EDITION OF FRIDAY, MAY 28, 2021 [PetPowellPress] Not that I’m unfocused, but the first time I typed in that dateline I typed “Friday, May 28, 2030” and halfway through the next keystroke I realized, “Wrong.” I was being inattentive and thinking about the holiday weekend. I suspect I am not alone. This will be my first trip to Disneyland. I’m kidding. I worked in newspaper newsrooms for 40 years — it was Disneyland every single day.
We’ve been writing about shelter animals needing help all week. We’re finishing the week’s reports with more of the appeals for help with shelters in the area. They seem to be reaching “full” at the same time. Read on — and this is a situation in all geographic directions from the Center of the Universe, which, near as I can tell is somewhere between the High Five in Dallas and the Loop 820-I-35W merges in Fort Worth. More on that flying dog in a moment. He's available.
WE START IN RICHARDSON,
WITH ‘RELATIVELY LARGE’ DOGS
The note from animal advocate Jennifer Sellers begins with “All the dogs at Richardson are relatively large and need out as they are so full!”
Here are three of the dogs in the Richardson shelter:
Grover (#20-0978D) is a 52-pound Pittie mix who is the shelter’s “longest resident.” His birthdate is listed as 11/23/2013 and he’s been in the shelter since Dec. 8, 2020.
He and two other strays were running in traffic “from Greenville to Beltline to Highway 75.” Officers caught them. Nobody came to claim them. Grover was starving, and “had a black strap tied in a knot around his neck”. Though he can be “shy with new people: ”He is comfortable with car rides” and is getting more easy-going with people.
The 8-year-old spayed Akita mix is named “Kita,” and she weighs 52 pounds. She’s #21-0348D. The story reads, “Resident who found the dog said they saw the dog get kicked out of a car. Will bolt if she gets loose — isn’t a dog that can hang out with you off-leash.” The shelter vet removed a tumor from the girl and, the note says, it “came back as cancerous, but we were able to remove it all. It is unlikely to come back.”
Bowen is a year-old Lab mix (#21-0364D) who weighs in at 59 pounds and quite a bit of it may be ears. He’s a return (came in on 4/24/21_ and the “adoptor didn’t introduce him to any dogs or cats while they had him.”) He’s “very energetic” and, the story reads, “Didn’t ever bark.” He’s active, but he also “chewed things on the patio, like the umbrella and the screen door.” This was a brief adoption, so he may not have had time to adjust to new surroundings. According to the note, Bowen “was adopted and returned because he was too strong.)
See
more Richardson dogs by clicking on THIS LINK. And if you want to see adoptable cats, here is THAT CAT LINK.
This kittycat guy is Trickster (#21-0252C), a 7-year-old fellow who came in on April 9 and has been ready for adoption ever since.
See how to adopt an animal from the Richardson Animal Shelter by clicking on THE CITY’S LINK HERE.
MEANWHILE, IN LANCASTER
THE SHELTER LIST IS GROWING…
It’s springtime and it’s also an odd time in our civilization, so should it be a surprise that shelters are getting more animals released to them and, perhaps, “set free” in within a city’s limits?
n this case, we’re speaking of Lancaster as the volunteers at the non-profit 4-Legged Helpers work to line up rescue agencies and the occasional adoptor to help animals dodge the needle.
We’ve posted many photos — some of the faces stick with us and that’s why, for this holiday weekend edition, we’re re-posting Cash, whose name is spelled Kash on the Lancaster site — what does it matter to the dog? Same sound "Cash" or "Kash" when someone he loves calls his name. He and many other animals are on the Lancaster PetFinder LINK HERE.
Kash/Cash has been at the Lancaster shelter longer than any other resident, we’re told by 4-Legged Helpers. To ask about him, contact the reliable folks at 4-Legged Helpers by calling or texting 214-949-2726 or email cat_girl_71@yahoo.com. [LARRY ASIDE: I'm holding off on beginning a note "What is the matter with you pickleheads? Can't you see this is a good dog with a whole lot of love in his face?" I don't know many of you well enough to call you a "picklehead," though, of course, there are some that I do know that well....]
OPERATION KINDNESS
DESPERATE FOR FOSTERS
Based on the news release from the legendary no-kill shelter Operation Kindness, timing has depleted the number of available foster families at precisely a most-difficult time.
The release says that OK is at full capacity with kittens and needs some fosters to step up and help the kittens.
According to the news release, “TNR (Trap, Neuter, Spay, Return) efforts across the country were halted due to the pandemic, resulting in a booming kitten season—that time of year when the warmer weather results in the influx of kittens being born. Due to the recent arrival of kittens, Operation Kindness is seeking foster families to help care for kittens that are bottle babies or older. With a high demand of requests for help with kittens, the shelter is turning to the community to help support animals in need.”
To ask about getting involved, call the shelter at 972-418-7297 or visited operationkindness.org/foster.
And if you’d like to see some available kittens, here are two video clips: Purring napper HERE and cute little rascal saying "Hey, does my paw look big?" HERE.
MEANWHILE IN MESQUITE,
WE BEGIN WITH BUTTERCUP
The dog bio volunteers at Mesquite, Judi Brown and Debra Chisholm, never run out of animals to write about.
So, as the holiday weekend arrives, we’ll cite some of them and hope there are good hearts out there just aching to have a good dog forever.
Judi says Buttercup is the “beautiful, tawny-colored, one-year-old terrier pit with eyes that compliment her coloring nicely.”
