Party 4 Pooches

Are you in Philly?


Come join us at Operation Ava's first ever Party for Pooches on May 24th from 7pm to 10pm at Shampoo Nightclub!  We will have a silent auction, a 50/50 raffle and a Doggie Fashion show and even a KISSING BOOTH featuring some of our adoptable animals.  

Admission price includes a 3-hour open bar and finger food, must be 21 to enter.  Proceeds from the event will go to Operation Ava so that we can fulfill our mission of rescuing animals from overburdened shelters locally and nationwide, educating children of all ages on responsible pet ownership and empowering children to make a difference in their communities. 

Operation Ava is one of Philadelphia's largest no-kill shelters and we are happy to say that since the organization began close to two years ago we have saved 1,200 lives.  With your support we look forward to saving thousands more!  Please visit us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter @Operation_Ava or visit our website for more info!

What would you do?

Will anyone speak up if they witness someone trying to adopt a pit bull for fighting?

The show "What would you do?" (watch here on Hulu) sets up a hidden-camera to see if anyone would stop a dog being sold into dog fighting.

While this would never happen (fighting dogs are usually bred for the purpose and can fetch large sums if they comes from prize-winning blood lines) its surprising how little direct confrontation there is.

I'm happy to see one man directly confronting the couple, but I know I would be much more aggressive - I would have called the police immediately.

Remember, dog fighting is illegal in all 50 states and is a felony in many, so it is somewhat surprising that people are often more likely to speak up about rude cashiers on this show than a felony in progress.

This does bring up the very real issue of the importance of background checks for adopters. While many dogs are purchased from bloodlines, amateurs would not hesitate to adopt a pit for $20 from a city shelter to use as a bait dog. Serious screening is of the utmost importance to make sure these dogs don't end up in the wrong homes. As the most abused breed on the planet-their breed is already a huge hurdle to overcome if they want to live happy comfortable lives, so shelter workers need to balance the desire to find fast homes with the need to find GOOD homes.

Reader Mail!

This is my very first issue of Reader Mail- If there is a particular question you have about pit bulls, please drop me a line at passion4pits@gmail.com, I'd be more than happy to answer any and all questions!

This first one comes from Haney. She writes that she has one pit bull and is considering adding another to their family. She says that she has heard that pit bulls-even in the same family-should not be left alone at home together and asked my opinion on this and whether or not it is necessary to crate them while away....

                                                                                     Thanks for writing in, Haney:
We have a male and a female as you may already know- which I believe to be the best combination- that's not to say that it cannot work between to females or two males, but it is much harder.

We read a lot about multi-dog homes before we made any decisions on how/where to keep them while we are away. This is a great resource by the way--Pit Bull Rescue Central and other sites will tell you that they absolutely should not be kept alone together.  


They write, "Never Leave Your Dog Unsupervised With Other Animals
We can't emphasize this enough. If no one is around to keep an eye on them, dogs should be safely crated or in separate rooms, even if they are best friends. Dogs can fight for many reasons—status, food, toys, or rawhides—and if you’re not there to manage them, things could escalate. Your dog does not need “company” when home alone, and the routine of going into a crate every time you leave can be quite comforting for your dog. It also provides you with total piece of mind. There is no chance that your dogs will fight, and they won’t chew up your favorite pair of shoes! "

For these reasons, we do keep our dogs separated during the day. I Winnie and Bruno get along fantastically, and have only had a couple spats in the year they have been together-- the longer dogs have been together, the more they work out their status in the family structure and their relationship, so that the possibility of fights breaking out among two dogs that know eachother very well is very low, but not impossible.

While we feel that Bruno and Winnie have an almost 0% chance of having a bad fight, we do know that they are rough with eachother. When playing (even supervised) they come away with small bloody scratches around the ears and knees. This of course is not because they want to hurt eachother- but because pit bulls play more roughly with each other than other dogs do. However, they are capable of inflicting much more damage on each other than other breeds of dogs. Once you have had your dogs for a long time, you probably will be able to pick up easily on their body language to know whether or not they are feeling playful, social, uncomfortable, iritable etc- but as long as both of your dogs are somewhat social- they will transmit these clues to one another as well, and you shouldn't have any problems. (I suggest reading Inside of a Dog by Alexandra Horowitz to learn more about dog interactions.)

