BAD RAP Blog

What a pleasure it was to see these beautiful faces, not only above the fold in a Grand Rapids newspaper, but on the Humane Society Kent County's Adoption Page - ready and waiting for applications. (fullsize scan) Of course, like any shelter that has many pit bulls up for...

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Just got an email from some people around Denver that one of the two federal lawsuits against the pit bull ban recently SETTLED:The Arnold case has been settled by the City of Denver for a multi-thousand dollar settlement. Did you hear that? Let's say it again. Denver has settled the...

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A federal prosecutor in Michigan tried to convince a federal judge to order the euthanasia of all dogs swept up in a cruelty case this past summer. The problem is, the Humane Society of Kent County has been housing several of the dogs for months and believes that they're adoptable....

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Maryland SPCA’s Executive Director Aileen Gabbey released the following statement about the decision to give the Ed Block Courage Award to Vick today....“The Maryland SPCA remains shocked and disappointed that Michael Vick will, indeed, receive an award for courage from the Ed Block Foundation after being nominated by his team....

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We're living vicariously through Phatman and his new family this week, who are living big adventures on the road. Cindy wrote home this weekend with some highlights from their travels....Below: First snow. Just thought I would give you a little update on Phatman. We've been in southern Utah for the...

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We all love the before and after stories, especially with the "snowballs chance in hell" dogs. We got to celebrate a special snow storm survivor this weekend when puppy Vessa went full adoption. Here she is when we first laid eyes on her, back in August (she's the little brown...

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Los Angeles photographer Lori Fusaro contacted us recently and asked if she could use her photography to help our cause. I thought, "Oh how very nice," which turned out to be a bit of an understatement once we took a look-see at her work. This girl has got it going...

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Behold... ....the view from the tiny little throne room in BR's soon to be barn. I don't know why this photo pleases me so much, but I'm just tickled pink by this newest development in our project's progress.Of course, there's a lot more is going on besides the bathroom window,...

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The winter's been whipping up crazy weather all around the country this year. How are your fences holding up? Warm weather will arrive soon, and your dogs will be taking stock of every little change and possible escape route in their outdoor world.We'd sure love to get fewer panicked calls...

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An article came out about my hubby today that had (almost) nothing to do with pit bulls. Almost! We can't get away from them completely. The sfgate piece was about what Tim calls his "real job."SFGate Some may know that Tim is a wood sculptor and he's usually creating dog...

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We fell hard for Phatman when we first spotted him as a dirty stray at Oakland Animal Services. Big, luggy, mixy Phatman. What a mench he was. He charmed us with his warm enthusiasm and melted us all over the floor when he greeted a group of visiting autistic kids...

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NACA = National Animal Control AssociationIn this blog post, an interview with NACA Rep Mark Kumpf about a progressive new position statement that will help bring victims of cruelty out of the dark shadows and into a new age of compassion. Big stuff here, guys.You may have heard us lament...

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We lost two special souls to health issues recently. Both were from the big bust in Kay County, Oklahoma in winter '08. They were everybody's favorite survivors, so writing this blog post was rather hard. Effie They say when you save someone's life, you're responsible for them for...

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We meet up with some incredibly kind and generous people during our work. Here are three projects that deserve support...The Photo Book ProjectsPhotographer Melissa McDaniel is hoping to raise 300K for animal groups around the country with the sale of her new photo book. Right now, when you pre-order her...

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It feels like a good day to do a handstand. Again. This blog post favorite shows BR Ambassadog trainer Sara Scott keeping Newman entertained with a new - ahem - trick(?) while he waited for a home in the Oakland Animal Shelter. We think it worked. Newman kept his little...

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Tim and I will be joining Christie Keith for a streaming audio chat on all things pit bull this coming Sunday, Feb 14. 9pm ET This should be fun. Many thanks to pethobbyist.com for giving pit bulls a seat at the table.pethobbyist.com Chat Info...

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Over thirty people showed up in chilly temps last month to attend our orientation for Pit Ed Class. It can be hard to hear through the winter winds in this outdoor space, but the crowd leaned in close to soak up the first important lesson. Some had been waiting for...

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Canine Nose Work is all the rage in our corners. This fab new dog sport gives our furry noodle brains a real work out, which can only be a good thing. It's great for giving shy dogs a confidence boost and for breaking the doldrums of shelter life. It's also...

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The rains slowed down a little bit yesterday, so the dogs were happy to stretch their legs and have a little romp. Of course new girl Pink was in the middle of the fun....

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KC Dog Blog has been steadily reporting some BIG news out of Ohio. Toledo has had a reputation as being one of the country's biggest death camps due to a decades-long no-mercy policy that not only barred pit bulls from surviving the shelter, but permitted dog wardens to enter private...

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Got cabin fever yet? We do! and we're looking forward to busting out on Feb 20 at Bullylicious, a party designed to promote Pinups for Pitbull's annual calendar. Paco Collars go-to girl Ana Poe is Miss October, and she'll be there in living color to sign (and sell) calendars along...

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Jon Bozak and Demo have spent the last 16 years together, perfecting the art of friendship. Most of us know Demo the cartoon dog, who's been helping the world understand the evils of BSL and discrimination in this famous book. As sad as it is to know that he's gone,...

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Bully BULLY! We're so happy to report that you did it - You helped us raise 100K to make a modest BR holding facility a reality, and you did it with a bang. We were inching our way towards 'Done!' in the final push of our campaign when an anonymous...

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It's nice when pit bull rescue people don't have to be the only ones to harp on about leashes. This comes from the Malamute people, who must get a million headaches in their mailboxes from nordic breed owners who want a born-free kind of experience for their dogs. There's some...

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Today was a BRILLIANT day for dog owners who've been working for weeks to prep their dogs for our winter AKC Canine Good Citizen Program exam. (Link: CGC Info) Twelve of thirteen dogs passed! Right: A very happy Seam with her brand new CGC star, Rio.There were as...

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