When Cocker Spaniels Ruled The Earth or The Tuesday Report & a Farewell

[UPDATE: This just in shortly after 11 a.m. -- the computer and communication systems at Dallas Animal Services are down. The shelter expects these things to be back in working order around 1 p.m. Just FYI.]
While there’s a hurricane or tropical storm or deluge sweeping the Gulf Coast, let’s just look at assorted Dallas Animal Services info gathered in the past few days.
You’ll note that the official DAS logo is now a pleasant dominant blue instead of old cheese green. That’s a recent change and it shows up on promotional DAS book bags and other items.
That aside, here is something important for people to remember. DAS Director Jody Jones told me last there are now two email addresses at DAS: One for people interested in adopting, one for rescue.
The adoption email address is dasadopt@dallascityhall.com and the rescue email is darescue@dallascityhall.com.
In the meantime, as August winds down and September arrives bringing with it Labor Day and football season and, perhaps, Major League Baseball playoffs for the Texas Rangers, we find that once againDallas’ unwanted animals will have a place at the State Fair of Texas. (Though she looks like it, the dog on the right is NOT a midway prize. Read on.)
The fair runs Sept. 28-Oct. 21, but as per latest plans revealed by Dallas City Hall,, there’ll be a DAS available adoptables booth at the Fair from Oct. 1 through the end of the fair.
City Hall says the city’s staff will operate the booth from 10 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday starting Oct. 1 during the run of the fair. At other times, City Hall says, the booth duties will be “covered by DFW Rescue Me, our Fair Partner.” (We’re trying to find out if the “partners” will be there on weekends and evenings. Last year, you may recall, the thing became a “kissing booth” --- didn’t even need official State Fair coupons – you could give actual cash! )
In the meantime, the DAS folks are trying to find places in rescue for these little bitty dogs.
This little dog (on the upper right) is A737633 VT06  -- she arrived via the night drop box at the shelter. She’s called Blossom at the DAS because, according to a note from DAS Customer Service Representative Danielle Fry, “With a little care she will ‘blossom’ into the dog she was meant to be. She has had a pretty rough life. ...She came into the shelter with an embedded collar; our veterinarians have treated her and her neck looks completely healed!  She is so sweet and loves her dental treats!”
And the little dog on the upper left is Tiny (A732856 DLF53). Why is she in the shelter? “She was an adoption return because she is so tiny and just gets so scared of things.  We have her testing out a Thundershirt and it is working!  She has calmed down a lot.  She still needs to be in a quieter environment without children.  She is already spayed and microchipped.”
To ask about these animals, email DASrescue@dallascityhall.com.
And we would be remiss if we did not mention one more time this dog Sneaky, a 7-month-old, spayed Cattle Dog mix who is a genuine Earhound and, obviously, a distant relative of Blossom -- related by ears. She’s on the euthanasia list for today with several other animals that have been on the shelter’s adoptable list for at least 45 days with no takers.
Again, DASrescue@dallascityhall.com is the contact point.
Oh, that dog all tangled up? According to CSR Fry, “He was found by a good Samaritan who called DAS out to help him.  Someone had abandoned him, tied to a tree.  While tied he of course got all tangled up and scared! One of our officers went out and got him untangled and brought him into the shelter. He has since begun to come out of his shell!  He wags his tail and loves to go outside! Unfortunately he is starting to get sick. He needs to get pulled ASAP.”
Use that DAS Rescue email address. And if you want to see adoptables, go to www.dallasanimalservices.org and navigate to the list. Don’t see what you like, click back the next day – the shelter takes in scores of animals a day.
COCKERS AND GROUPON: I get those Groupon things in my email. Maybe you do, too. I also get email from DFW Cocker Spaniel Rescue. And this time I got one e-mail about BOTH of them. It’s a chance to help Cocker Spaniels, so we’re all for it.
Here are the basics of the release:
”DFW Cocker Spaniel Rescue and Groupon Grassroots, the philanthropic arm of Groupon, announce the launch of a local campaign to raise funds to care for DFW’s homeless Cocker Spaniels.
The DFW Cocker Spaniel Rescue campaign will be available on the Dallas/Fort Worth Groupon Grassroots page beginning on Monday, August 27, 2012 and running through Sunday, September 2, 2012. Utilizing Groupon Grassroots’ collective action model, Groupon subscribers can pledge support for the DFW Cocker Spaniel Rescue initiative in increments of $10, with each $400 providing medical and grooming care for a homeless Cocker Spaniel to get them ready for adoption.
”DFW Cocker Spaniel Rescue’s objective is to save the lives of defenseless cocker spaniels that have essentially been ‘thrown away’ by the people they trusted.”
