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Tails: Thorp – Is This His Last Chapter?

Some readers might not know much about Thorp, so let me briefly explain. In 2008, I was a reporter at an Amish dog auction interviewing the protestors. They advised me that if I wanted to understand why they were protesting, I should walk in the barn and see everything for myself.

Completely unaware of what I would see, I walked in and immediately my heart sank and tears welled up in my eyes. In front of me were hundreds of dogs, completely neglected, so afraid, so broken. Each of them up for auction to the highest bidder – most of whom were puppy millers.

I made my way to every single cage and grew more upset as I looked into the eyes of almost every dog. When I came to #171, something in my heart and soul spoke to me. He was the oldest dog at the auction and was in horrifying shape. Without any explanation, I knew I would be taking him home.

I sat through the entire auction lasting over 3 hours. When #171 came up for bid near the end, no one really was interested and I bought him for $65.

Thorp the day of the auction.

I had absolutely no clue what I had done, but I knew I would tell his story as the protestors had also advised, “If you go in and end up buying a dog – make sure you tell his story.”

In those agonizing auction hours – I had decided without reservation – that I would buy this dog and I would tell his story.

Well, four years ago, Bark Until Heard was published and Thorp’s story was available for everyone to read.

His story tells of his rehabilitation. See the day I brought him home, I quickly realized he was unlike any dog I had ever had or fostered or cared for at the county shelter. He was afraid of everything. He didn’t understand stairs, door ways, grass, toys, and certainly didn’t trust the human hand. He was the most broken dog I had met (at that point in my life)

It took months and lots of training and patience and love to get Thorp to become a “normal” dog and eventually he became a certified therapy dog who worked with emotionally and behaviorally challenged kids.

Thorp at school on the reading blanket.

In short, Thorp was the dog who changed my entire life. He gave me purpose. He ignited my passion to make a difference. March 12, 2008 will be a day that I never forget. The day I took home the sickest, dirtiest, most scared dog I ever met. It is a day that altered my life goals.

So, flash forward 11 plus years and today Thorp is 16. The last year has really aged him. He shakes a lot. He is completely deaf. He has grown uncertain of the world around him. He pees a lot of the time – anywhere he wants. He often seems confused about his surroundings.

However, he also has moments where he sprints across the yard like a puppy. He rolls around the sofa and pushes all the pillows off like he is playing. He still walks well on a leash and appears excited for walks.

But, as I look into his eyes, I see an emptiness. I see a distance. Sometimes, I think see pain.

Physically, as far as the vet is concerned, there is nothing specifically wrong with Thorp. He has cataracts. He has weird moles. But, no real illnesses or injuries.

However, how do I fairly assess his mental state? When he looks at me and seems confused. When he stands up on the sofa and pees. When he appears lost in a corner and just shakes. When I go to help him on the bed and sofa and he just grimaces in pain.

He eats and drinks normally. He barks and then he also barks at what seems like just wind.

How on Earth do I know when the time is right, if he can’t tell me?

I have had other dogs (and cats) I have had to decide to humanely euthanize because of age and illness. While I loved them all so much, Thorp feels much differently. I feel like I owe him something. His presence has made my heart whole, made my soul find purpose. I cannot get this decision wrong.

And so I ask my dearest animal loving friends – what do I look for? And what are things I might not be seeing, but are already right in front of me?

There are days I worry that his dementia will take him back to the neglectful, awful days of the puppy mill. That when he wakes up scared and unsure, it is because he wakes up thinking he is back there.

I don’t want his last days to be any reminder of the hell he endured for nearly five years. I want him to remember being loved by me, by our family and friends and by all the children he worked with.

I want him to die in peace not live in any kind of agony. I worry I am being selfish keeping him alive and then I worry I am selfish for putting him down.

Part of me wishes he had cancer or some awful illness, so the decision would be simpler. Doggy dementia is tough. It is also tough to live with. When your dog doesn’t always recognize where he is, when he shakes laying next to you, when he pees on the floor as he looks right at you.

I admit a part of me has just avoided confronting the decision. We have three other dogs and two cats and it is easy to focus my attention elsewhere. To be honest, as I proofread blog this aloud to myself, tears are streaming down my face. My heart is breaking just considering the thought of any of it.

I know we don’t get to keep dogs forever. But, just when and how do we decide that the time we have with them has come to an end? How do I decide if this is the last chapter?

Thorp “pawtagraphing” Bark Until Heard.

Truths: Despite Our Differences, We Must be United to Save Them

Many of you know that in January I was diagnosed with stage 2 Invasive Breast Cancer. I remember that day well. I felt a bit out of sorts. I was in disbelief. I was scared and overwhelmed.

Yesterday, as I was scrolling FB, I came across an article that caught my attention. I started reading and reading and scanning and reading more. It was long and so much of what it said went against every single thing I stand for in my book, Bark Until Heard. It was as if every single thing I absolutely KNEW TO BE TRUE was under attack.

My heart started beating fast and my stomach turned. I could feel the blood pumping and my heart racing and my entire body trembling.

It was the exact reaction I had when I attended my very first dog auction and saw hundreds of dogs neglected and mistreated. It was like this punch to my gut that left me breathless yet trying to scream. That feeling when you cannot, in any kind of way, believe what is right in front of you because it is so awful. You just can’t fathom that anyone would want to hurt animals or, in the case of yesterday, destroy all the progress we have made improving conditions for breeding dogs and shutting down mills and curbing pet store and on-line sales.

What kind of person would want to set us back decades of passionate work? Work that so many of us fueled with our hearts and souls. Work so many of us would do all over – every single day of our lives.

When I got my cancer diagnosis, I did not feel nearly as sick as I did reading that article. When I had surgery and fought my cancer, I never felt as raw or as enraged or as nauseas as I did yesterday. Cancer couldn’t make me as sick as what I read in an article attacking an organization that has saved thousands of lives and has worked tirelessly to educate people on puppy mills.

Whenever I read about mill dogs, I always look at the 3 sitting near me. Puppy mills aren’t something I imagine as I read words on a page. I saw them with my own eyes. I have held the survivors. I have sat for hours trying to earn their trust. I have cried endless tears re-living the horrors I witnessed.

I take this all very seriously. The day I bought #171 for $65 changed the entire course of my life. And 11 years later, a single article that attempts to erase the truths I have fought for, the pain and angst I have endured, can bring me to my knees. Something even cancer couldn’t do.

