Our little Bottle Baby from Summer 2014 (who was adopted in time for the Holidays) has just graduated from obedience school! Great job, Eddie! Hasn’t Eddie grown up into such a beautiful and confident boy?!
We love getting news and updates from our animals and their forever families! If you would like to send yours, email [email protected]
Today’s success story is Gina!
Gina was the year-old yellow lab who was rescued from the Brenham shelter when they called to alert us that she was on her last days. K’s Mutt Hutt board her, and many people donated to help pay the boarding fees while she waited for her forever home.
We are now happy to share that Gina has found a wonderful forever home with a nice lady and two other dogs. Gina is well-loved and couldn’t be happier!
We are very grateful for the shelter manager who called us, for K’s Mutt Hut for taking care of her, for the donors who paid for her boarding, and to the volunteers who transported her around to her vet appointments. Lastly, and most importantly, we are thankful for Gina’s new forever family, for opening their hearts and homes to her! Gina is certainly our “it takes a village” story!
Pet of the week for 03/09/15 Sadie is a sweet and loving Min Pin. She is crate trained, house trained, walks well on a leash and loves to play and then snuggle when she’s tired and ready to rest. She’s very friendly and gets along with other animals and children. Young, Female, Small Miniature Pinscher Up-to-date with routine shots Spayed/Neutered.T-BAR is a no-kill rescue. Not only do we like having our animals adopted out, we also are in dire need of foster homes. That way we can help more animals out there, who are in perilous times alone on the streets. Please save a life by adopting a pet, instead of buying a pet and please have all your pets spayed and neutered. It is the right thing to do. If you are interested on where you can help or to look at all that is available to either adopt or foster, please go to www.t-bar.org and see all the animals that deserve a second chance and fulfilled life full of love, email [email protected] or call (936)878-2349 and one of our volunteers will get back to you as soon as possible. Adoption Fee: Please email [email protected] for adoption fee! Adoption fee includes neuter or spay, up to date vaccinations, heartworm tested if old enough or started on heartworm prevention as a puppy, deworming and a one year TBAR membership.
Today’s foster feature is Winston. He wandered up to someone’s house hurt and confused. Thankfully the person who saw him sent a picture out to be networked on facebook to give him a chance. Some facebook networking friends started raising funds and searching for a foster home and rescue to take him in. Lucky for this guy, he found both. Now he has an approved foster home and True Blue Animal Rescue to provide rescue support so he’ll be protected and then networked for a new home. Right now he’s on antibiotics and wound care from his wonderful foster Mom who is also a nurse! Here’s an update from his foster Mom:
I am 1.5 to 2 years old per my doctor. I just want constant love and attention. I am a sucker for some belly rubs, Kraft cheese singles, baths; of course I love them and please don’t forget my rawhide bones, Kong ball and toys. This living in leisure is new to me but I sure do LOVE IT. I’m not too keen on other furry friends just yet. I will get better with my social skills; I just need time to know that I am not being under attack any longer. The couch is very comfortable but I also do like to resort to my fancy crate for long naps. I promise I go all on my own too. I am potty trained too! If I have to GO, I just ring the bells on the back door.
I am still recovering from all my boo boos, especially my back leg, with the help of my foster Momma and all the sweet ladies that I have interacted with these past 3 days, of course. Shhh …I think, they think I’m too cute for my own fur! I am…Ruff Woof!
As soon as Winston is healed he will be neutered, vaccinated and put on heartworm preventative and up for adoption.
Houston has a staggering number of strays and many are injured and have no hope. Thanks to social media and some big hearted people many find foster homes and are picked up by rescues. Foster homes are the the key but funding is just as important. The rescues that are taking these animals in are small with no funding other than donations. When the animal is injured and in need of more vet care than usual, donations make all the difference. Winston is thankful that a kind person called the vet and paid for his initial visit and the next visit too! That takes the pressure off the rescue and allows us to focus on the animal and not worry about funds. We cannot thank this kind hearted person enough!
In addition to direct payments to vets there are often giving or caring fund options to donate for the animal. My recommendation for those is not to donate to them but rather to wait till the rescue that picks up the dog posts their link and asks for donations to help care for the animal they have taken in. This will eliminate confusion with trying to find out who donated and how to thank them or how to get the funds transferred to the rescue. Comment and offer to donate but wait till the rescue asks for those funds. That way the funds will go directly into the rescue’s account to be used for the animal. In this case a private person set up the account and it took us days to find out who it was. She is now waiting for the funds to be transferred from the donation account so she can then transfer them to True Blue Animal Rescue. If you wanted to donate but were’t sure where, please donate through Paypal on our web site www.t-bar.org or directly from our face book page. That money goes directly into our account to be used to help Winston.
