Two additional dogs have died after stays at the same Virginia PetSmart boarding facility where a pet died a few weeks ago, according to animal investigators.

The Animal Welfare League of Alexandria said two dogs that stayed at the Potomac Yard PetSmart in June died just days apart. The two dogs experienced illnesses and died within a week of being boarded at the “PetsHotel,” the animal rescue organization said.

The pet owners came forward as the PetsHotel was already under investigation for the death of an Aussiedoodle. That complaint was filed on July 1.

All three dogs boarded at the PetsHotel during the same time frame, the animal welfare group said.

Animal investigators said the Aussiedoodle’s body is currently undergoing an autopsy, but the two pet owners that recently came forward both had their dogs cremated.

Since the first owner’s report, the animal services team has been visiting and inspecting the PetsHotel every two days.

PetSmart has been cooperating with the investigation and animal investigators have been interviewing employees about the incidents. The animal investigators have also requested several records from the PetSmart location.

PetSmart told WTOP’s news partner 7News in a statement that the death of the dogs may be due to underlying health conditions unrelated to the dogs’ stay at PetSmart.

Meanwhile, the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria is urging pet owners to do “extensive research” when choosing an animal boarding facility. The group has shared a list of factors to consider, including the caretaker-to-animal ratio and how often kennels are cleaned. 

“It is important to mention that animal boarding facilities, unlike animal shelters, are not subject to annual inspections by a state agency, and instead are only subject to inspection if a complaint is filed,” the organization said.

This is the first complaint the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria said it has investigated at the Potomac Yard PetSmart location.

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Keve Aluma will always be remembered fondly at Virginia Tech. The former Wofford transfer followed head coach Mike Young to Blacksburg in 2019 and helped lead the Hokies to their first and only ACC championship in program history.

Before coming to Blacksburg, Aluma spent two years at Wofford, averaging around five points and five rebounds per game. After sitting out the 2019-20 season due to the NCAA transfer rules at the time, Aluma became an All-ACC presence on the inside for the Hokies over the next two years, averaging 15.5 points and 7.1 rebounds per game.

The 6-foot-9 Aluma went undrafted in the 2022 NBA draft and began his professional basketball career in Japan. In 2023, Aluma played in the Korean Basketball League. However, his sights remain firmly on making it in the NBA.

This summer, Aluma is playing for the Philadelphia 76ers’ summer league squad in Las Vegas. He’s making his case to earn an invitation to training camp this fall and a spot on the regular-season roster.

Rookie first-round pick Jared McCain (Duke) is the headliner for Philadelphia this summer, but Aluma is arguably the Sixers’ top player in the summer league team.

In one game recently, Aluma made eight of his 10 shots from the field, scoring 19 points and pulling down nine rebounds, leading Philly to a win.

Aluma had another big game on Friday night for the 76ers. Here, he is showing off his passing ability, something Hokie fans know all too well.

Another former Hokie, Hunter Cattoor, is also playing this summer for the Cleveland Cavaliers. We’ll continue to monitor Aluma and Cattoor’s progress throughout the summer in their quest to make the NBA.

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — There are nearly 180 documented species of firefly in the United States and Canada, and you can find almost 30 of them lighting up Virginia’s nights.

The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, an international nonprofit with a focus on protecting invertebrates and their habitats, created a “Firefly Atlas” to document all things firefly.

This unique little beetle is reportedly a key member of food webs and can even be a great indicator of environmental health, according to the society.

The term “firefly” covers a few different kinds of insect — the flashing “lightningbug” many of us know, but also day-time dark fireflies who do not produce light and glow-worms.

According to the Xerces Society, the day-time fireflies use pheromones instead of light to communicate and the glow-worms’ females use light to attract males, which usually don’t light up, themselves.

Within the atlas, the Xerces Society lists all 176 species and subspecies of firefly within the U.S. and Canada. Of those 176 species and subspecies, 29 have been documented in Virginia.

Keep scrolling to learn a bit about each one.

The Firefly Atlas lists 22 of Virginia’s 29 species as flashing fireflies. Of the remaining seven, six are noted as day-time dark fireflies and there only one glow-worm type: the Phausis reticulata.

Only 33 of the total 176 species and subspecies of firefly are noted to have flightless female fireflies, with an additional five species marked as “sometimes,” “presumed yes” or “presumed no.”

Of Virginia’s 29 species of firefly, just one of them — the Photinus scintillans — is noted to have flightless female fireflies, though the Pyropyga nigricans is marked as “sometimes” having them. The Pyropyga nigricans are notably the only species in the Firefly Atlas marked as such.

If you’re interested in learning more about fireflies, or if you’d like to report a sighting of your own, you can do so on the Firefly Atlas’ website.