Immediately, I reached out to my most trusted advocates. They were calming. They shared their unhappiness about the article, too. Then, they spent time explaining things to me that left me even more disheartened.

Lately, I have been following and contributing to the puppy mill mission from afar. My personal life took me in other directions and I guess I haven’t been in the trenches enough these days.

The article ripped my wounds open, but what some of my friends from across the country explained deepened the pain.

While the pet industry is busy solidifying – building a united front, the animal welfare groups have been busy attacking each other.

Everyone explained to me that between egos and financial jealousy, rescues are not supporting each other.

What a tragedy. Pure tragedy.

Decades of work are at stake – legislation passed and legislation in progress that is FINALLY happening- while rescues worry about egos and who fundraises the best?

I am in disbelief. Saving lives was never meant to be a competition. In fact, we all used to agree that the best thing that could happen to us is that we would “go out of business” because all the animals would have homes.

How in the Hell did we get so lost? At what point did we lose sight of the goal? The horrific irony that we let egos get in the way of saving the most selfless creatures on Earth?

How did we become so complacent that we can’t see all of our work and the millions of innocent lives that are at stake?

Let me be clear: we are under attack! And whether or not our legal work gets trashed might seem inconsequential, but we should at least all agree that the animals STILL matter! Do we all still recall that there are 10,000 puppy mills in the US mistreating animals every, single day?

Can we agree that those lives MUST COME BEFORE any of our differences?

If we don’t get on the same page, we are going to lose. And that means animals suffer, literally SUFFER and DIE. I am not being dramatic. I am being honest and real.

The pet industry is ripping us apart. They are finding ways to spin the truth and make themselves sound like the better group! The very ones who have shoved metal pipes down dogs throats to silence them, the ones who have poured agricultural acid on hundreds of dogs all at once to remove fleas, the ones who have shot dogs one at a time simply to dispose of them. They are promoting themselves like they are the heroes and we are the villains!

Do I really have to remind everyone who they are?

I have been distant, but not dead. The article wants us to think that mill dogs are socially adjusted, healthy animals… Well, just two years ago I fostered a little Tzu completely broken by the milling industry. She hid behind the wash machine for days on end. Her eyes so infected, her tongue hanging from head trauma, she was emotionally gone. Despite our best efforts, last summer she lost her eye after all her years in the mill with no medical treatment. She has come a long way, but her scars are still visible to anyone who meets her. And, she is one of thousands not dozens like the article suggests.

I certainly didn’t wake up today to find a whole new country treating animals as I always dreamed – but that is what the article attempts to say.

I will never forget my second auction when a man named Chuck told the rescuers and the protestors that while our tactics were different, ultimately, we were all there for the same reason. We needed to respect each other if we were ever going to make a difference.

I will forever be proud of all the people in WI who fought TOGETHER to make things better. Yes, our minds had different methods, but our hearts were all in it for the animals.

I know that if you are part of a rescue organization, your heart has to be in the right place. We have got to get back to the core of this fight. Look in the mirror and at the people who stand next to you at conferences and post endless pics of animals in need… no matter their tactics, their goal IS the same.

UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL… those aren’t just patriotic words, they ring true for us. We are better than this.

I always said whenever I had a chance that “WE” would win this fight because we did it out of love and compassion not money and greed. I still believe that – we ALL need to believe that.

Just look around you, I know you have at least one dog near you that would be dead if it wasn’t for your rescue or some other group that saved him. That desire to save them all – it is real and it is what unites us.

We are against an industry that brings in BILLIONS of dollars – we are already fighting an exhausting war with a limited arsenal, but we cannot turn on each other. NOT NOW.

We are so very close that they are exercising every play they have to destroy our momentum.

Please, let’s not focus on what makes each group different, but what makes us all the same. That passion we all feel deep in our souls is our greatest weapon. It demands that we continue to speak the truth and to fight for justice for the animals. There are millions of wagging tails and desperate eyes counting on us.

Cancer was a fight I couldn’t win alone and this fight against a massive pet industry with the power and financial backing of Big AG is a fight each rescue group can’t take on independently. We cannot let them turn us against ourselves.

WE NEED EACH OTHER and the ANIMALS NEED US.

For the love of all creatures, we cannot let them down. UNITE!

Truths: What’s More Important than the Abuse at Fair Oaks Farm? Our Right to See it.

I am sadly grateful to see the animal abuse at Fair Oaks Farm spread like wildfire on social media. As I scroll down FB, the news coverage and horrifying video shot by the non-profit, Animal Recovery Mission, make up 50% of my feed. Many of my “non animal activist” friends are even posting it.

It truly is awful the abuse that took place, especially since Fair Oaks Farm prided itself as a family destination.

But, as this terrible situation makes its way across social media feeds and headlines the 5 O’clock news, there is something even more crucial to point out to consumers. Something few “non-activists” are aware of, yet is vital in this tragedy.

For decades, Big Ag (considered the big producers of agriculture product lobbying on the state and federal level. Think Tyson, Cargill, Smithfield, etc…) has been fighting AGAINST our right to do undercover investigations. These bills are often tagged “Ag Gag” laws – trying to gag us activists from seeing and speaking the truths.

I know so many of you are outraged and disgusted by what you saw done to those innocent cows and you should be, but don’t think this is an isolated incident. This cruel behavior takes place across the United States every single day. Factory farms have been popping up everywhere and with them comes untrained, uncaring employees and greedy owners who were never truly caring farmers – just people who saw dollar signs.

This inhumane treatment doesn’t just happen on dairy farms… think gestation crates for female pigs, battery cages for hens, oh and of course, I will add, breeding operations for dogs… It happens everywhere, which is why it is of the utmost importance that we maintain our right to do undercover investigations and to video the abuse and the neglect that goes on behind closed doors.

And to be clear, these are not fly by night undercover operations just out to screw businesses. The undercover operations take years of planning, training and coordinating. These are professionals who endure the agony of seeing these abuses take place right in front of their compassionate eyes while maintaining a smile and holding back both the tears and the anger they feel inside.

Can you even imagine loving animals so much that you agree to go undercover to witness them being abused? I don’t think I could do it.