Thank you on behalf of Winston and the many other dogs we take in each week. True Blue Animal Rescue is a 501c3 non profit organization so all donations made directly to True Blue Animal Rescue or on a True Blue Animal Rescue vet bill account are tax deductible. You will always receive a letter for tax purposes when making a donation to True Blue Animal Rescue.
Last week we received an update on Fabio!
His family tells us:
“I don’t know if you will remember Fabio but he was debilitating shy when we first got him. I remember your husband asking me to please be patient with him. While he is still a tad shy around us and hides from strangers, he has also recognized his forever home and family! Our alpha (jealous) male still rules the roost but even he shares his garage chair with Fabio!”
We are so happy Fabio has such a great forever home! He was one of a litter of puppies who were stuffed in a plastic container and illegally dumped off in front of a country home when they were 7-8 weeks old in 2011. We couldn’t be happier to hear updates like these. It gives us the energy we need to refuel our passion and continue to help animals in need!
Please send us updates on YOUR TBAR animal! Email [email protected] and we would love to feature your pet’s update on our site!
This week we shared a story about Oliver and Opal. If it weren’t for the fact that they were microchipped, the terrible person who took them from a rescue just to dump them in a shelter would have gotten away with it. Thankfully, the shelter scanned them and were able to take action to ensure they could have a happy ending!
To follow up on their story, we wanted to discuss microchipping. In some cities, microchipping is either mandatory or strongly encouraged. In rural areas, it is not as common, but the benefits are the same. Think about the RFID ear-tages that farmers use on their livestock to ensure their safe return if they ever get loose. Microchipping your pets is just as important!
A microchip is an electronic device that contains information connected to a database that helps to identify your pet if it lost or stolen. Unlike collars, which can be lost, removed, or worn down with age, a microchip is an identification tool that lasts the life of your pet and gives you the unquestionable ability to prove your pet is yours if you need to. All pets can be microchipped, including cats, dogs, and horses. People also regularly register their birds, and it is possible to microchip animals as small as fish or as large as whales.
Microchipping is done most commonly at your veterinarian’s office, although some shelters and rescues are able to do it as well. When your pet is chipped you must complete an enrollment form. You will receive a registration certificate which serves as your ownership document, similar to an automobile title. This document must accompany the pet if it transfers ownership. You also must keep your contact information up-to-date if you move.
It is not difficult or expensive to get your pet microchipped. The chip itself is about the size of a grain of rice and is inserted under the skin of your pet (on the side of the neck or between the shoulderblades). It usually costs between $25-50, is not invasive, and requires no anesthesia. Your pet will experience no lasting pain or irritation, and while you will be able to feel a small bump where it is located, they will not notice.
The chip can then be scanned with a hand-held device (many vets run this scan at each annual exam to ensure it is still working). Pets who are found (or turned over to a shelter or rescue) are routinely scanned on intake to ensure they do not have a chip that is registered. If a stray is chipped, their owners are immediately notified. Registrations usually not only have the owner’s information, but also an emergency contact (sometimes the vet). This ensures that there is a network available to help work at getting the pet back to the rightful owners.
For such a low cost and small bother, it is more than worth it to chip your pet and live with the peace of mind that they can and will be returned to you if you ever get separated!
Did someone say “give me puppies”? Well for the Pet of the week for this week, we have 5 females and 1 male. He/Or She will come with a certificate for neuter and rabies shots They are all American Staffordshire Terriers, will be large and are up to date with routine shots.
For more information, please email [email protected] or call (936)878-2349 and leave a voice mail. A TBAR volunteer will return your call at their earliest convenience. If you would like to adopt an animal, please download and submit via email or regular mail an adoption application (www.t-bar.org/about/forms) so that the foster home can arrange a meet and greet with your family.
So, check them out and pick up your puppy today. T-BAR is a no-kill rescue. Not only do we like having our animals adopted out, we also are in dire need of foster homes. That way we can help more animals out there, who are in perilous times alone on the streets. Please save a life by adopting a pet, instead of buying a pet and please have all your pets spayed and neutered. It is the right thing to do. If you are interested on where you can help or to look at all that is available to either adopt or foster, please go to www.t-bar.org and see all the animals that deserve a second chance and fulfilled life full of love, email[email protected] or call (936)878-2349 and one of our volunteers will get back to you as soon as possible. Adoption Fee: Please email [email protected] for adoption fee! Adoption fee includes neuter or spay, up to date vaccinations, heartworm tested if old enough or started on heartworm prevention as a puppy, deworming and a one year TBAR membership
Imagine being an animal waiting for a foster or forever home. Just for a moment, think about seeing so many nice smelling people come and go and yet, it’s not your turn. Finally one day you think salvation is in your paws. Someone points to not only you, but your friend that you are fond of. Both of you are going to be together in a real home. A safe place were the elements cannot touch you, a quiet place where other dogs or cats crying will not unsettle you. A place where you have your own bowl, bed, spot to nap and yard.
