Pets

3:20 PM PT -- Jenelle spoke with US Weekly about the incident, saying, "He just took her and shot her in the woods, about two acres away from the house."

As we reported, local law enforcement said they won't act on the killing until Jenelle comes to them to report the crime ... one source we spoke to said media reports and social media postings aren't enough to trigger an investigation.

Jenelle also told US, "At this time, we are dealing with this rough situation. I want to focus on what's best for me and my kids."

9:45 AM PT -- Police went to Jenelle and David's house Tuesday night to perform a welfare check on Ensley. Officers found everyone, including Ensley, was okay.

As for the dog -- a law enforcement source tells TMZ ... David told cops Nugget was alive, although he would not let them see the dog. We're told cops have no evidence showing anything happened to the dog.

The Columbus County Sheriff's Dept. says it's contacted Animal Control, but as far as any further investigation from cops ... our source says Jenelle would need to make a report on her own. We're told officers won't act on "sensationalized media reports or social media posts." The source said it's irrelevant to cops what Jenelle says on IG.

Meanwhile, PETA says it hopes charges are filed against Eason if it's true he shot Nugget. They say, "People who abuse animals typically don't stop there."

"Teen Mom" star Jenelle Evans is heartbroken over the death of her dog, which was shot and killed by her husband ... who is defending his disturbing move in the name of protecting his family.

David Eason admits he killed the family's French bulldog, Nugget, because it bit the couple's 2-year-old daughter, Ensley. He shared a video that appears to show the dog snapping at Ensley as she's moving closer to its face for a kiss.

David explained his decision to put the dog down, saying ... "I dont give a damn what animal bites my baby on the face... whether it be your dog or mine, a dog is a dog and I dont put up with that s**t at all."

A photo of Ensley's face after the incident shows a red mark, but there's no apparent break in her skin.

Eason added ... "I'm all about protecting my family, it is my lifes mission. Some people are worth killing or dying for and my family means that much to me. You can hate me all you want but this isnt the first time the dog bit Ensley aggressively. The only person that can judge weather or not a animal is a danger to MY CHILD is ME."

Jenelle doesn't seem to be on the same page as her husband at all. She just shared a photo of Nugget sitting in the car with her, along with a message suggesting she believes they should have simply trained the dog to stop biting.

She wrote ... "Nugget... I'm crying everyday. I love you so much and I'm so sorry. I'm speechless," and added, "You still had a lot to learn and a lot to grow from your lessons."

Jenelle says she's heartbroken and distraught, and there are reports she fled their home after the incident.

Brazilian model Caroline Bittencourt leaped into action when her dogs fell off her sailboat ... but, sadly, she drowned while trying to make the rescue.

The deadly accident happened Sunday in Sao Paulo ... where Caroline was on a catamaran with her husband, Jorge Sestini, and their 2 dogs. While out at sea, a huge storm -- with reported winds over 60 mph -- rocked the boat and knocked the pooches off the catamaran into the rough water.

Bittencourt jumped in after the dogs and her husband soon followed, but he couldn't find her. It's unclear if the dogs were ever found. Sestini was rescued a few hours later and Bittencourt's body was found late Monday near a beach.

Bittencourt's 17-year-old daughter, Isabelle, confirmed the death on social media, saying, "We are grateful for the support and affectionate messages we have received from Carol's friends and fans. This energy drive fills our hearts with so much love."

"Little Women: LA" star Todd Gibel vows to save his marriage ... but he knows he's gotta take care of himself first, so he's seeking professional help to treat his depression.

Todd tells TMZ ... he noticed signs of depression about 2 years ago but it's significantly gotten worse over the last 6 months to the point it's severely affected his marriage to Christy. Todd says, "Right now Christy and I still live together, but we are just co-existing."

He vows to change that ... beginning with therapy. He started his first session earlier this week. He says Christy once brought up the idea of going to marriage counseling but with ZERO cameras trained on them ... and he hopes she's still up for it once he betters himself.

Todd -- who tied the knot with Christy back in 2014 -- says some signs of his depression include a daily struggle just getting outta bed. He says he also plops himself on the couch and has no motivation. But, then came a pivotal moment that triggered an alarm for help.

Todd tells us it happened last week while sitting on the patio watching his 3 dogs -- Daisy, Elvis and Axel. He says, "One of the dogs [Axel] is lazy and doesn't play with the others and never gets off the couch. When I was on the patio, something changed [with Axel] and he came out to play with the other 2 dogs. And the other dogs were so happy. That's when I realized I needed to change."

