Pets

Kenya Moore insists she DID NOT fake her dog's death for ratings and is disgusted at reports that claim otherwise.

On Sunday's episode of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta," Kenya revealed her pooch of seven years -- a Yorkie named Velvet -- had died after being viciously attacked by a neighbor's dog.

But the day after the episode aired, reports came out claiming the dog was alive and well and living with her friend Brandon DeShazer ... and that Moore had FAKED the death to drive up ratings.

DeShazer -- who posted a series of old photos of Velvet when the show aired that sparked the rumor -- calls the reports "vile" and "irresponsible," telling TMZ, "Anybody who has pets knows the kind of love you develop for them. To report that something like that would be staged … it’s disgusting."

We're told Moore is still heartbroken over Velvet's passing and calls the reports "evil."

Akon just took a perfectly fine suburban home in the San Fernando Valley and gutted it like a fish ... turning it into a SICK new party palace.

Real estate sources tell us Akon dropped just under $2 mil for an elegant 5-BR contemporary home with glass walls and concrete floors ... and then tore it apart.

Can't wait to see the welcome he gets from his new neighbors ... once they realize he also owns tigers.

Check out the pics of Akon's crib ... and tell us ....

Move over grassy knoll ... there's a new conspiracy in town -- animal regulators in Texas REFUSE to necropsy the dead animal some believe to be a Chupacabra.

Mike Cox (yes, really) from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept. tells TMZ ... there's no reason to perform tests on the raccoon-like animal captured in Ratcliff, TX this week because his agency has determined Chupacabras are mythical creatures.

TMZ sadly broke the story ... the couple that captured the animal -- which they named Chupie -- had it put down after they were told it was suffering. The know-it-alls convinced them it was a mange-riddled raccoon.

So, we asked, what is the scientific basis to definitely exclude a Chupacabra as a possibility? Cox fired back, "There hasn't been a new mammal discovered in Texas in centuries."

Oh really Cox? Well, Smithsonian scientists announced last August ... they had discovered a new species of mammal called the Olinguito ... part of the raccoon family.

So there are still undiscovered treasures in the animal kingdom ... even mangy ones.

As for the the final resting place of Chupie ... it's a fireplace mantle. The finders are taking it to a taxidermist.

Someone dropped the 'Chupacabra' ... permanently -- TMZ has learned the weird-looking creature captured in Ratcliff, Texas has been put down.

Jackie Stock, the woman who found the animal which resembles a raccoon with mange tells TMZ ... she was advised to euthanize the animal because it was suffering.

Stock said after video of the creature went wide Thursday ... PETA started sending her and her husband messages, saying they were upset by the fact that the animal was in captivity and not receiving proper treatment.

She was also told if the animal really was a Chupacabra, it would have sucked the blood out of the goats next door before its capture. Stock was advised it was most likely a raccoon with mange that was in pain.

Stock adds the animal was never examined or tested to specifically identify it.

She took it to the shelter and was told "it went to sleep very peacefully," adding, "I had gotten attached. I was calling him Chupie. He will be missed."

Ray J is a lucky man ... he's been reunited with his beloved Maltese puppy after an exhaustive search for the missing pup ... and got a valuable lesson about pet ownership.

Ray J's manager David Weintraub tells TMZ ... Boogotti was found by Ray's girlfriend Princess Love and his godson La'Corey Johnson after a sleepless 10-hour search of the neighborhood.

As TMZ reported, Boogotti disappeared after slipping away from his home in the San Fernando Valley Tuesday night.

Princess and La'Corey went door-to-door passing out flyers and discovered Boogotti Wednesday at the home of woman who found the adorable 3 lb. pup ... but had no way of identifying its owner because the dog was not wearing any tags.

Lesson learned.

Ray J is on the hunt for his missing puppy and he'll stop at NOTHING to get him back.

Ray J’s manager, David Weintraub, tells TMZ ... Ray J's Maltese puppy Boogotti somehow slipped out of his gated community home in the San Fernando Valley last night. Boogotti is less than a year old and weighs about three pounds. CUTE!!!!!

We're told Ray J is seriously broken up about it and spent the night looking for him in the rain. Ray J is working all day today, so he's looking for a bloodhound rescue team to go out and try and find his beloved pup.

Alanis Morissette wants her dog back in the worst way ... and now fears all of the publicity surrounding the alleged dognapping by her former "house manager" has made her dog a target for ransom.

TMZ broke the story ... Alanis claims her former housekeeper took her dog and refused to give it back after she was fired. The housekeeper says Alanis abandoned the pooch because it was crapping all over the house.

Alanis and her hubby Mario Treadway filed a lawsuit trying to get the dog back, but now she says there's a red alert -- the singer is afraid the bad guys out there now know how much Circus means to her and she's afraid they'll take the dog and hold it for a king's ransom.

Alanis' hubby filed new legal docs, in which he says Circus "is not merely a piece of property. He is living and breathing," adding each day he's separated from the dog, "[my] heart suffers more and more."

Treadway says the house manager is ultimately motivated by money and not love. He says because both he and Alanis are well-known singers, the price tag for Circus goes up and the maid thinks she can score $25K easily ... or so he says.

Treadway points to a video posted online by the former housekeeper ... which he says has made Circus more recognizable to potential dognappers.

The dog once shared by Johnny Weir and estranged hubby Victor Voronov now has TWO DADDIES once again -- the divorcing couple has agreed to joint custody of the pooch ... pending a full-blown custody trial ... TMZ has learned.