Without the ability to go undercover, cruelty and greed would go unchecked. The treatment of factory farmed animals would be left to those raking in the money. We know that doesn’t work. We also know that the USDA doesn’t have the resources to inspect all the farms across the country. Last I knew there were 10,000 puppy mills alone they were to oversee – that doesn’t account for the actual meat or crop industry. There is no way they have efficient oversight for all of these farms and operations.

As consumers of agricultural product it is your right to know where the products you buy and eat and drink come from. And, as a country who tends to see animals as family, it is your right to know how companies are treating them.

Jewel, a large grocery chain in my home state, has already taken Fairlife milk off the shelves based on the video and public outcry. Coca-Cola says they are investigating as well. These are checks and balances. Without the undercover video, we would have nothing and the animals would suffer silently forever.

Please, as consumers and hopefully, animal advocates, pay attention to legislation on the state and federal level. Iowa FINALLY just lost its battle earlier this year to enact an Ag Gag law. The midwest, the heart of agriculture, will continue to fight to silence us. As voters, these laws come down to YOU – who you vote for matters and I am not just talking Presidential candidate. I mean state and federal legislators – the ones who make laws. KNOW YOUR CANDIDATES and what they stand for.

What we all watched on that video will haunt us for days and months to come, but not having the ability to shoot that video and share it would haunt us for generations. Please protect our right to conduct undercover investigations and be the voice for the voiceless.

“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” – Mahatma Gandhi

Tails: What Shelter Animals Want You to Know

Yesterday was National Rescue Dog Day and the day before, we put down our rescued cat. We had 7 animals. Now, we have four dogs and just two cats. Some might have thought that when you have that many, losing one isn’t that big of a deal, but it is. My heart broke and continues to break each time I go to reach for Sampson and he isn’t there.

As tears were streaming down my face and I was posting about Sampson’s rescue, I started to think about how easy it would have been for the county shelter to euthanize Sampson at the time (13 years ago). His eye was a real problem and the shelter vet didn’t give a crap about him. There were literally hundreds of other cats going in and out of the shelter – he was just a number – just another cage to clean and mouth to feed. And in an open access, municipal shelter, cage space matters more than most else.

Sampson lived because I took him out of there. He became an important member of a family – loved for over 13 years – simply because he had the chance.

I am certain that many other cats were euthanized then due to no fault of their own. Despite my best efforts, I couldn’t take them all home. I am also certain that all of those cats could have become loved family members. I am certain that instead of being killed in a county shelter and stuffed in a freezer, years later they would have been euthanized in a private vet office, being held by “their person who had tears coming down her face” and surrounded by love.

At the garage sale last weekend, so many people commented on our 4 dogs. They would say, “Oh my gosh they are all just adorable,” or “Oh my gosh they are so sweet,” or “Oh my gosh they are such good dogs.”

Immediately, one of us would say, “They are all rescued.”

I say those words every chance I get because they matter. Often people think dogs like ours are bought. They think you can’t rescue little, fluffy dogs. More often, people are in awe at how much our dogs love us. Their eyes widen when they see me walk out of a room with all 4 dogs following me everywhere I go.

They can’t believe the bond we share or the love we have for one another.

I always say, “When you save a dog’s life, he knows.”

Overall, I think more people are catching on to rescue and adoption. But, with a million animals still being killed for space each year, we need even more people to adopt.

Each of our animals came to us as rescues and each came with issues. Some of them took a lot of time and patience, but so would a purebred puppy.

On Sunday, at the ER vet, I cried for Sampson. He was a BIG tiger cat with the biggest heart. For over 13 years he was a part of our family. He was lucky to have the bad eye in the shelter and for me to whisk him away to a real vet. I was lucky to get him.

Any single animal sitting in a shelter or rescue right now could be your Sampson. They are all so deserving. They each just want a chance outside of the shelter environment to show you who they are.

Sure, as a whole, the shelter seems full of rejects and misfits, but when you take each one out and get to know her, you will see so much more. Their individual hearts and souls… the way they snuggle up to you, the way they find sticks, the way they wag their tail when you call them, the way they kiss you when you have a bad day, the way they watch football on the couch every Sunday, they way they love french fries but not carrots.

We have 6 animals now and each one of them could have easily died without ever having a chance to be a pet. No one who loved animals would have ever even known they existed. Each one of them has made someone smile, made someone feel better, made me feel loved.

There are MILLIONS of dogs and cats waiting for their chance to love, to cuddle, to play, to live right now in shelters and rescues across America.

I don’t take the easy ones and yet, everyone who comes to my house thinks I have the cutest, kindest animals in the world. All it takes is rescuing the one who speaks to your heart and unconditional love.

Take a chance today and find your rescue. And then share him or her with the world to show that adoption is the truest form of love.

Tails: Looking from My Side of “The Post”

A few weeks ago, The Washington Post printed a story about dog auctions.  It wasn’t just any story about dog auctions, it was one that insinuated that it is the animal rescuers buying at auctions who are fueling the puppy mill industry.

It has taken me a few weeks to gather my thoughts and tame my emotions.  As many know, puppy mill dogs are nearest and dearest to my heart and saving them from a life of living hell is what I am most passionate about.  To hear that people like me are to blame, well, it takes some time to not just react and say something I might regret.

The thing about dog auctions and puppy mills is that I think it is easy to taint people’s minds into believing they aren’t as bad as they really are.  For one, few people will ever actually step foot into a dog auction or puppy mill and see one for themselves.  Two, far more people want to believe that dogs aren’t suffering in crappy, small cages, with no human attention, bred continuously just so Petland (or insert any pet store) can mass market cute puppies.  The entire idea of puppy mills goes against what most dog loving people want to believe, so if someone is willing to paint the picture prettier, people are sure to buy it.

However, as someone who has been, who has bought and who has lived with numerous mill survivors, I refuse to let anyone try to paint a pretty picture.  Dog auctions are cruel and nasty, exploiting man’s best friend in the absolute most barbaric way.  Anyone, I mean anyone, with a beating heart and a love for animals will leave a dog auction in one of two ways: with a dog they bought or an understanding of why someone would buy a dog.  To be honest, anyone who leaves there differently, isn’t someone I want to know.

