VICK'S VICTIM & FLOATING CRUELTY

The past few days brought two news articles concerning pit bulls.

Story #1 ELLEN:

Ellen, one of the pit bulls rescued from Michael Vick's dog fighting operation, had to be euthanized because of illness. This poor dog (and all the other dogs taken advantage of by this cruel sport) did not have the type of life they deserved. Ellen never made it to a forever home but through it all she surprised everyone who came in touch with her with her wonderful personality. By court order, Vick's victims were not allowed to interact directly with visitors to the shelter(s) where they lived, a tragedy for animals of this breed who are docile, gentle and trusting by nature before they are abused and turned into fighting machines by people.

Ellen:
http://www.examiner.com/article/a-michael-vick-vicktory-dog-has-died
http://news.bestfriends.org/index.cfm?page=news&mode=entry&entry=6C18FA70-D677-F48E-0F94B24026202FF1&utm_source=delivra&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Vicktory%20dog%20Ellen%20leaves%20a%20legacy%20-%20general&mid=95

Story #2: CRUEL DISCOVERY:

The carcass of a dead pit bull was found inside a cooler floating in the waters off Long Island. The dog,  brown, 2 or 3 year old, 40 lb. female, did not have any tags or identifiers on her. Could this pit bull death be related to dog fighting or is it animal cruelty of another type.

Dead female pit bull:
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2012/06/22/spca-dead-dog-found-in-cooler-floating-in-long-island-sound/

Humanity should be ashamed of itself. We may be intelligent but we are certainly lacking in compassion.

THE REALITY OF DOGS IN THE CITY

Reality TV is something we don't indulge in at our house. No American Idol, Dancing With The Stars, Survivor or any such programming for us. We will admit to watching a couple of episodes of Doggie Moms but the novelty of that show wore off after three viewings.

So was I surprised when Artie and I saw Dogs In The City advertised on CBS news as a show to watch? Of course not, CBS was advertising this show because it broadcasts on their network but hey, it looked interesting so we decided to check it out.

We caught the third episode where Queens born and bred Justin Silver helps Russell Simmons' Administrative Assistant adapt to her new life as pet parent to her newly adopted blind pooch who has issues with meeting other dogs. Jason also worked with a Brooklyn family with two out-of-control bloodhounds  who frazzle the nerves of their owners and neighbors alike and a woman who is pet parent to four dogs, in small living quarters. One dog was well adjusted but the other three, all pit bulls, had behavioral issues.

I found the show interesting and informative with Justin coming off as very spot-on in his assessment of each situation as well as sympathetic to both the owners and the dogs. Justin has a dog training, pet sitting and dog walking business. I will definitely watch this show again. Who knows, I may pick up a few new tricks to help us deal in the day-to-day with Annie.