha just brought home a 10-week-old Goldendoodle puppy this week from a place called Murphy's Doodles ... a high-end breeder in Florida.

'Harry Potter' actor Jim Tavaré is slowly recovering from the car accident that sent him to ICU for 2 weeks, and this week he got a dose of love from his pooch.

For the first time since the accident, Jim was taken outside of the hospital in a wheelchair to be reunited with his dog, Mr Kippy, who was more than ecstatic to see his master.

Mr Kippy had been in the car during Jim's head-on collision. Both miraculously survived ... the dog more unscathed than Jim, who is still mending from a broken neck and several other broken bones, as well as collapsed lungs.

He already looks better than he did weeks ago.

Animal Planet's Jackson Galaxy is stepping up to solve Taylor Swift's cat troubles.

We got the unofficial cat whisperer and host of "My Cat from Hell" at LAX, and he said there's been a sea change -- cat ladies are in now, and that includes Ms. Swift ... who has two kitties.

Taylor's documented her feline issues -- the damn things won't let her sleep. It's an easy fix though, according to Jackson ... but she's gonna have to give him a call.

Demi Lovato is awesome ... she's celebrating her 5-years of sobriety by driving around L.A. and donating thousands of dollars to various charities ... TMZ has learned.

Demi delivered a $5,000 check Saturday to Kari Whitman, who runs Ace of Hearts animal rescue. She personally took the check to Kari's home and said she wanted to celebrate her sobriety by giving to worthy causes. She also said she was spending the day "giving back," so that was just her first stop.

The singer had not previously been involved in Ace of Hearts, so it looks like she checked on various animal charities in L.A. and then personally executed her plan.

Demi posted Thursday she was 5-years sober and counting, saying, "I'm so proud of myself but I couldn't have done it without my higher power (God), my family, friend and everyone else who supported me."

April the Giraffe's had millions of people waiting -- now impatiently -- for more than a month for her to give birth, but neither she nor her baby are in danger.

The Animal Adventure Park in upstate NY set up a live stream in early February ... anticipating she'd shortly give birth. No dice though, and the long wait has April's loyal viewers wondering what the hell's happening!

A rep for the park says they aren't worried about the lengthy delay ... in fact, it's natural. We're told April's not in full labor yet, but the fetus is active and there are biological signs (we'll spare you the gory details) she's close to popping.

We're told vets won't intervene until they see the positioning of the calf. Ideally, employees hope to see the baby's front hooves, knees, snout and neck first.

If that happens, they'll sit back and let April do her thing, but if there's any sign the calf is breech ... the vet team is ready to go.

Any day now, April.

"The Biggest Loser" host Bob Harper's looking good following his major heart attack, and says he's taking steps toward recovery ... small ones with his dog.

The fitness guru's been posting pics letting fans know he's getting better, but says the only exercise he's allowed to do right now is walk Karl around the city and in the park.

We broke the story ... Bob suffered the heart attack 2 weeks ago and was unconscious for 2 days and hospitalized for 8.

Normally, he'd be competing in the CrossFit Open this time of year. Strolling with Karl's gonna have to suffice for now.

Tom Hardy knows where he should place his allegiance for Super Bowl LI ... and he's got his dog to thank for the direction.

Tom was interviewing on Fox Sunday, where he was asked who he's got to win the big game.

Due to Woodstock -- the canine, not the friend -- being from Georgia, he seems to have his pick.

BTW ... he's really got a thing for dogs ...

The American Humane Ass'n finally weighed in on the video TMZ posted from the set of "A Dog's Purpose," and they are virtually ignoring criticism from the movie's Exec Producer that they were asleep at the wheel.

The AHA -- which was responsible for protecting the animals on the set -- spends most of its time in the statement going after the person or persons who gave TMZ 2 videos -- one showing a trainer trying to put the dog in the water and the second where the dog is actually swimming. They note the 2 clips were shot at different times, raising "serious questions about their motives and ethics."

Most interesting ... the clip where the dog clearly does not want to go in the water and the trainer gets aggressive with the animal ... the AHA says, "the handling of the dog ... should have been gentler and signs of stress recognized earlier."

