Update on the Rottweiler (see entry "Good cop.").

I called Pima Animal Care Center last week to ask if they had received a Rottweiler from the police.  I've been told previously that when the police find stray house pets, they turn them in to PACC.  They said that none had been turned in that night or the next day by the police or anyone else.  The good news is that apparently, the dog did not end up at PACC.  Perhaps someone took on his case and tried to find his owner.  That's all I have and I wish the dog luck.

Good cop.

Tonight, we spent the evening helping another Access Tucson producer and preparing some more of our flyers for distribution, so we were out around town for a few hours.  While we were out, I saw a stray dog loose in the street at a major intersection.  He wasn't paying any attention to the traffic and just managing to avoid it.  He was black and tan in color, so he really blended in with the nighttime street lit by sodium-vapor lights.  He was moving quickly and none of the traffic was stopping for him, unlike Chewy, the last dog I rescued.  He made his way to a parking lot on the corner, so I followed him there to see if he had a tag so I could call his owner.  He turned out to be a large male Rottweiler.  By then, he seemed a little tired and maybe thirsty.  A lot of people in the parking lot were concerned for him and one person even gave me some bread to give to him.  I couldn't really get near him, though, since he was pretty skittish.  Another man and I were able keep him in between us so that he wouldn't escape, but the man was probably about twenty years older than I, so I was doing most of the fast footwork.

I saw the dog sniff around and snap up a couple of food items from the ground (I didn't see what they were), and eventually he took up the bread I tossed to him.  Someone had called 911, so we waited for the police to arrive.  I ended up calling the police as well to get them to come more quickly, since it was hard to keep the dog in place.  An officer arrived shortly after my call and he turned out to be tall, lean, and strong, but I think he was still at risk because the dog could have gotten him with his teeth (he was a Rottweiler, after all).  The dog tried to run away once the officer appeared on the scene, so I had to block him again.  He seemed to have more energy this time and was moving with a greater sense of urgency.  I had to think twice about trying to block him, but I decided that he was more afraid than dangerous.  The officer and I kept him between us and the officer tried to lasso him with some kind of short leash.

At this point, keeping the dog between us started to resemble a soccer game and became even more difficult.  I had to repeatedly dart one way and then the other--like a cutting horse in a rodeo, actually.  The dog seemed to gravitate towards the officer, who was calling to him and trying to be friendly.  Being friendly didn't work, though, and he had to start issuing commands (like "sit", "down", and "stay").  The dog was able to sit and stay, fortunately, and the officer put the leash on him.  It looked like it was going smoothly until the dog really got wild and started pulling on the leash and wildly trying to escape.  He had no intention of giving up and I was afraid for the officer's safety.  The officer looked like he was getting either a taser or a gun ready, so I was pretty worried for the dog's safety, too.  Thankfully, the officer kept it controlled enough and tried to calm the dog as well as he could while still issuing commands.  The leash seemed to be some kind of choking device that didn't release when the dog pulled on it.  He cut off his own air supply and fell to the ground--not a pretty sight.  The officer maintained his cool and as soon as the dog was in kind of a twilight state, he risked putting his hand right near the dog's mouth in order to release the collar and restore the dog's normal breathing.

After all of that, the dog was calm and even friendly, and the officer was able to calmly bring him into his cruiser.  I was impressed by both the officer's sense of restraint and his bravery in risking injury to get the job done.  I told him as much, that he was brave, and that I was glad he was able to round up the dog without injury to either of them.  He said that it was better than the dog getting hit by a car.

I hated to see the dog captured in this way because he's likely to end up at Pima Animal Care Center.  Nonetheless, I'm glad that he was contained so that he couldn't get hurt or killed, or cause injury to a motorist.  He was so determined to run around on six-lane Broadway that he would most likely have gotten killed.  I'd like to give a hearty thumbs-up to the police officer for being brave enough to risk injury for the sake of the safety of the dog and others.  It was important for him to show the restraint that he did, too.  Another dog rescue well done!  Here's hoping that his ultimate fate is a good one.  I'll be alerting my dog rescue network to try to influence this.

List of pet PSA video links.

Hello, my friends, I'd like to introduce you to the dogs and cats who are featured on my YouTube channel thanks to the efforts of FAIR.  We are just starting to promote these videos through flyers and social media and I invite you to be among the first people to see them.  Here are the links:

Meet beautiful Bluebell

Ma Petite Chienne! (My little dog!)

Iyonna and Izzie

Carlton, a Great Dog at FAIR

"Boo-Boo", a Bait Dog Fostered by FAIR

Meet FAIR's "Tinkerbell"

Help to Sponsor FAIR's "Charlie"

Revisiting FAIR.

Another thing I'm working on as I return to business is promoting those PSAs I shot in Studio A with the help of FAIR.  Beth and I designed a couple of initial drafts of flyers that I want to distribute to call attention to the organization and once we get the approval from FAIR, I'll post digital versions of them.  They include pictures of the dogs and cats from the taping and contact information.  Stand by for these.

(Remember Bluebell, the husky mix with one blue eye?)

PSA taping at Access Tucson with FAIR.

Last night I had the great pleasure of working with FAIR to tape some PSAs in Studio A to publicize FAIR's work, their need for support, and the need to adopt their special-needs pets.  The star of the evening was the famous Boo-boo, the dog rescued from the dogfighting ring.  The taping went well and we got to feature eight different animals, including two cats from the same litter.  We didn't get a chance to feature Chewy on-camera, but we look forward to finishing his story.  These PSAs will end up on YouTube and Access Tucson and I'll of course link them here.  I want to extend a big "thank you" to FAIR for collaborating with me.  Below are some stills captured from the footage we taped.

