Ke$ha and Other Local Heroes Work to Help Animal Victims of Flood

It has been a harrowing past few days for all of us in Nashville..

The city declared a State of Emergency, the Red Cross Shelters are full, Fema officials have arrived, some of us are still without power, and we must ration our water. While, at the same time, many, many residents drag the soggy remains of their possesions out of what was once their homes.

There are as of right now, an untold number of lost pets, the city has reported that they are picking up lots of dead pets, and our city Animal Control is past capacity. The Nashville Humane Society has been working with the Red Cross to help with the pets brought to the Red Cross shelters and they have also been spending night and day attempting to rescue animals displaced in the flood.

This morning I paid a visit to Animal Control. Director Judy Ladebauche told me she was simply amazed at how so many Nashvillians have stepped up and brought food and supplies even when their own living circumstances were difficult.

I admit my first reaction to this disaster was the welfare of my own pets...we had what I am certain was a tornado at 6 a.m. on Sunday, then a lightening strike at 4 that afternoon....and we couldn't leave because of flooding...and we were the lucky ones. This view from the backyard....

....... and another from the front yard gives you an idea of the storm issues we had along with over 13 inches of rain.

The news media has mostly focused on the damage to city landmarks such as this Huffington Post photo of the Gaylord hotel. And to have the historic area of the city including the Grand Ole'Opry and the Symphony Center under water is very sad indeed. But nothng is as sad as losing your home, a relative, or your pet...

... I was especially heartened when pop phenom and local girl Kesha showed up at Animal Control with over a thousand pounds of supplies. It is people like Kesha that make Nashville such a special city, not because of her talent, but because of her heart.

Right now there are dogs with uncertain futures like this yellow Lab mix at Animal Control.

Another local hero, the amazing artist, and fellow blogger, Bernie Berlin went to Animal Control to take some of the animals to her farm

known as 'A Place to Bark'. Watch this vid of Bernie at Animal Control today and see some of those displaced canines.http://www.twitvid.com/Z4IEE

By taking on some of these dogs, Bernie is helping Animal Control have space for the dogs who haven't been captured yet

With heroes like these, the situation in Nashville is not as bad as it could have been. But we still need help.You can donate online to the Nashville Humane Society's effort to save these animals and learn more about their flood rescue efforts by going herehttp://www.nashvillehumane.org/

and Bernies' rescue site has several ways to donate including art auctions,http://www.aplacetobark.com/index.html, Nashville has one of the highest pet ownership percentages per capita in the country, which means we have a lot of pet owners and now we have a lot of pets and owners who are displaced by a natural disaster. Please, if you can, be a hero too....thanks.

Music Soothes the Savage Beast and Rescue Dogs Too

I once rescued a beautiful red and white Basenji youngster named Rhett Butler. One day as I was working in the pet boutique that I managed, a woman walked in with him in her arms and said,"I heard you take in difficult rescue dogs."

I said I often did and she literally shoved Rhett into my arms and fairly flew out of the store. I chased her to her car begging for information on his background.

He had been dropped off at a lake in Kentucky and had been through numerous adoptive homes and returned. She then said she had to go because she had driven two hours to bring him to me...I was perplexed to say the least and a little bit angry since she didn't call to see if I could take him...

So that night the little red Basenji joined my household temporarily. I had no knowledge of his behavoural issues but I did know one thing from my past experience as a dog show trainer/exhibitor.... Basenjis could be tenacious, stubbborn and destructive in a mannner that would rival any terrier or bully breed times ten!

But to my surprise he was a dream to live with. Fully housebroken, respectful of me and my other dogs,calm when the situation called for it but always ready to jump in the front seat of my Jeep ( wearing a seatbelt of course) and go somewhere. He loved my neighbors and their kids and I often took him to work where he enjoyed greeting customers and their pets. He was handsome and debonaire, but I suspected that deep inside lurked a real scoundrel, hence the name, Rhett Butler.

When Rhett first came home with me I gave him rescue remedy and played Beethovens' piano concerto, 'Moonlight Sonata', repeatedly. Many years ago another dog trainer had shared with me that this song seemed to calm the most anxious dogs. I played it on a loop, sometimes for hours and always the dogs, whether my own pets, clients dogs, or rescued dogs were relaxed by this sonata.

One day I was working a Dog Days Festival for the Natures' Recipe company and I took Rhett and my Standard Poodle along for the fun. Both dogs were well behaved and an older couple stopped to admire Rhett. They told me that they were devoted to giving a home to rescued Basenjis and already had five Basenji girls. Their son was president of a Basenji club. I couldn't believe Rhetts' luck! He had the perfect adoptive family!

Two weeks after adopting Rhett they stopped by to show me pictures...the pictures were of a sofa and drapes that had been completely annihilated. The sofa had been stripped down to its' frame and the drapes were shredded within a foot of the ceiling. And this destruction had been done by the beautiful well-mannered Rhett Butler.

