Charlie comes for a visit

Charlie Brown is a big, handsome pit bull who was adopted to a fabulous family a few years ago. Michelle Dunlap, his former foster mom, hadn't seen Charlie and his family for quite a while and she was so thrilled to see them today at Petsmart.
Charlie was saved from the Alachua County Animal Shelter when he was scheduled for euthanasia because he was heartworm positive. We treated his heartworms and Charlie joined a foster family who had cats, dogs, and a ferret. Charlie was such a great dog that he allowed the ferret to steal his food and he quickly won over the cats and dogs. When this foster mom had to stop fostering, Michelle Dunlap happily took Charlie back in to foster.  Charlie was lucky to be chosen for adoption by Renald and his family, which also included cats. Charlie is a very loved boy who has the life he has always deserved.


Thank you Renald! It was great to see Charlie again today!

Aspen and Wonder make their debut

Aspen and Wonder are true survivors. Aspen has overcome extreme neglect and severe heartworm disease. She was confiscated in a county that doesn't typically do much for their dogs, only to be sent to a rescue that didn't care for her properly. Finally, Michelle Dunlap took her in and has been working hard to get her healthy for nearly a year. Aspen i finally making her Petsmart debut tomorrow, Saturday, January 9, 2010! What a milestone for Aspen! Please come visit Aspen and take her for a congratulatory walk. She'll show you her pretty Sit, now that her pit bull thigh muscles have finally developed well enough to enable her to sit comfortably.



And she'll introduce you to her friend, Wonder.



Wonder survived the most unlikely of gunshot wounds. He was shot in his thighs by a .22 caliber rifle from a long range. The bullet passed right through both thighs. This is one time it really pays to have big, beefy, pit bull thighs! No artery, bone, ligament, or anything was hit. Just muscle. It's absolutely amazing - it's a WONDER! This handsome fellow has learned Sit and Heel at his foster home with Michelle Dunlap. He doesn't pull on his leash one bit and loves going for walks. He'd love to follow you around Petsmart, picking out bones to chew on and squeaky toys to disembowel. Come see Wonder, his friend Aspen, and all their dog buddies at Petsmart in Butler Plaza on Archer Road from 11AM til 5PM every Saturday. Come see Wonder and Aspen this Saturday for their adoption debuts!



Photo credit (and big thank you!) goes to Marcella Suter.

Sweet Serendipity

Sweet Serendipity Photography graciously donated a photo session for the silent auction at The Third Annual National Pit Bull Awareness Day in October 2009. Phoenix Animal Rescue adopters and fosters Claire and Joe won the silent auction and shared their dog family photos with us.

Claire and Joe have a sweet girl named Shea. They decided Shea needed a friend.

So Claire and Joe adopted Sam from Phoenix Animal Rescue. Sam was confiscated as a young dog by the Alachua County Sheriff's Department and was very sick when he first came to Phoenix Animal Rescue. He recovered from his neglect to become a stunningly handsome pit bull who absolutely adores his big mama Shea.

As Shea got older, Claire and Joe thought it would be a good idea for rambunctious Sam to have a younger playmate. They introduced Sam to Fendi and offered to foster Fendi so Sam would have a playmate. They have since decided to make Fendi a permanent member of their family, and her new name is Kobi.


Thank you Joe and Claire, for not only adopting Sam and Fendi, but also loving Sam, Shea, and Fendi so much. We sincerely appreciate you donating to Phoenix Animal Rescue by bidding on the Sweet Serendipity Photography package at Pit Bull Day.


Thank you, Sweet Serendipity Photography, for capturing such beautiful images of Sam and his Family. Thank you for donating the photo session for the silent auction. To contact Sweet Serendipity Photography call 352 494-3674 or visit their website www.sweetserendipityphotography.com.

Daisy earned her CGC!

Daisy and her mom, Jennifer, came to our Totally Pit Bull Training Class so Daisy could learn to be more confident. Totally Pit Bull Training Class is designed by dog trainer, Michelle Dunlap, to address issues common to strong dogs who have learned to bulldoze their way through life, often ignoring their owners.   Although Daisy is not a pit bull, we often refer to her as an honorary pit bull because she loved to play with pit bulls at Phoenix Animal Rescue. The Totally Pit Bull Training Class focuses on the AKC Canine Good Citizen program as a way to promote our wonderful bully breeds. All dogs test for the CGC at graduation and we're SO very proud to announce that Daisy passed her CGC test! Daisy is now a certified American Kennel Club Canine Good Citizen! Congratulations, Daisy and Jennifer! Way to go!

Sheba

In 2006, Phoenix Animal Rescue got a call from a local veterinarian asking if we would take a mama dog and her four puppies, who were living in someone's backyard under a shed. When a volunteer attempted to retrieve the four puppies, it turned out that there were, in fact, EIGHT puppies! What a surprise! We had committed to this mama dog and her puppies, no matter how many there were, so the family of nine came to live with the director of Phoenix Animal Rescue, Michelle Dunlap. We named the mama dog Sheba and once Sheba weaned her puppies, she went to live with Gillian, a wonderful foster mom with PAR. Sheba did so well in her foster home with Gillian, that Gillian quickly decided to keep her. We were thrilled for both Gillian and Sheba!