This is Bluebell, a Husky/German Shepherd mix named for her one blue eye.  She survived valley fever and serious weight loss.

This is Charlie, a sweet Chihuahua.

These two sisters, Iyonna and Izzie, are part of a litter of four--all sisters.  All of them are available for adoption.

Exciting taping this weekend with FAIR and the Jim Rose project folks.

(Me almost a year ago on February 13, 2011, not long after I gave my hair a fresh start.)

I'm really looking forward to my next project in the TV studio this Saturday.  I've arranged to host FAIR, the Foundation for Animals In Risk, who of course had a huge role in rescuing Chewy and his being nursed back to health.  We'll have a few animals from FAIR right on the set to tape some PSAs calling for support of this great organization.  I don't know yet if Chewy will be there, but another famous dog, Boo-boo, will be there.  Boo-boo was found right around the same time as Chewy by a Good Samaritan who brought him into touch with FAIR.  He had been horribly hurt and abused as dogfighting bait and shot with a pellet gun, and apparently left for dead.  He's been recovering from serious injuries but he's plugging away and has a great personality.  His story even made it into newspapers and onto TV newscasts around the state.

Also happening in Studio A that day is a follow-up to the Jim Rose project for which I coordinated the crew and equipment back in April of last year.  Two of the documentarians behind the project will stop by to work with me on one last aspect of the film.  This was a real feather in my cap and I'm thankful to have had this opportunity to connect with more people, participate in a documentary, and put this responsibility on my resume.

“Chewy's” rescue story, continued.

The folks at Acacia Animal Hospital gave the name Chewy to the dog I brought in. After talking with them and FAIR a couple of times, I visited him this afternoon with my significant other. While we waited to see him, we encountered a nice woman who volunteers her time to animal rescue efforts. It turns out that she was at Acacia the day that Lisa and I brought Chewy in. Even niftier, she works with the Shelter Pet Project and expressed interest in helping him find a permanent home. What a great chance meeting!

Since we brought Chewy in, his ruined eye was removed and he has turned out to be blind in the remaining eye, but his other senses are doing fine in compensating for his lack of sight. He's clean and cuddly, calm and friendly—he just needs a couple of days to get used to new people. We chatted with a technician for a while we petted him and took some photos and video footage throughout our visit. The following is a rough draft of a video telling Chewy's story and some of it will later end up in a more polished package that I'll upload to YouTube and submit to cable access channels. Thank you FAIR for helping Chewy!

Stand by for more updates.

Follow-up on the little dog's rescue.

The first thing I want to say is that the dog is being cared for at Acacia Animal Hospital and I continued to receive a lot of helpful phone calls from all kinds of good, kind-hearted people.

It was very important to me to bring the dog to a rescue organization and not Pima Animal Care Center so that he would have a better chance of survival.  In order for him to be taken in by a rescue group, though, he had to be evaluated by a veterinarian.  Jennifer from the Foundation for Animals in Risk (FAIR) saw my ad on Craig's List and called me to offer assistance.  She ended up arranging for him to be seen at Acacia and stay in their care until she could find a home for him.  I also heard from a lady named Lisa, who offered to help me bring the dog to Acacia and even wants to help raise money towards his medical expenses.  She's an animal lover who likes to help out where she can with rescue efforts.  Overall, I received a very strong response from quite a few people who were concerned for the plight of this little dog, and I'm very thankful for all of the suggestions and offers of help.

Below are some pictures I took so that you can see what the little guy looked like.

This is him inside the lean-to I set up in the front yard.

Outside in the sun of the front yard.

Nestled into a tote in preparation for transport to the hospital.

Relaxing in the veterinarian's office because help is on the way!

Later I'll post some reference information in case you ever find yourself faced with an unwell pet who still has a chance for survival but needs urgent help.

Dog rescue is always somewhere in the background of my everyday life.

After all, my girls, Velvet and Jane Doe, were troubled dogs who I rescued and have had the pleasure of calling my pets for years now.  They're a constant reminder of the value of taking in stray or unwanted pets.

The other day, another dog in need came my way.  He's blind and angry, and I'm not even sure if he's a he or a she.  Something happened to his eye, perhaps both eyes, and I found him running around in the middle of four-lane, forty-mile-per-hour Swan Road.  Cars were screeching to a halt to avoid hitting him and when they stopped, he would run around and bump into them.  I tried to steer him away from the road but hesitated at first because he growled and got rather nasty with me when I tried to get close to him.  After watching the traffic cycle repeat itself a couple of times, I knew I couldn't in good conscience leave him out there either to get killed or cause a motorist or two to get killed.

I went back to my house, grapped a soft tarp, and went back to the road, where I corralled the dog inside the tarp.  Back at the house, I brought out an old folding door that had been removed from a closet and put it in the front yard, on top of the tarp, folded to make a lean-to for the dog.  An old window screen on the end made for a screen door of sorts and I took a small space heater out to the other end and plugged it into an outdoor outlet.  I've been feeding him and giving him some water to hold him until I take him to the pet emergency room for treatment.

I'd like to share with you a couple of great resources that I found for getting rescued pets the triage they need while they await foster care or adoption.  I haven't yet chosen which one I'll go to, but here's what I've found so far:

Southern Arizona Veterinary
141 E. Fort Lowell Rd. (24-hour emergency room)
Tucson, AZ 85705
(520) 888-3177
www.southernazvets.com

Pima Pet Clinic
4832 E. Speedway Blvd.
Tucson, AZ 85712
(520) 327-5624
www.tucsonveterinaryhospital.com

I'll be deciding on one of these tonight and I'll post another blog entry with the conclusion of this story.