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FROM GOOFING OFF TO WOODSTOCK WITH DOGS AND CATS IN BETWEEN

EDITION OF FRIDAY, MARCH 22, 2019 [PetPowellPress] — While many people celebrate this particular day year round, March 22 is the designed date for National Goof Off Day. It also is International Goof Off Day. I’m betting this is another category in which Americans lead the globe. OK, just some Americans. Not any of ‘em in animal rescue or advocacy or shelter work. You can’t goof off and “be there” for animals.
The history of Goof Off Day is at Holiday Insights HERE. I don’t really know anyone with the talent and ability to “goof off” but I do envy them. 
That, is The Senator goofing off with me. He’s quite a student of the practice — he’s not called “The Senator” for nothin’.

This, of course, is my beloved little dog, Porche Noel, formerly a starving “stray” who is, in this photo, demonstrating how she can goof off. She went to sleep watching me type. She told me she’s not sure it’s writing that I’m doing but she does know that I’m typing. I feel the same way. 
Porche is also a “Message Dog.” And the message she is presenting is “readlarrypowell.com needs photographs and bios of sleeping dogs and napping cats for our long-running weekend feature Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap.” Send photos and info to [email protected]. We’ll show the world how wonderful your companion is when it comes to nodding off, curling up and snoozing or cuddling. If you don’t have a sleeping dog or napping cat in your life, get one. You’ll discover new dimensions of happy existence.
THE BUBBA REPORT
Thursday afternoon we got this update on Bubba, the dog who was battling some awful intestinal problems. His human, Chris Harp, has been working and working to get this boy healthy. Chris wrote, “Bubba continues to get better with every day! We don't have the results back yet from the disease testing that was sent out, but his regular blood panel has shown continued improvement. He is transitioning to firmer food and is finally showing his amazing personality again. He goes back to the vet on Tuesday for suture removal and a re-check. Bubba sends his love and sincere gratitude🙏❤️ We thank you 🙏 Bubba and Chris.”

You remember Bubba’s past. Chris wrote, “He was a rescue from Louisiana. He had been chained to a porch where he was burned horribly and had an eye poked out.  Most of his hair will never grow back and he is one of the most beautiful beings I've ever seen.” [LARRY ASIDE: Bless that Bubba and his man Chris. Don’t you just want to have a vigorous conversation with that jerk in Louisiana!]
WHAT THE HECK IS THE HOLDUP?
DOESN’T ANYBODY CARE ABOUT SADIE?
For a while now — back into last week — we’ve been promoting a rescue of Sadie (80804), a Lab mix who, after being hit by a car, has been waiting in the Denton McNatt Animal shelter for somebody to get her so she can get her leg fixed before it has to be amputated.
If someone takes her, then she won’t be enduring life-saving surgery just to be healthy enough to be killed in a city shelter. Amy Poskey, our tipster, says the 2- to 5-year-old dog has lacerations and a fractured knee. She’s being sustained at taxpayer expense, but she needs to be repaired so she can thrive.
Call the shelter at 940-349-7594 or email these addresses:  [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], and/or [email protected].
ANOTHER CONTINUING TALE: TATERTOT
RETURNS TO VIOLET’S SIDE
Violet — former breeding dog dumped twice and the second time she was dumped the dumpers dumped the two family Chihuahuas right along with her. We wrote about Violet earlier and the big development is that her former companion has joined her in her foster home.
We get the information from  Mary Sullivan, president of Share Our Space Fosters for Pets in Need, Inc. She told us that sweet Violet, a 5-year-old, 61-pound Bull Terrier mix and former “breeding dog” had been adopted and dumped twice at Dallas Animal Services. But now she’s in a foster home. Efforts to ID her fellow dumpees, two Chihuahuas, were successful. One had already been adopted. The other has been named Tatertot and is now living with Violet. 
Oh, why was he named Tatertot? Mary’s note reads, “The family never named him despite the fact that he’d been with them for years! We decided to call him Tatertot because he’s delicious.”

There’s this, too: “He’s got a gimpy leg.  The family said that he’d been hit by a car; it’s unclear when that may have occurred or whether he received veterinary attention (although we think he did),” Mary writes, then adds, “He gets around okay but does have a little hitch in his git-along (as y’all Texans say).”

Tatertot may be 8- or 9-years-old. He weighs 11 pounds but will weigh slightly less shortly because he’s two lightweigh body parts as soon as he gets the vet’s OK. To offer to audition to adopt this pair, call or text 214-783-2060.
And, FYI: Both dogs are adorable, enthusiastic lapdogs.
A SEMI-LOP-EARED DOG
WITH THE NAME OF SARGE
How about that for a great name for this guy! At the Mesquite Animal Services shelter, Sarge is listed as a Shepherd/Back Mouth Cur. [LARRY ASIDE: When I was a kid we might have called him a “mutt” and made sure he spent the rest of his days being hugged on, adored and treated as a member of the family. That’s the kind of treatment he deserves in 2019.]
 Sarge (41068881) came in as a stray on March 14. Our tipster, the shelter biographer Judi Brown, says the 51-pound boy has “a  soft reddish coat and a ready smile. He does  have some scars around his nose. These give him character. He’s a fun loving happy, friendly guy that wags his tail a lot. He  actually whines for attention. He is highly motivated by treats so should be easy to train.
Please call 972–2 16–6283 or email [email protected]. to tag Sarge.
ON THURSDAY AFTERNOON…
HOW MANY CATS ARE THERE?
We checked the animal populations at Dallas Animal Services about 3 p.m. Thursday and found that the cat population, down to 8 cats on Tuesday before spring arrived, has DOUBLED TO SIXTEEN cats. And a lot of them are — guess what — kittens. Why is that? Two reasons: This is spring and this is Dallas the most fertile city in the nation. (There are 227 dogs and 7 “other” (all hamsters) in shelter care.
One of the cats in the care of DAS is this beautiful black and white girl is Zinnia, just over a year old, and in the shelter’s custody since March17. She’s at the PetSmart Everyday Adoption Center, 16821 N. Coit Road, in Dallas. Go to www.dallasanimalservices.org to see how to adopt #A1058390, Zinnia The Beauty.
CONTEMPLATIONS
KNOW YOUR DOG; WOODSTOCK; MUSIC
One of the great points of contemplation is “How well do I know my dog?” On Thursday, the great Della Wallace sent me a note about one of her rescue boys, Roscoe. She wrote, “He’s an escape artist. He opens doors if they are not locked. Driving me nuts!!!  Steals socks and anything else he wants to play with. I’ve never seen a dog with so much energy and Joie de vivre.  His best friend is Nipper (from Mesquite Pound) and he is full of it, too. They are very happy dogs.” [LARRY ASIDE: When I read about Roscoe’s behavior -- and he looks very innocent in that sweet mugshot -- I told Della, “What an entertaining dog! Take him to a bank and let him try out the vault while the staff is distracted. Maybe he's also a retriever!” I was kidding, of course, your honor.]
… OK my fellow ‘60s Refugees, they’re gonna have Woodstock 50 Aug. 16, 17 and 18 at Watkins Glen. N.Y., and there’ll be some legends from the old days on the bill: Santana, John Sebastian, Melanie, David Crosby, Country Joe McDonald, Canned Heat — the last act listed for each day is the famous “And More.” Always a hit. And by that I don’t mean “hit,” I mean “successful appearance.” The first Woodstock in 1969 was described as “Three days of peace and love.” This one is going to be three days of “peace, love, & music.” Not sure it’ll have the hippie/revolutionary element of Woodstock 1969. I remember the biggest problem was keeping up with your cellphone in all that mud. Here’s the LINK to Woodstock50.  …Just for old time’s sake, here’s a Woodstock LINK to Melanie. Right on. Groovy. Peace now.
— Offer opinions or suggestions by clicking on “marketing” below and don’t bogart that mouse, my friend, you can email notes over to me at [email protected]. —-