Maybe not everyone would go to an auction, buy a dog and then make it her life long mission to educate people and free dogs from puppy mill hell, but I did.  What I saw and the things I continue to see a decade later, fuel my passion to set the record straight.  Maybe the reporter doesn’t see dogs the way I do or maybe she has never been surrounded by crates of dogs just bought at auction, or fostered an emotionally broken mill dog, or woke up in tears knowing how many more there were to save.  Maybe she just doesn’t have the compassion I have for dogs.  I search my soul to understand why anyone would try to blame rescues for saving lives or paint puppy mills as a pretty picture.

They matter, don’t they? (All bought at a dog auction)

I have been surrounded by crates of dogs just bought at auctions.  I remember bringing them to the shelter and watching as first time auction goers held these frightened, shaved, often sick dogs in their arms and cried a thousand tears.  No one able to speak because the idea that such cruelty was legal left everyone speechless.

I have fostered mill dogs so scared of every little thing they shut down completely.  Dogs afraid of stairs, grass, people, toys, even a water bowl.

I have looked into the eyes of over a thousand dogs only to see no soul able to stare back at me.  I have felt the pain and the helplessness.  I have been there and I believe I understand what this is really all about.

This dog was sold at 10 years old with completely rotted teeth, skin infections AND PREGNANT to unknowing buyers.

(Pictures courtesy of The TRUTH About Puppy Mill Auction Rescue)

Let me start right away with the most obvious fact.  The live pet trade is a 2.1 BILLION dollar business annually.  I have reached out to numerous contacts who buy at auctions to get a feel for what they believe is actually spent by rescue in a single year at all dog auctions.  In agreement, the number is around 1 million dollars.

Now, of course, a million dollars associated with rescue might seem shocking.  Rescues always say they have no money, but this number includes rescues all over the country who specifically raise dollars to buy dogs at auction.  Unlike what The Post article stated, the majority of rescues who buy at auctions are very forthcoming with donors about where the money is going.  In fact, most set up fundraising pages specifically for auctions and the medical costs associated with mill dog rescue.

One million dollars is less than .05% of the entire pet trade business!  How on Earth can anyone make a statement that a group who contributes less than .05% to an industry is solely responsible for its success?  It is simple math.  Rescues are not the ones perpetuating the horrifying business of commercial breeding.  They just aren’t.

Instead, they ARE saving thousands of innocent, helpless dogs from a lifetime of hell.  There is a new FB page dedicated to educating the public on the very dogs bought at auctions by rescues.  It is called The TRUTH about Puppy Mill Auction Rescue.  On this page, they post pictures and medical histories of the dogs they have pulled from auction floors.  Interestingly, one will find that the dogs they pull are not puppies but dogs so sick and neglected that they could barely stand, barely function.  Females who were listed as pregnant who still had stitches from the last caesarean.

Stitches still in and sold PREGNANT (pictures courtesy of The TRUTH About Puppy Mill Auction Rescue)

The Post reported that breeders who attend these auctions have lovely kennels.  Yet, with further investigation, these are actual pics of the breeder shown in that article.  A much different reality than previously reported. Over 230 dogs in one place.

There was talk of how much is too much to spend at an auction saving lives.  Sadly, this has become a great divide in the animal welfare world.  As someone who has spent $25 – $450 on a single dog at auction, I ask what price is right?  Some say not more than one would spend on lunch.  I say, “Lunch where?  A deli, a sit-down cafe, or on the 16th floor in Trump Tower?”  Who decided what is lunch money?  Who decides what number is okay?

Is it okay to buy a 10 year old Chihuahua for $40 but not okay to buy a 6 year old Shih Tzu for $800 whose eyes are crusted shut and still has rusted metal wire in her infected belly from a half-ass caesarean?  Would someone in rescue actually believe it makes sense to leave her to suffer?

Some say they disapprove of one rescue spending $25,000 at an auction.  So, if 25 rescues attend and each spend $1000 that would be acceptable?  Others find disapproval in breed specific rescues attending saying it is unfair to only buy their breed.  Hmmm?  Do they feel that way when Great Dane rescue pulls a Dane from a county shelter?

Lastly, there are those who say, “I know I would buy if I went to a dog auction, so I don’t go.” And, they go on to criticize those who do for spending so much money.  Well, here is a newsflash, just because you choose not to go, does not mean there aren’t thousands of dogs still suffering and in need of rescue.  Just because you choose to look the other way, put your head in the sand, does not mean that this hellacious industry doesn’t exist.

From day one, I have said I would never be a hypocrite.  I have bought dogs at auctions for all kinds of prices, all kinds of reasons, and all kinds of breeds.  From prices of $25 to over $400. For reasons such as the oldest there to the one who looks sickest.  From breeds like Chinese Crested Powder Puff, Goldendoodle, Dachshund, Puggle, Shih Tzu, to mixes, etc… It is easy to sit outside the auction house and make random statements about who is acceptable to rescue and for how much. Try walking in…

I beg ALL rescues to walk in just once and look into the cages and see the hundreds of eyes looking back at them and then tell me who doesn’t deserve to be saved that day.

I don’t think they can and that is why I continue to support those brave enough to walk into an auction and face the lifeless dogs and do whatever it is they can to save them.  To me, all dogs matter and these dogs deserve a second chance just as much as dogs in the meat trade, the strays in 3rd world countries and the homeless dogs on death row in our own city shelters.  And, when one realizes that less than .05% of the money in the pet trade is coming in due to rescue, can’t we deem their lives, “priceless” and move on?

Much of this dog’s jaw was rotted off at the auction. Yet, AKC checked her “good.” (Pictures courtesy of The TRUTH About Puppy Mill Auction Rescue)

That is what we need to do: move on from an article that places blame on the very groups doing everything in their power to make things better, from physically saving mill dogs to standing before their legislators begging for change.  The number one thing The Post article failed terribly at was actually describing mass breeding operations.

Rescues wouldn’t spend money or time buying mill dogs if they didn’t feel it was the dogs’ only hope.  Rescues go to auctions because they know damn well where these dogs are coming from and it is NOT the pretty kennels The Post described or pictured.

Most of the breeders who attend the auctions are large scale, USDA licensed, puppy factories.  They aren’t hobby breeders.  These places have hundreds of dogs on-site and few people to care for them  Thanks to Bailing Out Benji we can take a look at the sheer number of puppy mills in just the state of Missouri, where the auctions take place.  There are over 800 mills and some of the HSUS 100 worst!