Oliver and Opal in early February believed that they had that kind of salvation, as they waited in Amarillo, Texas, for a special person to find them. But what happened to these two dogs was unbelievable and part of a sad person’s attempt for attention. The dogs were sent to a woman that swore she wanted to foster to adopt. So with hopes high on the rescuer’s part and the dogs, off they went to what was believed to be a fresh start and a happy ever after.
After the woman, that claimed she wanted Oliver and Opal, posted pictures of herself on Facebook of welcoming the dogs into her life, she ran out of use for them. After just one day she placed a call to her local dog pound and claimed that both the dogs, that thought they hit the jackpot, were strays! To add insult to injury, she did this knowing full well the rescuers that she got the two dogs from would have gladly taken them back.
Opal and Oliver could not explain to the animal control officer that responded to the call that it was all a horrible turn of events. They had been saved already once, but now they were heading to a pound as forgotten souls while the woman, that said she wanted them, went looking for more animals to adopt. But thankfully Oliver and Opal, in their own way, could speak. They could tell the animal control people that they were not strays, that they were in fact registered. Opal and Oliver were scanned for a microchip and with that new device their life story was played out.
The dogs were registered to Rhonda Tatum who supports the Amarillo Shelter where these two dogs had been living. Since Oliver and Opal were now in Bryan, Texas, Rhonda and her group now faced the task of getting the dogs back and to safety. Thankfully, Rhonda is very resourceful and found out that the woman who had these dogs had also contacted True Blue Animal Rescue (TBAR). Rhonda contacted Melanie DeAeth and explained the whole story. At that point everyone agreed that these dogs needed to be rescued again! With a lot of team work and networking it was decided the dogs would be placed in TBARs care.
Planning for getting the dogs was a group effort. Transport for the dogs from Bryan to Brenham, Texas, was provided by TBAR volunteer Ellen Spahni. Opal and Oliver came into TBAR care at a time when our foster homes were full. But rather than turn the dogs away, TBAR raised funds to have the dogs housed at K’s Mutt Hut in Brenham. Run by fellow animal lover and rescuer, Kathryn Eyster-Kwiatkowski, K’s Mutt Hut works with rescue groups all year round with a special discount rate for dogs that need a place to go in a hurry. Once Ellen dropped the dogs off, Jason and myself were able to meet the duo and take their pictures. Oliver and Opal were a little shy at first, but once toys were thrown around and we ran around the big play yard at K’s Mutt Hut, they soon got into the swing of things. Oliver is a sweet Shepard mix that loves to run off with toys, while Opal likes to catch a toy and just chew on it. Opal has a beautiful personality and is very calm, yet happy to play. The dogs got extra play time with the photographers because they were too awesome to leave too early.
While Opal and Oliver are now safe, their story could have turned out very differently. With a simple microchip, a dog has a voice that no one can take away. While all rescue groups do their absolute best with screening people that try to find a way to beat the system, every group has been burned; every rescuer has had a person do something that has made them jaded. With the microchip system, dogs and cats are given more security and rescue workers have more peace of mind. It’s why True Blue Animal Rescue will now be microchipping their animals upon intake starting March the first of 2015. It gives them footprints, much like a baby, and it will always lead them home, even when people stack the odds against them.
Oliver and Opal are miracle dogs. Dogs that were saved not once, but twice. Special dogs that were meant to be saved to find their perfect family. If you would like to learn more about Opal and Oliver you can visit them at K’s Mutt Hut. Please call to make an appointment at 979-661-0840
This is Lady, a Cane Corso mastiff. She belonged to a breeder who had her in their backyard. They were not taking good care of her and turned her over to someone else after her puppies had died. She was passed around to four different homes till she was taken in by Casie Cooper with True Blue Animal Rescue. Casie let her have some time to adjust and then slowly introduced her to her family and other dogs. She was worried that Lady might growl and behave aggressively, but after she settled in she was fine with the other dogs. Lady is a huge dog, and a breed that needs to be handled correctly, so we knew it would take a special home to adopt her. After she was vetted and spayed Casie was able to network her and find her the perfect family. She has settled in nicely with her new people and doggie siblings!
Last week we reported on a story of a little Chihuahua who had gotten separated from his family on their way to their new Military base posting in California. Our volunteers had networked to find his owners, and then made arrangements for him to be driven to San Diego. Today we are proud to report that not only did our community of supporters come together to raise the gas money to ensure the family did not have to contribute to Diego’s return, but Diego is now safely home and so is his transport friend, Colton!
Thank you, Colton, for driving so far and taking such good care of Diego, and for taking the photos to share with all of us! We are so happy to share his journey, and so happy that Diego is back with his family!
