Oklahoma tornado disaster drags on for months

No Kill Rapid Emergency Response expected a "10 day assistance and outreach trip" when they showed up in Shawnee, Oklahoma to help animals displaced by massive tornados.

"When we arrived we found that there were no on the ground options remaining for pet families and victims of the disaster in this region, with many many animals still lost and wandering. We were asked to stay. We couldn't bear to see them homeless, lost and alone; so we changed plans and promised to stay for as long as we are needed. We are still here. We are still working."

These good people literally hit the deck running with what "started as a tarp stretched between a van and trailer full of collected relief supplies has now grown into a temporary shelter 

with a purchased 12X40 modified cooled ShelterLogic solution, an adult and 1 small puppy outdoor play area(s), an air conditioned nursery building, with supply tents and a large storage shed."











NKRER is begging for help. They desperately need donations, equipment and supplies to continue their selfless rescue effort.

"For well over 60 days we ran on gasoline generators. The cost of fuel went way over $4000 to keep them cool and healthy during that time, with outdoor temperatures that topped 106. We now have electricity, but we are dreading the first bill with deposits and connection fees. 

We want to set up more outdoor play areas and shaded kennels for the dogs. We need to insulate and cool the large shed and create a nice safe exercise and play room for the cats. These things are all needed for their rehabilitation and re-socialization. They have all come so far, and they are all doing well, but recovery is a process. Some of them really need the extra time and work. We need to expand and improve their environment so they can finish healing. 

Right now we are out of funds, and progress is at a standstill. There are still families who need supplies. We are out of dog food for distribution, and haven't been able to do our outreach rounds in days."

NKRER has put together listings of animals displaced by the tornados who need homes:

http://www.adoptapet.com/shelter86076-pets.html
Please consider donating: http://www.youcaring.com/nkrer

or here: https://www.facebook.com/nokillresponse/app_549649995078679
No Kill Rapid Emergency Response

Please visit on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nokillresponse
501(c)(3) FEIN: 84-1611507
All donations are tax deductible. 

Tax receipt letters are emailed/mailed quarterly.

5 cruelty case dogs abandoned in world's music capital

Austin, Texas has come to be known as the music capital of the world, but soon could be eclipsed as the global center for abandoned dogs.

Yesterday was a record day for Reunion Rescue. I get about 4,000 emails per day, many of them dealing with abandoned and stray pit bulls. Without my own tv show or government funding, it's difficult to answer every call, but I try to do my best.

A woman called about a situation in her neighborhood. She was trying to help a neighbor's dog who keeps escaping the yard when she discovered five beautiful dogs so thin they could barely stand up.

With temperatures over 100 each day, these dogs were delegated to the backyard as so many seem to be in Austin. Reunion Rescue is suffering from extremely low adoptions specifically due to so many dog owners who leave their pets in the backyard. Reunion has a policy to only adopt to crate training homes.

When Kimberly followed the neighbor's dog down the street, she came upon this situation. Horrified, she called Austin Animal Center 311 to report the abuse and was told they couldn't address the cruelty complaint until the next day.

"The neighbor at 6211 has not seen the 6213 neighbors in about 2-3 weeks. There have been no cars out front for some time now. The water to the house has been turned off. There is no mail in the mailbox. Trash is everywhere in the sideyards. No one has answered the door in 2 weeks. Living room furniture and a cat can be seen through the window by the front door. That window is open about 6-8 inches."

"There is no foul odor, but the cat desperately wants attention. I did see a couple of flies. However, that would be expected in Austin in September. We slipped the cat a little food through a small tear found in the window screen. Rescue groups for the dogs are being contacted. Two other neighbors and I fed the dogs last night. One of those neighbors helped me feed the dogs and the small cat this morning.

After taking photos and a video, we uploaded to Facebook and the community began to step up. Reunion's full and can't take on any more dogs, but we've already had one person offer to foster. Just think. If four other foster homes could become available, we could begin to raise the necessary funds to vet and care for these dogs and show them off at Strut Your Mutt this year.

Reunion Rescue is walking in Strut Your Mutt Austin, Texas at Mueller Park September 28. Please comment on the Facebook page if you might be interested in helping one of these dogs.

Neighbors are throwing food over the fence and waiting for animal control to come help these dogs. Austin Animal Center is super full right now as the new facility doesn't hold as many dogs as the old Town Lake Shelter held.

Reunion Rescue has a dream to be able to save dogs, but it's a huge struggle. In our town and the rest of the nation, there is more supply than demand. Wouldn't it be nice if Austin were known as kindness to dogs capital of the world, too?

