Save Dogs

Slow Motion

Mexico was incredible.
I wish I had more to report in terms of dog rescue.
I've actually had quite a hiatus this holiday from the rescue world.
Sugar Bean the pug is coming for a visit tomorrow.  She is just the cutest little dog.  I really miss her sometimes even though she was with me for a short while.  I've stalled in bailing a dog for now while I figure out what I'm doing (on this planet). 

Sometimes going to the shelter and investing all my time in the dogs is my way of escaping the necessary task of picking a solid direction in life.  It's good that I'm aware of that, but it would be even better if I picked a direction.

I have many cute pictures of dogs to post in the very near future.   -Jon-

P.S.  If you have any good holiday pictures of your pets, I'd love to see them and post them.

Sun and Sand

I'm leaving for Puerto Vallarta tomorrow for a small vacation.  I'm praying I don't find any stray dogs there!  Knowing me, they will be destined for Los Angeles if I come across them.  I've had Bullet on my mind the last week.  I just hope he has some peace in his bruised head.  It is incredible how many people opened their hearts to Bullet.  For instance, one of my neighbors left a check for me inside of a greeting card; she read my blog and wanted to help pay for Bullet's vet bills.  That kind of stuff just makes me teary eyed.

He still has a few hundred dollars worth of bills...but I feel it isn't just my responsibility to fundraise.  It's got to be a group effort and it's going to take time.

I'm full of emotions.  Joy...sadness...hope...confusion.  I think I'm mostly anxious about leaving my dog in a kennel while I'm gone.  I'm sure a few Piña Coladas will do me well.  ~Jon~

Boise

I feel guilty for not writing more in my blog lately.  It's not always that I'm too busy...I think laziness also gets the best of me.  I've been more defined by my schedule lately than my thoughts or feelings.  Sometimes a moment to myself means no computer, phone, or television.  I attended the HH Backer pet expo in Chicago for work; my boss had food poisoning on the flight from Los Angeles and then I had the luck of getting it two days later.  What a miserable feeling to be so far from home and feeling so horrible and helpless!

However, I must point out that I met some incredible folks in the pet industry who made my time very enjoyable despite my stomach.  I met the owner of Earthbath, which is a line of pet shampoos that I use on my own dog.  It was great to tell him how much his products have done for my dog's coat and see his reaction--I even got a free shampoo =)  I also made friends with a couple of our company's customers and it was great to hear how much they enjoyed the collars that we sell. 

The title of this post is Boise because I received a call from Boise, Idaho from a woman interested in Bette Davis.  She has two senior Pomeranians and a Brussels Griffon and she fell in love with Bette Davis from her pictures.   Andrea and her husband adopt senior dogs and let them live out their last peaceful years (or months) in their quiet home.  I immediately felt a connection to Andrea over the phone; she seems very sincere and was well educated in the issues and challenges that older dogs face.  Another bonus is that her husband works for an airline and is willing to fly down and pick up Bette Davis; I am also invited to come to Boise to check out their home.  I haven't decided which option to pick yet, but I'm going to speak with their veterinarian and have them send pictures of their home and other dogs.  I'm just so thankful that there are such kind people out who take would take the effort to help out a little old dog like Bette from thousands of miles away.

Much love to everyone.......  Jon

 

Focus

It's been awhile.

I worked in Atlanta for about a week at the Atlanta Gift Show and I got to explore the city a bit.  I've focused more on work lately and getting things together in my life.  I'm trying to save some money because I spent more than I expected getting Talula in shape for adoption.  I'm not even sure how many people are reading this blog anymore, but it still helps to write things out once in awhile.

I'm very hopeful that the past year is just the beginning of many dog's lives that I will affect positively.  For now, I can only afford to rescue more "adoptable" dogs from the shelters--this includes younger, smaller dogs and also breeds with more positive reputations.  It breaks my heart because I love pit bulls.  I love the 'underdogs' and they are dying in huge numbers in shelters.   However, it's just too much money (that I don't have) to care for these dogs for months on end; I have to compromise by rescuing dogs that need less time and vet care to find a family.

I promise to update more diligently in the near future as well as post many pictures that are sitting on my hard drive.  Please leave your comments and stay in touch. 

Oh...and I have a surprise coming at the beginning of next week.  She has four paws and a squished-in face.  I'll write more about it soon.