AN OLDER CAT; DOGS ON THE CLOCK; LABS NEED HELP; TRAVELIN' I-30--WHAT A TRIP

EDITION OF THURSDAY, MARCH 21, 2019 [PetPowellPress] As Winter was doing the handover to Spring at 4:58 p.m. Wednesday, I was on Interstate 20 marveling that, from the westbound lane, there must have been 50 trucks and cars lined up to take the I-35 Waco exit and nothin’ but open highway on the exit to Dallas.
That was my second big mystery of the day; the first was “Why are so many dogs dumped or ignored by people in the Greater Metrosprawl?” Are we overloaded with Tin Woodmen who don’t care whether they have a heart? 

OK, there are two paragraphs I never expected to write. One with Waco and the other with Oz. Too much time trying to stay within the lines on interstate highways with stretches that have been constantly under re-construction since I moved to Fort Worth in 1972. You can bet your bippy Dorothy Gale would never let Toto languish in a shelter. [LARRY ASIDE: And, there, I’ve used two cultural landmarks: The Wizard of Oz from 1939 and source of all things bippy Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-in (1968-72).]
And that’s a cat. That’s Alex (A1061339), a female gray tabby who has been in Dallas Animal Services since Monday. So what? So, she’s about 12 years old, the shelter thinks. Somebody help her. No 12-year-old cat oughta be in a shelter. She oughta be in a lap. (Call 214-670-6800 or go to the big shelter at I-30 and Westmoreland.).
SOME GREAT DOGS
TO MAKE YOU THINK (OR ACT)
Now, what animal advocates and rescuers may think is this: What the heck is wrong with people? But what will those PEOPLE think? Nothing. Otherwise the dogs wouldn’t have been on death row in the Mesquite Animal Shelter.

We’ve got the whole list of animals that were at-peril as Spring arrived. As of this writing, we have no idea if any of them were saved. We’re going to cite three of the many and urge you to click on this LINK to see the whole appeal sent to us by the shelter volunteer Judi Brown.
The light-tan girl Ivee (31094227) was not only on death row, but she was being treated for an “earlaceration” that may cause her ear to be removed if she survived being on death row. Why was she in the shelter? Three dogs were trying to get out of a fence; the other two attacked Ivee. She was the only injured dog, so, Judi wrote, “her owner refused to provide medical treatment, so she was surrendered to us.”
Beautiful 2-year-old Nutmeg we’ve mentioned before — he came in as a stray on Feb. 25. Judi says, “There is someone in Ontario who really wants to adopt Nutmeg — can anyone help?” The dog was terrified when she arrived, but the staff and volunteers have helped him begin “to gradually trust.” Judi says proudly, “When taking him back to the kennel, he actually leaned up against me and wagged his tail.”

The last we’ll highlight is Ria, 7, “who was surrendered after all of her puppies were given away.” She’s quite thin. As she was being introduced to the population at Mesquite, another dog “mounted her to play” and she was frightened and fought back, but suffered wounds on her face, neck and leg. The 44-pound dog however, is good with people and, Judi wrote, “She looks up at you with adoring eyes and wants so badly to be loved on.”
Call the shelter at 972–216–6283 or email [email protected].
[LARRY ASIDE: And there you have it. Some of the dogs that may have survived in over-crowded Mesquite Animal Shelter on Wednesday. Or, they may not have. The pressure on the Mesquite shelter is made immense by people who dump dogs and cats and, when the animals go “stray,” these 'people' blissfully act as if they’d never existed. How can they live with themselves? Yeah, like we can answer that question without inventing a probe that seeks out rancid, misfiring cells in human brains.]
MEANWHILE IN COLLIN COUNTY,
3 OLDER LABS NEED SOME HELP
The subject line on this email says that three Labs have been surrendered to the Collin County Animal Shelter in McKinney and they “have until Saturday.”
Gail Whelan of Companion Animal Network alerted people to this situation after hearing from a contact who was involved in trying to save the dogs.
The forwarded message reads, “I have a friend who had a stroke and cannot take care of her 3 Labs anymore. This is heartbreaking because she has had them since puppies and they are older now. It is so hard to find someone to take one older dog, but 3 together may be impossible. The oldest is 12 (white lab) and she is the mother to the other two who are 9 (Chocolate/White Lab mix). She has put in writing a surrender form and needs us to help find them a home asap.

“These are very good and domesticated dogs. More couch potatoes than dog, but still playful. They love to play outside and would swim all day if allowed.”
The contact points are: [email protected] OR CALL JERI AT 469-867-8214
CONTEMPLATIONS
THE RIDE; THE CANDIDATES; THE VIEWS

Thoughts from 5 hours on two interstate highways and one hour between them. … Lots of cattle can be seen from I-30 between Dallas and Texarkana. Some have impressive horns. There’s one place east of Sulphur Springs that has either an alpaca or a llama — I was driving too fast to make a good ID on the beast, but I do know that it didn’t have horns. Unless it was a shape-shifter. Wednesday was Alien Abduction Day. … 
Watching TV news: Dallas has more candidates for mayor than the Democrats have candidates for president. What does this mean? Does it mean anything? Does it mean that there are a lot of people who don’t know what a punishing task it is to be mayor of Dallas, Texas? Don’t they follow the news? … Back to the interstates — I-30 looks a lot like this most of the way — this was Wednesday morning and I’d just passed a car — there are constant signs reminding that the left lane is for passing only. I chose to go to Texarkana on Interstate 30 because it’s the quickest route from my house unless traffic inside the city of Dallas is fouled up by construction and collisions and surprise hazards. If that’s the case, your quickest route is by canoe up the Trinity to the Red River and then down to Ashdown, Ark., where you rent a bike and pedal down U.S. 71 into T-town. I came back via I-30 to Greenville, then took Texas 34 down a comfortable, soothing throwback 2-lane highway route through horse and cattle country to Terrell where I caught I-20 to Dallas. Why did I do that? Because the last place a sane person wants to drive on I-30 is into Dallas during rush hour. Doesn’t matter what direction you’re going, you’re not going anywhere fast. This is especially true if you’re going west and passing through Rockwall. If you go too fast in Rockwall, there are efficient police officers monitoring your speed. I’m law-abiding in Rockwall. And that almost concludes my Thursday ramble. I’d be interested in hearing if anyone enjoys traveling on I-30. Not that we can change it. When it comes to seeing any breath-taking landscapes, the closest thing not involving towering pine trees is the maybe 10-story high pile of dirt at the landfill right off the highway at the New Boston exit.

