Bella, the blue/red spoiled pit from Lawrenceville, GA

One day, my mom and I decided we wanted a dog. We talked about it for several weeks and finally decided one weekend to go look for a new pup. We went to the SPCA and went straight to their dog room. When we opened the door, all of the dogs went crazy... they were barking and jumping in their crates in hopes of being picked. The first dog we looked at was just too hyper for us so we went back inside looking for another. In one crate, there was a puppy just lying down looking at us. She was the only one out of all the dogs to just lay there while people were in the room. As soon as I saw her I decided that she was the one I wanted.




We were told she had been rescued from a fighting ring in GA and had been held in isolation for a few months with her sister because they had ringworm. When I realized she was a Pit I was a little skeptical but decided to give her a chance. I am SO glad I gave her that chance! She is my baby and I couldn't imagine her not being with me. She loves everyone and everything. I swear she thinks she's a human. At the park, she'd rather walk amongst the people than play with the dogs. When she goes to the vet she just jumps right onto the table. She is just so friendly!





 We love her and the breed so much my boyfriend decided to rescue a Pit from a kill shelter. (This is funny because he told me I was crazy for getting a Pit and that she would bite my face off!) They both have become ambassadors for the breed. They are changing the minds of ignorant people against the breed one day at a time...

Allison 

Ace of Spades

Ace is a now an 8wk old pit pull puppy with a gene all dogs carry that made him have one blue eye and one brown. You would never know this, but a week ago someone threw him out of a vehicle traveling  65+mph down a 4 lane high way. God was watching, because he suffered no harm from his fall. When he was turned in to the the animal shelter he was underweight, infested with worms and scared. His full history is still unknown, but I believe he was abused from the very start of his life. Now that he is with me, all of that is behind him. Ever day is new to him. He is very calm and smart and is striving. Ace (Ace of Spades) is the name I gave him, because it is the luckiest card in the deck. He is learning to be loved and has even learned his name. Even being so young he gets up in the middle of the night when he hears a sound and goes to check on it. He makes sure all is okay before he returns to my side of the bed to fall asleep. Ace has become the protector from day one and is an amazing puppy.

LR

Urgent!

This girl is wonderful.  She is my foster baby.

Sweet Riley came into the pound as a stray on 10/7.  On 10/8, a For the Dogs rescue volunteer took her out of her cage to be walked and it was discovered she had a dislocated hip.  This poor girl was in a lot of pain and had been that way for an unknown amount of time.  For the Dogs Rescue took her immediately to the vet.  The vet attempted to put the hip back into place, but was unsuccessful so she was referred to another vet.  After a long weekend of being medicated for pain Riley got her chance at a better life.  She was evaluated for surgery and scheduled the same day.  She is now in my care and this girl is full of kisses and snuggles in spite of how she feels.   For the Dogs rescue is desperately in need of donations help to cover her surgery.  As with most rescue organizations, the money that comes in is far less than goes out.  If you can help her please go to her chip in site and donate.  Once Riley is all healed she will be available for adoption.

Amber Blackburn

Kitty – The Neighborhood Pup

On Saturday May 30th, 2009 sometime around 10 pm, someone decided that they no longer wanted their dog. So, they dumped her over a 6 foot fence into the backyard of an apartment building at the corner of Davis and California Avenue in Brighton Heights. Luckily for this nameless dog, she couldn’t have landed in a better place.

This apartment building (a beautiful old home with turrets that we refer to as “the castle”) belongs to my friend Jeff. Among the castle’s tenants are my friends Matt and Traci (along with their daughter Annan), who noticed a dog in the backyard on Saturday night and called Jeff. That night was a long one – the dog was howling, so Matt and Jeff threw some food over the fence and tried to give her words of encouragement from a safe distance.

The next day, Jeff came to investigate the dog (a black pit-bull), carrying an air horn in one hand, and a can of pepper spray in the other. In the daylight, it was discovered that neither were needed to fend off this dog. The pit-bull was a female who had just had pups, and was an extremely submissive and docile dog who adored people, especially when they rubbed her belly.

More neighbors came to help – Shayne and Lisa, who lived next door to the castle, came armed with dog food, and volunteered to take the dog to Animal Friends to see if she was chipped. (They did, and she was not – there’s no way of ever finding out who dumped her or why.) By the time my husband Brad and I got caught wind of this dog on Monday, the small team of neighbors had already made her a shelter out of an old futon mattress and tarp, and she had unofficially been dubbed the new neighborhood mascot.

Brad and I decided to bring “Kitty” home with us (she seemed like a classy lady so we named after Ms. Kitty Wells, queen of country music). She has a clean bill of health from the vet and has fully recovered from her spaying surgery thanks to the wonderful folks at Hello Bully. She dines on food and plays with toys donated by Shayne and Lisa, is walked regularly by Jeff (who refers to her as his “step-dog”), and is doted upon by the whole gang of neighbors who found her.

Whenever I walk her, I’m usually stopped by someone and asks something like, “Hey…is that the dog that was abandoned in Jeff’s yard?” (Word travels fast!) When I reply that she is, it’s always followed up with something like, “What a great dog! Wonder why her owner got rid of her?” Good question. I have no idea why Kitty was dumped, but as I said before, she couldn’t have been abandoned in a better place. I have a feeling that the love she has been given by our small gang of neighbors is more than she had ever received in her life. Way to go, Brighton Heights!