Came in as a stray on the 21st and is “a delightful, friendly, happy, wiggly girl who appears to love everyone.: Laid-back personality. Sits for treats, takes them gently. Weighs 42 pounds. She’s #47815124 and get this description, “She wiggles so much that she was even wiggling while she was sitting!”
This dog Frankie (#47815678) isn’t even a year old, but he’s already been picked up as a stray and delivered to the shelter (May 21). Judi met 10-month-old Frankie, too, and wrote, “At the window and in his kennel he was very friendly. When I walked him through the bay he tried to make friends with all the dogs right down the line. His tail was wagging constantly. Then when I got him out in the yard his demeanor changed. I could see that he was fearful. He had flight issues. He kept wanting to hide underneath the bench. So for that reason I did not take his leash off. He would cautiously come to me and tentatively take a treat from my hand. He also did sit for treats. He would flinch when I went to reach out to him. Because he has trust issues I also had a behavioralist work briefly with him. He is a work in progress. I plan to continue working with him and and enlist other volunteers to do the same. Hopefully in a few days we can post another evaluation showing that he is more trusting and friendly”
Here the basics on Coco: Mixed breed girl, owner surrender on 5/25, weighs 35 pounds, spayed, about 3 … And there’s this: She has charmed Debra!
The devoted biographer Debra writes, “There is so much to like about precious Coco. She walks beautifully on a leash. She did
not react to the other dogs when walked through the bay. She knows the sit and shake commands. She is a frisky and spunky girl without being hyperactive. She is so happy to sit for treats and will take them gently. Coco is amiable and is A-OK with receiving attention. She has the most beautiful soul-searching eyes. She is a tail-wagging, fun-loving girl with such a sweet and gentle disposition. Can you tell I'm crazy about Coco?” Use her ID #47807882 when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email rescues@cityofmesquite.com.
Debra also met Patches, this Pittie mix who has two definite looks! The 55-pound, 3-year-old former stray (came in on the 20th), has an unpatched side and a patched
side as you can see in his photographs.
Debra says, “He has a confident and outgoing personality and is athletic. He chases balls but doesn’t know to return them.” And, he’s happy when treats are available. He’ll need “an owner who can handle his energy level,” Debra says. He’s #47802356. Use it when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email rescues@cityofmesquite.com.
Debra also met Maverick, described as “a nearly pure-bred Siberian Husky” surrendered to the shelter on the 17th. Why? “Reason for the surrender is that they could not keep him inside their fence. He would jump the fence and run away.”
He’s a year-and-a-half, weighs 67 pounds and, if that photo can be believed, Maverick can fly. None of his paws are on the ground!
His surrendering humans acquired Maverick about six months ago and he just sort of was a bit too lively, energetic and escape-prone for the people. As Debra explained, “Huskies are known escape artists so Maverick needs to have a rescue foster or adopter who can give him plenty of exercise and a fence that cannot be scaled or dug under.” Maverick is #45611264. You know the drill: Use the ID number when you call the shelter at 972-824-9037 or email at rescues@cityofmesquite.com.
You’ve all seen dogs with special needs. Lance is a dog with a special don’t-need. [LARRY NOTE: Using my native Northeast Texan, I’ll type in the language of the tall pines: “He don’t need to be around no ducks ’n' chickens.”
That’s what cost him his home. The 56-pound, 4-year-old Lance was returned to the shelter by a sad adoptor. Debra included the adoptor’s praise and explanation. The adoptor said, “He was great with the babies, the dogs (all female), no signs of food aggression, didn’t chew anything up, liked to play outside and run around, super chill inside - just laid
around close but not too close to be tripped over, never got on the furniture. He will be an amazing dog for a family with no birds."
As Debra wrote, “The issue was that Lance chased their chickens and ducks and actually got one of the ducks and injured it. This is an amazing dog and will make a wonderful addition to someone's family.”
Lance is #47731038 — use the ID when you call the shelter at 972-824-9037 or email rescues@cityofmesquite.com.
CONTEMPLATIONS
OVERLOADED SHELTERS, MOWING, THE CRUISE
I’ve gotten notes from several places this week about “overloaded shelters” and the question becomes, “Are people who got animals to help them cope with the pandemic, now unloading those animals?” I hate to think ill of humans, but I’ve been watching the species for a long time — still waiting on DNA testing to see if I am a member of the human race. (Martha has voted “no,” but I think she’s smiling about the vote.) I’m secretly hoping DNA tests will show I’m descended from a Laughing Hyena ancestor who was assigned to babysit the puppies and kittens from the FDLs. You don’t know FDLs? First Domestic Litters. I might have made some of that up. Not the overcrowding stories, though. It is springtime. Not everybody heeds spay/neuter and not everybody is mindful of keeping their animals in safe places, i.e., yards without escape routes, etc. …
At some point soon, I’ll be mowing our gigantic yard. Thank you, constant Texas deluge. The grass in our yard grew faster than a well-fed puppy. ...
The thing about writing an edition for the Friday launching a 3-day weekend is you cannot get your mind off what you have planned. We’re leaving at Midnight Friday on one of those new Riverboat Gambler cruises on the Trinity River. We board the paddlewheelin’ casino boat, The Big D Moneymaker, at the Trinity Bay near Houston, then steam north to Dallas. It’s really fast, but the name “BulletBoat” was copyrighted by the people who invented the proposed BulletTrain between Houston and Dallas. I might have made that up. I have been in Houston and Dallas traffic and I can testify that a riverboat on a typically nearly-dry river is going to be faster than a car ride on the "improved" Dallas freeways.
—- Begin your weekend with an opinion on ‘comment’ below or email dallrp@aol.com and put “find a steady tiller goofball” in the subject line. ——