I immediately offered to take him back. I had considered running him in ASFA trials and obedience anyway, but they laughed and said they loved him and he was staying. I suggested Moonlight Sonata as audio therapy and they said they would try it. Rhett did calm down and his new home was a permanent one.

Recently my favorite dog trainer, James Watson told me about the Through a Dogs Ear book and CD. I was impressed as this is a much better program than playing Moonlight Sonata over and over and over!

Lisa Spector has recorded songs that are proven to help calm the anxious dog.Rescue shelters and qualified rescues can receive free CD's. I recommend that you check out her site and order her wonderful book if you can. http://throughadogsear.com/ 

And if you can't, at least treat your dog to a little Beethoven.

How Reputable are Private Rescues?

These days it seems every city and small town has more than its' share of private rescues. The not for profit groups sprang up a couple of decades ago when local shelters began to be overwhelmed with abandoned pets. For the most part, they are staffed by devoted selfless animal lovers who often donate their own cash in addition to their time and households. Many of us have been there, done that, many are still doing it. But the past few days a couple of stories reached my ears that reminded me that all is not always what it seems when it comes to private rescue groups.

Last nite, my friends Becky and James, both professional dog trainers told me of a woman who had contacted a local rescue to adopt a dog. She wanted a big dog, one who was friendly but whose size could ward away burglars to help her and her daughter stay safe. Her daughter was expecting a baby.

The rescue told her they had the perfect dog in a pit bull mix. The woman paid two hundred fifty dollars cash in adoption fees to the girl who was fostering the dog and signed a contract saying if she couldn't keep him he would be returned to the rescue group.

She then enrolled him in a training class with Becky and James.

The dog was highly aggressive in a schizo sort of way. One moment he was fine, the next he didn't know who you were and went viscously beserk.

Now James and Becky have done oodles of retraining for local shelters in a effort to make homeless dogs more adoptable so they have seen many aggressive dogs. After two weeks it was ascertained that this dog was never going to be safe around two women and a baby.

The new owner called the rescue group and was told sorry, they can't do anything about it. They did not take the dog back even though they made the new adoptive owner sign a contract stating they wanted the dog back if she couldn't keep it.

Nor did they offer to refund any money, or even trade the dog for another homeless pup.

Exasperated, the adoptive owner euthanized the dog....

Also this week, a friend of mine rescued a tuxedo cat hoping to foster it until a suitable home could be found. Her own cat would not accept him so she contacted several rescue groups who said they were full....she put an ad on Craigslist hoping a family would adopt him when she was contacted by a 501K not for profit rescue group in a nearby small town. They said they would find him a home provided that she take him to a specific vet and pay for all his shots and vetting...which she did.

This was a sweet deal for the vet ( who employs the husband of the head of the rescue group) and a sweet deal for the rescue group as they get to keep all the adoption fee ( one hundred dollars) but not a sweet deal for the cat who was already up on his shots and had to have them twice. Everyone knows the havoc over -vaccinating does to pets....

These two stories reminded me that when you contact local rescues, check them out thoroughly, both of the rescue groups I mentioned advertise on Petfinders.com. I am certain that the majority of private rescue groups are reputable, but not every single one will be.

Don't let anyone rush you into adopting a pet you aren't sure is right for you and your family, only you can answer that question. The saddest dogs I ever rescued were the repeats...be sure that the one you choose will be the one you keep for that pets' lifetime.

P.S. the dog in the pic is Ruby, she is not the pit mix in the story, Ruby is sweet, well mannered and in foster care waiting on a special someone to adopt her.

An Unlikely Place for Free Dog Products

A few years back I was 'between jobs' and took a commission job in a perfume and cosmetics store. My boss, Janel was stunningly beautiful and a part -time fashion model. Her personal clientele in the store were rich and often famous. So you can imagine my shock to learn that she got a lot of pet products for her four rescue dogs by...dumpster diving. She belonged to a group of dumpster divers called the Dumpster Dogs (seriously)and they went around town to the different pet stores and dove into their dumpsters looking for discards ( I should mention they also went to high end clothing stores). One night after closing the store, Janel invited me to participate in a dive at a nearby pet store at the mall. We sat in the parking lot and watched the pet store employees bring out shopping carts full of beds, leashes,collars, brushes, all kinds of stuff! I watched but didn't participate as I have a thing about rats and mice even though Janel said she had never seen one in a store dumpster.
The stores rip the packaging or use sharpies to mark product so that no one will dive for it and bring it back in the store for a cash refund. But if your dog doesn't care that his bed has a sharpie mark on it, it might be something to consider. To tell you the truth, I don't know if dumpster diving is considered legal but I believe that it is... I recently checked a couple of different pet stores, and yes, they still throw away perfectly good stuff...