On the issue of crating-I do not think it is the best solution, although we have a crate and bring it with us on trips because Bruno loves it. We crated Bruno for some time because we felt that he liked it there and felt safe (he would go there with the door open when we were home anyway) and because he would have accidents and chew up things in the house if we gave him any more room (such as a whole box of oreos the other day!).


Recently, we came up with a good solution, although your specific solution will depend on how many rooms are in your home and its layout. We keep Winnie in the bedroom with the door closed. She is trustworthy around leather, shoes, and personal items, so she is well-behaved there and doesn't need to be crated. Bruno, on the other hand, is a more difficult problem. We tried different solutions and he was able to escape places we put him and reeked havoc in the rest of the house. Finally, we found very sturdy baby gates at Target for less than $50 a piece and blocked off the Kitchen for him. He seems to like it there and cannot knock the gates over as he had done to previous gates because they are actually screwed into the wall. He also cannot destroy anything because we keep the counters clear, and if he has an accident, at least it is not on the carpet and it is easy to clean up when we get home. I suggest trying this in your kitchen before crating and only use crating as a last resort as it can drive some dogs crazy if left for too long. If it is possible not to keep the dogs on either side of a gate- that is also preferable so that they don't feel the desire to jump the gate to get to each other.

Again, I would recommend always having the dogs together when you are home so that they can develop their relationship- and leaving them together for short periods of time once you are sure they are compatible, but for long periods away- keeping them in separate rooms has been a good solution for us.

I'm so glad to hear that you are considering a second dog! I hope that the process of adding to your family is as wonderful as ours was and that your pitties become best friends!

Best of luck!!

Thanks for reading and for giving your time to animals in need,

Jessica

Rescue Spotlight: Ramopo-Bergan Animal Refuge

When you walk into the adoption floor at Ramopo-Bergen Animal Refuge you hear a strange sound...
The sound of complete silence. I was baffled and asked myself, "Where are all of the dogs?" No large pit bulls were leaping to greet me, no scared dogs were curled up in balls on dirty blankets in the corners, no dogs made any sounds at all!

As I continued walking in, I saw that the dogs were not actually missing- but laying peacefully on beds or in crates, enjoying the lazy afternoon warmth streaming through the windows. (Yes, this shelter has actual windows, not to be found in even the best city shelters.) Noticing me approach, they each calmly came to sniff my hand and wag their tails. Later on, barking only seemed to accompany the daily feeding time.

Ramopo-Bergen Animal Refuge is a no-kill shelter in Oakland, New Jersey that saves and re-homes up to 1,000 dogs a year. Like most privately-run shelters, they take in plenty of pure-bred dogs and puppies because these are in the highest demand and fetch larger sums which keep the shelter running- but they still make space to save some pit bulls from euthanasia shelters and even are dedicated to taking in all the pit bull puppies they can. This is a wonderful policy because it opens more homes to pit bulls that might not have otherwise considered them.

By contrast, because NYC-Animal Care and Control is filled with pit-bulls and geriatric dogs- many people do not even visit. (More adoptable dogs are quickly rescued and saved from inevitably catching kennel cough.) Due to the variety, desireability and healthy condition of the dogs at good shelters like RBARI and Animal Haven, pit bulls at these locations are viewed by more potential adopters and may have a better chance at finding a good home.

The facilities at RBARI were clean, quiet and well-staffed with dozens of volunteers-including many high-school students receiving volunteer credit. The animals at this shelter are extremely lucky and well cared for. Just look at the clean spacious corrals filled with blankets, toys, and large clean bowls of water! If only every shelter was this well-run.








I came upon this adorable little pocket-pittie named Petunia. She came from a kill-shelter when she was a tiny baby and has been waiting 2 months so far for her forever home. She is a little older than 8 weeks old and is good with other dogs and children.

I enjoyed playing with her a bit outside. She has plenty of energy and will need proper socialization, exercise and training, but is so completely adorable- how could anyone pass her up!?

 Don't let her long wait worry you though- every pit bull at RBARI is given the time, resources and dedication necessary to find a proper placement.

Beautiful Nessie has been at RBARI for a year, but gets plenty of walks and stimulation. She is trained well and everyone who walks her maintains her training so that she knows to sit whenever exiting a door.