—- To offer answers, advice or opinions, click on ‘comment’ below or email [email protected] and I’ll read it during one of my spells of insomnia — this time I’m being kept awake wondering if it’s true the landfill’s mountain is named after a former mayor of New Boston. —-

SPRING, SPACE ALIENS, TERRIFIED DOGS, RESCUED DOG, AVAILABLES, DAS CAT STATS & WAFFLEHEISTS

EDITION OF WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20, 2019 [PetPowellPress] Spring gets to Texas today — 4:58 p.m.
 Just to make sure we didn’t miss anything else, Holiday Insights notes that the 20th is also International Earth Day, Proposal Day, National Agriculture Day and, one my family always celebrates, Extraterrestrial Abductions Day. [LARRY EXPLANATION: That’s an old snapshot of our late beloved Inky, the Cocker Laureate of the State of Texas and Assorted Planets, in his favorite uniform. I found him in Kiest Park — a puppy hairless except for one ear. Not sure of his origin, but he and I would sit in the yard at night and look at the stars. I alway had a feeling he knew what he was looking at in the Milky Way.]
TERRIFIED TRIO IN EULESS
This photo popped up Tuesday and we first saw it on the Trinity GAP Club Facebook page — Jesica King had posted it there. The GAP Club, the organization of young animal advocates from Euless Trinity, works with Euless Animal Services to get animals such as these to safety.
 No doubt anybody with a heart nearly broke into tears when they saw these three dogs huddled in terror. Shouldn’t happen to animals. The note read, “Sure wish people would leave collars and tags on their animals. These 3 are literally shaking in the corner.” 
They came into the shelter on Saturday. Jesica and others are trying to find a foster home for them. “I’d like for them to stay together until they feel safe,” she wrote. To help these dogs, call or text 214-709-3332. There’s a video HERE on the Lost and Found Pets: Hurst, Euless, Bedford, Richland Hills, Haltom City, Texas Facebook page.

DESPERATE PLEA FOR BLIND DOG
Our inbox was peppered with “BEYOND URGENT” notes about Jack. He was in the Garland Shelter and described as “Terrified,  White, Blind, GSD X  w/Dysentery **CODE RED***  THERE IS NO MORE TIME TO HESITATE HERE, NONE!!!  BEGGING FOR HELP & PLEDGES!!!  AGE UNKNOWN!!!”
At the noon hour, Amy Poskey, the veteran animal tipster and advocate, sent a note: “I’m beyond happy to report that SNOW CAPPED SHEPHERD RESCUE [based in Colorado] has tagged this sweet boy!!!  This just makes my day!!!  Amy.”
You can catch up with the rescue group online HERE.
PUDDING AND JOY
AMONG MESQUITE AVAILABLES
This guy is 2-year-old Pudding, a Jack Russell/Dachshund mix who, the Mesquite shelter’s volunteer biographerJudi Brown writes, “was surrendered …on 3/16 due to landlord issues. Pudding is a beautiful boy with huge brown eyes. I’m sure you can tell from the pictures that he is not completely comfortable with his surroundings. He will be a work in progress. He does want to make friends. After spending some time with him he would cautiously come to me. At one point he even got on my lap. However, a few minutes later I had to start the process all over again. He will need TLC..” The 20-pound Pudding’s shelter number is 41084014. Use it when you call the shelter at 972-216-6293 or email [email protected] to tag him.
Mesquite also has a bunch of available cats including this 5-year-old named Joy. She’s 41105512 at the shelter and listed as “small” but that’s an awful big-looking small, wouldn’t you say? She’s in the cat room as of Tuesday afternoon.
You can see many more Mesquite adoptables by clicking on the shelter site HERE.

MARSHALL GRAIN IN GRAPEVINE
CELEBRATES ON SATURDAY
Joyce Connelley, one of the guiding forces at pet-friendly Marshall Grain Co. in Grapevine, sends word that the company is “commemorating the 10th anniversary of its Grapevine location with a special day-long celebration on Saturday, March 23. 
Official hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the pet-friendly store at 3525 Wm . Tate Ave. in Grapevine.
[LARRY ASIDE: In the news release, Joyce included a photo of kids and a clown from the grand opening of the store — so the kids are 10 years older and the clown, of course, has not aged.]
The party includes gardening tips and talks, vendor give-aways, refreshments, other things and, of course, pet adoptions.
Go to Marshall Grain online to see details of the store and the event and these storecats. Told you they were animal-friendly.


CONTEMPLATIONS

BEAGLES; DAS STATS; WAFFLE HOUSE HEISTS

Tuesday morning, I had Dallas County jury duty — not chosen. Didn’t even make it out of the big jury room at Frank Crowley Criminal Courts Bldg. So, I arrived home to open the email and discover a story (thanks for the tip to the great Andy Allen, legendary animal advocate) about a lab in Michigan that has been testing pesticides on Beagles. If those people had been on the docket in Dallas County Tuesday, I know one “throw-em-in-the-slammer” vote on the jury. Here’s the LINK. … About the DAS daily stats. We monitor the shelter’s animal population at dallasanimalservices.org where you can see photos of available animals. Just after 5 p.m. Tuesday, the shelter had posted 214 adoptable dogs, 9 adoptable hamsters and 8 adoptable cats — can anyone explain why the shelter that one had scores of cats now is down to just 8? We suspect it’s the rescue partnership and an aggressive adoption program. Anyone want to comment? … Did you see the story about the two guys who robbed 4 Waffle House restaurants in 80 minutes right here in the Metrowafflesprawl earlier this week? Apparently the early version of the charges is “aggravated robbery.” But, as a loyal Waffle House customer, I was scattered by this affront and, frankly, rather than a pedestrian robbery charge, I’d like to see them charged with a “home invasion robbery.” The Waffle House is like home — someone’s always busy in the kitchen and the familiar food is served hot. To many of us, a Waffle House breakfast at any hour, night or day, is like dining at Mom’s. And I’m pretty sure, young bandits, Waffle House doesn’t cater the Texas prison system. Years without the Waffle House? Buddy, that’s some hard time.
—- To offer an opinion or a solution, click on “comment” below or email [email protected]. —-

