Calling all pups... Rally for Hootchie and Raley

Hello Friends,

Not long ago my pals Hootchie and Raley were shot at point blank range by a mad-man while their owner pleaded for him to stop. By some miracle, Hootchie and Raley survived the horrendous ordeal and now is the time to bring their shooter to justice.

(From voicesforella.org)

There will be a peaceful rally Tuesday, September 23rd at 10am at 415 North Orange Avenue Orlando, Florida 32801in Downtown Orlando for the 2 husky dogs that were shot in Orlando back on May 19th. Hoochie and Raley were shot by Christopher Comins in a field occupied by some cattle after escaping from their owner. Although they posed no threat to the cows, Comins repeatedly shot the dogs in the eye, back, and legs, even as the owner was retrieving them. It was then found that Comins has a criminal record including misuse of a firearm from 2005 when he put a gun to a boy's head. In that case, he was initially charged with a felony but then pled the charge down to a misdemeanor. We do not want to see him also get away with shooting animals.

Many of us have been involved in this case since the beginning, advocating for the dogs and seeking justice from our authorities. Initially, Orange County Sheriff was not going to pursue a criminal investigation for the shooting of the dogs. They felt Comins was within his rights even though he did not own the land or the cattle. However, after calls by concerned citizens, the case was re-opened. When the Sheriff's Office concluded their investigation, they felt that Comins should only be charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty for the 7th (final) shot. This case has been sent to the Orange County State Attorney's Office. The State Attorney ultimately decides what charges should be formally filed, if any.

We are holding this rally to show the State Attorney that we want FELONY animal cruelty charges brought against the shooter, Christopher Comins, for repeatedly and intentionally shooting Hoochie and Raley. We will be in a grassy area near the courthouse/state attorney's office, which is in downtown Orlando at 415 North Orange Avenue, Orlando, Florida 32801. Just look for people with signs!

Rally Guidelines:
Same as usual. Please keep this peaceful...no cursing, screaming, etc
Signs must be hand-held in Orlando. This means you cannot have a sign
that has a pole attached. In the past, the city has received
complaints from people that protesters threatened them with the
poles/sticks/etc that were supporting the sign. I suggest just a foam
board or a sheet of poster board, which you can buy at Wal-Mart. Your
"hand-held" sign can be as large as you want according to code
enforcement.
Please do not block any of the walkways, doors, etc. Additionally, if
an officer tells you to move away from an area, you must do so.
Please do not argue with the officer. If you think you are being
unlawfully asked to move, the proper time to address that issue is
after the fact by filling an official complaint.
Carpools:
We are arranging carpools to make getting to the rally easier. If you
want to carpool or if you can offer a ride, please email me as soon
as possible so we can make arrangements!
****See the video of the husky shooting at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtYKvnSGqJU


If you have any questions, please contact Holly at www.voicesforella.org.

Or if you can not make it perhaps you can visit their Dogster pages and send them a note of support!
Hootchie
Raley

THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME!

Tails of the Tundra needs YOUR help. Please pledge today!

Dear Friends and Family,

I am excited to be participating in the 2008 Tails on the Trails fundraiser sponsored by Tails of the Tundra Siberian Husky Rescue, Inc. (TOTTSHR). I will spend the morning hiking to help Siberian Huskies. As an added bonus, there is a good chance that I may even win a great prize for the most money raised.

Tails of the Tundra Siberian Husky Rescue, Inc. (TOTTSHR), is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization comprised of volunteers throughout PA, MD, NJ, DE, WV and NY who dedicate their time and effort to rescuing Siberian Huskies and Siberian Husky mixes from shelters, abusive homes, or owners who can no longer properly care for their dogs. Their goal is to place these dogs in loving homes and to educate people about the characteristics of this often misunderstood breed. They have proven their success with the placement of more than 700 dogs in permanent homes since April 2000.