Rescues don’t go to auction to contribute to the industry.  They go to save dogs from suffering.

For maps of puppy mills in other states, visit this page at Bailing Out Benji.

To get an in-depth look into the world of USDA licensed kennels, I strongly urge you to buy a copy of The Doggie in the Window, by Rory Kress and sit down and read her description of the numerous USDA approved kennels across America.  Kress is the ultimate journalist using all of her impeccable skills to demonstrate the failed USDA’s attempts to regulate the commercial breeding industry.  She shows throughout her amazing book how these facilities are stricken with dead puppies, sick dogs, rats, feces covered floors yet pass inspection again and again.  Dogs with no food or potable water, no medical care, left to suffer because the USDA is NOT doing their job.

The Post never mentioned that “USDA licensed” means jack shit in the USA.

If you love dogs, and I think you do because you read my blog, please make sure you do your research before buying into the crap The Post is selling.  I have been in the trenches, I have held the head of a sick mill dog, I have carried numerous crates full of mill dogs just rescued from auction, I KNOW, I REALLY KNOW the truth.

I wrote Bark Until Heard detailing the heartbreaking things I witnessed at auction, just so people would know the truth.  I am passionate about only this.   Do not be fooled by the agenda of others.  The truth is the truth and it is that millions of dogs are being held prisoners of greed in the hands of people who only care about money – not animals.  

The success of puppy mills has NOTHING to do with the rescuers and everything to do with the bad breeders, the worthless USDA inspections and the lackadaisical legislators failing us everyday to make the changes needed.

Please, before you judge the passionate work of rescuers literally SAVING the lives of innocent dogs, go to an auction, foster a mill survivor, or, at the very least, talk one-on-one with someone whose heart breaks a million times when they painfully recall the mill dog they couldn’t save – those are the people who KNOW the real truth, the gut-wrenching, heartbreaking reality of mass-breeding and dog auctions.

My soul knows the truth, my heart feels the truth and my eyes have seen the truth behind mass breeding and dog auctions and because of that I have zero regrets about buying a dog’s freedom.

What price would you pay to save them?

 

Tails: Buying at Dog Auctions – It Isn’t Just About Numbers

Last month was the 10-year anniversary of my first puppy mill auction.  In many ways it seems a lifetime ago, but often, when I have vivid flashbacks of the cruelty I witnessed, the emotional pain and anger are still so raw that I feel like the auctions were just yesterday.

As I type this blog my four dogs sit at my feet.  Three of which were bought at dog auctions. Two of which I bought and RESCUED personally.

Penelope, I bought her at my 3rd dog auction. She was listed as, “A good mama – will make you money.” She enjoys freedom today.

There is a lot of controversy over buying dogs at puppy mill auctions “these days.”  The truth is there was controversy a decade ago when I did it.  The protestors were outside and the “rescues” were inside and, often, when we met words were exchanged.  Until, one day, a great man, Chuck Wegner, led the auction day with a quick speech.  In it, he gently suggested something to the effect of, “While we might have different approaches, we are all really on the same side.  Let’s not forget that.”

Or, I remember a passionate protestor coming into the auction barn to warm up.  It was far below zero out and they protested the entire auction.  She walked over by me and said, “My head is out there, but my heart is in here.”

Yes, to those who disapprove of buying dogs at auction, it is definitely putting money in the pockets of those whom we despise the most.  From a purely economic equation, it is wrong.  You are all absolutely right.

But, and there is always a but, no one gets into animal welfare for the economics of it.  Ever.

Honestly, I never intended to buy at my first auction.  I was there as a reporter.  I just went in to understand the story I was writing.  The next thing I knew I was wiping the tears rolling down my face, getting a bidding a number and buying the oldest, saddest dog there for $65.

It is easy to say no one should buy these dogs at auctions based on the black and white principle of supply and demand, but until you go to one, until you look into the eyes of these broken souls, you simply cannot understand the grey area.  The emotional piece.  The very core of any animal welfare advocate’s heart.

The day I bought my first dog the President of the No WI Puppy Mills group, the group who was there protesting the auction, told me, “While we do not encourage anyone to buy a dog, if you do, please share their story.  Tell everyone about them.”

I have done that for 10 years with all 3 of my auction dogs.  Not only did I publish a book describing every detail, but on a daily basis my dogs are billboards for the reality of puppy mills.  I might have spent a few hundred dollars buying them, but, in 10 years, they have educated thousands of people.  From an economic standpoint, I would say that was pretty cheap PR.

Thorp the day of the auction.

I am not trying to underscore the concept of “not buying” at auctions.  I truly do understand it.  I think about it all of the time.  I try hard to tell myself buying is wrong, but then I remember how I felt looking at all of the hundreds of helpless dogs, desperate for a new life.  Yes, my head understands completely, but my heart not so much.

I do not believe that the buying of dogs at auctions is what is keeping puppy mills alive in this country.  Between the pet stores, back yard breeders, and on-line sales of puppies, mass breeding is alive and well and will be until legislation is passed across all 50 states to change it.

I have legislated for change and it does work.  We don’t have auctions in WI anymore.  I whole-heartedly believe that legislation is the key.  I also know that many of the rescues buying at auctions ARE legislating at the same time.  They understand its importance.

No, buying at auctions is not ideal.  It certainly is not “saving them all.”  However, just like the infamous “Starfish Story,” it does make a difference to the one who was saved.

I have three dogs who never deserved to spend their lives as prisoners of greed.  They came to me sick and scared.  They were helpless and I helped them.  I will never regret that.  And, while buying dogs for hundreds of thousands of dollars at auctions makes me cringe, I would be a hypocrite if I didn’t say, “I understand the emotional component.”

There are numerous things about rescue that do not follow black and white economics or statistical analysis.  Let me point out a few:

  • While over a million dogs are needlessly killed each year, we still have rescues denying people dogs and/or making them fill out lengthy adoption forms and jump thru hoops to adopt them.
  • There are places in the South BREEDING dogs so that the north can bring them up for adoption.
  • There are overcrowded shelters charging expensive re-claim fees for families to get their dogs back.  Since many families can’t afford the fees, their dog just gets added to the overcrowded shelter instead of simply being sent home.
  • There are overcrowded areas of the South charging rescues ridiculous fees to PULL the dogs from their care and save them!  (When we pulled dogs from Chicago AC to take across state lines, we paid $15 for a rabies shot and health certificate)
  • We bring in thousands of dogs, each year, from foreign countries while 1 million of our own dogs are killed.  Or, in the North we kill dogs everyday in crowded shelters as van loads of dogs are brought up from the South.

