A Picnic, A Penny, and A Pit Bull

This past weekend was a very rescue-filled one.  It started with the annual fundraiser picnic Saturday morning.  It was even hotter this year and the turnout was pretty poor because of it.  We all talk about not letting your boxers out in the heat, yet we have the picnic in the middle of the summer....   Next year, they are shooting for October.  Jax and I took third place in the "musical dogs" contest, pretty good for a dog that can't even hear the music, eh? 


That afternoon, we met "Penny."  A friend of ours was working hard on pulling a senior boxer from an AR shelter.  The poor thing got admitted and was put on the euthanasia list for the very next day.  Why? Because she was old.  As we all know, I am a sucker for the old dogs.  Our friend, Liana, had orchestrated her rescue and there was only one thing missing.  She needed a place to stay for the weekend.  Of course, we offered our home.  When Penny arrived, I was nothing short of shocked.  This dog, who had been sentenced to death for being "old" was merely a pup!  She looked like crap because she was dirty, underweight, dehydrated, and covered in fleas.  She had cement sores on her hips and elbows and hairloss and open wounds from scratching at her fly and flea bites.  Despite that, she was a beautiful dog with the most soulful eyes.  Had someone taken just one minute to open up her mouth, they'd have seen the pearly whites that could only belong to a very young dog.  It saddens and angers me that she was dismissed so carelessly.  After plenty of fresh water, a good flea bath, a meal and an abundance of love and attention, she was feeling very good about her self.  She slept with the pack that night and didn't make a peep.  When I got up the following morning, she greeted me with the lima bean and was leaping in circles with all four feet off the ground at the same time!  She was celebrating!  After only a weekend, she was hard to let go on Monday.  We could clearly see her potential and she'd have been a fun one to watch blossom into a wonderful companion.  We decided that she reminded us of a cross between Laila (formerly Emily) and Enzo.  I'm so glad I got to be a part of the team that saved this amazing dog!  Good luck Penny!

The lovely Penny!

Sunday afternoon I had a leg of a transport with "Rescue Rides."   A sad situation brought nine strangers together to move Sil, a 85lb pitbull from West Texas to East Tennessee.  Sil's dad was a soldier who fought for our country and lost his life.  Sil's mom has MS and with her husband gone, she could no longer live on her own.  She was overcome with the guilt of not being able to care for her late husband's best friend.  Her plea to save her beloved dog was heard and Rescue Rides gathered the volunteers and together we set up the transport.   I gave just 4 hours of my life to help save a dog who belonged to a man who gave his life for us.  Worth it 100 times over.  Sil's former mom sent us all a lovely thank you email and his new mom sent us pictures of Sil in her bed after the long trip.   If you have a vehicle and a few hours to spare even a couple times a year, consider signing up for a program like Rescue Rides. 

Big Sil road like a gentleman the entire time.

Oh, and Bella made a new best friend on Saturday night!