Update on Maggie (formerly Hope)

What makes my day is getting an email like the one below updating me on the beautiful girl I found at the shelter last year. Hope was anything but, however, I named her that in the "hope" that someone would see in her what I saw in her. She was an amazing lady and an amazing lady named Diane contacted us. Here's the email I received the other day:


Just thought I would drop you a note about Maggie ( a.k.a. Hope ). She is just the most wonderful , sweetest PEI girl you could ever meet. Remember when you brought her to my house, how she would not let anyone touch her? Today she is a different dog completely. She never leaves my side. Maggie is so loving. Today she and the other two went to the beauty shoppe to get a bath and the works. When I picked them up, the guy that bathed them said to me, "You have three of the sweetest dogs I've seen a long time, I think they might just be my favorites."
When I think of what would have happened to Maggie if you had not saved her, I just want to cry. When I think of all the older dogs that never make it out of the shelter it just breaks my heart. Maggie is ten years old but still acts like a puppy. She loves her stuffed toys, pulls them all out and takes them to her bed to sleep with. We feel so blessed to have her with us, she has brought us so much joy.
I hope that if you are going to be near Oceanside, you will stop by and say hello. I would love for you to see the REAL Maggie and not that scared girl you got at the shelter.

Thank you again for bringing her into our lives. Diane

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Bless you Diane for seeing past the rough exterior that these poor animals are trying to escape. Underneath it was a beautiful princess just waiting to come out.

Robert Cabral
Bound Angels

He Smiled Till He Died - RIP Smiley

I hold to my statement that I made from day one, that the solution to the animal shelter problem starts with responsible pet ownership. Responsible pet owners, do NOT turn their pets into shelters. Every time I see a newscast showing a crying person dropping their pet at a shelter, its like nails on a chalkboard to me. Its bullsh1t. If you are dropping your dog at a shelter, you KNOW that your dog, cat or pet, will be killed if they don't find a home.

Smiley is a typical story. Not sure why he was dumped, but he was, and this is just too sad. A good friend of mine and a very good rescue worker and net worker had been working her butt off to try and find him a home. She got the news that he had died in his cold kennel in the middle of the night - the night before she was set to go and get him.

This is NOT the fault of the shelter, as much as we'd like to say so, this rests on the person who dropped him off... or should I say dumped him. His name was Smiley because he had a big smile on his face, just take a look at that picture.

Dogs, in particular are pack animals. Much like other pack animals, they form strong bonds. There is some talk that Smiley may have been sick, but nonetheless, he died of a broken heart, all alone on a cold piece of concrete after being abandoned by those he dedicated his life. People who didn't care, or who became inconvenienced by the dog. The dropped him at the shelter and moved on. Their lives went on, but Smiley's didn't. He sat in his cell and became more despondent, he stopped eating and his smile faded. Eventually he died a very sad and lonesome death. And the blame on this goes out to those people who dumped him. THEY are responsible for his death. Smiley had no one there to hold his head when he passed, chances are the kennel was dark, cold and loud with the cries of other scared animals. His last memory of this place we can earth was pain and sadness. I can only hope that this pain was eased in someway once he passed to a much better place. I also hope that this pain is one day felt by those who dumped him. Rest in Peace little Man... Rest in Peace.

Here is the email from Blake about Smiley's passing that inspired me to write this story:

Rest in peace sweet boy.. As many know I have been trying to rescue Smiley since I first heard about him on Wed .. I raised funds for him and got a firm commitment from my friend Diane from Tuffie's Rescue that she would take him. I have called on him ever day ,several times. Each time I have been told that Smiley was not doing well.. that he was depressed, not eating and very emaciated. I knew it was a matter of time for him and so I tried to get him out as fast as possible. I was going to have him pulled today when I received a call that he had died in his cage sometime during the night. I must tell you that he WAS NOT euthanized.. Please do not call the shelter and accuse them of anything.. He really did go in his sleep. I spoke to the medical staff there and they told me he had been sick since he came in. I believe that is the reason his owner turned him in.. Smiley touched my heart in a special way, that is why I knew I just had to save him.. I'm only sorry that I was not there to hold him as he left for the rainbow bridge.. but I'm sure he knew that we were all pulling for him and trying our best to get him out and care for him.. He is now at the bridge with all our dogs and the other dogs that could not be saved who wait for us.. Smiley will never be forgotten.. just look at that face..

Thank you all who have worried, prayed and donated for him.. In his memory I would ask that you all pay tribute to Smiley by giving your pledged donation to another dog in need.. If you like you may donate to Byron, the sweet Dalmatian who is in great need of medical treatment. You may do so via Pam at:

The Nature Network, Inc.
P.O. Box 66790
West Los Angeles, CA 90066
Note on check: "Donation for Byron"

They are a 501c3 non profit corporation.

With a very heavy heart and a face full of tears I say goodbye to sweet Smiley.. again thank you all.


Blake Donovan

Thank you Blake for caring and showing that decent, good people still exist in the world who care for what others throw away. Thank you for being you!!!

The Peanut Polo Cup

Be There or Be SQUARE..

This August 30, 2009 there is only one place to be and that is the PEANUT POLO CUP... It is held at the Augusta Polo Club, only 1.5 hours west of Montreal.

I don't think there is a cooler event anywhere, including here in Los Angeles. It is founded by one of my all time favorite people in the world, Kathy from Merlins Hope in Montreal. She is the ultimate rescuer who cares about animal selflessly and has a firm grip on how to save them, handle them and make it all work. I've worked with Kathy on many rescues and consider her one of my best allies and a true friend.