That dog with the flying ears is Vader (also known as Chester), an 8- or 9-year-old Cocker who is available for adoption. He came into the rescue group from a home that abused him. And, yet, he’s all Cocker – excited to be around people. They call him Vader because when he’s excited he breathes like Star Wars’ Darth Vader. You can read about Vader and the other adoptables and about the Groupon project at the Cocker rescue website HERE.
Our DFW CSR source, Karen Campbell, say, “Vader is a great little guy.  Not overly lively, but a very nice dog.  I've seen him at Meet & Greets every weekend for quite a few months now.  Just as I've been bringing Ceciley Rose for those many months too.  Nobody's been drawn to either one of them yet, but in time someone will show up for each of them.”
The rescue doesn’t know much about Ceciley Rose except that she may be about 5 years old and gets along with everybody. She’s a beauty. But, aren’t they all?
TWO DOGS AND A MISSION: Carol Eicher sent us a “just the facts” note that read, “Here are the two dogs that we need to find homes for. Hopefully, they can be kept together. Both are girls, fully vetted, chipped and housebroken. The one looking straight into the camera is the runt, PJ and the other dog is Larissa. They have lived at Westchester for the past two years. Their owner died a few weeks ago and now they need new homes.”
PJ is licking her chops. Larissa is waiting for the treat. Larissa is the leader of this two-dog pack. And you, like me, probably sense there’s more to this story. It’s kind of tender and you’ll see why Carole is working to find a good home for these two.
She explains, “Westchester is an assisted living facility for low income people.  I have placed several pets there. …The two dogs I am trying to find homes for are part of a litter of 7 puppies and the Momma who were found in a park in East Fort Worth. 
”The mother was in the road when my friend and another woman drove by.  They stopped to pick her up and she ran a short distance away from them, stopped and looked back.  So they followed her into the park and found the puppies. 
”They took the puppies and the Momma to Family PetCare Clinic.  That wonderful staff took them in, loved them, fed them and socialized them. 
”The Momma, now named Sasha, lives at Westchester as do 3 puppies. 
”The two that I have now belonged to a wonderful lady named Pam Johnson.  Pam was my eyes and ears at Westchester.  She was the animal control officer for the place. 
”At the time of her death, she had Larissa and Parker (beagle mix) and was fostering PJ (named after Pam by PJ's owner who would have been evicted if she continued to keep PJ).  Pam had already decided that PJ was hers also. 
”I promised Pam that I would keep all 3 dogs together if possible.  Pam's son wanted Parker because he said that she was Pam's ‘daughter’ and he wanted to keep her. It was agreed upon that Charles could take Parker, that Pam would approve. So now, I am trying to find just the right person for Pam's ‘children’
”If anyone is interested, they can call 817-451-5592 (Family PetCare) and go see them (1501 Handley Drive in East Fort Worth).” Email caroler@prodigy.net.
ROCKY, THE PATIENTLY WAITING DOG: I am prepared to offer $500,000 to the person who adopts this big dog Rocky. I’m prepared to offer it, I’m just not prepared to give it, so don’t even bother. But you don’t need half a million to adopt Rocky, you just need about twenty bucks.  He’s a clearance dog at The Colony’s Animal Shelter.
Yes, we’ve mentioned him before – mentioned him last week when we pitched Soda Pop the Cat and Onyx the Border Pig. They were both adopted, but Rocky didn’t draw a nibble.
He can’t stay in a city-run shelter forever. Eventually he’ll get squeezed out. And “out” doesn’t mean he’ll be moving to a condo.
Here’s what the shelter’s bio says about him: “Labrador Retriever/Boxer Mix: An adoptable dog in The Colony, TX.”
Pretty simple. Two great breeds. One great dog.
To ask about Rock or any animal in The Colony’s shelter, e-mail  pbarrington@thecolonytx.gov or call 972-370-9250. You can see more of the shelter inventory by clicking HERE.
CONTEMPLATIONS: We learned yesterday of the death of a great asset to genuine journalism and the world, Helen Parmley, the longtime religion editor at the big paper in Dallas. I worked with Helen for more than two decades. She was class, nice and tough. She got scoop after scoop in this town without being a jerk. A great journalist and a great person all in one big heart. When Helen was on the church beat, she was so well-respected that she didn’t have to call preachers to ask for the truth, they’d call her up and confess. She had integrity and decency. The tendency is to suggest that she had everything today’s journalism is missing. I’d say that tendency is spot-on. Here’s a sentence that will tell you how much her colleagues thought of her: The newsroom loved her and they don’t love anybody. Appropriately, God bless Helen Parmley.
--- To comment, click below. ---