All posts for the month August, 2012

Pet of the Week: Guest Blogger-Reggie the Deaf Pit Bull

We have chosen Reggie the Deaf Pit Bull as our Pet of the Week because he is a wonderful representation of both the breed and dogs with special needs! Now, he is starting a non-profit, Reggie’s Friends, to raise money to help dogs in need. If you haven’t met Reggie, stop by his page (click on any picture to get there) and see what he’s up to lately. If you already know him, stop by and congratulate him and thank him for all he does to help animals!

Hiya, everypawdy! It is me, Reggie the Deaf Pit Bull. Nobody knows why I am deaf; they think I was probably born that way. I was found wandering, abandoned and super skinny, in Kansas. Just a few days before I was scheduled to be euthanized, a teenage volunteer, my Mara, from a local pit bull rescue / advocacy group, Game Dog Guardian, convinced her mom to let her foster me. This was the turning point in my life!! Mara worked with me in classes, on leash walking, and socialization; she also took a bunch of pictures of me that the momma and dad saw online. They arranged for me to travel over 700 miles to come home to them!

THAT is when the FUN started! I came home to two sissys, a pit bull princess named Abbie and a wiggle stick boxer named Molly. About four months after I got to Texas, a rescued asked us if we would foster a 6-month old pup being returned. We were excited to be able to help and that is when my brother Crumbs came to live with us. We immediately became the bestest of furiends and I convinced the momma to let him stay with us furever! Then we started fostering a lot more – we have had eight other fosters this year and right now we have six puppies that we are fostering!

Family

The momma started my page just to let my rescue keep up with me….little did we know what would happen on my page! The page grew and grew and grew and now we use my page all the time to help share dogs, raise money for rescues, and to share funnies with my furiends! Because I haves so many furiends, the momma decided to start Reggie’s Friends – a group that will fund raise to help rescues when they need basics like food, flea/tick/heart worm prevention, toys, kennels and maybe even help with vet care when we can. We are making a calendar called Bullies and Babes, that has photos of bully breeds with kids. We want to show the whole world how pawsome bully breeds are! We had almost 100 submissions and are going to try and get them ALL in – then we will sell them to raise money for Reggie’s Friends!

The momma tells people that her life literally changed forever when I came home – she went from a pit bull momma to a pit bull advocate and fighter for the breed. She says all the time how one fuzzy face changed her life forever and that she knows it will help change other lives as well!

We are REALLY excited!

Pet of the Week: Guest Blogger-The Mocha

Our Pet of the Week this week is The Mocha. Mocha is an advocate against BSL and animal abuse, supports her friends, is working very hard to find her best friend, Petunia, a furever home, and is striving to rule the world!! If you don’t know Mocha, you need to go to her page and check her out (just click on any of the pictures except the one of me and Petunia. That one will take you to her page)! And, if you already know her, go tell her congratulations!!

Oh my goodness! First and foremost, I would like to thank Beka, DaineDaine and Teddy for nominating me! I am very honored!

First, a little about me. I don’t remember much of the first 6 months of my life. They say I was found in a rural shelter in Northern Michigan and rescued by the awesome people at Canine Companions Rescue Center in Clarkston, Michigan. I was only in a foster home for about a week playing with all the other doggies when my foster mom put me in a crate and we went for a ride to the Detroit Zoo. As you can imagine, that was very exciting. Then, all these people were coming over and saying hi. I didn’t really care too much about the people, but there were so many doggies I wanted to play with! Well, finally, this nice man and his wife came over and I decided that they would make good servants. They brought me to my castle, changed my name to The Mocha, and have helped me to be the awesome and humble doggie you see here today! After getting asked about a thousand times what kind of doggie I am, they had me tested at the vet’s office. The results said that I am more than 3 generations mutt, so they couldn’t find a “major” breed. They did find American Staffordshire Terrier, Rhodesian Ridgeback and Boston Terrier in my “minor” breeds. People always ask if I’m part pit and the humans always say yes. There’s no point in hiding it. It’s also why we learned about BSL and how dangerous it could be.

This is me, soon after I adopted my servants!

Me and the manservant getting ready to take a nap…I love naps!!

As future ruler of the entire earth, I have a few things that I am very passionate about:

1. Every doggie (and I suppose some kitties) should have a forever home. I am especially passionate about doggies who have a really rough start – who never learned what love is, how to be a dog, and who need a little extra help. That’s why I love my friend Petunia so much! She is the poster doggie for dogs who need that little extra help and show how amazingly resilient us doggies are. If you have room in your heart, please think about adopting her. She needs a forever home!

Me and my best friend, Petunia. You can click on this picture to go to her page!

2. Animal abusers, dog fighters, and anyone who does harm to doggies, kitties or any other domesticated animal need to be punished as if their crimes were committed on a human. Us doggies, kitties and domesticated animals are reliant on humans for our well-being. You made us this way. When you abuse that trust we put into you to hurt us for your own pleasure or profit, you show a complete disregard for life. To me, the punishment should be the same as it would be if the crimes had been committed on a child.

Me and the manservant in training class…I have my CGC certificate!!