On September 20, 2008, TOTTSHR will hold its 6th annual Tails on the Trails at Warminster Community Park in Warminster, PA. Tails on the Trails 2008 will consist of a fundraising hike as well as many activities including a picnic, silent auction, microchip clinic, mushing demonstration and CGC testing.

This is where you come in – won’t you help support TOTTSHR by making a pledge? I will greatly appreciate any amount no matter how small. You can sponsor me by sending me cash, check, money order or sponsor me with paypal by visiting: http://www.siberescue.com/Common/TailsTrails2008/pledgepaypa l.html#TehyaMaya

Your donation is a tax deductible pledge and it will help save the lives of Siberian Huskies and Siberian Husky Mixes!

Sincerely,
Tehya

Tales from the Road

Yesterday marked a day of new beginnings for my family. We left our home in Northern California for good and are on the road to Austin, Texas. The last couple of days has consisted of saying goodbye to family and friends and visiting all of our favorite places before we got on the road. We spent a few days at the beach in Santa Cruz and had a blast. It was Maya's first ocean experience and she LOVED it. Her favorite part was digging in the sand. Mom got some funny pictures and should have them on her page shortly. We got to run in the desert today and currently I paw from a Super 8 in Tucson, Arizona. Tomorrow we hit the road again headed for home and new adventures. Will post tomorrow with an update!

Wolf is Spoken Here, CareAgain Raises Wolves and Spirits.

Care Again is a non profit organization which raises wolves, performs wolf studies and in the past has offered outreach programs.

Zoning changes made it mandatory to relocate the wolves and time is running out due to lack of funding and helping hands. The wolves were moved to a pristine nature preserve backing into a national forest in Colorado. Presently volunteers are urgently needed to help finish building the fence to ensure the safety of the wolf pack. The materials are there with a single set of human hands trying to manage it alone, due to the weather and other duties like feeding and tending to the wolves, it has been nearly impossible to accomplish this important task.

People interested in volunteering near Woodland Park CO. may contact J. Harris at:719-748-3780

Please have the patience to leave your name and number to be reached TWICE as the answering machine is less than state of the art and the wolf guardian is often away tending to the wolves.
You may also contact Sasha at LenaMalikhusky@gmail.com with any further questions.

Donations of any amount towards this 501 non profit organization are welcomed and greatly appreciated.

Please join us at our new website! : http://careagain.net/

Time for dog owners to OWN UP!

As I sift through a couple of weeks worth of posts, it seems to me that two words have escaped the minds of many. Owner responsibility. Dogs will do what dogs do, but it is the owner that is ultimately responsible for the actions of his or her animal, and as responsible owners it is our jobs to keep our animals safe and in good health. So many cases of dogs getting into "trouble" and RARELY do I see the owners standing up and taking responsibility. I see them leaning on others to pick up the pieces of the messes that they create. It really is not fair to the animals that have done nothing wrong and sit helpless in shelters waiting death for no reason other than lack of responsible ownership. WHO IS SPEAKING UP FOR THEM? I am the proud owner of two beautiful huskies that own my heart. They are on the stupid "list" of "bad" breeds. Because of that, I am overzealous about keeping them out of trouble. Not to say accidents do not happen. I have spent my time over the years chasing after the rear ends of many a husky. BUT, if they happened to get into "trouble" I would be devastated, and have no one to blame but myself for not preventing the situation. It would not occur to me to ask others to pick up the pieces.

For the record, I think BSL is a pile of horse manure. Perhaps there needs to be a piece of legislation put in order against yahoos who think owning an animal is a right & not a privilege and do not take that privilege seriously. To quote a dear friend of mine, Jack...."Please don't get a dog if you are an imbecile." I could not have said it better myself.

A Letter to Blue

As told by Tehya's mom

Dear Blue,

If only for a moment today, I thought we found you. A e-mail came in and my heart leapt, and then I prayed. I spoke to your mom. When I called and introduced myself, the woman on the other end of the line replied...."this is Blue's mom." From that moment it was hard to fight back the tears. She had gotten the same e-mail and was either on the way to the shelter or sending someone to see if it was you (the call was somewhat garbled). She also thanked me profusely for all of the support that she has gotten from all of our group and said, "it has really kept me going." I waited and your mom called me back. It was not you. My heart sank into my stomach. I can only imagine how your mom was feeling. She thanked us all again, "for keeping hope alive."