Nessie is a sweetheart with a big heart and a waggely tail. During my visit with her she loved being out-doors and smelling the flowers and approached strangers with friendliness and a wagging tail. She is not great with other dogs but  focuses her attention well on humans and is extremely trainable.






Another Pittie at RBARI was able to find her first home when she was a puppy but was brought back after a conflict with the other dog of the house.

Because RBARI was unable to find her a home, they have placed her with a pit-specific rescue where she has a better chance of getting the training, exercise and potential adopters she needs.

This is what Tootsie looked like as a pup and now.







RBARI also recently found a home for this special pit-bull named Hooper.
Hooper was rescued the day before his impending-euthanization from a kill-shelter.

He was a stray with an extremely mal-formed paw. Despite this- the people-loving pit found a good home very quickly who brought him to an Orthopedic specialist who is now dedicated to getting Hooper surgery to fix his paw.

RBARI is raising funds to help Hooper- if you would like to help, you can call (201) 337-5180 or e-mail adoptlove@rbari.org.

To see all of the happy, healthy, wonderful dogs (including small breeds and puppies) check out petfinder.

RBAR's website also suggests you visit these great pit bull resources:
Bad-Rap, PBRC, and SPBR.

Rescue Spotlight: Bully Breed Rescue Inc

Rescue Spotlight: Bully Breed Rescue Inc
bullybreedrescueinc.org

Bully Breed Rescue Inc is a small connecticut based rescue group dedicated to rescuing and rehoming pit-bull type dogs. Although they have no actual shelter, they are able to offer more hands-on training and family time with their rescues by finding them foster homes.
When you adopt from BBRI, you know that the dogs have been loved and cared for while they were waiting for you to find them... just check out how happy these guys are in their videos!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Look at all the BEAUTIFUL bullies they have saved this year alone.

Here are the dogs available for adoption now. (Including Kenga and Chance!)

Urgent Part 2 on the news:

16 thousand Fans in less than 1 year, hundreds of dogs saved from euthanasia and finally some publicity!

 

View more videos at: http://www.nbcnewyork.com.

Unfortunately, in these video- Julie Blank (ACC) feels facebook pages and rescue groups encourage people to adopt dangerous animals. Not true. Most of the animals saved were sick - and dogs that have severe ratings- are not taken lightly- most are in fact put to sleep, and if by some chance they are rescued- it is because someone trusted the words of volunteers who had first hand knowledge that the dogs evaluation was wrong.
Also, I haven't heard of any of these rescues back firing-- what I have heard is stories about how the temperament tests were wrong and how lucky the rescuers are to have these animals as part of their families.

To read Urgent's response to Julie Blank- who apparently has nothing nice to say about the thousands of dogs saved through face book, click here.

Update on Cookie & Lady and and theirPups

Remember a couple of weeks ago when I told you all about Lady, the pregnant Pittie that Animal Care and Control slated to be put to sleep? It turns out she would have been put down just nine days before her puppies were born.

Now she has a great foster home, has a new name (Maggie), and has delivered her pups. She was saved by Waggin Train Rescue and gave birth to 9 puppies. (That's a total of 10 lives saved!) If you are interested in adopting when the puppies and Mom are ready, fill out an application here.

Here is a video of Lady being a super "mouths-on" mommy :)


UPDATE:
Guess what!? In that same entry- I told you about Cookie, another pregnant mom to be put to sleep.
Well Cookie was also rescued (By Forgotten Friends of Long Island) and gave birth to her puppies as well. :)

Puppy Fever

I've got Spring Puppy Fever!

Animal Haven in Soho, NYC has been helping out rescues in the South for a long time (our Winnie came from a rescue in Georgia), and has recently taken over 20 dogs and puppies in the last month from a group in Atlanta called the Barking Hound Village Rescue Foundation.

Most of the latest additions have been PUPPIES!!!
If you are interested in adding a sweet bundle of adorableness to your family, consider these Southern Belles and Beaus:

Gabby:                   

Soda:

Buzz:

Lovey Dovey:



Guss:

 

Gunther:

These 6 puppies the "Southern Sprouts" are 2 months old and are Sheperd/Hound Mixes.

