Before we get to a good deed in Kemp named Chloe and some puppies in Corsicana that you readers have supported, let's talk about the weather:
HURRICANE WATCH: If it's not one thing threatening animals, it's ... well, you know this Hurricane Gustav, days from landfall on the Gulf Coast, is already causing disruption of routine in Dallas.
According to the SPCA of Texas' website yesterday, the organization's admitting departments in Dallas and McKinney "will be closed until further notice in preparation to receive evacuees from the Louisiana SPCA in New Orleans, LA as the coast braces for Hurricane Gustav."
Understandable, given the mess Hurricanes Katrina and Rita made of animal rescue groups and facilities.
Still, this makes life a little tougher to hold onto for animals already in shelters around here. Maybe now is a good time to press on with adoption campaigns and line up rescue groups to get animals out of Dallas-area shelters to make room for the possible arrival of hurricane refugees next week.
There is a splash effect, logic indicates. Things might be a little bit tough at the Collin County Animal Services shelter in McKinney where the SPCA gets first dibs on animals. After that, only rescue groups can pull animals. If the SPCA is closed and rescue groups are full, and the public isn't allowed to adopt directly from that shelter, this would seem to limit the avenues of escape during this weather crisis.
Local animals will keep coming into the Collin County shelter. So, even a hint of a hurricane hundreds of miles away may already be affecting the survival rate in North Texas. We must remember, though, the unfortunate statistics are not the fault of the shelters or rescue groups: the responsibility lies on the heads of people who don't spay and neuter, who don't properly restrain their animals, who don't care what happens to their animals and who just don't give a hoot about society in general.
This Labor Day Weekend might be the right -- morally right -- time to help the SPCA and other shelters and rescue groups empty some cages in a kind way. People in rescue already have housefuls of animals -- people "outside the circle of rescue" hold the key to saving these animals.
The dog and cat with this item are from the SPCA's list of available animals. The big-eared dog is Elvis, a 6-month-old Border Collie mix returned to the SPCA on July 11 because of the human's military transfer. And, there's this black cat, Margie, a declawed 11-year-old Norwegian Forest Cat mix, who lost her home because her human suddenly became allergic to her. (See these animals and many more adoptables at www.spca.org.)
With the SPCA not admitting animals right now, animals with stories like these most likely will wind up in city shelters with a "good luck" pat on the head and a date with a needle.
These animals and many, many others can be found at www.spca.org.
A GOOD DEED NAMED CHLOE: Angie Stevenson is trying to help a dog that is currently being cared for in Kemp, southeast of Dallas.
While a hurricane might force some people to act like twits when it comes to animals, there are other people who can be jerks without any prompting -- Angie has run into some of them.
She explains that Chloe "was abandoned by one of our lovely neighbors and needless to say I wasn’t about to make her fend for herself or get hit by a car since we live on a farm road where people think there is no speed limit. I have two large dogs (lab and coon hound) that are being kept indoors since Chloe is taking up residence in our outside pen area. I have no history on her as far as shots, spayed, etc. I just know she is a very sweet puppy and needs someone to take care of her."
She doesn't know how the dog's eye was injured.
"I can tell you she looks and acts no older than a year old. She has no aggressive tendencies (kids, dogs, cats, food). She is just starving for affection and is a ball of energy. I’m unsure if she can see out of her injured eye. There is also a scar on the side of her eye."
To ask about helping Chloe, e-mail Angie at [email protected].
A NEW CLICK TO SAVE: In the arena of public access developments, there's a whole new link to cats and kittens currently held at the Dallas Animal Services Adoption Center. It's brand new, activated just this week. Click HERE and you'll go to the cat site.
Here's the actual link if you want to pick it up and save it:
http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=11162872
I figure you won't remember it on your own unless you've got one of those tricky brains that remembers letters, commands and numbers as if your middle name was IBM.
And that cat? Available, according to the website. I don't know the circumstances of the photograph, but the caption that comes to mind is "Suspect in bank heist."
SIMBA'S STORY TAKES AN UGLY TURN: We've been following the story of Simba, the dog that Vicki Young had been trying to find a home for after she turned up stray at a woman's house.
The dog was adopted out to people who have a ranch in Bedford. But Simba didn't get along with the ranch dogs. Vicki says that "Simba attacked one of the lady's dogs that was fostering her so her husband took her to the Bedford animal shelter. She was put in as an owner
surrender for dog aggression so now only a 501C3 rescue group can take her.
If there is a rescue group that will take her, I will transport her to them.
"The shelter will keep her until Saturday at 2p.m. This is a dog with a wonderful side, but has shown aggression to other dogs in the household. She's fine with other dogs when you are walking her, and she has not shown aggression to humans. This is such a sad case. The question mark is her past. We don't know if this behavior can be trained out or not.
"She can't be placed in a home with other animals. This is a heartbreak to not be able to find the right situation for this dog to see what is possible for her. If anyone can help please contact me at [email protected]."
SCUBA STILL NEEDS TO BE RESCUED: The folks at A Different Breed say no one has responded to earlier pleas to help Scuba, the dog once saved from drowning in a pool behind an abandoned Dallas home.
"We haven't had any response to our prior e-mail, and his time is running out," ADB says. "His current foster has given us until the end of the week to find him a new home, or else he is heading back to the City shelter. Unfortunately, ADB does not have the funds to board him."
Dallas Animal Services officers pulled the drowning dog from a murky pool, then the dog lived through heartworm treatment and now Scuba faces death in the city shelter.
Just doesn't seem right, does it?
The report on Scuba is that he's "a wonderful dog -- great with adults, children and other dogs. His ONLY issue is that he's cat aggressive."
