We can’t take another dog. We don’t have room for another dog. We don’t have the time to rehab or train another dog. Especially one that will be 185lbs when she’s full grown. And, yes although we are doing ok now, if this year has taught us anything about the economy, it’s that it could turn on a dime at any minute. We don’t have the budget for emergencies for three dogs. We have just enough tucked away for the two we have now.

Yes she’s adorable and needs a handler who understands large, independent stubborn breeds. We get that. But it wouldn’t be fair to her. Or to our pack.

We know you think we could simply integrate her into the house and you assume all would be well. But, here is the thing. There is a reason why we have well trained, well mannered, CGC bullmastiffs who walk nicely on a leash and listen to what we say while you have a (insert relevant “family dog” breed here) who drags you down the block and can’t be trusted.

We understand our limitations. We understand our breed. We understand that StoVoQor, for as sweet as she is, is an Alpha bitch would not be happy with us tossing any old dog into the pack. And that ParmaQay is very insecure, in spite of all the work we have done with her. To bring another dog into this pack, a dog that needs a lot of our attention, would be unfair to both of them. There could be serious consequences. Dogs could die. People could be injured. We aren’t sure that you fully understand that.

Please stop coming to our door with pictures. Please refrain from stopping us on the street to once again tell us about the adorable little mastiff in the shelter. We can’t take her. As much as we would love to rescue a dog, heck 10 dogs, 20 dogs… we just can’t. Please spread the word that we are sorry but we cannot take her. Five of you have told us about her so far and every time we hear about her, our hearts break a little more.

We support the dogs in our local shelters by supporting our shelters. We donate when we can, we raise awareness where we can and attempt to educate others on the benefits of responsible pet ownership.

Thank you for letting us know about her. If you want to help her, Find your local shelter and donate

Thank you,

The Bullmastiff Family On the Block

Reece

Reece has an itty bitty issue that is actually a big problem

Reece has a hole in his heart.

Reece will probably live about 10 months without surgery. A surgery that costs $2700.

With pulminary banding, Reece could live 10-12 YEARS.

A friend of mine works with a local organization called Animal Lovers, who is currently housing and caring for Reece.

From the Animal Lovers Website:

Reece is cute, of course – what kitten isn’t? But, he’s also energetic, alert and charming. He barrels across the room to greet you-tail high, skidding across the tile floor.

And then you hear it: A low, whooshing sound that is the result of a hole in his heart. Click here for more about Reece

One might argue that $2700 is an awful lot for one cat, and that $2700 could feed and care for a LOT of hungry kitties.

But here is the deal. People won’t give $2700 for just a bunch of kitties, but if you tug on those heart strings with ONE kitty, that money comes in.

And rescue organizations need money.

Please do what you can for Reece, knowing that if by any chance they get more than $2700 or if the vet is able to discount anything, the extra will go to cats who maybe don’t tug on your heart strings as much.. cats like Guy, Holden, China, Tanner, Maxine, Jessica, and many more.

Donate to Reece, and all his kitty buddies easily through Paypal here.

As I’m sure you know, feral cats sometimes take a long time to warm up to people, if at all.   But if the cat has the slightest chance, Ronnie tries to find a way.One of the newest things her group is doing is finding ways for cats who don’t do well at adoption clinics to be exposed to people and potential adoption.

They have established a satelite site for adoptions.  A used book store!  How perfect!  This gives the cats the opportunity to get comfortable inside and warm up to people at their own pace.

I got this email from Ronnie the other day, complete with Pictures

For those of you who know (or know of) my foster, Elsa, who was a feral from an Albany colony, I thought you might enjoy seeing pictures of her at Tea and Tattered Pages, the used bookstore in Glenmont that Sylvia set up as an “auxiliary adoption site”. Elsa is a typical feral – although very outgoing with me, she’s usually shy and somewhat frightened in new situations.

Imagine how thrilled I am to see how well she’s doing after only 3 days at T&TP!! She’s now the queen of the store, has already started to greet customers when they go back to the bookshelves, and is the darling of the owner, Michele (who took these pictures and sent them to me). Last night I brought another of my fosters, Mischa, down to keep Elsa company – although if these pictures are any indication, Elsa didn’t seem to mind having the place to herself, either!

Thank you, Sylvia for setting this up – what a great resource this is for our shyer cats – and what a great foster mom Michele is! And if anyone ever wants to check out a great used bookstore, T&TP is it! Books, couches – and cats! What more could you ask for???

Click the pic for full sized image

If you are in the Albany/Glenmont NY Area, Stop by Tea and Tattered Pages.  They have a trade in program for books and did I mention cats?  You can also read their blog here.