_Jon_

In Atlanta

I'll be back soon with more posts.

Sick Leave

I'm not feeling so good.  It's just a cold (and stress) but I'll be back soon.  I have pictures from Jasper's 1st birthday that I can't wait to post, but I need to get my camera cord from Sherri's house.  This blog is close to having 10,000 hits since I began writing in January.  It amazes me.  Please keep the comments coming--they make the "job" worthwhile.

Bye for now,
Jon

I Hate You, Don't Leave Me

"...the grass as bristly and stout as chives,
and me wondering when the ground would break,
and me wondering how anything fragile survives"
                                        --Anne Sexton

I finally figured out something about animal rescue.  You may or may not know, but there are a lot of personality conflicts in the rescue world.  I would have been the last to guess that people who spend their last pennies saving abandoned pets would let their egos dominate their rescue efforts.  Maybe it's too idealistic to assume that we could lean on each other when we fall upon hard times.

Pigs in a Blanket

This picture was taken last night of Sunny, Jasper and me.  We snuggled until breakfast this morning.  (I'm dog-sitting for Jasper while his parents are in Las Vegas).

I'm thrilled to be a featured blog on Typepad's homepage.  I love all the new visitors that have left comments and e-mailed me--I especially love getting sent pictures of your dogs!

In case you are new to my blog, I graduated from USC last year and have been dedicating myself full time to rescuing dogs.  The blog started with my rescue dog named Goldie and I shared his story as a way to help raise funds for his expensive vet bills.  It took over 3 months, but he finally found his loving "forever" home and his new name is Monkey.  My latest rescue is a 5 year old yodeling pit bull named Talula.  She is quite a colorful character and it has been a challenge to place her because she is not a young "designer" dog.  I've probably spent well over $3000 since January on rescue related expenses, but I've been lucky to recoup about half of that from friends, family, and generous web surfers.

I'm currently developing a small business online dedicated to connecting pet owners with quality pet care providers.  I hope to have it up and running by mid-July.  I'm also looking for a business mentor in Los Angeles to help me dive into the pet product market.  It's time to start earning a living! 

Thank you so much for visiting my site and please leave your comments and don't hesitate to e-mail me.  If you care to donate to the doggies, you can use the Amazon.com honor system or Paypal on the right hand side of the page.

Best wishes,
Jon

A Falling Tree

Uh oh!  Talula and I were almost crushed by a tree this week.  See her expression?  I had a very similar look as 50 pounds of branches crashed right where we had just stood.  The internet was down in Playa Vista (where I live), so I couldn't update the blog for the past week. 

Talula is happy these days.  She has a lot to work on behavior-wise, but she is a sweet girl.  I'm excited because tomorrow I am going to have a table set-up at my local dog park for a "social gathering".  I'm going to offer rescue info as well as sell some beautiful paintings by an Italian artist.  A local art gallery is making a generous donation to my rescue efforts for every painting that I sell.  A few months ago I started an online  "Playa Vista Dog Club" for the local community and tomorrow will be the first time that I meet many of the members in the real world.  I will give another update soon.  Thanks, Jon.

Rescue Fever

Updates for the week:

1.  Goldie, who is now "Monkey", is in dog heaven.  He is the happiest and most comfortable that I have ever seen him.  His new home is in the mountains overlooking Hollywood.  I have to thank his new mom, Katie, for being incredibly patient with him.  And, of course, I thank his new dad Mark and his pit bull soul mate, Bunny.  Goldie lives in the "Melrose Place" of dogs.  Upstairs lives his friends Buddy and Burt--a Dachshund and an English Bulldog.  Katie's human friend Julie is a dream too; she (and her boyfriend) have helped every step of the way.  Click on the Pet Expo photo gallery to your left to see pictures of everyone!

2. I've succumbed to my vices and bailed another dog from the South LA shelter.  I promised to give myself a break...oops.  I'm saving all the details for a larger post, but her name in the shelter was Trinity.  She is 7 years old and the ugliest cutie-pie on the planet. 

Here is her shelter photo:

Here comes the begging:
I am building my own national deficit trying to save dogs.  If you can help by donating, please use the online Amazon.com button to donate.
Or, e-mail me at:  savedogs "@" gmail.com

Thanks,
Jon