FOR TUESDAY: VIOLET LEADS THE LIST OF ANIMALS WHO NEED HUMANS

EDITION OF TUESDAY, MARCH 19, 2019 [PetPowellPress] Pardon me while I take a moment to pet my dog Dudley who just woke and ambled over to say “Hello.” … OK, he’s back to his slumberpoint. Here we go with some animal stories — let’s make that animal/human stories.
THE VIOLET STORY
This note was forwarded to us and it has to do with a former Dallas Animal Services resident. The original story came from Mary Sullivan, president of Share Our Space Fosters for Pets in Need, Inc. She wrote, “After a long winter, we’re all ready for some spring flowers, right?  Well, have I got a beautiful Violet for you!  This sweet girlie was adopted out almost two years ago to a home with other dogs.  Everyone got along famously and we believed that Violet had found the perfect forever family.  Unfortunately, she landed back at DAS the other day…along with the other dogs in the family.   Apparently, no one had time for Violet and her pals any longer.  So, back to the drawing board.”

When Violet’s chip was ID’d, a connection was made and people immediately got her to safety. To offer to adopt or help her now, call:214-783-2060. And, yes, people are trying to ID Violets’ co-dogs and get them out of the shelter, too
Here’s Violet’s story: She’s a 5-year-old, 61-pound Bull Terrier mix. Also, “She’s a happy dog, affectionate with people, and very much the snuggler.  She’s also great with other dogs (including little ones – her former roommates were Chihuahuas) and good with kids, though when she gets excited, she’s strong enough to knock a little kiddo over, so she’d probably do better with kids over 10.”

Here’s what she’s been challenged by in her life — in addition to being dumped twice. Mary wrote, “Once upon a time, she was a breeding dog and was probably overbred, but that hasn’t had an adverse impact on her.  Also, she’s got a cleft palate, but it doesn’t require surgery and she seems to function perfectly well with it (except that she snores…ah, but don’t we all sometimes?).”
[LARRY ASIDE: And I don’t which dogs came in with her to DAS, so go ahead and adopt all the dogs at DAS — at 2:38 p.m. Monday, the Dallas Animal Services site HERE listed 225 dogs and 10 cats available for adoption. Ten cats? Holy smoke. Most were at the PetSmart Everyday Adoption Center; one was in a foster home; and Pepe and Juan were at the big shelter. And, oh yeah, there’s this girl Tori (1058529) — nope, not photographed on Ash Wednesday, that’s her natural look. She’s 6, came in on Feb. 15 and is a spayed blonde and black German Shepherd. Call the shelter at 214-670-6800 or go there — I-30 at Westmoreland. You can’t miss it — it’s the place with the CATS WANTED sign out front. I’m happily kidding about that.]
MERGING THE EFFORTS:

HUTCHINS/WILMER/FERRIS 

Here’s the report from the folks who generally deal with the small shelters south of Dallas in the Help The Animals Corridor — I made up that title. But here’s the deal, our tipsters report, “We have some changes in this small rural shelter posting.  Hutchins dogs will soon be joining Wilmer dogs at the Wilmer Shelter per a new contract between the cities.  And as you are aware. Dallas County dogs are already part of the same shelter. We are also attempting to now help Ferris Shelter which could mean posting not only dogs, but some kitties in the future too, since Ferris does take in kitties.” 
The postings will now be united since the contact info is the same, they say. And this is the contact point: Call or text 214-949-2726 or email [email protected].
In this episode of UNITING THE CITIES: SAVING THE DOGS, we cite that big girl in the opening photo. She is Hallie, either a Vizla or mix or Redbone Coonhound or mix, maybe. She was, according to the info, “found out on the highway with a dog she was with that had been hit and killed. Just so sad. She is absolutely precious.” A year old, calm, sweet and in foster care.

The baby dogs are Chloe and Zoey, thought to be siblings but the only evidence is they were found together.
There is another puppy still loose, our tipsters say. So, stand by. 

FROM PANOLA COUNTY,
THREE PUPPIES WAITING
This story of Tash (left) and tan Lux and Cate comes from Marie Garza in Panola County in East Texas. The three “were  dumped to die on a rural secluded road!" she says. "They laid sleeping literally one foot away from the road for three cold days and nights until I could get them in my rent car!
“They are now safe!  They've gone to the vet where they got ALL their shots including rabies, Nexguard for fleas and ticks and shampoo for their Demodex manage.  They are approximately 4 months old.  All of this vetting was paid for by Barkleyworld.com but we need funds to have them all spayed—approx $70 per pup for a total of $210!  Donations gratefully appreciated thru Barkleyworld ...
“We are looking for an approved rescue to take the pups so they have a chance for a forever loving home!"
Contact Marie at [email protected].

[LARRY ASIDE: You all know the heroic animalfan Karen Lee of non-profit barkleyworld.com. And here’s her Facebook LINK.]
MEANWHILE IN DENTON
Once upon a time we were tipped to three dogs that needed out of the Denton McNatt Animal Shelter — Mouse, Jack Jack and Sadie. Amy Poskey tells us that Mouse and Jack Jack have been rescued, “but sweet Sadie is still waiting for her miracle. Sadie is the sweetest girl and she loves her treats, but she’s just lying in her kennel and her knee/leg needs medical attention.  Look at that sweet face and those eyes just begging for love!  All she needs is a little extra TLC and she will be as good as new!”
Sadie (80804), a young Labby mix, has been hit by a car — cuts and a fractured knee. Needs some help. 
Here are the contact points: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], and/or [email protected]. Call the shelter at 940-349-7594.

TWO DOGS STILL BEING SOUGHT:
SHELBY AND COSMO
We’ve reported on their stories. Shelby is lost in northern Irving — may have gone over a tall fence after a squirrel, as Border Collies might do. Cosmo bolted during a rescue transfer north of McKinney. Keep your eyes open for them. Click on these posters to make them grow!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CONTEMPLATIONS
ROXY'S DAY, STAR WARS?, IN THE LOUNGE
We read a note from the Mesquite biographer Judi Brown suggesting that if people wanted to adopt this girl, Roxy, about 9, they ought to move quickly because the old girl was the kind of dog people would love to have around the house. I was working ahead in my schedule and asked myself, “What are the odds?” and went ahead and posted Roxy’s photo. Sure enough, here came the glorious note from Judi, “She went to an adoption event at PetSmart Saturday and was adopted from that event. One of the volunteers met the lady that adopted Roxy and felt like it was a good placement. Roxy is a real special girl that is overweight and because of her excess weight was somewhat listless. Hopefully the new owner will put her on a diet!” It’s a really good feeling to know that older dogs have a place in Texas homes. We’ve had a few through the years and they’ve all been great joys. … Cable station TNT has been running the Star Wars movies for the past few days, one after the other at times. Here’s a point of discussion: If Star Wars, now subtitled A New Hope, had not been the first strong presentation back in 1977, none of the others had enough charm and muscle to lead a parade of sequels. And, yes, I do miss Carrie Fisher, the actress/writer. Surely you knew she was a famous “script doctor.” Here’s a LINK. And that's her photo from another classic, Blues Brothers. … Here’s an appropriate song from a famous lounge singer. And some of you will recognize the piano player, too.
—- Offer opinions or advice by clicking on ‘comment’ below or by emailing [email protected] —-