Also available are:

Tia



Linus:

and Sammy:

Happy (ALMOST) Spring Everyone!

Thoughts on Rescue:

This weekend I volunteered at the Shelter longer than usual (most of Sunday), answering phones and helping potential adopters and new volunteers- which is a lot of fun, but also sometimes disappointing.

Here are the three types of people that made me sad about Animal Rescue:

1) People who want to get rid of their Pit Bulls:

When people call the shelter to relinquish a dog- if it is a pit bull they are advised to fill out a form on the website, if it is not a pit bull, the request goes right to the intake manager. We already have a lot of pit bulls and pit bull mixes, but to keep people coming to the shelter and adopting dogs, it can't be full of pit bulls, which I understand- it is just so sad that people mostly want to relinquish pit bulls.

2) People who don't care about the pets they have:

While answering the phone, I encountered a man who wanted to give up his cat- I advised him to fill out the form on our website for relinquishment and he responded with "no, I want to get RID of a cat, like I don't want this cat no more." How do people like this get animals in the first place!?  Just talking to him, I wished we could have taken the cat right away so that it didn't end up being abused or dropped off somewhere. :(

3) People who don't care which dog they adopt:

A family with three little boys came in looking for a dog- I asked for some details about what age/breed/type of dog they were interested in. They really were open to anything, but wanted to see the 8 week old puppy in the window right away. I showed Floret to them and the boys were very exited, but they were easily distracted by all types of dogs that came in and out. Almost as soon as I explained that puppies get adopted very quickly, the father filled out the adoption application and sent the picture of Floret to his wife, who promptly called and told him a pit mix was not an option because they are "ferocious" and "outlawed in a number of states." (Does this puppy look like she will ever be ferocious to you?) 

Floret:

I told them that I love pit bulls, but that we always have puppies at the shelter and they could either wait to see Iris who was coming back from the adoption van, or wait a a few days until the right puppy came through.

Iris:

Guess what- he told me to scratch out Floret's name on the adoption app and put in Iris'. They weren't even going to wait an hour or come back to meet Iris before adopting her. Wow. Luckily, both Floret and Iris have 4 or 5 applications so they can go to the very best homes. :)

A few positive thoughts:
While volunteering, I did see a pit bull and a geriatric Spaniel admitted- it is amazing how much traffic Animal Haven gets on weekends and how many animals they can help-what a great model for a Shelter!



Puppy named Wall-e Survives Euthanasia

The shocking thing about this story to me is that sick animals are killed on the spot at this shelter- even babies- they are not even taken inside before they are killed and tossed in a dumpster. No one tried to set up a foster home or even a foster shed!

Luckily this little guy came back from illness and the needle and is a true survivor. Also, his story is bringing attention to the fact that if Murray County had a better shelter, these dogs wouldn't have had to be euthanized and tossed away like trash.

Read more here: http://www.news9.com/Global/story.asp?S=14167428

Bruno's Story

This morning, while searching for my tax documents, I came across Bruno's old release documents from the shelter. On the first page, it gave the location of where he was found. I found the location of googleMaps.

This is where Bruno was found, no collar, not tied up, just laying injured on the sidewalk.
The Medical reports on the following pages described him as "dull, depressed, lethargic, recumbent, falling down." It says he had been hit by a car and sudden breathing was seen. It said that he "made an effort to hold his body up, but for a brief moment, then collapses." Within a day, his appetite picked up and within 2 days he had contracted Kennel Cough and was going to be put to sleep.

Interestingly, it says that on his third day he had a "fantastic appetite" and actually tried to bite the vet and "dog tried to nip at me when I initially tried to pet in cage. Dog tried to bite two other times during exam and growled when tried to get back in cage."

I was shocked by this because Bruno never growls or shows any attempt to nip or bite except when Winnie tries to eat his food (which is rare, usually he is stealing her food.) In fact, he willingly puts himself in his crate when he has misbehaved. The only thing I can assume is that he was so traumatized by this point that he didn't trust anyone or anything and was in serious pain.

It really surprised me that they rated him a "No Concern" because usually they use any excuse to put a dog down, especially if they try to bite the vet or handlers - but I guess they already had enough reason to put him down with his injury and cough.