-Carrie Richards

"Shake it Cali"

Cali was adopted from North Central pound in the summer of '97. She was about 3 months old and her eyes were those of an old soul. I happened to be at the pound searching for a lost cat—this was long before I was an "official" rescuer. As I walked through the sadness, and cries from animals hungry for love and affection, I saw her eyes piercing through the cage: her long nose bent down, one ear stood straight up and the other flopped over to the side. I stopped and put my hand through the narrow bars and she leaned her head into my hand with all her force. I looked up and said, "I'll take her." When I got her she was so excited that when she wagged her tail her entire body shook. As we drove home together a Tupac song came on the radio, one of the lyrics rang out, "shake it Cali." So I named her Cali!

Cali was with me through some of the hardest years of my life. We traveled together, loved and lost together, incurred many victories and failures, but we always had each other. She protected me when I moved to NYC; she was there when I was afraid of the dark. Not only did she protect me, but she protected other animals from injury, a common trait among German Shepherds. She loved Kitties, too, and would never let a "new-comer rescued dog", chase or annoy them. She was the leader of the pack in our home.

When I became a rescuer, she was the bait that helped me catch stray dogs that otherwise I could have never gotten off the street. She completely understood what she was doing, and I swear she understood English.

If I cried, she cried.....so I would try not to! It hurt her to see me sad.

When I lost her to old age, her body had deteriorated, but her soul is stronger than ever. She has no more pain. I believe in all my heart, that Cali knew I was safe, and it was ok for her soul to travel onto her next predestined journey.

I on the other hand must go forward without her in my life, but I will do it stronger, with more determination than ever.....because I know the beauty of life, death and unconditional love that I learned from that cute little puppy from the pound, so long ago.

Shake it, Cali!!! I love you.

Ashley Paige

Quincy the Saint

So, Tom & I have made the Bross clan even bigger! Saturday morning, Tom & I decided to rescue a beautiful 8-month-old Saint, named Brutus. Brutus had been living in a shelter & passed around from doggie foster homes. His original family had decided that due to financial restraints they could no longer care for him and that Lucky Dog Rescue could find him a better home then what he had. BOY did Lucky Dog Rescue do a great job in finding him a new home!!!!

My father and I drove down to Washington D.C. Saturday morning to pick him up from his transport drop off. Brutus spent 10 hours in a transport van with 40-50 other dogs coming from South Carolina to his FUREVER HOME. Along with other dogs being picked up by their adoptive parents or their foster parents, Brutus jumped out of his crate, came over to me, and started wagging his tail. He had such a smile on his face! He was calm, patient and excited. While all the other dogs were jumping, barking and being crazy, Brutus came over to me, licked my face and put his head in my lap. Brutus knew he was home.

After spending some time with him, we decided that since he was getting a fresh start at life, he needed a fresh new name. We wanted to name him something political because we picked up in Washington D.C. and couldn't decide what fit him best! Washington? Hamilton? Abraham? James? Quincy??? Quincy was a perfect name for him. He was youthful but prominent and he responded right away. He is named after the 6th president, John Quincy Adams, and is the 6th member of our family. Me, Tom, Frankie, Tootsie & Benjamin have graciously accepted Quincy into our life.

Please consider rescuing a dog or cat next time you plan on making your companion animal family bigger. They have been discarded and abandoned by what they considered their family and deserve a second chance at life. Lucky Dog Rescue was able to bring Quincy into our lives, and only 2 days later, Tom & I couldn't picture our lives without him. If you cannot adopt, donate. Help keep these animals housed, vetted and fed.

Here is a quote that all of you may enjoy!

"Shelter dogs aren't broken, they've simply experienced more life than other dogs. If they were human, we would call them wise. They would be the ones with tales to tell and stories to write; the ones dealt a bad hand that responded with courage. Don't pity a shelter dog. Adopt one. And be proud to have their greatness by your side."

Enjoy!

Love Always,
Tom, Kandice, Frankie, Tootsie, Benjamin & Quincy Bross

Truckin'....

A little over two years ago, I decided to get a dog to ride along with me in my semi-truck. I made this  decision,  because of a driver who was robbed and killed for $7.00.  That's right, seven dollars!  Having made a delivery in that same facility a day or so before, really had me thinking.

I got on Petfinder, and found "Jake", in the Frederick Maryland pound.  He was listed as a Pit Bull, but I have no idea what else his mix is.  I paid his "bail", and after a health check,  put him in the truck.  Poor Jake got car sick for a while, but he soon adapted to life on the road.

About a month later, I ran across a couple who had lost their jobs.   They were trying to find a home for a beautiful female American Pit Bull Terrier.  After hearing their story, I "adopted" their dog and renamed her "Dixie".  I didn't want two dogs on the truck, but would not part with either.  They have a home with me for life.

I have worked with both dogs extensively training them to be good ambassadors of the breed.  Jake and Dixie have been from coast to coast, and border to border.  They promote good will to all.  I really enjoy letting kids of all ages pet and make over them.  I laugh at some of the reactions,  and comments I hear after they find out they are Pit Bulls. 

Attached are two pictures.  One is of Jake driving the truck, and the other is of Dixie.

Leon Shade