MISSING IN IRVING: SHELBY

EXTRA EDITION, MONDAY MARCH 18, 2019 [PetPowellPress] This is an extraordinary BE ON THE LOOKOUT for a wonderful girl dog who was saved only to be lost. 
We got Shelby’s info from veteran rescuer Carol Duncan who helped her survive some serious ailments after she’d been rescued from Dallas Animal Services. She fostered Shelby during her pneumonia and heartworm treatments. That was in September. 

And now, Shelby, at 42 lively pounds, is lost somewhere in the area of Northwest Park in Irving, in the big area north of Irving Mall where her human, Mark Pierce, lives. Or, she may have been picked up! Or someone took her in! If you have seen Shelby or know her whereabouts, call Mr. Pierce at 972-255-0744 or Carol at 214-680-0514.
Mr. Pierce, who is retired, had adopted Shelby in mid-February — she’d become his dog after, Carol writes, “he lost his beloved Border Collie Cheyenne due to lymphoma.”

As you can tell from the photo, Shelby is a frisky dog — that is an element of this story. Mark has a doggie door and a 6-foot stockade fence.

On March 8, Mark had stepped inside his home briefly and when he returned, she had vanished. Carol says, “We believe that she was chasing a squirrel on the top of the fence and somehow managed to go over it.  (Yes, I've had a dog before who could sail over my 6-5’ fence.)”

Carol says, “A woman called the Border Collie Rescue Texas number a short time later from a park that is a block away from Mr. Pierce's house (Northwest Park in Irving) and said that there was a dog there wearing a BCRT [Border Collie Rescue of Texas] tag.  However, she left without taking the dog or confining her in any way.  No one has seen Shelby since then.”
She adds, “Mr. Pierce is broken-hearted … We have listed Shelby all over Facebook, through the microchip company, on Pawboost, and every other venue that we can think of.  Flyers have been created and posted all over the area where she was lost.  The night she was lost, I drove over to Irving and walked the area until after 1 a.m. with no luck.  The Irving shelter has been notified and has her listed as a lost dog on their website.  Yet there have been no reported sightings.
“I believe that someone who was at that park after she got lost may have taken her home with them.  They may not live in the immediate area, as people go there for various activities, so they might not have seen the flyers.  I'm at a loss however, as to why they would not have contacted us through the BCRT tag that she is wearing or by having her scanned for a microchip, which leads back to us, as well." (Once again, call Mr. Pierce at 972-255-0744 or Carol at 214-680-0514.)
[LARRY ASIDE: The dog I was raised with was this Border Collie girl named Queenie — there wasn’t a fence that could hold her. She loved being active — three boys kept her busy. I miss her every day. It is in honor of Queenie and in honor of the hearts of people who rescue and adopt these glorious dogs that I post this appeal for Shelby. May she be safe and may she be returned to her home for a long and happy life befitting a legendary Border Collie.]
— Click on ‘comment’ below or email [email protected]. —-

FOR MONDAY: A CAVALCADE OF CRITTERS AND A FEW HUMANS IN THE MIX, TOO

EDITION OF MONDAY, MARCH 18, 2019 [PetPowellPress] Chalk this up something previously unseen. At dallasanimalservices.org on Sunday afternoon, the city listed 236 dogs available for adoption and only 16 cats.
Sixteen.
And here we are at the official outset of puppy and kitten season in the most fertile city in any of Texas’ legendary 254 counties. 
Among the available cats is 4-year-old Beau (with his tongue out), in the shelter’s care since DECEMBER 1, 2018. How can he not have been adopted? He’s in a foster home so email [email protected].
The other older DAS cat is Frisk, thought to be about 10. He’s been in the shelter care since February 18. You can see him at the PetSmart Everyday Adoption Center, 16821 N. Coit Road in Dallas.  When you see him, he won't be as warped as this shelter photograph!
FOUND ON THE ROAD
We learned of this dog through our veteran rescue pal Deborah Lynn Verner who reports that the “pup kept crossing Miller Road @ Rolando, almost getting hit. Found out that he used to have an owner on this street, but they died. .He with Garland Animal Control now. Deb says, “He’s a very calm pup. No collar, not neutered. He's small/medium size. NO microchip.
The link TO ADOPT HIM IS HERE.
As long as you're reading, there’s an impressive bunch of animals needing help on the Facebook group site for Lost & Found Dogs and Cats of Garland/Mesquite HERE.
A RUSTY REMINDER
The Just Save The Dog folks posted this note about Rusty, the dog facing death because, while at an adoption event at Klyde Warren Park, he bit a kid. The suggestion is that if Frisco and Dallas Cowboys Quarterback Dak Prescott can work out a deal to save the life of a free-roaming, human-biting Pittie, Icon, surely the big ol’ progressive and tender-hearted City of Dallas can keep Rusty from getting the needle. Here’s the FACEBOOK LINK to see how to help. 
Here’s quote from the note: “JSTD has been advised that the Rusty case will be discussed in Council’s closed session this Wednesday, March 20, 2019. We have the support of a few councilmembers to argue in favor of the city dropping the city’s appeal to the Texas Supreme Court. However, WE NEED ALL DALLAS ADVOCATES to email or phone their councilmembers, educate them on the issue, and encourage them to DROP the city’s appeal to the Texas Supreme Court.”