Weir and Voronov have been warring over the dog since their split. Under the arrangement, Voronov will get the dog for 1 week a month ... and when Weir leaves town for more than 2 days.

As we reported, Johnny took the dog while he was cleaning his stuff out of Victor's house -- and Victor looked on in tears. Johnny later claimed Victor used to beat the dog back when they were together.

And we thought Hollywood divorces couldn't get any more Hollywood.

Mantecore -- the white tiger that mauled Roy Horn ... has died after an illness.

The 380-pound tiger severely injured Horn on a Las Vegas stage back in 2003, leaving him partially paralyzed. Siegfried & Roy claimed then and continues to maintain it was NOT an attack. Instead, they say, Roy was having a mini-stroke and Mantecore saved his life by dragging him offstage.

Roy says of the tiger, "We spent many hours together and he never failed to bring me great joy and wonderment. It was my great honor to be beside him at the end. He is now playing with his siblings in white tiger heaven."

Johnny Weir claims his estranged husband, Victor Weir-Voronov beat his tiny pooch ... this according to new legal docs obtained by TMZ.

Johnny claims Victor is lying when he says Tema, a Japanese chin, was the family dog. Johnny says it was his -- that he got Tema from a pet store, that Tema slept on his side of the bed, that Tema waited by the bathroom door when Johnny took a shower, that Tema followed Johnny all over the house.

Johnny thinks it's ironic that Victor is fighting for the dog, because he claims Victor is volatile and has seen him "strike the dog with force on occasion when we were married."

Johnny also says early this month when he went to pick up some items ... Tema was in a bag on the bed with Victor. Johnny claims Tema was crying and trying to claw his way out of the bag.

And Johnny has a lot more to say. In the docs he scoffs at Victor's claim he's worth $10 Mil, denying he signed a 7-figure deal with NBC. Johnny says, "If I had 10 million dollars I would not be living in a rented apartment in Lyndhurst and driving a leased Lexus SUV.

Johnny alleges a story TMZ broke earlier ... that Victor tried to extort him for $25K in return for not going public about the marriage.

Johnny says Victor ransacked their apartment and has stolen a number of precious items, including a Faberge egg, a Louis Vuitton trunk, jewelry and an Hermes ashtray.

And there's this revelation ... Johnny wears boxers. He says the only clothing that remained in the closet were some PJs, boxers and T-shirts.

An insane scene played out today in Johnny Weir's divorce case ... ending with Johnny taking the family dog out of their apartment ... as his sobbing husband Victor helplessly watched.

TMZ broke the story ... Johnny has filed for divorce and it's turned vicious.

Sources connected to the case tell TMZ ... both Johnny and Victor rushed to court Friday. Victor got a restraining order against Johnny, claiming the Olympian attacked him March 5 by hitting him in the arm and throwing jewelry and a wooden Russian doll at him.

Johnny got an order giving him the right to go into their New Jersey apartment for 30 minutes and collect his belongings with the help of cops, without any interference from Victor.

We're told Johnny showed up to the apartment with 6 cops and Victor's cousin while Victor was still in court. Johnny took a number of his belongings, including 2 TV sets, Hermes scarves, various costumes and most importantly ... Tema, a Japanese Chin which he and Victor got during the marriage.

We're told Victor rushed to the apartment while Johnny was still there and stood by helplessly as cops let Johnny take the dog. Victor was on the phone with his crisis manager, Wendy Feldman ... sobbing uncontrollably.

Jimmy Failla -- the taxi driver who rode around with a snake in his cab and then posted riders' reactions to YouTube -- has lost his cabbie license ... but tells TMZ he's gained a slew of new job offers.

Jimmy tells TMZ the Taxi and Limousine Commission yanked his license for two years, but Jimmy is more than ok with it. He says he's gotten two TV development offers, his stand-up career is taking off and he's even auditioned for a slot on "The Tonight Show."

Failla says he's even been approached by producers to pull the prank in Los Angeles, though he says he'd need a fake taxi.

Jillian Michaels and her crew got an unexpected surprise on her tour bus Sunday ... wild turkey.

Sadly it wasn't the fine bourbon ... it was a dead bird.

A turkey large enough to feed the entire "Sister Wives" group for Thanksgiving smashed into the bus windshield so ferociously ... it shattered the glass and went tumbling inside.

No humans were injured in the accident.

Jillian was travelling from Nashville to West Virginia giving motivational speeches on her "Maximize Your Life" tour.

Screw making it rain on strippers for his 29th birthday ... Kellan Lutz just wanted to let loose in Thailand with his bros.

The "Twilight" star celebrated the festivities on Nikki Beach Phuket in what looked like a cabana ... and a hot model delivered his birthday cake atop a baby elephant.

Then the group of bros all posed for pics wearing shirts that said, "A celebration of life" -- while Kellan's name was lit up on some kinda outdoor fire display.

Chicago Bears linebacker Lance Briggs is a huge animal lover -- and tells TMZ Sports he'd be EXTREMELY PISSED if he found out the abuse allegations about Michael Jackson's chimp Bubbles were true.

As we previously reported, famed monkey specialist Jane Goodall claims Bubbles suffered serious physical abuse on MJ's watch -- though several other people who spent lots of time with the primate say it's total crap.

"If that's true, it's despicable," Briggs said ... "I don't ever want any harm done to animals."

But Lance says he isn't ready to condemn MJ yet -- "Just because [Jane] said he was beaten, doesn't mean it was. If she had proof, it'd be different."

He continues, "I'm a fan of Michael's talent so it doesn't take away from that -- but my outlook of him as a person would change."