I am just so glad that he is the dog that we got and that we saved him and gave him a better life. I wish I knew exactly what his life had been like - maybe he was happy? I noticed a small scar on his tummy the other day which means he had some sort of surgery (it looked like Winnie's spay scar) which means that someone cared enough about him to give him medical care, and his owner did apparently call in to claim him- but never showed up. I know that he is afraid of being punished and hides in the closet or the crate when he has an accident, but I can't really tell how he was treated in his last home-- maybe he snuggled in bed with his old family. Maybe he was beaten every time he peed in the house.. I wish I knew. All we can do is put together the little pieces of information we have.

On the road to my Shelter

Since Winnie and Bruno came into our lives I realized my calling in life was to help dogs- to be around them every day. Our two dogs make my life so full of happiness, especially at night when I lift up the covers and Bruno climbs in face-first and falls alseep cuddled up against my legs under the blankets. (As you may have read, we have tried to kick him out of the bed and the bedroom before but he gets so anxious being alone that he actually pees himself!)

I want to be the person that makes those valuable connections between dog and human. The relationships that bring life to dogs that could have been put down and bring companionship and meaning to the people that save them.

Last weekend, while volunteering at Animal Haven, I finally got the opportunity to interact with potential adopters, which I found to be a much more exciting experience than walking the dogs and cleaning their carralls. First, I brought out Violet to a couple that was pretty sure they were going to adopt her- they had seen her the day before and didn't have eyes for anyone else.

Violet

I have so much knowledge about dogs, especially pit mixes, and I knew Violets' history (she came from ACC) so it was really fun to be able to help this couple learn about adopting their very first dog.

The next couple that came in couldn't have been more different, they looked at 7 dogs! From puppies to adults, from Italian Greyhound to giant Mastiff! I enjoyed helping them but I felt a little frustrated that they might not be ready to adopt or know what they wanted. The wife clearly loved Issie, the mom whose puppies have almost all been adopted, and who is a staff favorite at AH.

Issie





I can't wait to open my own shelter and be able to educate people about mixed-breeds and shelter animals and to be able to be that important bridge that connects man and best friend :)

I'm going to be doing some research soon about how to start a shelter, and even though I know it will take me some time to be in the place in my life to start one, it doesn't hurt to do the research now.

Here are some of the helpful guides I have found so far:

From Best Friends

From ASPCA

Find Your Better Half Contest!

The Find Your Better Half Contest urges us dog-bloggers to find our dogs' dopplegangers-- opposite sex versions of our dogs on petfinder available for adoption! This is great because it brings awareness to the adoptable dogs in our areas. (Oh and it is so fun to sort through all these adorable pitties on Petfinder). Here are Winnie and Brunos' "Better Halves" :)

Winnie's, two adorable boys named Nevada and Paris in Brookhaven, NY

and Bruno's, a sweet girl named Honey in Mount Vernon, NY and this girl, Princess in Bridgewater, NJ

A special plea for Missy

UPDATE: Missy is safe- she has been saved by a rescue and will hopefully find a good home in time.

This special dog really touched my heart and after all she's gone through in her life, I would hate to see her live out her few remaining days lonely in her cage, only to die cold and alone at the shelter. What really got to me was that Missy had clearly been so neglected that, as the volunteer decries below, she had simply given up.
If her story touches you too, you can adopt her through a rescue group, and you can find such a rescue group by leaving a comment on her facebook page: (Urgent Part 2: Missy)


Here is Missy's description from Animal Care and Control:

FEMALE, WHITE / BLACK, PIT BULL MIX, 1 yr
STRAY - ONHOLDHERE, HOLD FOR DOH-NHB
Reason STRAY
Intake condition NONE Intake Date 12/20/2010, From NY 10458, DueOut Date 12/30/2010,