3. BSL is evil and must be ended. We are all striving for a world where people don’t judge each other on their looks alone, yet we have made it perfectly acceptable to do this to dogs? I think it’s wrong to judge any individual, human or dog, on looks alone. It’s also dangerous, and it hurts families and punishes responsible dog owners with very little to no improvement in dog bite statistics. It sentences dogs to death either directly or indirectly when shelters can’t adopt out certain dogs because of their looks. Anyone who votes for BSL has blood on their hands.

Me and my friend, Jasper

4. Finally, I am very passionate about peanut butter. Oooh…and bacon! And when I rule the earth, these things will be provided in abundance!

Me and my friend, Roxy

Me playing my favorite game…tug of war!!

All my Facebookies friends are very awesome, and I never thought that my little Facebookies page would get so popular. It is pretty humbling, and has been a lot of fun! I loves all of you!

2 Comments

by findingfurever on August 20, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in Giving Animals a Voice, Paws-itive Tails, Pet of the Week

Tagged animal, BSL, dog rescue, dogs

Posted by findingfurever on August 20, 2012

https://findingfurever.wordpress.com/2012/08/20/pet-of-the-week-guest-blogger-the-mocha/

Pet of the Week: Guest blogger-Lucy the Wonderbull

Our Pet of the Week this week is Lucy the Wonderbull! Lucy is an excellent example of how one dog (or person) can make a change in the world! In her blog post she tells us about her beginnings, what she’s doing now and even shares a poem she loves. Please stop by her page (just click on any picture) and either introduce yourself or just tell her hello…either way, make sure you tell her congratulations!!

Hello everypawdy, Lucy the Wonderbull here! First of all, I want to say THANK YOU to whoever nominated me as pet of the week, you rock!

I suppose I’ll start by telling you a little bit about myself. Simply put, I’m a pibble who was rescued from a not so fun situation who is now living the dream life with my mom, and my mission is to help other animals find their happy endings just like I did.

My start was a little rough: I was bought from a pet store by some people who were excited to have a puppy, but not ready to be responsible for a dog. I was stuck in a stinkin kennel all day and all night with nobody to play with, and it wasn’t fun. Eventually the peeps got sick of me and I ended up living by myself on the streets. That part was even worse, I ended up getting hit by the big metal thing mom calls a car, and then another dog tried to eat me as a snack or something, I don’t really remember. All I know is I was quite beat up. Eventually some people from this PAWSOME place called the Pasadena Humane Society found me and picked me up. Everybody there was really nice to me, they gave me a nice bath and somebody called a vet got me mostly feeling better! (Furends, beware of this VET- she has something called a Therma-mominitor that will bite you in the booty FOR REAL!). They also played with me, and gave me plenty of treats. But it just didn’t feel like everybody said a real home would feel like. And then one day, somebody walked up to me, and when we looked at each other, I knew she was my person. She took me home and I discovered something most excellent… It’s called THE BED!

Well since that day, I decided I would do my very best to help other doggies like me find good homes, and fight the evil thing called Breed Specific Legislation. BSL is something that keeps innocent doggies (like me) OUT of good homes just because of the way we look, and I, along with all my wonderful furends and family that i’ve met on my journey, are working hard to put a stop to it! I have been lucky enough to have a sock version of myself (named Lucy the WonderSock) that travels the world, fighting BSL and educating people about misunderstood breeds. She’s already been to many places, and the waiting list to receive her is over a year long! It makes me so happy to see all these wonderbull people who are standing up for those of us who can’t do it ourselves.

This is my favorite poem that sums up exactly how I feel about rescue work. I know it’s a bit long but if you take the time to read it, I know you’ll love it just as much as I do:

“Once I was a lonely dog, Just looking for a home. I had no place to go, No one to call my own. I wandered up and down the streets, in rain, in heat, and snow. I ate whatever I could find, I was always on the go. My skin would itch, my feet were sore, My body ached with pain, And no one stopped to give a pat Or to gently say my name. I never saw a loving glance, I was always on the run. For people thought that hurting me was really lots of fun.

And then one day I heard a voice So gentle, kind and sweet, And arms so soft reached down to me And took me off my feet. “No one again will hurt you.” Was whispered in my ear. “You’ll have a home to call your own where you will know no fear.” “You will be dry, you will be warm, you’ll have enough to eat. And rest assured that when you sleep, your dreams will all be sweet.” I was afraid, I must admit, I’ve lived so long in fear. I can’t remember when I let A human come so near. And as she tended to my wounds And bathed and brushed my fur She told me about the rescue group And what it meant to her.

She said, “We are a circle, A line that never ends. And in the center there is you protected by new friends.” “And all around you are the ones who check the pounds, And those who share their homes after you’ve been found.” “And all the other folks who are searching near and far, To find the perfect home for you, where you can be a star.” She said, “There is a family, that’s waiting patiently, and pretty soon we’ll find them, just you wait and see.” “And then they’ll join our circle, they’ll help to make it grow, so there’ll be room for more like you, who have no place to go.”

I waited very patiently, The days they came and went. Today’s the day I thought, my family will be sent. Then just when I began to think it wasn’t meant to be, there were people standing there, just gazing down at me. I knew them in a heartbeat, I could tell they felt it too. They said, “We have been waiting for a special dog like you.”

