A TIME OF TRIUMPH AND CHANGE...WELL, AT LEAST CHANGE WITH SOME VICTORIES...

EDITION OF TUESDAY, SEPT. 3, 2019 [PetPowellPress]  Whew. What a weekend. More on that later. Playing catch-up and I didn’t even need a passport for my destination. I also couldn’t remember my password for my laptop, which I rarely use. If we had a vault with a combination lock and my smartspouse Martha depended on me for spendin' cash, we’d be up a creek. OK, let’s go.
LANCASTER 
YES, LANCASTER.
When the small shelter advocates Laura Macias and Leighann Hayden and others decided to help bail the Lancaster Animal Shelter out of a tight spot (in the wake of a city/volunteer disagreement), it sounded so simple. Announce the availability of animals and step back and watch the lines of people form to help. Hah.
Yes, there are assorted challenges to helping animals — and the biggest is always finding people to adopt, foster and rescue. The contact? Call or text Laura at 214-949-2726 or email [email protected]. 
Earlier we’d reported that the shelter had 21 kittens, but now, the number is down to 15 and here are some of them — it’s a variety pack of kittens and here are some of them. Black, orange and pre-trained for lounging tabby. 
Then there’s Princess, “microchipped, Lab/Bulldog mix 9short and chunky - super cute)” and probably pregnant. Though she’s chipped, the owner never showed up. As the Laura/Leighann note reads, “Please help — so urgent. Don’t let puppies be born here.”
And, then there’s still BJ, the Rottie — he came in with a female and she’s already been rescued. But BJ’s medical condition  — well, “fear of expenses” may have scared away any helpers. So Laura and the team launched a fund-raiser — so far $285 of the $700 need for BJ’s vet check.
You may recall that BJ had a tendency to flinch when anyone tried to touch the right side of his face. He’s not happy in the kennel and is becoming miserable. “His time is extremely limited,” Laura’s note reads. (Save this guy or help his medical checkup — he’s due to be neutered Wednesday — he can be adopted right now. Or rescued. Or fostered. Again call or text 214-949-2726 or email [email protected]. 
Oh, and if you’re inter- ested in a pair of Chihuahuas, consider Zachary and Zoey, c couple of long-legged pups surrendered “by someone who could no longer care for them.” The legs are from the Min Pin side of their family tree.
Then there’s that matinee idol, Brody. No idea how he came to be in the Lancaster shelter, but he probably didn’t wake up one day, call Uber and tell the driver, “I think I need some shelter time.” Nope. He was betrayed by a human somewhere along the line. His bio reads, “Cute, cute boy that is a complete love.”
MIKEY FROM BURNS FLAT
This was the first photograph we received of the dog now known as Mikey.
Chilling, isn’t it. If you’ve ever encountered a rescue situation, you know what you fear the moment you see this image.
Here’s the report Tuesday from the resilient rescuer Terry Lynn Fisher in Burns Flat, Okla.: “It has been 10 days since a neighbor called the police, thinking this boy was dead. When the officers arrived, they too, thought he had passed.  Imagine their shock when he raised his head. He could not stand; he was covered in open wounds and fleas, laying there, with ants eating him alive.
“They felt the kindest thing to do was help this old dog pass... to end his suffering.
“They came by for me to see him. When i looked into those eyes, I KNEW we would fight to save him.  As I touched his face (he is blind and deaf) he let out a sigh and licked my hand. He KNEW he was safe.  He KNEW someone cared...
“My wonderful ACO and his wife took this boy home and after several baths, got the fleas and ants off. They spent the next 24 hours feeding him mini meals, helping him get enough strength to finally be able to get up and stand some. We took him to my vet, where he was started on antibiotics and heart medicine. He has been being hand-fed several times a day and receiving all the love he deserves.
“This boy is over 13 years old. While he may have had a good life in his early years, the past year has not been kind to him. I am not sure what went wrong. But NO ANIMAL deserves to end up like this.
“He is being released this week. We have a loving hospice home lined up for him to go live what ever time he has left in. He will be loved and cared for and never again be treated like he is just trash. 
“I could not have saved this guy alone. So many people have stepped up and helped with his medical costs.
“I want to thank each and every one of you for caring and helping us save him. I will continue with updates until he decides it is time to leave us. We honestly have no idea of how long that will be.. All we do know is it will be a time filled with love and kindness.”
[Terry Lynn’s vet, the Elk Creek Clinic works with her to save these lives. And help these animals. It’s at 1301 Airport Industrial, Elk City, OK, 73644. Call 508-225-4863. And, to see how you can help Terry Lynn as she saves animals, monitors the Burns Flat shelter to keep it no-kill and encourages others to join her in the mission, email her at [email protected]. She’s determined. And you don’t have to live in far out west Oklahoma to help her.]
CONTEMPLATIONS
CHANGES 
During the extended holiday weekend, things changed for my funspouse Martha and me. We left Dallas and moved to Texas. Yep, packed up our nearly 30 years of stuff in Oak Cliff and moved it to Fort Worth. Well, some of it we donated to charity and some we took to the dump. So, Cowtown is now the International and Galactic Headquarters for readlarrypowell.com, The Pet News Place for People, in business as a do-good website with wisecracks since before the Turn of the 21st Century. (I packed the calendars and files so I can't give you an exact date. I also couldn’t find my Kindle for three days and had to read an actual book held in my hands.) The move has been smooth for the critters. You see here how Porche Noel, former starving street dog, and The Senator, an influential force in the nation, have reacted to Tuesday morning in the new home they’ve been in for 4 days. Sleeping-in is a hard habit to break. We have a large backyard for the dogs to romp in, but they’re all older dogs and they explore slowly but with nose down. The cats? They like to look out the window at the dogs. There’s no air-conditioning once you leave the building. Remember, in the CyberUniverse, there is no need for a constant terrestrial address. If this Mars thing happens….FYI: I lived in Fort Worth in the early 1970s when I was a reporter and editor for The Fort Worth Press which went out of business in 1975 and I went to work for The Big Paper in Downtown Dallas. Now, nearly 45 years later, I’m back. And, looking east, I wonder if Dallas will ever finish with all that road construction. And if there’ll ever be enough police officers to help each other defeat the criminal element. … Well, we’ll get into all that in the book. I’m kidding. For now.
—- Offer opinions or suggestions by clicking on ‘comment’ below or by emailing [email protected], where we love Dallas for so many reasons. —-