A RESCUE DOG WHO’LL
PROBABLY RESCUE YOU

That’s generally the way it works out. You're moping; the dog you rescued walks up and, with a nuzzle, changes your mind about life. 
In this case, Roxy (41070453) is an 8- or 9-year-old Golden Retriever who is rescue only because of her age. Our tipster, Judi Brown, the volunteer biographer for Mesquite Animal Shelter, says Roxy “was surrendered to the Mesquite Animal Shelter on 3/14 because the owners were moving! … Roxy is a total sweetheart! She not only is absolutely gorgeous, she is also friendly and very affectionate. She appears happy as she wags her tail constantly. She is gentle and calm.” 
The 71-pounder loves belly rubs. Judi writes, “Her previous owners, who had had her for three years, said that she was an inside outside dog and that she is good with children of all ages and with other dogs.”
Call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email [email protected].
AFTER THE STORM, IT’S BREEZY
AT APOLLO SUPPORT & RESCUE
You may remember that the Justin facilities of Apollo Support & Rescue got blown around quite a bit by last week storm.
 Apollo says support has been “amazing” and that “we were a bit worried since Facebook wasn’t fully working …but everyone really came through!”
And the Apollo folks also wrote, “As the clean-up at our facility continues, so does our main mission, saving dogs.” 
That is the appropriately named Breezy, currently in an Apollo foster home where she’s working out tummy issues and hoping to put on some weight. She’s only 14 pounds right now, but, Apollo says, “still such a sweet and loving girl.” See Apollo Support and Rescue on Facebook or check out the website HERE.
CONTEMPLATIONS
DAVE BARRY, A WOLF AND A SONG
We got this report from our Easter Seaboard Bureau Chief Andy Fisher, known as a respected journalist though also recognized as husband of Annie and the human who is carefully looked after by Maxie the Dog and Chloe the Cat. He also has contacts in the news world, including famed ABC reporter Bill Diehl. This time it was a Diehl-to-Fisher tip about a soon-to-be-released book by the famed Miami-based writer/humorist/columnist Dave Barry. It’s called Lessons From Lucy: The Simple Joys of an Old, Happy Dog. You can’t judge a book by the cover, but if it has an old dog on it and the byline DAVE BARRY, it’s probably going to be happily worth the investment. … I’m probably not the only Texan who is enamored by wildlife and doesn’t want to shoot any of the free-roaming critters. Now and then I wonder if there were wolves in the Ark-La-Tex woods where we camped when I was a Boy Scout back in the ‘50s and ‘60s. Maybe that’s why this story about the giant wolf Yuki caught my eye. I remember seeing GIANT shadows among the towering pines. Read the Yuki story HERE. … In honor of wolves of all kinds, here’s our MUSICAL TRIBUTE. If you’re reading this in an office, crank your speakers way up. It’ll make people look differently at you.
— Offer opinions or explanations by clicking on ‘comment’ below or by emailing [email protected]. —

SPRING ROLL IN DENVILLE; ST. PAT’S, THE K9 EVENT & BUBBA THE AILING DOG — HE’S HOME AND BEING LOVED!

We’re going to get into a spring salute to a New Jersey dog and cat shortly, but, as you can see in the headline, this edition has several elements — all touch on the love for animals. It’s a topic for the heart.

For our regular weekend feature, Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap, we start not with a slumbering animal, but with a dog who is having a spring roll on the grass a little bit early. 
That is Maxie, a staffer in our Eastern Seaboard Bureau, based on the wonderful shores of Indian Lake in Denville, N.J.
Our Bureau Chief Andy Fisher, veteran of newspapers, radio and NBC's Today Show, reports that even though spring won’t officially arrive until 5:58 p.m. EDT on March 20 in Denville, Maxie took advantage of the 70s-plus temps on Friday.
[LARRY ASIDE: Temps in Dallas Friday? In the 50s. Apparently before spring arrives, the Earth is spending some time off its axis, otherwise there’s still be a half-a-foot of snow on the ground at Indian Lake and Dallas would be hovering in the 80s. Not sure that's an exaggeration.]

 You might wonder how Maxie has the energy to flop down by the lake and roll around like an enthusiastic puppy.
He gets his sleep. You see here examples of where he sleeps. He has the small bed, and he has the large bed, though, as you can see, Chloe the Cat, another of our Eastern Seaboard Bureau staffers, has a different opinion about whose bed that big one is. In fact, she’s known to “influence” Maxie to get up and change beds.
Maxie, FYI, has been reluctant to go outside for much of the winter — it’s too wet, too cold, or too icy/snowy for a smart pup to try to negotiate a single step into an arctic environment.

Maxie and Chloe are both rescues. The person who turned Bureau Chief Fisher into the famed Critter Whisperer of Indian Lake is Mrs. Fisher, Annie, a veteran at the rescue adoption mission.
 That's Maxie with the pair of them in warmer times on Indian Lake.
You might wonder about that photo of Chloe in the suitcase. Annie was packing for a weekend trip and Chloe thought she’d give a big hint that she’d like to go, too.
She ultimately stayed with Andy and Maxie and caught a little TV now and then.
[REMEMBER: We’re proud to post photos of your slumbering animals in our weekend feature, Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap. Send the photos and inphos, er, info, to [email protected]. Your life with your animals demonstrate that a household can benefit from having a calm sleeper in the home. Also, you’ll inspire insomniacs to believe that they, too, can get some sleep — if they find the right suitcase to crawl into, but they’ll start to belief.]

THREE MORE NOTES:
IRISH RITA; K9S; BUBBA AT HOME
NOT AN IRISH WOLFHOUND, but, Rita’s probably got some Irish in her — don’t we all? We offer this photo snapped by our pal Diane O’Combs. Wait. I got carried away with the Irish. That’s Diane Combs, longtime SPCA volunteer and famed adoptor of rescued dogs — in fact, she adopted Rita through Cody’s Friends, a note rescue group.
Here’s Diane’s little girl Rita reminding us that St. Patrick’s Day is Sunday and that Dallas celebrates it for at least the 48 hours of the entire weekend. So, be careful. 
My theory is Rita is dressed as a Leprehund. I’m sorry, I’ve misspelled Leprechaun. Luck of the Irish that she’d get me for a speller.

A NOBLE EVENT ON SATURDAY

 

Here’s the announcement for an important K9 event at the Cedar Hill Memorial Park. You may recall how the people with Cedar Hill Pet Memorial Project saved an entire cemetery for animals and gave it some wonderful focus with tributes to “War Dogs” and acknowledgment of the K9 first responders. Click on it make it larger.

CATCHING UP WITH
THE STORY OF BUBBA
As we reported during the week, Bubba has been enduring some really tough medical challenges. They shut down his intestines for a while and rendered the poor boy quite ill. But his human, Chris Harp, has been taking extraordinary measures to save this dog he loves. And Chris hasn’t been too shy to ask for financial help to save his wonderful Bubba. 
(On the left you see a mugshot of Bubba in post-surgery recovery.)
I asked Chris how he came to be Bubba’s human. 
Dear Readers, I’m going to warn you ahead of the explanation. You are going to read it and get a mad as I did at a stranger or strangers. You also are going to want the best things in life for Bubba. 
Chris explains: “He was a rescue from Louisiana. He had been chained to a porch where he was burned horribly and had an eye poked out.  Most of his hair will never grow back and he is one of the most beautiful beings I've ever seen. I foster failed on him. He's quite the soul!!!
“Here's Bubba before he got sick.”
Bubba is now back at home after visits to an emergency clinic and his regular vet after he became so ill. He’s had the limit of two surgeries to correct his obstructions and function, so he’s at the point of time and medicine doing the healing work.