Now every night I say a prayer to all the gods that be. “Thank you for the life I live and all you’ve given me. But most of all protect the dogs in the pound and on the street. And send a Rescue person to lift them off their feet.” – Arlene Pace

My hope is that everyone will extend an extra hand of kindness towards those who are less fortunate than us, people and animals. Regardless of breed, financial or living situation, all living creatures deserve to feel loved.

2 Comments

by findingfurever on August 12, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in Giving Animals a Voice, Paws-itive Tails, Pet of the Week

Tagged animal, BSL, dogs, rescue dogs

Posted by findingfurever on August 12, 2012

https://findingfurever.wordpress.com/2012/08/12/pet-of-the-week-guest-blogger-lucy-the-wonderbull/

Pet of the Week: Guest Blogger-Frankie, I’m a lover not a fighter

This weeks Pet of the Week is Frankie (I’m a lover not a fighter) and he is certainly deserving of the title! Frankie has come so far from his days as “evidence” against drug dealers. In his blog post he tells a little about himself and his mom and has a few thank yous, too! If you haven’t met him yet, please stop by his page and visit (just click on any of the pictures). If you do know him, stop by and congratulate him!!

How wonderful of Finding Furever to promote animal rescue oriented Facebook pages after Facebookie made all those crazy changes! I is super honoreded to be nominated by my fwiends Titus and his girl Hailey, and thankful to Finding Furever for this pawsome “Pet of the Week” Program!

So, lots hab been said about da things I’ve done, and the icky place I came from. Apparently, these things are a big deal to a lot of people, (insert, “I’m kind of a big deal,” Anchor Man quote here, hehehe), but I really don’t know about all dat! All I know is I Wuffs peoples, and other animals, and like Lady Bug’s Orange “Ball”, my passion is my booteh!!! So, yes, ever since I was taken from the bad place where 50 of us were starved and chained on 2 feet long logging chains, I has done these things:

-Levels I & II Obedience from Best Paw Forward

-Canine Good Citizen AKC award http://www.akc.org/events/cgc/program.cfm

-Registered as “Frankly Frankie” with the AKC! Thanks to their new Canine Partners Programhttp://www.akc.org/mixedbreeds/ which allows owners to register and compete with mixed breeds

-AKC Rally Novice Title http://www.akc.org/events/rally/getting_started.cfm My best friend Kane and I (we met as students at Best Paw Forwardhttp://bestpawforward.info/) were the first two pit bulls to compete in an AKC competition and earn titles in our area.

-Delta Society Pet Partners therapy license http://www.deltasociety.org/

-Began agility training

But, what I wike bestest is when I change someone’s mind about pitties! I see da mommy getting all teary when we visit nursing homes, and da bootiful grammies and grandpa’s wuffs me! They hold my big head and say things like, “What a cutie. We used to have one of these when we were kids. We called them “bullies” back then. They followed us everywhere, and had the best time together.” So when people say to mom, “You take a pit bull into a nursing home!??!!!” Hers proudly says, “yes”, tells them that story, and tries to hold back the tears.

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I love working!!

I would not be where I am today if it weren’t for the following people in the order in which they are listed:

*The Junior Humane Society (http://jrhumanesociety.com/) The founder/director, and my honorary Grandma and name-sake, Frankie Van Horn Harris relentlessly called the authorities on the bad men who owned the property where all 50 of us were chained. She called and called until the FBI finally had a drug raid on the property and we were seized as “ebidences”.

*The Escambia County Animal Shelter (http://www.myescambia.com/Bureaus/CommunityAffairs/AnimalShelter.html) After the drug raid, we were taken to the county shelter to be held as ebidence in the case against the bad peoples. After we were fed, cared for, and evaluated, the county allowed the local rescues to take us for adoptions. (The county like many across the US is not allowed to adopt out pitties due to what they feel are “liability” issues, and are required to put us down regardless of disposition.) It was the first time the county ever allowed rescues to remove pitties from the shelter and adopt them out.

*The Pensacola News Journal (http://www.pnj.com/) Our local paper who shared our story in a pawsitive light, and ran the story about the county pitties to go to rescues for the first time ever.

*My mommy for ‘dopting me 🙂

Me and Mommy

And, me and Mommy again

*My Auntie Rebecca Watford of Best Paw Forward (http://bestpawforward.info/) Hers is an amazing teacher and an amazing friend to my mommy. Auntie Rebecca encouraged da mommy to train me for competitions and therapy work! Hers is bery patient, and bery smarts! She eben let me demonstrates in hers classes. I wuffs my Auntie Rebecca!

*My Auntie Cheryl Peterson of Emerald Coast Furever Friends (http://www.emeraldcoastfureverfriends.com/) Hers was my evaluator for the Delta Therapy License! Hers had all kinds of nice things to say about me, and tells hers students about me all the time b/c I was hers first pittie to attend hers classes and gets the license! Hers was also bery patient wif me when I was supposed to be sitting for petting, and I kept popping my booteh up for petting instead! hehehe