Oh, boy, it's President's Day, an American holiday in the middle of February. What? No picnic?
Let's look at some good news.
First, no political candidate is scheduled to be on our street today. Well, what else do you need after you hear that? Let's move on because we have two stories today that will offer relief. One involves this dog, Lucky, trying desperately to find drinkable water after being delivered in sad shape to a suburban shelter. Here goes:
THE FATE OF KIRBY: For many weeks now we've made pitches on behalf of Kirby, a dog that rescuer Dianne Watson has been trying like the dickens to save from a bad fate at the Arlington Animal Services Shelter.
Over the weekend, Dianne sent a note that begins, "Kirby was not adopted...."
Took my breath away. Oh, no, I thought.
Then I read the rest of the passage. "He is now living at Smiling Dog Farms Sanctuary in Wharton, Texas."
Saved. Diane says a couple showed some late interest in adopting Kirby, but time was pressing and it was important to get him to safety after so many months in a city cage (that's Kirby in both photos). So, he went to Wharton, southwest of Houston, with Jay Hellerich at Smiling Dog Farms. She says "Jay has a female down there that he says could pass as Kirby's twin."
So, Kirby has found a safe place to stay.
And the first report is that Kirby and the look-alike, Clarice, "seem to be hitting it off," Jay reported from Smiling Dog Farms on Sunday.
Clarice, a product of indiscriminant breeding, has health issues ranging from being prone to mane to 
swift and dramatic fluctuations in weight. But, she is carefully monitored, Jay says.
She is "very easy going and will get along with just about anyone. Kirby is fearful when he first meets a new person or dog -- he usually puts his little head between my arm and my body -- like he is hiding."
Still, all things take time when your assessing canine behavior, so Kirby's being watched, being babied and being slowly led into a "comfort zone."
Jay notes that "we have no idea what kind of life Kirby had before this. ... He brings the baggage of his past along with him, and it usually takes new babies a while to understand and accept that they are safe here and bad things are not going to happen to them! Clarice does not carry that baggage, because she was born here and knows nothing else but life around her. So she did not develop those walls around her to protect herself emotionally like Kirby did for his own self protection!"
And, there you have it. Kirby is in a sanctuary. Dianne Watson can find another dog to fret over in Arlington -- and she probably already has.
LUCKY'S PATH TO SAFETY: We hear from noted shelter walker and rescuer Debbie Barclay that Lucky, the starving dog, is due to go to Homeward Bound rescue on Tuesday.
You may recall that last week we published photos of Lucky -- they were taken on the day of his arrival at Prairie Paws Animal Shelter in Grand Prairie.
Lucky was a walking bag of bones. And he wasn't far away from not being able to walk because of dehydration and starvation.
What we have today are a couple of before and after photos.
In one set you can see Lucky's ribs are disappearing as he puts on weight. In the other, you can see the "pen measurement" from before -- when he was so skinny that his body was no wider than a common office pen. Now, Lucky is growing.
Debbie says that Animal Services Officer Sharon Fabrega "has worked closely with Lucky, 'power-feeding' him several small meals a day. He finally leveled himself off and he's fed during regular meal times now."
The background is, as Debbie reports, "Lucky was brought into the shelter by the owner, with a request to euthanize because the owner 'just couldn't get him to eat or drink.' "
Lucky weighed 38.7 pounds when he was brought in to be killed. He's now up to about 50.3 pounds, Debbie says. And the open wound on his backside is healing, too.
"His features are coming out, his coat is shining up -- amazing what a little basic care will do."
And, Debbie also says the photos "are going to be used in court against the former owner. ... [He was] cited with a Class C (failure to provide vet care), but now that they realize he mostly only needed food and water, they are considering a Class A Felony (cruelty)."
So, Lucky gets a break. And, maybe a human learns a lesson.
A NORTH DALLAS CHAINED DOG: Our reliable tipster Nicole Kopec has had it with a neighborhood situation and is looking for some help. This involves a tan dog -- maybe a 75-pounder, maybe an Akita/Shepherd mix, in the North Dallas neighborhood near Alpha and Purple Sage, between Hillcrest and Coit.
The dog "runs around in my neighborhood loose all the time .... He is dragging a rope or long chain half of the time as if he has gotten free from being tied out wherever he lives. he doesn't seem to be starving, so I gather that he goes back to the same place and gets fed, but I do feel he's neglected and I would hate to see him get hit by a car. It is obvious the owners don't care about his welfare."
She's tried to lure him within grabbing distance, but he won't fall for treats or nice voices. "he doesn't grow, but just appears very aloof and will only get so close and then run off."
Other neighbors, Nicole says, "have tried to get him into their cars to help him as well, but none of us has been successful."
So, the question is, "Is there anyone out there who could help or have any ideas of what I can do? I am just afraid that the next time I see this dog, he's going to be dead on Alpha Road."
So, there you have it: Loose dog, sometimes dragging a tether of some type, won't come to strangers and doesn't stay where he should. Is there anybody who has a way to end this ridiculous situation? (E-mail helpful suggestions to [email protected].)
SPOTLIGHTING A SHELTER: On this Monday holiday, we're going to cite some critters available at the White Settlement Animal Shelter on the northwest side of Fort Worth.
Click HERE and it'll take you to the White Settlement Animal Control Division page and on to a list of some of the animals available for adoption at this small shelter. The shelter is at 209 Bollinger in White Settlement. Call 817-246-7070.
Basic adoption is $25, then there's a $10 rabies shot fee and, if you're a White Settlement resident, a $12 registration fee. So, for under fifty lousy bucks you get a new friend who'll be glad to see you.
Among the animals is this shepherd mix, R.J., who just looks like a dog who is aching to have a pal. The scouting report on him is "he posed for the volunteer taking the pic."
And that black-and-white cat? That's Domino. What else could you name a cat that looks like that?CONTEMPLATIONS: Regarding this astonishing cache of JFK assassination-era items found in a safe in the Dallas County District Attorney's office, never mind the contents. Ask this question: Why has the safe gone unnoticed all these years? Or did someone in the Mafia conspire to move it from Havana to Dallas and what does it have to do with the sudden appearance of that UFO over Stephenville and what does it have to do with the Dallas Cowboys tanking in the first round of the playoffs? This thing just goes really deep -- would you be surprised to find an envelope holding the truth about Elvis? ... We've gone a week without a Britney Spears crisis, it's time to crank up the JFK Conspiracy Machine again. You don't think the combination to open that safe was 11-22-63, do you?