Chris says, “Bubba is stable and home. His kidneys are starting to show signs of failing, but, hopefully, now that he's stable their function will improve. Main goal is to keep his intestines moving and monitor his kidney function....we will go from there.”
Barkleyworld.com's guiding light Karen Lee, who first tipped us to Bubba says you can donate to Bubba’s cause thru Barkleyworld at http://www.barkleyworld.com/. “We are a 501c3 and I will send you a tax receipt and a huge thank you. All donations through Barkleyworld are paid directly to the vet performing services and never to individuals,” Karen writes. She says, also, Bubba Rasmussen’s vet account is at Animal Health Care Center, 817-467-6688. The gofundme site to cover Bubba’s emergency surgery is HERE.
And you can text Chris at  (817) 896-2607 or email [email protected].
[LARRY ASIDE: God bless Bubba and all who love him. And, may some force for good get hold of the Louisiana villain or villains and change their hearts.]
— Offer opinions or solutions at ‘comment’ below or email [email protected]. —-

STILL SEEKING COSMO

Our pal Jan Gifford sent us a copy of the latest flier about the search for Cosmo, the 10-year-old fellow who was "lost in transit."  Click on it to make it larger.
He's had enough time to move beyond the area near McKinney where he was last seen on March 7. But you never know. He may still be in the neighborhood. He could be too terrified to move -- he hasn't been without his loved ones for his entire lief. Or he could have been picked up by someone and driven off to another city. Whatever the case, his rescuers need to know about him. Contact information is on this flier. Keep your eyes open!
--- Bless the animals on this planet. Click on 'comment' below or email [email protected]. ---

 

THINGS OF BEAUTY: ANIMALS NEEDING HOMES & RECALLING ONCE-COMMON PHRASING

EDITION OF FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2019 [PetPowellPress] Just before I began to type this edition, I was walking down the hall and our cat Simon was leading the way. From above, Simon looks like he’s smuggling a swinging bowling ball in his abdomen and I said to the innocent cat, “Got a little mid-drift bulge there, Simon?” He didn’t reply. Nor should he have responded. I’ll bet I haven’t heard “mid-drift bulge” out loud since the 1960s when it was the “selling point” of Playtex TV commercials. Simon, born in late 2017, may never have heard the term. This is a photo of substantial Simon with his Rottie mentor, Texas Earl the Cheeseman. More on bulge and non-bulge items in Contemplations. First, some animal opportunities for people who need animals and don’t yet know it.
THE LATEST REPORT
FROM BURNS FLAT
We keep up with Burns Flat’s animal situations in western Oklahoma because we find it interesting that the one-woman force of animal-saving nature Terry Lynn Fisher keeps working away at her mission. Thursday morning we got an email headlined “BURNS FLAT, OKLA … ONLY FIVE LEFT NEEDING RESCUE.”
This is after weeks and weeks of a tsunami of animal situations that had tried and failed to beat down Terry Lynn’s spirit. She kept running into humans who are such disappointments when it comes to protecting their own critters. 

About the phrase “only five left needing rescue,” Terry Lynn said, “Writing those words is almost unbelievable.... There are 5 needing rescue... While I still have large outstanding balances at the clinic and boarding, the dogs are LEAVING for rescues...
“Here are the last five needing a safe and loving place to go:

“BRUNO: I pulled this big goofy boy from the Hammon pound. It is also an outdoor pound and the wind chill got below 0. We put him in boarding to keep safe and warm....he only has enough for 4 more days in boarding. He now needs a rescue, or he will have to go back to the pound and face being killed... They do not like holding them past the stray hold because they have to care for them.” Then she writes, “I have taken a dog (from there) that had been attacked to get treated, then they were going to take him back and kill him... WHAT???”

“EMMA: This doll was picked up at the edge of town... She is young and a wiggle worm… She just cries when I leave... She is in our pound and really needs a rescue... Lab mix, maybe 35 pounds.”

“OREO: This poor girl was dumped by her people and the family members that took her in are awful… I have taken so many dogs from them... They took Oreo and two nights later, she was viciously attacked by their male... She had some serious injuries...  Now all better, she is still in boarding at my vet and ready to leave for rescue.”
“RUFUS: This boy was left behind when his owners moved... The friend with him went to rescue right away. Rufus had mange, so he went to my vet. Now all better, this love bug needs rescue so he can find his forever family.”

“ZEUS: This big boy is not happy at all in the small outdoor kennels at our pound.. he is so unhappy... He is a beautiful boy and really needs out asap.”

The best way to get in touch with Terry Lynn is to email her at remembering_oddball@- yahoo.com.

[LARRY ASIDE: As you can see, Terry Lynn gets more than her share of tough cases to handle — mainly because of the people. And sometimes I think, “Holy smoke! The free-roaming idiots of Dallas have crossed the Red River and are trying to colonize western Oklahoma!” That sounds like an exaggeration, but I’m still not sure it isn't too far from reality.]
A BEAUTIFUL FLOWER IN NEED
OF A MODELING AGENT
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, geez, we mentioned yesterday that the Mesquite Animal Shelter was facing an
overabundant population of stray and dumped dogs. Sure enough, many of the animals were on the clock for 11 a.m. Thursday. Perhaps they were rescued or adopted or somehow beat the clock.

This dog is not on the Code Red list — yet.
But, she’s been there since March 7. With any luck, she may just have a future in modeling, based on these photos provided to us by the shelter’s volunteer biographer, Judi Brown. 
She began this bio with: “According to the  app ‘Dog Scanner.’ Flower is 87% terrier pit and 13% Staffordshire pit.” [LARRY ASIDE: That may be the breed, but that ain’t the breeding, pilgrim. Environment is a giant influence on dogs —love being the key ingredient.]
 The 4-year—old, 65-pound Flower is a former stray. Judi adds, “She’s a beautiful dog with a sweet face and eyes that look like they’re lined with eyeliner.
“She’s got a stocky body that’s relatively low to the ground. This adds to her cuteness. She’s a happy girl that even tries to engage you at her window. She’s another wiggle worm that seems to love everyone.

