May 30, 2008

Stephenville: Pitbull kills Black Lab, Owner ticketed

For weeks we had this black Lab running around here, roaming the streets. He was only out at certain times, so we assumed he belongs to somebody and they just let him out instead of walking him.

We tried to catch him, no go. We tried to follow him to find out where he lives, he kept evading us. Animal Control came out a few times, didn't work.

Last week he was killed by a pitbull. Animal Control wrote the owner of the pit a ticket.

Now ask me if I am going to walk my dogs any time soon. I know the pit is usually loose, he has followed us a few times with that red zone stare.

Maybe I should get one of those sticks the police has, because I'm not going to walk around with a baseball bat, and pepper spray has shown to be useless against red zone dogs in general.

Some of my elderly neighbors walk with a cane here, none of them needs it for walking..isn't that sad?

Every idiot in this neighborhood with a low self esteem has a pitbull to make up for it...all the wrong reasons. How do you live with that? Or a better question: what do you DO about it?

I personally love pitbulls, they are beautiful dogs, but as with every breed, there are some bad apples and because they are very strong dogs, they can do more damage. Now putting this power into the wrong hands and you have a ticking time bomb.

Eliminating the breed is not the answer, because another breed will take it's place in no time. When I grew up, the "bad guys" were the German Shepherds.

However, tougher laws on owners of exceptionally powerful dogs (above a certain weight and/or size maybe, which would include me too) might help. But laws need to be enforced and that's where the solution usually fails. Not enough manpower.

If everybody who has a dog above a certain size would need to obtain a permit and show proof of vaccination and proof of being spayed or neutered, that would be a start. Breeding such dogs would require a harder to obtain permit.

Germany has a very nice system where every dog owner has to have a permit, and that law is being enforced. Animal shelters there have waiting lines for adoptions, sometimes people wait for months before a dog becomes available! So I know it works.

Maybe it is time to propose a new law?

May 19, 2008

Wildlife Rehabilitation Permit - looking for Volunteers

It's here! The wildlife rehabilitation permit is finally here! From now on I can accept all mammals except fawns, foxes or coyotes, or endangered species. Next year, providing I find volunteers to help me, I am aiming for the federal migratory bird permit as well.

Currently I am looking for animal lovers in the Stephenville, Texas area, that are willing to get involved with the local wildlife rescue efforts and start building the Board of Directors.

Here is what I have in mind, my ideas and goals:

The Rainbow Wildlife Rescue has already non-profit status, but no 501(c) (3) recognition. This is something that is also on the goal list for next year.

I need people that are capable of building a couple of simple aviaries and a shed, once we have the material, as well as bird and squirrel houses and cages.

I also need somebody creative with good PR skills that can handle fundraisers and organize such events, locally as well as online, because I do not have the time for that.

And I need somebody for emergencies that can physically assist me with an injured animal if needed.

If you are interested, Email me!

May 14, 2008

Critter Post Newsletter by MissDolittle

Critter Post Newsletter by MissDolittle

Miss Dolittle's Critter Newsletter for May 2008

Miss Dolittle

Miss Dolittle's Critter Newsletter

Miss Dolittle

Dog Updates...

Olivia: she is doing wonderfully! She overcame her false pregnancy finally and shows interest in other things, especially the rest of the pack. Now that she is spayed, heartworm-free and feeling good about herself, she is playing and acting like a puppy all day long.

Watch the newest movie
with Olivia here!
Olivia and Rosy
If you missed it:
Olivia's Story is here!

Honey: It is time that the rabies quarantine is over (on May 23rd), so she can get out of this yard and start some training. Her intelligence is bubbling over and almost screaming to be used.

For more updates on the dogs keep reading the Puppyeducation Blog!


Cat Updates...

Serenity: is in the process of being adopted!

3 out of 9 Kittens left: 3 female kittens were raised by Serenity, but they are not her own. They are still waiting for the right person to come along and adopt them!

View the Petfinders.com Ad here!
kitten
Read Serenity's Story and that of her Kittens here!

How you can help without spending money:

You may have noticed, while surfing my various animal related websites, the Google Adsense ads throughout the pages. These ads are the main supporter of my animal rescue efforts.

I am aware that it is not within Google's regulation to ask users directly to click those ads, but I do want to take the opportunity to point out the fact that Google is our main supporter.

Should you find an ad of interest, please do not click it ten times in a row with the kind intention to support the rescue. Google counts 2 clicks per visitor per day.

Erath County Humane Society's adoptable Pet of the Week:
Hillary

Hillary is an older female Basset Hound that was picked up in a seizure. Detailed information is not available.

She has been at the shelter for a while now and gets along with everything and everybody. Hillary has the typical Basset Hound low energy personality, very mellow, relaxed, and comfortable to be around.

Her specialty is that she sounds like a human baby. She is very vocal and "talks" to you, which is very entertaining and I have only observed in Huskies so far.

She does not appear to be spayed. Hillary would make a wonderful pet for just about everybody that has a spot for her in their hearts.

Click HERE to view Hillary's Petfinder.com Ad

Miss Dolittle's Websites:

Kittenbaby.com - Puppy Education - Funny Animal E-Cards - Squirrel Rescue Texas - Rainbow Wildlife Rescue in Texas - Pets and Wildlife Forum - Magic Postcards - Dog Blog - Cat Blog - Wildlife Blog


Copyright 2008, Birgit Sommer ("Miss Dolittle"). All Rights Reserved.

2 Great Danes and 2 Yellow Labs




Olivia, Olliver, Sandy, Butters, and Honey are playing in the yard. The second half of the movie shows Olivia barking at the thunder all the time...as if she expected Godzilla to come around the corner! She barked all night, was not to calm down. We had storms before, but she never acted this way. I'm not sure what to make out of that one.


I was thinking of animals acting strange before an earthquake or something like that, but nothing of that sort happened.

May 4, 2008

Olivia, Great Dane, digs a den

I can't get enough watching Olivia being a real dog and do the things dogs do. Here she is taking full advantage of the "designated dig area, for dogs only!"

She had started to dig this den when she was into the full blown false pregnancy. But this blew over fast, however, the den is still very fascinating to her.


May 3, 2008

Olivia's stitches are out!

The final suture was removed today and Olivia is all done! It looks like she got over her false pregnancy as well and is acting like a real dog. I'm taking her on daily walks now, usually to the park. She is so good on the leash...I actually don't need one and let her off leash when nobody is around.


She likes to say hi to the other dogs, but since she is so big, other dog owners, especially the ones with small dogs, act a bit concerned at first, which I understand.

She even likes the ducks at the park, at a distance. She shows no predatory behavior at all: