"Pup Crawl" This Saturday

One Williamsburg resident has organized a walk across the Brooklyn Bridge this weekend to draw attention to all the animals at risk of losing their homes due to the crappy economy. According to the ASPCA, one million animals could be left homeless due to home foreclosures.

Credit: www.nynytours.com

So, Joseph Hassan, 29, decided to do something about it. The City Room New York Times blog reported: "Mr. Hassan said his ideal outcome for this event would be to help a family forced to give up a pet readopt it when they weathered the storm. In the interim, the pet could stay in a no-kill shelter or with a 'foster owner.' But to do that, the pet shelters need additional funds, as they are being overwhelmed by the surge in pets while their sources of money are drying up. 'They are hit doubly hard,' Mr. Hassan said." Mr. Hassan's goal, then, is to raise much-needed funds for shelters. 

The trek will take place Saturday, with pets and owners gathering at City Hall Park around 5:30 p.m. The walk officially begins at 7 p.m., and will be a round trip across the bridge and back. You even get a doggie bag for participating!

To register or get more information, click here: http://www.thepupcrawl.com/index.html

Group Transports Unwanted Dogs to New Homes

This week, volunteer pilots throughout the country have made it their mission to rescue 5,000 dogs from euthanasia by flying them to new homes. Pilots N Paws, established in February 2008, takes animals from areas of the country where it’s harder to find adoptive homes (usually southern states) to prospective new parents or shelters who simply have more space. They estimate they’ve rescued about 2,000 animals so far.

Why fly instead of drive? According to ABC News, dogs who are older, pregnant, or have medical needs have a hard time with the longer ground journeys and they’re often switched into new vehicles from hour to hour, which can be taxing emotionally and physically.

Animal airlifts run about $2,500, so the organization relies on pilots to donate time and money, and Pilots N Paws is always looking for financial donations.

To watch an ABC News video, click here.

For more information, go to http://www.pilotsnpaws.org/.

A Case of Irresponsible Reporting?

In yesterday’s Parade, J. Scott Orr writes about preventing fatal dog attacks. As far as I’m concerned, the piece seems to reflect a clear bias against pit-bulls, but maybe I’m just feeling the need to defend the underdog.

Image via The Daily Puppy

The key part of the story, however, reads as follows: “Animal-protection groups like The Humane Society of the U.S. say the problem lies with irresponsible owners, not their pets. ‘Pit bulls are the fad ‘dangerous dogs’ right now, but if they are banned, reckless people will simply find another breed,’ says Adam Goldfarb of The Humane Society, which supports consumer education and strict enforcement of leash laws. Besides, the group claims, there is little evidence that breed-specific legislation is effective. U.S. cities where pitbulls are outlawed have not seen dramatic decreases in attacks, nor are there fewer deadly dog bites in Great Britain, where pit bulls have been banned for almost 20 years.”

Where do you guys stand on this? Vote on whether you think it should be illegal to own a pit bull on Parade’s site here:

http://www.parade.com/news/intelligence-report/archive/090913-preventing-fatal-dog-attacks.html

Hilary Swank Joins Pet Adoption Effort

I know, seems every day some celeb is lending their name to a cause, but this one is worth mentioning. Iams Home for the Holidays has announced that two-time Academy Award-winning actress Hilary Swank will serve as the drive’s ambassador for 2009.

According to the company’s release, “Swank will share her personal experience with adoption and rescue in an effort to help educate others about how they can make a positive impact on the lives of homeless pets. Along with founding partner Helen Woodward Animal Center and nearly 3,500 participating animal organizations from around the world, the program has set a goal to help 1.5 million pets find homes Oct. 1, 2009 through Jan. 4, 2010.”

Swank has two adopted dogs, Karoo and Rumi. She rescued Karoo from the side of a road while filming in South Africa a couple of years ago, and she adopted Rumi last year from a IH4TH shelter in Los Angeles.

If you want to learn more about how to find a finding participating shelters, volunteer or make a donation to support animal organizations and pets awaiting new homes, visit http://www.iams.com/iams/pet-adoption.jsp.

New Animal Planet Show Worth Watching

Next Month, Animal Planet will air a new show, Pit Bulls and Parolees. The reality program is based on the Villalobos Rescue Center, the largest pit bull rescue in the United States, where both rescued pit bulls and ex-cons get a second chance. Animal Planet is calling the show “a chance at redemption, rehabilitation, and rebirth for both man and man’s best friend.” (I don’t know about you guys, but I’m thinking this is bound to be amazing.)

Killian, an older blind pit bull, peers from his kennel at Villalobos Rescue Center. Richard Vogel/AP

The show follows Villalobos founder, Tia Maria Torres, and six parolees, 225 pit bulls, 204 volunteers, two French bulldogs, 19 cats, and Torres’ husband and four kids. Each episode will feature one dog, one rescue, one adoption, and of course, all the drama surrounding the facility.

Pit Bulls and Parolees—which will focus on the interaction of the dogs and the men—came about because Torres was trying to figure out a way to help cover the facility’s $20,000 in monthly bills and her fast-growing $25,000 vet tab. (She initially opened a brothel to pay the bills, but it burned down. No joke.)

The parolees work for food, shelter, gas, cigarettes, and the dogs. "We call them the baddest good guys in town,” Torres told the Associated Press. “They are polite, thankful. They are two-legged versions of the dogs we take in.”

Below is a news clips from My Fox LA:

What do you guys think of this idea for a show?