The Executive Producer of the movie has blasted the AHA, saying the org should have put its foot down when it was on set monitoring the scene and then reported the incident. The Exec Producer told TMZ he believes the AHA is compromised because its in bed with the studios.

The AHA says it had a vet check the German Shepherd in question last week and he was a-ok.

Short story ... the AHA never says it did anything wrong.

Cesar Millan says President Trump has drawn a hard line so far, but there's something that could soften him.

Cesar was out in Bev Hills Tuesday when he told our photog about the virtues of a White House dog, and how it might affect the prez.

It seems pretty tried and true ... every president since Theodore Roosevelt has had a pooch in the White House.

Bad guys, beware ... 51 teams of elite police dogs have been deployed to Houston from PDs all over the country to help their human counterparts keep fans safe, officials say.

In fact, the L.A. Sheriff's Dept. just announced it sent 8 trained K9 teams over to the Super Bowl to assist in explosive detection with the TSA and the U.S. Marshals Service.

The LASD officer dogs were even sworn in as Deputy U.S. Marshals so they could work with the Marshal teams.

LASD Lieutenant Richard Hoffman issued a statement saying, "Our K9 teams are constantly training and are used to crowds as large as those attending the Super Bowl."

David Lee Roth's dog allegedly took a bloody bite out of a landscaper, but the former Van Halen frontman claims it was, at worst, a small nip.

The landscaper, Timothy Salinas, says he was doing maintenance work in Roth's Pasadena yard when the rocker's Australian Cattle dog suddenly attacked and took a chunk out of his lower left calf. Salinas says his boss told him he'd lose his job if he reported it.

Roth begs to differ. He tells us he never hired Salinas, he hired the landscaping company. He also points out Salinas waited 47 days before going to the hospital -- and he only found out about it after Salinas made an insurance claim.

Roth's lawyer Ed McPherson says the whole thing is nothing more than a celebrity shakedown, although pics of the alleged attack look pretty gnarly.

Birds & Animals Unlimited -- the group responsible for training the dogs in "A Dog's Purpose" -- insists Hercules the German Shepherd wasn't forced to perform a stunt, and claims the video doesn't tell the full story.

In a letter to TMZ, the org admits Hercules was resistant to entering the pool from a new location, but they cut right away, and went back to the original spot where he'd trained for the scene ... and he jumped in, happily.

Birds & Animals claims the dog was not thrown in from the spot where he resisted, but feels the "falsely edited video" implied that. TMZ did not edit the video. We posted all the footage as obtained.

The letter also addresses the voice in the video saying, "Just gotta throw him in."

"A Dog's Purpose" executive producer Gavin Polone makes no bones about it ... the video posted by TMZ showing a distressed German Shepherd shows mistakes were made on the set, but he insists the animals featured in the movie were well cared for and protected.

Polone strongly believes PETA is smearing the movie by trying to mislead the public into believing the dog and other animals were put in harm's way.

And Polone has harsh words for the American Humane Association, which he says should have stopped the action when the Shepherd made it clear he did not want in the water.

PETA's first official protest poster against "A Dog's Purpose" barks out its mission statement ... "For Dog's Sake, Don't See This Movie."

We got our hands on the literature PETA just created for its planned nationwide picketing of theaters where the movie will play, starting Friday. Sources close to the org tell TMZ they'll be sending out as many boxes of the

as needed, to anyone who wants to help spread the word ... free of charge.

We're told more than 1,000 people in at least 25 cities have already requested the posters, which include a discussion about the video TMZ posted, showing Hercules, the German Shepherd, distressed while filming a scene.

People who want to see "A Dog's Purpose" will be greeted by animal rights activists and taunted if they buy tickets and enter the theater.

PETA organizers tell TMZ they have plans to hit theaters across the country ... protesting the treatment of the animal actors in the flick. As you know, the controversy erupted after TMZ posted video of a German Shepherd in distress when a handler tried to pull the canine into the water.

The studio says the dog was treated humanely throughout the filming and the 40 second incident was harmless ... the dog was willing to go in the water but got freaked out because producers changed the point of entry.

We're told the picketers will be reminiscent of striking union workers, protesting scabs who attempt to cross the picket line.

The studio already canceled the Hollywood premiere and press junkets for fear of violence by animal rights groups.

The movie opens Friday.