Now I cry. I cry for you. I cry for your mom. I cry for all that are working so hard to bring you home. Oh Blue, where are you? So many hearts long for your safe return and I can only pray that where ever you are you are safe and being taken care of. We will not give up on you. You are part of a huge collective and your soul is a part of each and every one of us. For now, we cry and march forward.

My promise to you is to "keep hope alive." Just thought you should know.

I love you,
Tehya, Maya & Molly's mom-Nicole

Blue, a black and white Siberian Husky (4 year old male, brown eyes, microchipped) has been missing since May 8, 2007 from Brighton, MI.

Dogster page: http://www.dogster.com/dogs/620507
Website : whereisblue.com
MySpace: BLUE~I am lost
E-mail: inform@whereisblue.com
Telephone: (313) 550-6095
Reward offered for his return, no questions asked.
Permission and gratitude for cross posting. Thank you!

I am a star!

Last night was my first night of obedience school. I had a wonderful time with mom. The class was very noisy. Lots and lots of barking, jumping dogs that did not have their heads screwed on quite right. I was quiet and did all that mom asked me to. The teacher even made an example of me! Mom says I am her super star! There is another beautiful siberian in the class named Isis. Her coat is the color of cocoa beans and she is bi-eyed like me. She was also a very good girl. It figures that the two most well behaved dogs in the classroom were huskies. Hmmmm...... Tomorrow Maya starts her classes and mom is excited to have the extra one on one time with each of us. If I keep it up I will have my CGC Certification in no time. Yipee!!!!!

Feeling Blue

It has been six months since my friend Blue has gone missing. Every day seems like an eternity for his mom, but we will not give up. His story is being heard across the nation and across the world. We will not stop searching until you are home.

Friends~

Please copy and paste Blue's information into your diary and then tag some of your friends to do the same. Someone, somewhere knows what happened to Blue. The more eyes and ears that see his face and hear his story, the better chance that we have to get him home where he belongs. We would do it for any of you! That's the power of the paw!

Blue, a black and white Siberian Husky (4 year old male, brown eyes, microchipped) has been missing since May 8, 2007 from Brighton, MI.

Dogster page: http://www.dogster.com/dogs/620507
Website : http://whereisblue.com
MySpace: BLUE~I am lost
E-mail: inform@whereisblue.com
Telephone: (313) 550-6095
Reward offered for his return, no questions asked.
Permission and gratitude for cross posting. Thank you!

Today the mailman brought my soul in a box.

Today I recieved a package from a dogster friend. It was wrapped in paper adorned with pine leaves. I opened the box and it smelled of earth and life. A note was carefully written on a piece of birch bark and the box contained books, 2 wolf toys for the human kids, pine cones for us (which Maya could not get to fast enough, a beautiful deer antler and moose teeth for the oldest human child in the house, and for us to smell and lick, and lots of beautiful pictures. I loved smelling the end of the antler. It was like nothing that I have ever smelled before. I wanted to take it from mom, but she would not let me have it. The box was like a window to my soul. How could someone who I have never met face to face know me so well? It was truely the most amazing gift anyone could have bestowed upon me and I am eternally greatfull to know such a remarkable and intuative human being. No gift in the world could ever compare to this. Nothing. I am blessed. I am blessed to have such a special friend and she makes me happy to be alive. I am reminded that it is the simple things in life that bring pure joy. Money could never buy the happiness that I feel today. It is like a light shining from within. I feel that even though miles separate us, we share the same soul. She restores my faith in humanity and in myself. Thank you for being you. I love you.

I miss my best friends

I am missing my best pals Loki, Thor, Maya & Konari Bear tonight. I know that they will be back one day when life settles down for their paw-rents, but tonight I really miss them.

Tey