 “She’s a happy, gentle, affectionate dog. She wants to please, and she sits for treats. Once she checked out the yard she stayed close — wanting closeness. She does not jump on you. She went nose-to-nose with other dogs in the bay, wagging her tail.
“She would no doubt make a wonderful family pet. I can see her bringing many years of joy to a loving family. … She’s apparently been well cared for. It appears as though she’s been an inside dog.”
To get a place in line of modeling agents and big-hearted people (I’m hoping) who want to rescue or adopt Flower, call the shelter at 972–216–6283 or email rescues@cityofmes- quite.com — be sure to use her shelter ID 41022035.
See Mesquite’s adoptable dogs and cats online HERE .
Pass it on. There are millions of people in the Metrosprawl — they can’t all already have the statutory limit on household animals.
[LARRY FYI: I’ve seen human modeling portfolios that didn’t have this much expression in the photographs! Flower’s got spirit. Just needs a human to step between her and the needle.]
CONTEMPLATIONS
WILD ANIMALS, TIME MACHINE AND BULGE
Remember that incident last week in which the woman was attacked by a Jaguar at the zoo near Phoenix? Yeah, I’m not planning on getting that close to a wild animal, myself. I think there’s a place for people who dare to test the striking range and speed of a wild animal; it’s spelled ER. And, oddly, in the email Thursday, I got a note from PETA about some otter petting that occurred at SeaQuest Fort Worth. Xander is an “Asian small-clawed otter,” but no matter how big his claws, two people were wounded by the attempts at affection, PETA says a U.S. Department of Agriculture report found. Here’s the PETA release. And here’s a way to dine with Xander (click HERE ). This SeaQuest photo shows him having a snack — those are, perhaps, fingerlings, not fingers. …
A newspaper in the United Kingdom, The Sun, posted a story about the invention of a tiny time machine. It’s a start. Here’s the tech-heavy story.
If the machine were not so small, I’d rent it, crawl into it and go back to the Lakewood Dixie House for some fried green tomatoes and a nice salad with blue cheese dressing and some cornbread muffins with extra butter. And that is why no time machine is big enough for me and why I won’t be leading any expeditions by the Temporal Force, sister agency to the Space Force. I’m also not going to space anytime soon. Need a bigger rocket. … Speaking of “mid-drift bulge.” Yeah, I haven’t heard that term used in years and years — maybe since the appropriation of “muffin top” as a synonym. Here’s a LINK to an old TV commercial. It also has the phrase “seven-way stretch” for a girdle. Who needs a time machine when we have old TV commercials?
—- Offer diet tips or opinions by clicking on ‘comment’ below or by emailing [email protected] (we open all mail that has the code word ‘cash.’) I’m kidding. —-

APOLLO'S STORM DAMAGE; A DOG NAMED BUBBA IS ENDURING HARD TIMES

EDITION OF THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019 [PetPowellPress] Good grief, some storm. About Texas weather: I can live with the heat; I can endure the cold. The pollen season doesn’t even bother me since I became a vegetarian 20 years ago. 
But the wind? Texas wind is scary. You never know when it’s gonna turn on you. And that gets us to the Apollo Support and Rescue organization in Justin. We’ll also address the story of Bubba the Dog. That’s his majestic sleepy face. Here we go:
AFTER THE STORM
Yeah, that Wednesday morning storm knocked things around a bit on the 5-acre spread that is Apollo Support and Rescue on Dove Hill Road in Justin. The nearly 4,000 population municipality that advertises itself as “Justin: Everything A Hometown Should Be.”
Before Facebook went dizzy on us Wednesday, Beverly Fyfe, the veteran advocate and rescuer, managed to give us a heads-up on the situation at Apollo. We got in touch with Rebecca Jankowitz, the Apollo social media volunteer. To get things back in order, she says, “Right now we are desperate for some 10x10 kennels, airline crates, bottled water, tarps and bales of hay.” 

Go HERE to see photos of the storm damage.
There are ways to donate at http://PayPal.me/asrpets and http://cash.me/$asrpets.
You can get in touch via the organization’s PETFINDER SITE. Or, email Rebecca at [email protected].

Among the many adoptable dogs and cats you’ll see on that site are (top) Delilah the Dog, born in 2010, who “doesn’t like to be messed with too much. She will sit with you and cuddle. She would prefer no kids or rambunctious dogs or cats.”
That Dachshund mix is Oscar who was, the Apollo site says, “dumped with Abigail and Weston.” He’s a 38-pound “love bug” who “lived in a kennel at an apparent breeder, so his front teeth are broken off because, the vet said, he tried chewing his way out.” He’s been in a foster home since May 2017.

Those cats? The stretched out cat is a girl, Skinny Mini, and the fellow with the big paws is her brother, Fatty. They “enjoy playing with each other,” Apollo says. 
Not sure how any of them feel about Texas wind, but it can’t be comforting!
THE STORY ON BUBBA:
A DOG WHO NEEDS HELP
Anybody who’s ever had an ailing “companion animal” knows the challenge that confronts the human heart. You ask over and over, “How can I make this better?” We’ve learned from Karen Lee of barleyworld.com of the effort Chris effort Chris Harp is making to save his beloved dog Bubba. It’s a medical situation.

Right now, it's day by day supportive care with his vet,” Chris says. “He has had two surgeries and another surgery is not an option if his intestines don't get working right. 

“After the first surgery he was doing amazing, then suddenly he was horribly sick. So, after a night in the ER we headed back to his vet for exploratory surgery. Nothing was found except that his intestines had become extremely inflamed, so much so that they were twisting and sticking together which was causing another obstruction. 
“At this point, it's a waiting game to see if they will start and continue to work correctly. He does have extremely runny stools and now his entire backside is covered with sores because it's constantly running out. Right now we owe approximately $2,800 and we are working on raising the funds to get him to an internal specialist, which starts out at approximately $1000, but more likely in the $2500 range. …People.can donate donate through barkleyworld they are a 501 and pay the vet directly or you can call your donation directly to the vet under Bubba Rasmussen (817) 468-6688.”

Chris says an “inquiry lifts us up because it reminds us that people are out there what care about Bubba.”

The gofundme site is HERE. Karen says you can donate to Bubba’s cause thru Barkleyworld at http://www.barkleyworld.com/. “We are a 501c3 and I will send you a tax receipt and a huge thank you. All donations through Barkleyworld are paid directly to the vet performing services and never to individuals,” Karen writes. She says, also, Bubba Rasmussen’s vet account is at Animal Health Care Center, 817-467-6688.
CONTEMPLATIONS
ON A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN TEXAS
The atmosphere sure calmed down and turned what we can confidenty call “Texas Beautiful” by Tuesday afternoon. I think it was an invitation to the wonderful Texas Bluebonnets to come on out and brighten up the late winter landscape. Other trees and plants are blooming already. Might as well have a championship season for the Bluebonnets. … Don’t forget, we need photos of your sleeping dogs and napping cats to continue our long-running weekend feature Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap. Send photos and bios of the critters to me at [email protected]. That’s our formerly feral kitten, Simon, all grown up and napping amid the wires on the desk behind my computer screen. He’s dreaming of seeing photos of other napping cats. … When Facebook went into Malfunction Junction Wednesday, that was an interesting development. Who do you call when you can’t msg anybody or post an opinion? Have a calming cup of decaf and pick up a novel. Computer problems are like driving on the poorly-signed Downtown Dallas’ freeways — everything eventually reconnects.
—- Offer opinion or inspiration by clicking on “comment” below or by emailing [email protected]. —-