All I am pointing out is that there are many things in the rescue world that do not speak to black and white numbers.  Animal advocates are motivated by their heart.  They continue to try and save regardless of the “numbers.”

I am not saying it all makes sense.  Not much of it does.  But, I can understand the heart behind it.

I have not been to an auction in 9 years.  But, I  have often donated money to rescues specifically to buy dogs at auctions.  My third dog was bought at an auction by a rescue and I foster failed her.

Alice at the vet right after auction.

In an ideal world, all dog auctions would be illegal.  Until then, rescues will continue to buy dogs at auction in an effort to save them and give them a 2nd chance.  No, it is NOT helping the cause, but it is helping the ones who are freed. And each of the ones freed are a true story to share with the world.  They are all opportunities to educate others.  Far more people understand and know about puppy mills and pet stores today than they did 10 years ago because so many of us are sharing these dogs’ stories.

As I come to the end of my blog, perhaps I should acknowledge what could be perceived as naivety.  I write this from my perspective.  That perspective is one that believes rescuers buy dogs at auctions only to provide them with a 2nd chance at a loving home.  The rescues I work with and the dogs I have personally bought and re-homed were all given proper medical treatment, they were all spayed and neutered and, for the most part, no matter the adoption fee, almost all of them cost me or the rescues far more to rehabilitate and/or medically treat than we ever got back.  We never did this as “brokers,” we did this as rescuers.  

My comment to those who just “broker” the auction dogs, buying and selling them without medical care or being spayed and neutered, only counting on profit and calling it “rescue” is, “Shame on you.  You are not a rescue. You are not an animal advocate. You are greedy and evil and should be held in the lowest form like any other puppy miller.”

Alice living the life she should have always had.

 

 

 

 

 

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Truths: To Everyone Working in Airline Travel, “We have had enough!”

There once was a time when it was exciting to fly commercially.  Ages ago, people dressed in their finest clothes, dolled up their faces and boarded planes looking to be treated like royalty.  Hot meals, free cocktails, smiling stewardesses.  It was a magical time up in the air.

As economies changed, flying became more accessible to everyone.  No longer was air travel available only to the rich.  Now, most people could save up enough money to fly once a year and enjoy the luxury of such speedy travel.  And it was still a pleasurable experience.  While hot meals turned to bags of peanuts, cocktails were often included in the ticket price and overall, passengers were still customers and treated as such.

Then, 9/11 happened.  One of THE most tragic events in our country’s history.  Immediately, airline travel changed.  At one time loved ones could be seen kissing at the airline gate, now they had to say their goodbyes long before the security lines.  “No ticket, no entry.”  TSA (Transportation Security Administration) quickly became our future.  Instead of loading vodka and gin in our carry-ons, we were told to empty out water bottles, take off our shoes and damn nearly all our clothes just to get through security.

We were understanding.  We were patient.  No one wanted to see 9/11 happen again and if it meant giving up a few comforts for the safety of flying, so be it.

At around the same time, airlines started to really tighten their belts (as we were forced to take ours off).  Seats became smaller – less leg room, we started to have to pay for any damn bag we brought on the plane, no more peanuts – hell, even a glass of tap water would cost you.  The tray tables are half as big. I can’t even stand the water bottle I buy (after security) on it anymore. Hard to believe a hot meal was ever served.

Soon, it seemed, as consumers, we had less and less rights.  Flights were overbooked and for some reason, the airlines are never held accountable.  We pay the outrageous ticket fees and yet, there we are sitting on the cold floor of a busy airport waiting for the next plane that has room.

The TSA is always yelling… “Shoes off, take out your laptops, your iPhones, your change, your keys, your whole fricking life.”  Here’s a thought for TSA… stop yelling.  I know you have to say the same thing all day, but when you say it to me, it is the first time I have heard it from you.  Don’t yell at me because Jane didn’t follow your directions earlier.

And, here’s a brilliant idea… maybe, just maybe, if every airport in America followed the same security rules, more Americans would know what the hell to do.  Instead of putting shoes in containers at one airport or just placing them on the security belt at another, or instead of taking out phones in Chicago, but not in Phoenix… If you could just make the rules consistent, perhaps, we would all know what to do each and every time.  But, no matter what, please stop yelling at us.

Oh and while I am at it… is it really necessary to rip the teddy bear out of the crying 3 year old’s hand and demand that her favorite toy in the whole world be placed on the belt of the X-ray machine instead of letting her carry it through the human x-ray machine?  I mean if there really is a bomb in the teddy bear, shouldn’t the human x-ray machine find it, too?

Here’s the thing about airline travel in 2018, unlike our justice system, “Innocent until proven guilty,” I feel like we are all terrorists until the plane we are on lands safely.  That is so wrong.

Flight attendants have been given some kind of extraordinary power to the point where normal law abiding citizens lose all sense of self and courage and no longer feel the ability to do the right thing. How many phone videos have we all watched where it is obvious the flight attendant’s actions were wrong, misguided, sometimes even illegal and yet no one stepped in?  People live in fear that any actions that go against the direction of the flight attendants will place them in Federal prison.

I remember having to use the bathroom (REALLY BAD) and the flight attendant being so rude and obnoxious about me getting up to use the bathroom during some light turbulence.  C’mon, really?  I am a middle aged adult, surely I can make a decision about using the bathroom without feeling like a fricking criminal?

We have endured nothing but abuse these last few decades with the airlines.  Crammed in seats few humans fit in, treated like terrorists, bumped off flights, rarely told the truth about any delayed flight situation and yet, for the most part, we suck it up.  We see it as the price to pay for the convenience of flying.

I have been sucking it up for a long time and was willing to keep at it until just this week a United Airlines flight attendant forced a dog into an overhead bin and KILLED him.

Airlines have been mistreating dogs for a long time, specifically, the ones who had to travel under the plane.  Many have died, many have been shipped to the wrong state, country, continent, but when a dog whose owner paid for him to fly under her seat is forced into a compartment with NO air and NO chance of survival – I have to stand up and ask all of us, “How much more are you willing to sacrifice?”