Check out the site for Peanut Polo at www.peanutpolo.com and if you can't make it... your loss :) If you can't make it, print out a flier and put it up for others to show up. There are plenty of opportunities to help donate and volunteer... and this is a great help to all.

Thank you Kathy for doing what you do. You're loved and admired.

Robert

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Robert Cabral
BOUND ANGELS
"giving a voice to animals"
www.boundangels.org

Jasmine- A NEW LIFE

Sometimes people ask me why I do what I do, and I ponder. Then I get an email like this one and its pretty clear. The story of Jasmine is a sad one. You can check out her youtube video and you'll learn more, but what really hits home is when you hear the story from the person who adopts. This is the story from Vikki who adopted Jasmine not too long ago.. Thank you Vikki for sharing!

email #1

My name is Vikki from the pei_cafe,Kathy (aka MM) was telling me about all the great work you do trying to save animals.
I just wanted to take the time to thank you for all the hard work you do I just adopted a little black Sharpei named Jasmine from Kathy that came from CA...if it weren't for people like you I wouldn't have this sweet little girl....all of my dogs as well as both of my daughters have been throw away dog...rescues.

Kathy told me Jasmines story the more I hear and saw pictures of her the more I know I needed to see if she would allow us to adopt her...we were so thrilled to hear back from Kathy telling how happy she was that we wanted to give her a forever home....knowing how hard it is in this line of work and just how hard and depressing it can get I wanted you to know how much people like you *really* do make a differences in so many lives....thank God for people like you...what a shame there weren't more like you in this world because it sure would make this world a much better place....so thank you for doing what your doing and do keep making a difference in this world by doing what you do.
Vikki

email #2

Hello Robert,
It's so nice to meet you...I'm so *thankful* you saved this little girl she's a true joy such a sweet pei.

She looks better each week..I've given her a couple of baths to get all the dirty out of her and I think one more should do it...she loves when I brush her which makes her coat shine..its so soft now.

Your so right she really dose have a wonderful personality even after all she's gone through...its so hard for me to think of anyone hurting her much less wanting to put her down...its so hard to understand why or how people can treat them in them so cruel.

Yes Kathy dose a wonderful job with any fur she gets..were so happy that she showed us Jasmine even tho I wasn't looking to adopt another dog just having lost my big rescue chow Riley to cancer but hearing her story and knowing how much she reminded me of Riley's personality I just knew she needed us as much as my husband and I needed her.

Again I'm so happy you take the time to help as many of these second hand dogs get another chance at having a wonderful forever home...thank you for doing with out you and Kathy we wouldn't have this beautiful little pei girl.
Yes it would be very nice to stay in touch.

A couple of pictures to remind you what you do is so worth the huge effort,time and disappointments of not being able to save all you hope to be able to save..you did this one and she's a happy little girl now..
Vikki

Please watch Jasmine in the snow... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtgPA7SUkh4

Thank you Vikki, you make the hard work worthwhile.

Cowards Leave 17 Year Old Dog To Be Killed

Imagine for a second that you spent 17 years living with a family. You get old and your hips give way and you can't stand up. YOU'VE DONE NOTHING WRONG, but the years have paid their toll on you. All the jumping up for kisses and love have worn your bones down. Now you only hope someone will bend down to give you the love that you always jumped up for. But, that's not the case. Instead you are driven to a shelter and dropped off, dropped off to be killed ALL ALONE.

Imagine that the people who you loved don't have the courage or compassion to stand by your side to help you over the bridge. They drop you, get back in their car and drive off to get a happy meal or maybe a young puppy.

THAT is what happened to this dog. I do NOT blame the shelter, nor the person who put the needle in this dog, I DO blame the person who dropped him.

The sadness this dog felt, looking back at his owners, the ones he loved, as they walked out. He couldn't even stand up to try and walk back to them. Like dumping an invalid out of a wheelchair and watching him lay there.

Cold-hearted, in-sensitive, in-humane, un-caring, cold LOW LIFES. HOW COULD YOU? How could anyone? Let alone the people that this dog gave his life for. Couldn't you just have taken him to the vet and held his paw for his last breath? Couldn't you let him die with compassion for all he gave to you. He made it this many years only to have his last moment be in disgrace on this earth. I hope when this dog reaches the other side, he is adored and loved and when his owners take their last breath that they be haunted by the horror this little guy felt. I hope his pain is multiplied to those who abandoned him in his last moments. I pray that people could only have compassion for their animals and NEVER do something this horrible EVER.

PASS this to your friends, so people know just how cruel people can really be.

Robert Cabral
Founder: Bound Angels

Helping Shelters Make a Difference

At the forefront of the homeless pet problem are the shelters in every city. While others may criticize the shelters, Bound Angels is taking the fight head on and helping shelters. Its very clear that if you criticize the shelters and slam them day in and day out it only hurts the animals that are being killed at alarming rates. Our goal at Bound Angels is to make the shelter people's first choice when it comes to getting a new pet. Slamming them only keeps prospective customers / adopters away. The less people that go to the shelter, the more animals will be killed. Our mission is to get people into the shelters and we've just announced a new program in partnership with LA Animal Services.

Sprucing up the shelters is a great way to make people feel good about going there and being there as well as choosing the shelter as the place to get their new best friend. Last week Bound Angels donated 8 great new campaigns to LAAS. If you'd like to see all the posters, click here...


Captain Jan Selder, who you might remember from our LAAS 10 YouTube Video is the person in charge and was there to work with us to get these prints framed and placed. The compliemnts have been overwhelmingly positive. Building the employees moral as well as creating a happy place for people to visit and bring their children.
These campaings as well as any of our videos and print ads are available free of charge to any non-proofit animal rescue organization for co-branding. For more info, please contact us at: www.boundangels.org