Medical Behavior Evaluation MILD

A VOLUNTEER WROTE: 13 month old Missy is a very special dog looking for a very special adopter. This person should be looking for a family member, as Missy is extremely loving and devoted to the people who show her kindness, but they should also realize that the best kind of love is the love that heals--the kind of love that tells a helpless animal "it's okay. You are home now". Missy is barely out of puppyhood, but she has already seen too much suffering. She was found in the Bronx-- filthy, distended nipples, with dried blood on her coat. She sits in her cage with her back to you most days, as if she has already given up on trying to compete with the other dogs. She looks exhausted, even sleeping. When I opened up her cage and offered her the leash, she turned to look up at me, questioning. "Do you mean me?" her eyes asked, and I used every cell in my heart to send her assurance that I did. Out on the walk, she brought tears to my eyes because she was so happy, so content, and walked a pony trot with her mouth wide open in a smile , and when we came back she was so different, so alive and so grateful, licking my fingers and wagging her tail. Since that night, I've thought a lot about how little dogs like Missy need to be happy, and how absurd and unfair it is that an animal this wonderful could be denied such a small patch of security and love in a world so big and abundant. Can it really be that no one wants this shining soul? Missy was originally placed on an observational hold, but can be released to a rescue now---a somewhat noteworthy triumph, because it means someone thought she was worth a second chance. I hope you agree. Please save Missy today! A bath, a warm bed, and some time will yield a fantastic animal who worships the ground you walk on.

See her Video here.

Medical Summary
SCAN NEGATIVE BRIGHT, ALERT, RESPONSIVE, HYDRATED CAME IN WITH POLICE SLIGHT TARTAR VERY DIRTY COAT WITH OLD BLOOD ON THE COAT SEEN CLEANED WITH NOLVASAN NO OBVIOUS BITE WOUNDS SEEN SOME SMALL WOUND ON THE RIGHT MAXILLA SEEN BCS 3/5 DISTENDED MAMMARY GLANDS A LITLLE DULL NOSF
Weight 42.0

News: Pit saves a Spaniel!

An Uplifiting Story of another Heroic Pit-mix!

On Monday in Oregon, a Pit-mix up for adoption pulled the volunteer walking her to a ditch where the volunteer discovered an elderly frozen cocker spaniel on the verge of death. The elderly spaniel had been adopted from that shelter a month before and being blind with no sense of smell, he seemed to have followed the sound of barking dogs.

Out of 5 dogs that were walked past the ditch that morning, onlt the pit-mix named Nala found the spaniel. The shelter says they hope this will help Nala find a home since she has been at the shelter for five months already.

Another set of adopted Pit-Mixes

From Buffalo comes the story of a family that adopted two pit-mixes who have turned out to be best friends. Their first had been starved when they got her and now has filled out and has a whole family and a big brother. The two are attached at the hip and "They like to dressed up and be under blankets and get all snuggly." And, she says, "Everywhere we take them, people say, 'Oh they are so cute!'"

Bruno, also, loves to be snuggled under covers, which we find completely adorable, we can never turn him away from a warm snuggle on the couch.

What? Excuse you... I am not a pit bull!

Sadly, despite their sweetness, Pit mixes have trouble getting adopted everywhere. The result has been resorting to different names for pit mixes looking for homes.

The no-kill-Shelter where I will begin volunteering on Saturday has a lot of trouble adopting out dogs the moment they label them with "Pit-mix" on their website. Our pit-rotteiler-bulldog-chow-terrier mix, Winnie, came from Animal Haven and was labeled a Lab/Shepherd Mix.

We completely understand the need to do this- and I have watched the Animal Haven website so much that I have seen dogs go from "Pit Mix" to "Shepherd Mix" in an attempt to get them homes.

For example:

Notice that not one of these dogs is labeled a pit-mix. I know that Cha Cha, whose puppies have all found homes, has been at the Shelter for months (more than 3?), which is extremely rare for Animal Haven, which usually places dogs within a matter of a 2-3 weeks. The team has tried everything with these three dogs, such as changing their pirctures and giving them cute sweaters, to get them some attention. Luckily, they won't be put down just because of their size and pit-bull characteristics; if a home is not found in a certain length of time, they will go to another rescue group with more expertise. Cha Cha gets lots of attention from volunteers and is given as much stimuation as possible while she waits.

I have found that Animal Haven is more willing to label a dog a "pit-mix" when it is a small puppy because people are much less afraid of a baby. Although I have a feeling that once they grow up, if they are still at the shelter, their breeds might change to something like a "lab mix" or a "boxer mix" perhaps. See below:

Is this ethical? Well it has been done at a lot of shelters and even the DNA testing we have used don't even have a category for Pit-bulls. I guess they figure that they don't want to sell someone a $80 DNA test just to have them find out something they didn't want to know. Insted they tell you that your dog is a "American Staffordshire Terrier," which a lot of groups have tried to encourage lately.