When in the Hell are airlines going to be held accountable for the horrendous way they treat paying customers?

We don’t fly for free.  They are not a non-profit organization.  Killing a 10 month old puppy has got to be our limit, right?  Or, are we going to wait until they shove a crying baby in an overhead bin?

This has got to stop.  It is time the airlines re-think who the paying clients are.  I can tolerate a lot – we have all tolerated a lot, but knowingly killing a puppy?  Knowingly placing it in an area without oxygen?  A trained flight attendant forced a puppy into an overhead bin and no other flight attendant on that flight did anything about it?  Even after hearing it cry for help? These are trained individuals who know damn well there was no oxygen for that puppy to breathe.

And all of the passengers on the plane who were aware of the situation, who heard the puppy barking and whining for TWO hours, felt too afraid to act because they believed if they disobeyed the flight attendant they would go to prison?

Let me remind my fellow Americans, “We are not prisoners.  We live in a free country.  We have rights – even on a plane.  Above all, we have the right (I also believe the DUTY) to SAVE a dog being murdered by a flight attendant.”

There needs to be justice not just for the helpless puppy, not just for the family, but really, for all of us.  Enough is enough.

 

 

Truths: Why I am Content Blaming All the Amish for Puppy Mills

The other night as we drove through an area of Wisconsin known for Amish communities, I posted what I thought was an innocent comment about the Amish.  I simply said that it seemed to me that whomever the God was for the Amish s/he would prefer they use electricity, buy an iPhone, and drive a car than beat a horse to death or breed dogs in filth and neglect.

While many people liked and even shared my post, there were some who felt it was wrong of me to blame all of the Amish for those behaviors.  I get it.  While I have yet to meet an Amish or Mennonite who doesn’t breed dogs, I bet there are a few out there.

This subject of Amish puppy mills is one so dear to my heart and soul that even I admit I might not be able to use rational judgement.  I wrote an entire book based on the cruelty and neglect of Amish puppy mills, so I think it is safe to say that I am in pretty deep when it comes to the subject matter.

None the less, since it was a few of my dear friends who posted the charges against me, I had no choice but to dig deeper into my own feelings to figure out why it is I am so content blaming ALL Amish for puppy mills.

One basic truth is that not all puppy mills are run by Amish.  There are hundreds across the country run by “English” (people like me).  Those mills can be just as horrendous.

So, I started REALLY thinking about this… and here is my belief.  As English people, we have no problem protesting, legislating, even criminalizing heinous, cruel behavior towards animals.  I KNOW there are millions of English people taking a stand against puppy mills (against people just like us as far as race and religion, etc…) every single day.  I see it in the pet store protests, in the political lobbying, and in social media posts.  I know that while there are people in our culture propagating puppy mills, there are also people ACTIVELY fighting it.  It is hard to accuse an entire community of being cruel, when half of the community is speaking out against the cruelty.

I have yet to see or hear of a single Amish person actively fighting against puppy mills in their communities.  I have never heard of anyone in the Amish community taking a stand for the better treatment of animals.  Yes, there might be Amish families who do treat their farm animals with compassion or have a family dog who sleeps in the house on his own bed, but until  they are willing to publicly take a stand against puppy mills or animal cruelty, they are only permitting the awful acts to continue.

I blame ALL Amish for puppy mills because no one within their community is trying to change anything.  I firmly believe that until members of their own community come out against the cruelty, they are all to blame.

Turning a blind eye to cruelty should be a crime.  The Amish people need to take responsibility for the actions of everyone in their community.  If they want to truly be the “kinder, gentler people,” they should be willing stand up and fight for the beliefs and actions that truly represent a kind community.  Keeping dogs in small wire cages, covered in feces and breeding them until they die is not what I consider a kind act.

It IS wrong to blame an entire community or race or religion based on the heinous acts of a few, however, when no one in that community appears to be against the heinous act, it isn’t a false accusation of blame, it is actually the truth.

 

 

Tails: The Best Gotcha Day Ever…

Today marks Alice’s one year anniversary of her “Gotcha Day” with us.  We have 4 dogs at the moment and while each one of them holds a dear place in my heart, there is just something about Alice.

She could not have been dropped into our laps at a worse time.  I remember getting the message from Jessica, “Is there anyway you could foster this Shih Tzu we are bringing up from auction?”  I knew my husband would freak out.  We were leaving in a few weeks for a trip to Florida, but when Jess sent me her photo: this horrible, sad Tzu with her tongue hanging out and looking just like our Penelope – I couldn’t possibly say no.

The picture Jess sent me from the auction.

So, I said what so many of us say, “Yes, but only for a few weeks.”

I promised Bill that the dog would be gone by the time we left for our trip.

I remember picking her up at Jennifer’s house.  She had just come from her spay surgery.  She was sitting in a laundry basket half awake.  All I saw was her tongue.  I had never experienced a “tongue dog” before.  It really takes some getting used to.

My daughter, Abby, was with me on the pick-up and she was taken back by the dog and the tongue and her pathetic little state of being.  My heart was smiling because I was doing what I love most in the world – taking in a helpless dog who just needed love and a second chance.

Alice’s ride to our house.

Alice came from a puppy mill.  She spent 5 horrifying years there and everything about her showed the scars of the horror.

Alice at the rescue vet. #89 was her puppy mill auction number.

We took her home and found her a safe place in the family room.  Crated her for the night and never heard a peep.

However, the next day proved more challenging.  Alice was afraid of absolutely everything.  I had experienced this before with Thorp, but Alice was even more untrusting.  She would hide behind the wash machine for hours on end.  She would disappear on the lower bookshelves.  She trembled constantly.  But, of course, each of these moments only melted by heart more.

Alice hiding in the bookshelves

The days with Alice were hard and sad.  She was such a blatant reminder of how much I hate puppy mills.  Not to mention, I was constantly trying to wet her little tongue because it looked so dry.

Time went fast and before I knew it, we had to leave for Florida.  There was no way I could part with Alice and make her go to a new home just as we she was starting to get a little settled in ours.  So, I asked my pet sitter if she could handle one more – of course, she could.

We went to Florida and while we were there I had a terrible freak accident on the beach!  I stepped on very large, very sharp shell and needed emergency surgery.  Our trip was extended an entire week.  Alice would have to wait longer for me to get back.