The move to seek help comes on the heels of a tumultuous season 7 of 'Little Women.' True fans know how much Todd and Christy have argued -- most notably about her weight and his lack of support -- so now that Todd's getting help is welcomed news for all.

Ray J and Princess Love have been reunited with their beloved Boogotti ... but the man who returned their missing dog has aroused suspicions about his involvement in the ordeal.

We broke the story ... the couple's Maltese went missing early this month from Ray's parents' home while they were dogsitting, and Princess offered a $20,000 reward for his safe return.

But, based on surveillance video, Ray J believed Boo was dognapped by a guy in his early 20s who pulled up in a Dodge Charger after the dog escaped through a gate on the property, grabbed him off the street and bolted.

Flash forward to Thursday ... sources close to Ray and Princess tell us she was contacted by a man who claimed he believed his neighbor had their pooch. She asked him if he could get a picture for proof and he did, and sure enough ... an unknown person was holding Boogotti!!!

Here's where it gets weird -- we're told Princess showed the photo to a friend, who happened to recognize the unknown person ... and believed the man who contacted Princess had close ties to that person.

Our sources say the man told Princess he'd get the dog from the neighbor and return him as long as he got the $20k reward, and she agreed as long as they met somewhere safe. The 2 agreed to meet Friday in front of the local police station.

We're told when Princess arrived the guy was already there and handed over the dog, but instead of handing him $20k ... she confronted him about knowing the person in that photo who was holding Boogotti. The man allegedly got freaked out and took off.

Our sources say Princess saw cops nearby so she informed them of what had just gone down, and they are now investigating it as a possible theft. Boogotti's a pricey pup -- $3,000 -- so stealing him makes it a felony too.

Sad news ... one of the 7 puppies dumped in a trash bin by a woman in Coachella has died.

The Riverside County Animal Services said the puppy died Wednesday after it couldn't recover from last week's traumatic experience. As we reported ... a woman was caught on video throwing a bag filled with the 3-day-old puppies into a dumpster on an incredibly hot day in the desert town.

Fortunately, a Good Samaritan rummaging through the dumpster found them and alerted authorities.

The Animal Services said, "The little one might have been on the bottom of the bag when the woman dumped the puppies into a trash bin." A volunteer taking care of the puppies wrote on Facebook, "He was just so weak and held on for as long as he could."

The volunteer went on to say ... "When I got him he was pale and kind of flat looking, so I think he was the cushion that saved his siblings. As the lady threw them in the bag, i think he was at the bottom and took the hit when all of his siblings landed on him."

The Riverside County Animal Services released a video Thursday showing the 6 remaining puppies that continue to recover.

As you know ... Deborah Sue Culwell, a 54-year old resident of Coachella, is facing 7 felony counts of cruelty to animals. If convicted on all counts, she could get up to 7 years in prison. Her disgusting actions pissed off just about everyone ... including Lisa Vanderpump.

Lisa Vanderpump is absolutely disgusted by the Coachella woman caught dumping puppies in a dumpster ... she says it's disgusting, barbaric and completely irresponsible.

We got Lisa out in Los Angeles Wednesday and our photog asked for her reaction on the woman who was seen tossing a bag of seven 3-day old pups into the garbage ... and the 'Real Housewives of Beverly Hills' star didn't hold back her disgust.

As we've reported ... Deborah Sue Culwell, a 54-year old resident of Coachella, is facing 7 felony counts of cruelty to animals after cops say she was caught on camera throwing the dogs in the trash.

The woman is staring down 7 years in prison if convicted, and Lisa says she deserves jail time. Lisa's kinda got a dog in the fight ... she runs a dog rescue biz, Vanderpump Dogs.

4/23 9:45 AM PT -- Culwell has been charged with 7 felony counts of animal cruelty, plus 7 misdemeanor counts of abandoning the dogs. She's facing 7 years in prison, if convicted.

6:43 PM PT -- A suspect is now in custody. Deborah Sue Culwell, a 54-year-old resident of Coachella, was arrested Monday around 5:30 PM PT.

Authorities are about to nab the woman caught on video throwing a bag of puppies into a dumpster in the city of Coachella ... TMZ has learned.

The Riverside County Animal Services has ID'd the woman and the agency says an arrest is imminent. We're told she'll face 7 felony counts of animal cruelty.