The frustrating thing to me is that while some groups actively avoid the word "pit," Animal Care and Control seems to embrace it. Even when a dog doesn't even look much like a pit bull, it is a "pit mix." 90% of the dogs are pit mixes, and I'm sure they could come up with some creative names that might help save their lives. This is especially important because AC&C allows you to put in a "pure-bred request" so that if a Golden Retriever for example happens to come in, they will let you know. Adding that a dog might be a "Boxer Mix" would bring in all of the boxer-people just to look, which is all these sweet dogs really need to get adopted.

Too bad every dog can't get a DNA test to help show their genetic diversity. Too bad people are so focused on breed and so un-focused on heart.

Bruno and his Foster sister Winnie :)

I think its LOVE, more to come :)

A darling dog survives being hit by a car, abandoned, and almost put to sleep!

I've been following "Urgent Part 2"'s posts on dogs to be put to sleep for about a week now.  I've been pretty concerned about the dogs I've seen and tried my best to spread the word for them, but I never thought of fostering them myself- my boyfriend and I are so busy lately and our priority is taking the best care we can of our dog, Winnie.

But then I saw Bruno on the euth list. I didn't expect this 2 year old Brindle boy to capture my heart the way it did, but I read his description and instantly knew I HAD to rescue him. My whole body reacted and I went into rescue mode! I freaked out and tried to contact my boyfriend for the 'ok' to foster (I knew he wouldn't appreciate me showing up with another dog...). I was about to go down to ACC Manhattan when I finally got through on their phone line. They were surprisingly helpful! I found out that Bruno's owner (who had called for him) had until 8 pm to claim him or else he would be at risk to be put to sleep tomorrow. I was told to wait until noon the following day and ran home to explain my scheme to my boyfriend.

Then I got to experience the wonderful people on this facebook group-they instantly supported me in every way possible-- offering leashes, food, supplies, shelter groups to pull the dog asap (tonight), and even help finding Bruno a home after us. I was overwhelmed with the outpouring of help and support! Everyone got together and mobilized to help this dog. Together a network of people can do so much more to save these lives than any one person could ever do. And because of that, hopefully tomorrow morning I'll be able to get this boy out of the slammer!

Now for what is so special about this boy.

Bruno was found tied up and abandoned. Not just abandoned, but he couldn't walk because he had been recently HIT BY A CAR. What kind of person leaves their dog stranded in that much pain? I was shocked. And not only 4 days after he was brought in, he was re-evaluated and miraculously improved and was not falling down but could actually walk again! Of course, this dog who was never given an official behavioral evaluation, was rated "question" at first because he was in so much pain he went to bite the vet (I am not surprised, I probably would too...) Later, when he was all better, the vet gave him a "no concern"--even better than "mild." So why is he being put to sleep when his owner and potential adopters have far less than a week to find him? All his second medical evaluation said he had was "a bruise." I don't think dogs can legally be put down by ACC for a bruise.

This poor boy has been through so much and I the pleasure of rescuing him and helping him recuperate in a loving place. This is the volunteer memo that made Bruno impossible for me to refuse:

11/10/2010 WEB MEMO
A Volunteer Wrote: There is nothing, not one thing, that isn't completely, crazily lovable about this extraordinary dog. He has hearts drawn on his kennel card, for goodness sake!!!! Everyone, men and women alike, swoon over this 2 year old. "What a beautiful dog!" said one vet tech walking by, who then of course had to stop and pet him. Because he is THAT impossible to resist. Our beloved Bruno, who adores other dogs and is the diplmat of his ward, eliciting kisses from all the other dogs through the bars, was found tied up on the street. Now, he is quickly running out of time at the shelter, which makes us absolutely crazy with sadness. Bruno, who is leashtrained, appears housetrained, loves to snuggle and curl up and give kisses and just hang out with human and canine companions, could be a diplomat in the world, not just his ward. PLEASE, don't let this extraordinary dog down. He is one of those pups who will change the lives of everyone around him with his love, generosity, and noble spirit.

Isnt he gorgeous?? I am so excited to bring him home tomorrow morning to meet his foster sister Winnie :)