Not a football fan and unable to name a single Philadelphia Eagles player besides Vick, I initiated research of the team members only to find out that the players themselves nominated Vick for the 2009 Ed Block Courage Award. Why? Because they understand the nuisance he’s had to deal with as the pesky press, animal lovers and rights organizations call him out on his crimes; because they are teammates and they want to rally around the moral runt of the pack. Poor Vick!

But I wonder: do they really relate more to Vick the famous but hounded football player, and not to the villain who would think nothing of torturing any one of his teammates’ beloved hounds?

Vick and 31 others from the 32 NFL teams will be “honored” at the annual award banquet on March 9, 2010 in Baltimore. There’s one award with such low standards, I’m glad I cannot be nominated. According to their web site, “The Ed Block Courage Award Foundation is dedicated to improving the lives of neglected children and ending the cycle of abuse.” Luckily for the organization’s renown distinction, Vick spares innocent children and opts for innocent puppies to maim and abuse.

BET’s “The Michael Vick Project”

Great news for dog kickers and criminals! BET’s docu-series on Michael Vick premieres Feb. 2, 2010. The eight episodes will follow Michael as he rebuilds his life and blah blah blah. I won’t go into it here, but you can read more about it from a horribly written release on BET.com. It talks a lot about the “mistakes” and “choices” he made. I find it interesting that they “chose” those words. Is it really a CHOICE or a MISTAKE to become so involved in force breeding (raping), starving, drugging, and fighting dogs that you invest time and money in your operation? Did he say “oops” every time he disposed of the duds by killing them via electrocution, drowning, hanging and shooting them?

No. These awful actions were easy for him to do because he is cruel and void of compassion. And the fact that anyone wants me to believe that stripping him of his football career and throwing him in jail suddenly packed him with a conscience and some regret is insulting. People don’t turn from evil to good that fast. You either respect animals or you don’t. You either empathize with an innocent creature or you don’t get it at all.

Smoke & Mirrors

When Michael Vick was released from prison, not only did he get his big, important, overpaid NFL career back, but he also launched a campaign to clean up his image. I don’t know–and I doubt–if that was due to true remorse. What I do know is that he had money set aside to hire a PR team to help him look good (better?) in the public eye.

“Several months ago, Mr. Vick’s PR representatives approached the ASPCA to help educate America about the heinous act of dog fighting following his release from prison. We were the first animal welfare organization given the opportunity to work with Mr. Vick but immediately turned him down…” wrote Ed Sayres on the ASPCA web site in August of 2009.

So, they tried again with the Humane Society of the United States and scored a touchdown! Any support from me to the HSUS was severed that day, when they announced that they would be working with Vick on their anti-dog fighting campaigns.

Stand Up

Want to complain? Along with BET, the companies behind this slap-in-the-face show are DuBose Entertainment and Category 5 Entertainment (whose Director, Mitch Jacobson, has a dog of his own. I wonder if he left the dog at home while he filmed Vick.). The other company, MV7 Productions, is Michael Vick’s own production company.

As for the Courage award, there is an online petition you can sign, but it may be too late to renounce Vick as a winner.

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I did a number of things to get him to calm down, and they did help. But the biggest help was time and patience. Once Charlie turned three, I noticed a big change. He had matured. Now I’ve shared my home with him for 13 years, so he obviously holds a big piece of my heart. To imagine having surrendered him (something I never would have done) is such a sad thought. To think many people do just that!

So I interviewed many people who adopted pets and then realized they were in way over their heads. Some people innocently adopted puppies and kittens without realizing just how naughty they can be. Some knowingly adopted pets with issues but were still surprised at what a challenge it proved to be. But all of them stuck with it and now live happy, peaceful, loving lives with these pets.

Read the full article, Training With Patience: Making Forever Homes Last

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On Saturday, June 13th, we will be represented in both Eau Claire, Wisconsin and Austin, Texas!

Bob’s House for Dogs is a brand new shelter in Northern Wisconsin. They are holding their first annual Canine Carnival that day, and we will have a booth set up. We also donated a crystal dog collar charm for their raffle. The shelter is being opened by an Eau Claire Police Chief and his family, and it was named after their former beloved rescue dog, Bob. Bob’s House will rescue dogs from the Eau Claire County Humane Society, housing them and processing adoptions from their newly built facility. The new shelter’s web site is http://www.bobshousefordogs.org, however as I write this the site appears to be under construction as well! Below is a news clip about the new shelter.

That same day, the Austin Boxer Rescue of Texas will be holding their annual Silent Auction Fundraiser. GoFetchGifts.com donated a hand-crafted Boxer planter for the auction.

Finally, on June 20th, GoFetchGifts.com will be represented at the 13th Annual star-studded Heart of the Hamptons Ball in New York. Each year, this gala is produced by the American Heart Association. Past attendees and speakers have included Christie Brinkley and former Mayor of New York, Rudy Giuliani. We donated a luxury stainless steel dog treat jar and matching stainless steel dog bowl for the auction, which will be part of a dog-lovers basket.

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Leigh, owner of GoFetchGifts.com, attended Bark in the Park a few years ago when she was employed by the shelter as Assistant to the Directors. She moved out of the Akron area for a couple years, but now that Leigh is back in Summit County, she is looking forward to again being part of this wonderful, no time limit shelter.

Bark in the Park is a pledge walk of one mile for you and your pet. Singles or teams can collect tax-deductible pledges to benefit the pets at PAWSibilities. These animals are victims of abuse, neglect, foreclosure abandonment and untreated illness prior to being rescued by the caring humane officers who work for the shelter.

The event will feature adoptable pets from the shelter and other local animal rescues, fun vendors like GoFetchGifts.com, food and prizes! See you there!

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Buddy was spotted being hit by a car and needs a home

I came across this blog post through Twitter today from a woman who ironically has been helping rescue Pitbulls for 20 years and actually saw one get hit by a car last week. When she stopped to help the dog, he walked right up to her and leaned on her leg.

She is now searching for a home for this sweet guy, who is currently being called Buddy. An artist offered a painting of him and any other pets owned by whoever adopts him, so I decided to help too and offer 20% off to the adopter at GoFetchGifts.com.

I used to work at my local humane society, and part of my job was to dispatch the humane officers on cases.

One day they were en route to another case when they spotted some kids throwing a little puppy around and holding him by his neck. The officer stopped the van, took the puppy out of their hands and drove off. I was there when they brought this tiny 2 month old Pitbull in, and he was such a sweet, quiet puppy that we “broke the rules” and kept him at the front desk with us for a few weeks rather than putting him in a cage.

Everyone who came in to adopt would fawn all over him, oo-ing and ahhh-ing. They would always ask what type of dog he was, and when we told them, 90% of them would stop smiling, or say “ew,” or “oh, well we don’t want a PITBULL, but we are looking….”

All rescue dogs need to be temperment tested. All breeds are capable of dog agression, people agression, and fear biting. The woman who stopped her car to save Buddy in KY knows what a sweet dog this is. I hope anyone in the area looking for a dog will at least meet Buddy.

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