Tank, Red, the Pack and Hank...and steroids, stress, Christmas and kindness

Good Friday to you and, before we get to the fate of Tank the Evidence Dog, saving the life of still-threatened Red the Curbside Dog and rescuing the Pack of Chihuahuas near Mountain View College, we have a seasonal note.
Whatever you’re doing – Easter or Passover or Heathenic (guilt-free but not interest-free) shopping -- be safe and be kind to animals and each other. Try to set a trend for the rest of the world.
That photo? That is our Readlarrypowell.com staff impersonator, Inky, the Cocker Laureate of the State of Texas, rushing into the company cafeteria at the Easter Bunny National Headquarters in Rabbit Hash, Kentucky, (a real town!) and spotting, on the “Bunny Trail Buffet,” a big steaming platter of Mom’s Sweet Hereafter Organic Easter Bonnet Meatloaf served with a side of Hoppin’ Good Gravy and  a dessert of Rabbit’s Foot Flan (“You’ll be lucky if you can get seconds!”).
Now, our report:
THE CURRENT STATUS OF TANK (THE DOG THAT WAS EVIDENCE OF CRUELTY): Rescuer Dawna Carabajal, who takes care of a steady supply of rescued dogs herself, was wondering about the status of Tank. We checked into things and, as you can see in these photos, he's a happy, healthy rascal.
You may recall that Tank and a little fluffy dog named Misty were abandoned on the balcony of a Bedford apartment and left to starve to death. When rescued they were in bad shape. Their former human was charged with cruelty. The little fluffy dog was almost immediately adopted.
Tank, however, had a number of strikes against him including breed, physical shape and lack of socialization – none of them his fault.
But, Bedford Police Investigator Jennifer Bond began monitoring him as he recovered at the Bedford Animal Services Division shelter. And people fell for him. We asked Bedford Animal Control Supervisor Mark Bellinghausen about Tanks’ current condition and got back such a cheery update that it needs to be shared.
Mark wrote, “Where do I start?  First, let me say ‘Thank You’ from Tank and all of us in the Animal Services Division and people who are compassionate towards animals everywhere.  Tank is still a very important milestone in my career as an Animal Control Officer. 
“Tank is still alive and learning to trust, communicate with manners and get along with others.  “April 22, 2011 will be his 4 month anniversary of living, learning and teaching others about compassion and trust, in a Municipal Animal Shelter setting.  Something I have personally learned from our wonderful Animal Behaviorist is:  Yes, people can learn from animal behaviorists and animals feed off of the emotions their handlers.
“Tank continues to do the best he can with what he is given.”
To offer to help Tank or to adopt him or give him a place to live or to thank Bedford to being patient with a damaged dog, e-mail [email protected].
You can see more Bedford adoptables HERE.
Just FYI: Mark says that the Bedford Animal Shelter is hosting a Pet Fair/Adopt-a-Thon on April 30 as part of the national effort “to reduce the senseless millions of dogs and cats entering shelters every year.”
The event will include a bounce house, vendors, vet booths, service dogs, free hamburgers, hot dogs and drinks and other attractions.
Mark writes, “Thanks again to everyone for what you have done for Tank and for what you can do for the millions of others like him.”
RED IS NOW MUGGY BUT JUST AS LOCKED UP: We wrote about Red yesterday – he’s the dog that rescuer Jean-Paul “JP” Bonnelly had been trying to get into a safe haven after pulling the ailing dog off the streets.
Late yesterday JP told us that Dallas Animal Services was supposed to euthanize this dog, now known as Muggy,” yesterday morning, but thanks to the work of some angels, he was passed over by the needle. Still, he doesn’t have much time – after all, he’s got that eye thing and won’t be adoptable.
One of JP’s frequent co-rescuers, Rekka Melby of Take Me Home Pet Rescue stopped by the shelter yesterday afternoon and took video of the dog. See it HERE but come right back and finish reading today’s report.
Rekka says Red/Muggy is “extremely friendly and sweet. He covered me in kisses and the only time he stopped wagging his tail was because he was falling asleep after I petted him through the door for about 20 min (I wasn't allowed to take him out).”
She took as close a look at his eye as possible and says “there was a little dot where something poked him in the eye damaging it. Not sure if he's now blind in the eye (he kept having his good eye towards me so I couldn't get my hand in front of the bad eye to see if he reacted at all).  It doesn't seem to be bothering him.”