Houston SPCA saves puppy but kills all pit bulls

Sapphire is a small chow mix puppy who was discovered by caring Houstonians. As reported by Pet Rescue Examiner, Saphhire was found "whimpering in the bushes on Kingwood and Garden Oaks Drive near a Starbucks in Houston earlier this week. A harness was strapped so tightly around her tiny body, it had embedded itself into the tender puppy's skin; oozing with a serious infection and covered in maggots."

What 31,935 people who 'like' the Houston SPCA on Facebook don't seem to realize is a sad fact about killing at this facility. Had Sapphire been a pit bull or pit bull mix puppy, she would have been killed as are all pit bulls at Houston SPCA.

The facility is marketing this puppy as an abuse case and asking for help from the community. While efforts to save any animal is applauded, why aren't all animals being cared for by the organization thriving on 10 million dollars per year in donations?

A page questioning the practices of Houston SPCA has been created on Facebook called

This is no name pittie killed at Houston SPCA

No Name Pittie Will Die at Houston SPCA. 

We tried to save this beautiful stray Houston pit bull a couple of years ago whose grave error was to wander up to the wrong house for a drink of water. The man who furnished her with that last drink of water believed everything he saw on Houston SPCA Animal Cops, the long running television show. He believed that all animals were saved at this organization.

This pit bull along with hundreds, thousands of other pit bull dogs are routinely killed at this facility.

Please visit No Name Pittie Will Die at Houston SPCA and share your thoughts. The lawyer for animal abuser Leah Purcell and Spindletop has tried to put a stop to Pit Bulls and Other Animals and American Pit Bull Examiner articles about Houston SPCA and Spindletop abuse. We will continue to report any and all animal cruelty and abuse and the needless killing of America's native dog breed at this high dollar institution.

Sign the petition to fire Patti Mercer and investigate Houston SPCA: Until the killing stops, Houston SPCA is no better than Denver. 

Stop the pit bull killing at Houston SPCA

Remembering Dolcie: from tragedy to happiness

Many years ago, I was playing with a dog named Elsie outside San Francisco Animal Control. Like so many others before her and sadly, after her impound at SFACC, Elsie was scheduled to die.

A bevy of media personnel was in house that day covering the high profile case involving Hera, the dog accused of mauling Diane Whipple one year before. Although evidence had been offered that Hera was not guilty of the mauling and had shown nothing but gentle behavior to all who handled her, she was going down. Somebody had to pay and once the trial was over and Hera's use as 'evidence' with completed, she would be killed.

This particular day, a lone photographer wandered out to the side yard, note the fire hose in the background, the notorious fire hose that would nearly kill another dog a year later, Slappy. 

The reporter lowered his camera and asked me, 'What do you think it is that makes these dogs go bad?'

Elsie and I didn't miss a beat and as she soared up into the free air for a ball, I answered him. 'The media.'

We both laughed and he continued to go about his work and took this shot of Elsie, a wonderful dog, scheduled to die like so many others at SFACC just for being a pit bull.

Elsie had a sad story like so many others. She was spotted by Angela, a longtime MacLaren Park resident who'd walk her own senior dogs in the San Francisco Excelsior neighborhood. Angela noticed Elsie with her companion, a black lab, running and playing in the tall Eucalyptus groves.

On one particular morning, Angela saw city workers removing the body of the black lab who'd been run over by a car. Elsie was sitting by his body. Angela remembers, "There was a police officer on site and he told me to stay back.  I saw her and she looked up with those human eyes of her.  I brought her a bowl of food and water."

"When the woman from the Animal Control came to pick her up and the other dog.  She laid her whole body over the dead animal.  The police officer, the woman from Animal Control and myself could not believe what we had just witnessed."

"You hear about these things all the time, but to actually see it brought tears to your eyes.  Dolce went very willingly with the woman.  She put her in the back of the truck.  I went around to see her and that is when she grabbed my heart and soul.  She literally had tears rolling down her face, and those eyes.  I will never forget those eyes."  

Angela adopted 'Dolcie' short for Dolcenea from Reunion Rescue. "She was really my "big, beautiful girl."   I used to call her "Dolcie do right" - she really could do no wrong.

This is much how life works in rescue. So many do not make it out of the confines of high kill shelters, but ever so often, there is an Angela, a Dolcie and a happy story for a change.

The media usually isn't knocking down our door to report these stories, but there's always my little blog, Pit Bulls and Other Animals which can try and tell one happy story to make up for all the nasty horrible ones.

Dolcie had a happy life. "We went on long walks in McLaren Park and she would slide down the hills head first on the green grass in winter.  She swam like an Olympian -outswimming every dog in McLaren Park."