To offer to help Scuba, call Debbie Ferrell at 214-316-6604.
TRAGEDY BEFALLS HER HUMAN: Our longtime reliable tipster Christie Hansen sends us a note about Missy, a 10-year-old Chihuahua who "lost her human mom this week to cancer."
"I'm trying to help find a home for her," Christie writes. "She is house-trained, UTD on all vaccinations and is very healthy. ... She's been the only dog for 3 years but has been around other dogs and gets along with them. As you can imagine, she's pretty out of place right now."
To ask about adopting this little girl, e-mail [email protected].
IT'S GOT TO BE THE FACE: Holly Elms, one of the folks who monitors 
things in the Irving Animal Shelter, is making a pitch for this dog, Sissy. "She came into the shelter on July 29. The staff has kept her as long as they can, and she is likely to be next in line for euthanasia."
Good grief, isn't that awful?
Sissy is said to be a Golden Retriever mix who is about a year old, weighs 50 pounds and is "very friendly," Holly says. "Isn't that a great face? I can imagine her in an obedience class with that studious look, leaving the other students in her doggy dust. I'm pretty sure she can country-western dance pretty well, too, just like her namesake from Urban Cowboy."
To offer to help Sissy, call the Irving Shelter at 972-721-2256. The shelter is at 100 N. Briery Road in Irving. That's just east of the Belt Line/Rock Island intersection which is currently under construction but is not totally blocked unless there's an idiot in the car ahead of you. And, yes, I've been at that intersection in the past two days. But I wasn't the idiot.
Sissy is more important than traffic, anyway. "This gal deserves a chance," Holly says.
CROWDING AT WHITE SETTLEMENT: The shelter in the Fort Worth suburb of White Settlement is way overloaded, according to our tipster Marybelle Denton of the West Side Animal League.
there's even an emergency adoption scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the shelter, 209 Bolliner Boulevard.
Among the animals in the shelter's care is this fellow Boscoe, a 2- or 3-month-old Newfoundland/Lab mix. He is, Marybelle's report says, "scared to death in the shelter -- he just lays out and won't even come to you...But once you get him outside, he is so grateful and so happy."
He needs training because he's unfamiliar with using a leash but he's an "absolute doll," the shelter folks say.
And how crowded is the place? This big dog is currently being kept in a cat cage.
You can e-mail [email protected] to volunteer to help with the adoption or to adopt a dog or cat or to get guidance.
EXPERT HELP WANTED, OR MAYBE JUST COMPETENT HELP: Our tipster Sydney Busch of the Friends of the Animals at Cedar Creek Lake says the rescue group is looking for tiling help at the spay/neuter clinic it runs in Gun Barrel City.
"We have a small ( 5'7" x 10') room where we check in the animals in the morning for surgery. right now the floor is painted concrete (not stained) and the paint is badly chipped. It looks awful."
So, the idea is to put vinyl tiles down with a threshold piece and molding along the walls. "Does anyone have the expertise and time to do this for us?" she asks. Then there are these questions: "Does the floor have to be prepped prior to laying this tile -- like stripped of the paint?" and "How long would it take to install this from start to finish?
To respond, e-mail [email protected].
THE CORSICANA PUPS AND A DESPICABLE BIT OF HUMANITY: Now, we're going to be 
polite at the outset and talk about the adoptable pups, then we're going to show you what these foster folks have had to put up with. And, on the good side, what you readers mean to people in rescue.
You may recall that Tony and Lynn Gatlin are fostering their second litter from a momma dog who gave birth behind a law office in Corsicana.
This is Bella, one of the seven pups in the current littler. Bella and her sister, Annie, are the smallest pups in the litter. and all seven are still available -- they're 9 weeks old, adorable and socialized. (To ask about adopting them, e-mail [email protected] or call 903-874-3722.)
I was kidding Lynn about how quickly she'd been able to adopt out this litter of cuties and she confessed that they haven't gone like hotcakes -- they still have all seven left. But they have encountered some, uh, unpleasantness from outside.
She writes, "We've had just a few inquiries about them that didn't pan out. One person actually told me about their business of breeding dogs and selling them at Canton. Can you believe that? And, oh yeah, their 'breeder male' died from heartworms! Just got rid of the female because they didn't need her anymore.
"You know I just really have to bite my tongue almost in two when I get calls like that.
"Another person needed a guard dog for their yard. Soooooo, we still have all of the little darlings here with us. Mama, now Tess, is doing beautifully and can be spayed mid September. We're not even going to offer her for adoption before then. Better safe than sorry. ...
"Incidentally, we received a $50 donation toward vet care from your readers and we appreciate it very much. We were able to apply it to yesterday's bill for another round of vaccinations for the pups. We know the economy is slow right now and every little bit helps....
"I just know these little guys will all get good homes eventually. And until then, they're safe here. No chance of them running out of time. The more the merrier....well sort of..."
CONTEMPLATIONS: Most pleasing state magazine to read and, especially, to enjoy the photos: Arizona Highways or New Mexico Magazine? ... Romantic movies with witty scripts: Yesterday we offered Casablanca and, sort of kiddingly, Titanic. Arizona reader Roxanne Wingo countered with Bringing Up Baby and What's Up Doc, two that fill that bill. And, this reminded me that I'd neglected to mention the greatest of all romantic comedies: My Man Godfrey with the great William Powell and Carole Lombard. .... Regarding TV, why is my government making me change my TV reception next year? Why can't things stay the way they are? Can anyone explain this in less than 50 incomprehensible technical terms? Follow the money, eh? Who'll profit from change? Will people, fed up with government decisions that reach into their living rooms and dens, switch TV off, return to radio and enjoy their VCRs and DVD players while they can?
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