So, what will happen to Red, aka Muggy? Nobody has shown genuine interested in adopting him yet, JP says, but there is an offer to sponsor his release if a foster home can be found.
“If a group does not claim him by tomorrow, I will go get him and figure it out after,” J.P. says.
Still, help is needed to save the dog’s life.
To offer to help save the dog, e-mail [email protected] or call 214-707-7005. The DAS phone number is 214-670-8246.
CONNECTIONS AND A DOG COLONY: A couple of weeks ago we mentioned our pal Diane Cole’s efforts to help a bunch of little dogs that had been dumped in an infrequently traveled area near Mountain View College and the Dallas National Golf Club in southwest Dallas.
As it turns out, another of our frequent rescue contacts is Stephen Plyler, also a veteran rescuer.
Richard has joined Diane in the efforts to save these dogs – rat terrier/Chihuahua mixes, most likeley -- and that photo of the “distant” dogs will give you an idea of how easy earning the trust of small dogs can be. Not easy, is the answer.
But, then, that lone dog in the lap is Bella, one of the dogs.
Richard has been working on getting “these babies off the street and into homes,” he says. “They are very small and in grave danger living on their own in a fairly wooded area. With the assistance of another friend, one of these babies has been trapped. Her name is Bella.
“I am desperately looking for homes or  fosters for them.
“It’s so puzzling how this little family got there and I would love to think they weren’t dumped, but logic says otherwise.
“I will not offer any commentary about the type person who would dump these poor babies because I fear it would be too harsh for some readers. That aside, I was prepared for Bella to be quite feral but she is the opposite...she is a really docile sweetheart.
"Right now, Bella is at my house and is doing wonderfully. She is housetrained, heartworm negative and now updated on all her shots.
“But here is the dilemma if we trap the other three... I will have nowhere to go with them.  I will have them fully vetted for anyone who can foster or adopt. I suspect the others are probably sweet like her too. If anyone can help us save these babies please have them contact me at [email protected]."
HANK IN A FIX: OK, pardon me while I get downright evangelical, but black and white cats – the tuxedo variety – are far more interesting than anyone you’ve ever sat next to at a dinner party or at a family reunion. I know this because we’ve had two at our house – the great Cyril and the magnificent Poirot (had ‘em for decades) – and they were interesting every day of their lives.
This guy Hank has a story – we first told it back in February. His people were returning to England, but could not take Hank.
So a place was found to keep him temporarily while a new home was hunted. Our pal Della Wallace, the rescuer and animal situation monitor, says that Hank’s losing his current home very soon and needs a new place to go. “He is a sweetheart,” Della says. (She’s got dogs who aren’t that keen on cats or she would take him.)
Hank’s in a fix because the person who took him in is losing her home soon and can only take one cat with her when she goes to a new place – apartment rules.
To offer to help an interesting cat, e-mail [email protected] or call 972-294-7415.
LEGISLATIVE SHENANIGANS: State Rep. Don Simpson, R-Longview, is drawing the ire of the anti-puppy mill people again. And the Texas Humane Legislation Network has issued an action alert to help get the bill before the entire Texas House. It would limit the way large-scale breeders do business. You can read about it at www.thln.org. These “big breeders” are the people who put little dogs in tiny cages and force them to have puppies until their insides are mush and their brains are gone and death is nigh. You’ve probably seen video or photos. You may also have seen puppies with birth defects or heard of puppies that die too soon from congenital problems. There is a science and decency to responsible breeding that does not afflict animals and sadden the hearts of people who love them.
CONTEMPLATIONS: Here is the official Readlarrypowell.com stance on Major League Baseball: I don’t care how many times Commissioner Bud Selig says steroid-pumped Barry Bond’s home run record stands, the real home run king is Hank Aaron. And Roger Maris is the real single-season home run king and ought to be in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Nobody who juiced should hold a record. Create a Steroid Hall of Fame somewhere. ... Is it my imagination or are we too tense because of taxes, gas prices, worldwide stress over war and natural disasters and premature Christmas shopping? Some of you have already got your Christmas shopping done, right? Probably afraid you won’t be able to afford gas to take you to the mall later in the year. ... Parenting advice at Easter: Don’t even try to explain how a rabbit can lay eggs. Explain to the kids that it’s more of a distribution service than a manufacturing concern. Oh, and if my studies in Religion Lite 101 are accurate, this is a tough spell for the livestock, i.e., ham and lamb and chicken.  Maybe a prayer of forgiveness would be appropriate, my carnivorous friends.
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