"She loved it here in Sonoma, after we moved from San Francisco, on October 12, 2005.  She had a big bag yard with green lawn to roll around in and we went on long walks.  That's where we met Panda Bear, our neighbor's dog (part Poodle and English Sheep dog).  She loved him and when I took him in at seven months, she mothered him like her own."

"She was healthy and well until the time she left us on October 7, 2011, and now patiently awaits our arrival at Rainbow Bridge."

Dolcie will be remembered on our memorial walk with Hope and Pam on September 21 at Treasure Island in Best Friends Strut Your Mutt. Hope and Pam's walk is open for anyone who had a Dolcie in their life and would like to walk with us.

http://www.strutyourmutt.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.participant&participantID=16714

Homeless pup to march for other homeless pets

Buster Posey a.k.a. Pokey was a stray dog like many others in the San Francsico bay area just a couple of weeks ago. He was spotted by one of Reunion Rescue's longtime adopters who called the shelter.

Buster wound up catching kennel cough and was going to be euthanized when we got the call. Reunion acted quickly and submitted the necessary paperwork to save Buster at the last minute.

Buster is a super dog, very dog friendly and great with people and kids.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rescue-Pokey/621127397909191

He's now in temporary foster and regaining his strength, but still homeless.

Buster Posey was named by the adopter's four year old who's a solid Giants fan. The SF Giants have
offered to sponsor Buster in Best Friends' Strut Your Mutt on Treasure Island this year
http://www.strutyourmutt.org/index.cfmfuseaction=donorDrive.participant&participantID=17779

Please share Buster's page and consider a small donation to support Reunion Rescue and help us save more homeless bay area dogs.  Better yet, create your own page or virtual strut page where you and your 'mutt' can strut to help others just like Buster Posey.

http://www.strutyourmutt.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.team&teamID=6335

Please help Buster and Reunion Rescue tell the world pit bulls and other animals don't have to die.

                                                                                                 .....Somebody loves you!

HSUS needs rescuers to help with monster dog raid

One of the biggest dog raids in history has netted nearly 400 dogs and the Humane Society is asking for help.

"After assisting in the rescue of nearly 400 dogs from multiple dogfighting operations in Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi, The Humane Society of the United States is now providing around-the-clock care to the animals at its shelter in an undisclosed location."

The criminal activity associated with Spindletop 'refuge' a little over a year ago has proved that these big raids can have a positive outcome. "When these dogs are released by the court and able to move on to the next stage of their lives, The HSUS will need help from other rescue groups and shelters around the country. 

We are seeking groups to join our Dogfighting Rescue Coalition, to help find these deserving dogs new homes. Groups from all across the country can possibly help rehabilitate and rehome these dogs. Working with our partners in this coalition, The HSUS has a uniquely high success rate at adopting dogs rescued from fighting. More info at: http://www.humanesociety.org/drc."

HSUS director stated 'these dogs' lives changed overnight' after "a three-year investigation of these alleged dogfighters led to Friday’s series of interventions. Police in Auburn, Alabama started the investigation, with HSUS experts participating every step of the way, though the case was ultimately led by the FBI and the U.S. Attorney. All told, there were 367 dogs rescued on Friday in what is thought to be the second largest dogfighting raid in U.S. history."

The Humane Society is a powerful entity, but needs community help to really save these dogs. "The dogs are receiving healthy food, clean water, toys and plenty of TLC. The dogs are also being treated for their injuries and the effects of neglect by veterinarians." 

"The dogs are all being evaluated by behavior analysts, who are developing individual rehabilitation plans for each animal. This work is essential to ensure the safe transition of these dogs from their previous lives of misery to their future as well-adjusted pets."

This crisis has placed an opportunity to join rescue forces with HSUS to change the tide. Dogfighting is rampant and seems worse than ever. Each day's emails, Facebook posts and news articles carry some nasty account of animal related cruelty. The HSUS has brought down this mountain of evil, but needs community support to help care for these dogs so the criminals that hurt them and so many others can see justice done. 

The tragic story of Devine

Devine will die just because of economic hardship.

Devine is a gorgeous girl and absolutely the sweetest baby ever. Unfortunately she is back at the shelter because her owners could no longer afford to keep her. Please do not judge them. 

Please share her pictures so she can find a new family. Devine is sweet, gentle, and absolutely loves to snuggle and give lovings! Come by and fall in love with her today!

This picture of Devine is with a family friend, not even a member of her own family.

$50.00 adoption fee covers spay/neuter, vaccinations including rabies vaccine. You also receive a 3 day voucher to any vet in Jackson county for a wellness check and you also get a free name tag from 2 Dogs Dancing!

Jackson County Animal Shelter

4400 Audubon Lane Gautier, MS

Phone Number:228.497.6350

Hours:Mon - Fri,10-4 pm Sat, 10am-2pm