When I did get back, I wasn’t able to put any weight on my foot and could only walk a little with the help of crutches.  Poor Alice was terrified of the crutches and no one else in my family had the endless patience to deal with her.  It was messy in our house for a few weeks.  (some of you can imagine…) But, because of the tension of the situation, I think I healed quicker.  I tried harder to get around because I knew Alice needed me.

A few weeks later, I was off crutches and we were headed back down to Florida for a long Thanksgiving holiday.  See we already had bought a home there and it was our plan all along to move down the fall of 2017.    We had been cleaning out our IL house and “thinning our herd” not even once considering adding to it.  But, here we were towing 4 dogs to Florida.

Alice was still frightened of everything, but she traveled so well.  She absolutely loved the beach and the sunshine and slowly, our crazy life was becoming hers, too.

Alice on Sanibel beach

I remember adoption applications coming in for her.  I would read them, my heart would race, my stomach would get that pit inside and I would think of a million reasons why that person or family was not a good fit.  In truth, Alice was not nearly ready.  I am always worried about mill dogs getting loose and running away – so scared they don’t come back and so impossible to find.  Alice was definitely one of those dogs.

Christmas came and my birthday right after New Year’s and Alice was still living with us.  Neither my husband or my daughter offered to give her as a gift to me like our Jack had been and no one ever came out and said,”Adopt her,” but I did.   I sent in the adoption paperwork and fee and she was finally mine.

I don’t think any of us can imagine life without her.  We certainly had NO intention of adding to our family, but she dropped in practically unannounced and she just fit.

Family, friends, and total strangers all love Alice.  Her tongue precedes her and people are fascinated by her.  I took her on a girls trip to Florida and we had the best service in the airport.  Even the TSA went out of their way to accommodate us!!  Stores always allow her in and nearly every one of them offers her water!

Penelope and Thorp have always been my reminders of puppy mills.  They have always fueled my desire to see puppy mills go away.  Alice does that, too, but because of her tongue, she instantly initiates the conversation with strangers.  She is the poster child for all that is wrong with mass breeding.  People who never understood the horrors of puppy mills take one look at her and understand my fight.

My vet believes that Alice’s tongue is a result of blunt trauma to her skull that left her face crooked and partially paralyzed.  I hate thinking of her being treated so cruelly.  Alice also suffers from severe dry eye and because it went untreated for 5 years, her eyesight in her left eye will probably be a total loss.  She is on drops multiple times a day, but we aren’t sure they will save both eyes.

Alice is willful, playful, quirky, and so appreciative of love.  She filled a hole in my heart I didn’t know I had.

I am so grateful that she was plopped into our lives when we least expected it.  I have fostered numerous dogs and have been able to let them go, but Alice was the one who had to stay.

Christmas pic on Sanibel.

If you ever have even the smallest glimmer of wanting to foster – DO IT!  You don’t just change a dog’s life, you change your own.

Happy Gotcha Day, Alice!!  We love you more than you could ever know.

Those eyes… that tongue.

Why I Hate Michael Vick with All of My Heart

For 8 years I have been having the same debate with people.  Ever since Vick went to jail for financing a heinous dogfighting ring called Bad Newz Kennels, I have been explaining why I hope he rots in hell.

There are people who think he deserved to be re-hired as a glorious QB in the NFL.  People who praise his comebacks.  Very recently, people who voted him to be in the Virginia Tech Hall of Fame.  And just a few weeks ago, he was hired as an intern coach in Kansas City.  Each of these events spark fuel on both sides.  The group who feels he has redeemed himself and deserves a second chance and the group who thinks he should live his life in prison.

I am and will always be the latter.

Maybe, instead of focusing on Vick to explain why I feel the way I do, it is time to explain myself.

However, before I do that, let me be clear about what Michael Vick was responsible for… At Bad Newz Kennels, they found the dead bodies of hundred of dogs.  They know that the dogs were electrocuted, drowned, raped, hung, tortured, starved etc… Vick was a part of all of this for a few years.  It was never a one-time incident.  It was not an accident.  These were conscious decisions made by him daily for years.

Now me… For all of my life that I can remember my heart has seen animals as little souls.  I have always saved them.  From baby birds to lost dogs, their lives were as important to me as my own.

Let me repeat that – their lives were as important to me as my own.

I think that last sentence differentiates some human beings.

For a myriad of reasons, not everyone feels that way.  I am not here to debate which is right- only to use that as the explanation for my pure hatred for Vick.

I have been a very involved animal advocate for the last 15 years.  I am beyond passionate about finding homeless dogs and cats homes.  I am a walking billboard against puppy mills.  I am these things not only because I have been in the trenches, but because my heart, the one I was born with, sees animals as sentient beings who have feelings.  I never had a choice about how I would feel towards animals, my love for them is who I am.

For people like me, who see animals this way, life can be painful.  There have been times where I felt my love for animals was a curse because my heart can break on a daily basis seeing the cruel acts people do to them.

When I walked into my first Amish dog auction, the pain and heartache I felt was beyond comprehension.  However, there are lots of people who could walk into one and maybe not feel anything at all.  That pain defines me.

I am not going to make assumptions, but I do believe that many of the Vick haters are people like me, who have been given hearts that love animals on a different level.  What he did to them wasn’t just bad, to us, it is beyond horrifying because we believe animals lives are as important as our own.  To us, Vick is no different than a serial killer.

How many people would think that Gacy, Bundy or Dahmer should be in the Virgina Tech Hall of Fame or come out of prison and be a NFL QB or end up a NFL coach?  I have to think not many.

To those of us with the curse of a huge heart for animals, this is how we see Vick.

I understand that might seem extreme, even bordering mentally ill, to some of you, but I am just being honest about who I am and who I think some of Vick’s other haters are.

I didn’t choose to love animals the way I do – it is just who I am.  Knowing what Vick did to those innocent dogs breaks me.

So, I get it – not everyone sees him as the evil monster I do and not everyone would save a mouse from a glue trap like I did.

To understand my hatred, you would have to understand my heart and the passion I have for animals.  While there are many days I wish I could look the other way and pretend the animal cruelty doesn’t bother me so deeply, in the end, I am grateful to have my heart and to fight for the voiceless.

I know that my heart is also my gift – my path in life.  I trust that I was given it knowing I would never give up. And, I won’t.