Odds and Ends:Woof and worship: Church welcomes pious pets

WEYMOUTH, Mass. - The Pilgrim Congregational Church is going to the dogs, and that's just fine with the Rev. Rachel Bickford. The church launched what Bickford hopes will be weekly "Woof 'n' Worship" services Sunday when parishioners can bring their pious pooches.

Bickford got the idea from reading the Bible. She came across a Psalm that talks about "letting all living things praise the Lord" while her own dogs were at her feet. She says dogs provide so much joy when people struggle with everyday life.

Sara Diem went to the service with her Bernese mountain dog, Chloe. "She's having a couple little health issues these days, so I just thought she could use the extra help," she said.

Distinctive blanket leads to burglary suspects

CHALMETTE, La. - Police didn't have to look far to find the stolen possessions of a Louisiana family whose house was burglarized while they were away.

Their distinctive blanket, which had a dog pattern, was hanging in their next door neighbors' window, police said. And the rest of their belongings were not far away - police said the alleged burglars used the blanket to hide themselves.

"This is like something out of 'World's Stupidest Criminals,'" St. Bernard Parish Sheriff Jack Stephens said. "But we'll take any help we can get in solving a crime."

Elvis is Alive Museum is apparently set to die

WRIGHT CITY, Mo. - The Elvis is Alive Museum will not live, at least not for now.

Owner Andy Key tried to sell the Missouri museum twice on eBay. He received no bids by the time the auction ended Friday.

He got one bid at his first asking price of $15,000, but it turned out to be from a child playing on a computer, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.

The collection includes photos, books, FBI files, DNA reports and other memorabilia that aim to support the theory that Elvis Presley never died.

From Associated Press reports