As we reported ... the woman was caught on video last week pulling up in a white Jeep Wrangler. She was seen carrying a bag of what turned out to be seven 3-day-old puppies ... which she then dumped into a trash bin. The puppies damn near died were it not for a Good Samaritan.

As you know ... it can get really hot in Coachella. It was in the mid-90s when the puppies were found. They were barely breathing when they were found by an individual rummaging through the trash bin. The puppies were taken to an Orange County shelter where they recovered.

If convicted on all counts, she faces up to 6 years behind bars.

This is utterly despicable.

A woman in Coachella was caught on video throwing a bag of 3-day-old puppies in a dumpster ... and now cops are on the hunt to find her.

The Riverside County Animal Services released security footage showing a woman pulling up in a white Jeep Wrangler at a local business earlier this week and tossing a bag filled with 7 puppies into the trash bin. About an hour later, someone rummaging through the trash bin discovered the puppies.

As you know, this time of year it's incredibly hot out there ... and it was around the mid-90s when this terrible incident happened. Fortunately, the puppies survived the ordeal and are being cared for at an Orange County rescue shelter.

Lil Dicky just dropped his massive celebrity collab single, "Earth," and it's got just about every celeb under the sun from Justin Bieber to Leonardo DiCaprio.

The song -- a call to action to help save the planet -- features a lengthy animated music video with celebs as plants, animals and even diseases with the chorus, "We love the Earth, It is our planet."

Bieber is the first celeb appearance, playing a baboon and singing the lyrics, "Hi, I'm a baboon, I'm like a man just less advanced and my anus is huge." The song is both silly and has a purpose of uniting people ... urging listeners to value their neighbors and take steps to stop climate change.

The animation is pretty impressive ... Ariana Grande is a zebra, Halsey a lion cub, Wiz Khalifa a skunk, Snoop Dogg a weed plant, Adam Levine a group of vultures, Shawn Mendes a rhino and Ed Sheeran lends his voice to a Koala ... just to name a few.

Some of the more odd characters include Kevin Hart as Kanye West and Lil Yachty HPV cells. DiCaprio plays himself and dubs "Earth" the best song he's ever heard.

Steve-O is hopping aboard the podcast game ... literally, with a traveling studio.

We got Steve-O out Wednesday at LAX and dude couldn't resist showing off his new toy ... a commercial van equipped with mics, cameras and even a mini-fridge as he looks to get his new podcast up and running.

Check out the clip ... Steve-O's hosting game is on point ... for starters, he helps quench our parched photog's thirst. Steve-O then gives our guy a tour -- he says the mobile setup is his way of rising above all the competition, 'cause there are so many podcasts out there.

He should know ... 'cause he's been a guest on a bunch of 'em, including Joe Rogan's and Mike Tyson's.

Seems with some counseling from his dad, Ted, and a little help from his trusted dog, Wendy ... Steve-O plans to separate himself from the pack. He wants to get some activities in the mix too, and as we know ... hangin' with Steve-O is NEVER boring.

NBC4's David Ushery must have been listening to Snoop Dogg on his way into work today ... otherwise, he's got some explaining to do about this slip of the tongue on-air.

The NYC anchor was reporting Tuesday morning about a dog that was rescued 135 miles off the coast of Thailand. What David meant to say was "doggy paddle" ... but what came out of his mouth was a bit more, um ... sexual.

Check out the flub ... his co-anchor Stacey Bell's reaction says it all.

Bell couldn't stifle her laughter for long ... and Ushery knew he was screwed. To his credit, he owned it and made the situation even more hilarious with a perfect joke to wrap it up ... and through their LOL'ing they managed to get to a commercial.

Holy baby animals in trouble, Batman!

That's what Dolores Catania was probably thinking when she found an apparently injured bat on an NYC street and stepped up to save the day ... with an assist from our paparazzo.

We got the 'Real Housewives of New Jersey' star in NYC Monday, shortly after she launched Operation Bat Rescue. Dolores explained her doctor's visit was delayed after she stumbled on the baby bat. She was frantically trying to get someone to take the animal to the nearest bat cave ... AKA some experts to nurse it back to health.

That's where our guy, Jeremy, became her Johnny-on-the-spot. Dolores was in a bind due to a scheduled doctor's appointment (facials ain't gonna do themselves, after all) and begged Jeremy to save the day ... or, at least, the bat.

