Offstage

Something Good

A female Iberian lynx in the Sierra de Andújar in Andalusia, Spain

From Fewer Than 100 to 2,663: The Iberian Lynx Sets Another Population Record

In 2002 there were fewer than 100 Iberian lynx left. The 2025 census counted 2,663, almost twice as many as four years…Sep 21, 2026

Burned homes in northern Altadena along Lake Avenue after the Eaton Fire

Skinny Minnie, the Altadena Cat Burned in the Eaton Fire, Made It Home

A Good Samaritan found her in the ashes of an Altadena home. Four months of burn care at Pasadena Humane later, Skinny…Sep 20, 2026

Juvenile Atlantic puffins, known as pufflings, in the Westman Islands of Iceland

Iceland’s Puffling Patrol: The Children Who Rescue Lost Baby Puffins Every Fall

Every late summer on Heimaey in the Westman Islands, kids roam the streets at night with flashlights and cardboard boxes, catching puffin…Sep 19, 2026

A scent detection dog searching with its nose to the ground

Trained Dogs Can Smell a Deadly Dog Cancer in Blood Samples, Penn Vet Study Finds

Five detection dogs at the Penn Vet Working Dog Center learned to pick out the scent of hemangiosarcoma in blood samples, an…Sep 19, 2026

boy sitting on chair reading book

How Therapy Dogs Transform Literacy: An Essential Guide

In 1999 a nurse and therapy-dog volunteer started pairing struggling young readers with a patient dog at the Salt Lake City library.…Sep 18, 2026

giant panda relaxing and eating bamboo in lush habitat

Ultimate Panda Conservation Milestone at the San Diego Zoo

Decades of habitat protection in China moved the giant panda from endangered to vulnerable. In 2024 the San Diego Zoo welcomed Yun…Sep 18, 2026

playful poodle relaxing on grass outdoors

Colby’s Ultimate Heartwarming Reunion After Three Years

A small white dog that vanished from his San Diego family in September 2023 turned up flea-covered in a parking lot this…Sep 18, 2026

A black spotted salamander with bright yellow spots resting on leaf litter

Salamander Crossing Brigades: New Hampshire Volunteers Have Carried More Than 100,000 Amphibians Across Roads by Hand

On the first warm rainy nights of spring, hundreds of volunteers stand in the road with flashlights, picking up spotted salamanders and…Sep 17, 2026

Preston, a yellow Labrador courthouse facility dog, wearing his working vest

Courthouse Dogs: How One Boy’s Service Dog Started a Movement That Helps Children Testify

In 2003 a Seattle prosecutor began bringing her son's service dog to court. Today about 400 trained facility dogs work in 41…Sep 16, 2026

The life-size statue of Dewey Readmore Books, the library cat, at the Spencer Public Library in Iowa

Dewey Readmore Books: The Kitten in the Book Drop Who Became a Small Town’s Library Cat for 19 Years

On a freezing January night in 1988, someone pushed a tiny orange kitten through the book-return slot of the Spencer Public Library.…Sep 14, 2026

A North American beaver swimming at the water surface

California’s Beavers Came Home: The First State Release in Nearly 75 Years Was Led by Tribes

In October 2023 a family of seven beavers was released in Plumas County on Mountain Maidu land, the state's first beaver conservation…Sep 12, 2026

Fiona the hippo nuzzling her mother Bibi underwater at the Cincinnati Zoo

Fiona, the 29-Pound Preemie Hippo Who Beat the Odds, and Her Little Brother Fritz

Born six weeks early and too small to stand, Fiona was kept alive by round-the-clock care and an IV placed by a…Sep 11, 2026