Dolores, a huge animal lover who always tweets about animal rescues, was outside her doctor's office when she convinced Jeremy to do her bidding. She asked him to take the BAT to a BIRD sanctuary ... which doesn't exactly add up, but beats leaving it for dead.

Watch the clip to see how he got the job done.

BTW, we got this update since the drop-off. Turns out it's a male Eastern red bat.

This little guy was severely dehydrated, but much like your average town drunk ... after getting some fluids, we're told he's doing much better. And, don't worry, Eastern red bats aren't mini-Draculas. We checked ... they eat moths and insects.

Ray J has a new lead on who the culprit is behind his missing pup -- he says a dognapper made off with his beloved Boogotti, and he is willing to do anything to get his pooch back.

As we've reported ... Ray J and Princess Love are offering a $20,000 reward to anyone who finds their missing Maltese, who disappeared earlier this week from the Ray's parents' Calabasas home. Ray says Boo didn't innocently wander off their property either.

He tells us Boogotti escaped through a gate on the property, but then he claims a white dude, in his early 20s, pulled up in a Dodge Charger, grabbed the pup off the street and bolted!!!

Ray J tells us losing Boogotti is like losing a family member ... and he's pleading with the alleged dognapper to return him to his home. He's also willing to pay a ransom, if necessary. His manager, David Weintraub, tells us the entire family is worried sick.

The new Netflix series "Our Planet" is pissing off some viewers distraught about graphic images of walruses falling to their deaths -- but the studio is standing behind the filmmakers and the disturbing scene.

In case you haven't heard, Netflix dropped the multi-episode series Friday. It documents the effects of climate change on wildlife around the globe. One episode focuses on Russian walruses that are dying off due to receding ice levels.

In covering the epidemic, filmmakers recorded several walruses scaling rocky cliffs near the ocean, and some of them fell over the ledge ... leaving them seriously injured or even dead from the impact.

The scene left tons of viewers traumatized.

Some critics accuse the producers of emotional manipulation and twisting facts ... and that includes some zoologists and prominent environmentalists, who claim the walrus scene is out of context.

For instance, Dr. Susan Crockford went public this week saying the walruses filmed for this scene were falling off the cliff to escape polar bears ... not because climate change is reducing their natural icy habitat. Patrick Moore, the co-founder of Greenpeace, backed that up too.

Worth noting the clip doesn't show any polar bears, and you also don't see any of the walruses attempting to flee a predator.

Netflix is standing firm behind what they say is a documented fact -- that walruses are being forced to gather on land because there's less ice available ... which leaves them in unfamiliar, dangerous territory.

Additionally, Netflix tells us the "Our Planet" team worked with a seasoned Russian biologist who's worked on that stretch of coastline -- and with those walruses -- for 35 years.

Trevor Donovan is helping a needy family ease the strain on their struggling German shepherd ... he's donating his doggy wheelchair to the paralyzed pup.

The former "90210" star says he was bombarded with emails after appearing last week on "TMZ Live," with tons of folks inquiring about the wheelchair Trevor used for his ailing German shepherd, Dogbert. He passed away recently after battling degenerative myelopathy.

One family's plea stood out ... and now Trevor's sending the wheelchair to Philadelphia, where it will greatly improve the life of an 8-year-old German shepherd named Thor, who recently lost the use of its hind legs -- just like Trevor's dog.

In case you missed Trevor on 'Live' ... degenerative myelopathy is a progressive disease of the spinal cord – and he needed the wheelchair to get around.

Ray J and Princess Love are VERY serious about finding their missing pooch -- and by that, we mean they're willing to pay $20,000 to anyone who finds it.

PL announced Saturday night that one of the couple's Maltese dogs, Boogotti, had gone missing from Ray's parents' Calabasas home, and she pled with the public to give her a holler if anybody located it. Then on Sunday, she upped the ante ... by offering a $20k reward.

Princess Love says they believe Boogotti might be in the neighboring Woodland Hills area, and that anyone who thinks they might've found him should DM her with a photo of the pup.

Sources close to the couple tell TMZ that Ray J's parents were dog sitting over the weekend when Boogotti escaped through a gate on their property around 3 PM Saturday. We're told RJ and PL are flying back from NYC Sunday to help track it down.

If you're wondering just how important this little canine is to the family, just consider how much money's been spent on it ... including this $20k reward offer. Ray J dropped $30k on a party for the dog in 2015, and the couple's also dropped at least $5k in vet bills for their other dog, Coco.