We recently received this update from Gillian, along with a new photo of Sheba, looking very content:

"I just wanted to touch base with you and give you a little update on Sheba! She's great.. hands down the best dog ever :) We're living in Columbia, South Carolina now. I moved down here for school- going to get my PhD. I think Sheba will happier here come winter time. She definitely didn't like the whole snow thing up in Maryland! She's a little neurotic at times still, but that's why I love her :) And shes EXTREMELY stubborn... for instance, if she doesn't want to walk on grass, or in a certain area...she won't. She'll literally just stop in her tracks. Frustrating? Yes. But I guess shes a woman who knows what she wants. haha. I can't believe that she's almost turning 5! (Well, thats a guess since we don't really know how old she is)...but time has definitely flown by since I got that email from you years ago telling me all about her! I've enclosed a recent picture of her so you can see :)

Anyway, I hope all is well in Gainesville... hope all these wonderful pups are finding great homes!"
Thank you, Gillian, for giving Sheba such a wonderful forever home, and for loving Sheba as she deserves!

Third Annual Pit Bull Awareness Day

Phoenix Animal Rescue and West End Animal Hospital hosted the Third Annual Pit Bull Awareness Day on Sunday, October 4, 2009. What a fun day it was for everyone!


Dogs and their owners enjoyed the weight pull demonstration by Blue Streak Kennels, whose champion weight pull dogs showed their strength and training by pulling over 4,000 pounds! Attending dogs got to try out the weight pull sled to help raise funds for our pit bulls. Thank you Blue Streak Kennels!

Susie Keel donated her time to test dogs for their AKC Canine Good Citizen certification. Eight dogs tested and six of them passed to earn their AKC CGC certification! One of the dogs who tested was our alumni, Valentina, who brought her new mom and dad to Pit Bull Awareness Day. Thank you Susie! Thank you to Valentina, her new mom, and her new dad!


The bake sale for people and dogs was a big hit. A big thank you goes out to all of our bakers who took the time to bake home made dog treats and people treats. People at Pit Bull Awareness Day enjoyed the scavenger hunt for interesting facts about pit bulls. Gladys Cofrin and Sandi Richmond gave out information on Operation PetSnip and Breed Specific Legislation. The Silent Auction was a great success and was possible only through the generous donations of Suzanne Agliata from Mary Kay Cosmetics, Joanna Martinez from Pampered Chef, Sweet Serendipty Pet Photography, Dogs D'Rule Mobile Dog Wash, and J&K Canine Academy. It was great to see some of our adopted dogs come for a visit. Here's Brooke and Phoenix Animal Rescue Director, Michelle Dunlap, who rescued Brooke in the Summer of 2008.


In a happy reunion, two dogs from one rescued litter got to see each other for the first time since they were adopted as little puppies. The smallest and largest puppies from one litter rescued around Christmas 2008 when Michelle Dunlap was out Christmas shopping with her mom, Cookie and Jolly, are now named Daisy and Hamilton. They were very happy to hang out together. That's Cookie (Daisy) on the left and Jolly (Hamilton) on the right.


It's always great to see our adopted alumni and we were so happy to see Mocha and her family at Pit Bull Awareness Day. Mocha was rescued by Michelle Dunlap the day she was sent to the shelter to be euthanized. She was shy when she first came to Phoenix Animal Rescue but is now quite the brave girl who happily mingled with everyone at Pit Bull Awareness Day. Yay Mocha!


One of our dedicated volunteers and adopters, Claire brought two of her dogs, both of whom are from Phoenix Animal Rescue. Fendi, on the left, came to Phoenix Animal Rescue with a broken front leg. Sam, on the right, was in horrible shape when he was confiscated by the Alachua County Sheriff's Office. Both Fendi and Sam made full recoveries from their injuries and are now gorgeous bully breed ambassadors. Thanks Claire, Sam, and Fendi for supporting the pit bulls at Phoenix Animal Rescue!


Fendi's mom, Claire, snapped this super cute photo of Fendi looking up at the camera.


A big thank you goes to our sponsors, Domino's Pizza, Hunter's Lawn Service, Wayne Losano, and TnT Graphics. Thank you! Pit Bull Awareness Day raised nearly $1000 for our pit bulls! WOW!!

Phoenix Animal Rescue wants to especially thank our professional event planner, Alison Hightower, owner of Eventures by Alison. Alison handled every aspect of Pit Bull Awareness Day including volunteer recruitment and organization, t-shirt design and ordering, site preparation and clean up, activity schedule and planning, purchasing of supplies, and preparation of all games, activities, and table information. Thank you Eventures by Alison!

Brooke

Brooke was found in a rainstorm by Executive Director, Michelle Dunlap, on a hot Summer afternoon. Brooke was standing by a lonely country road, miles away from any house. Every bone in her body protruded through her sparse fur and her toenails were so overgrown that she was unable to stand on a solid surface. Brooke tested positive for heartworms, and spent nearly a year with her foster mom, Michelle, gaining weight, developing muscle tone, and regrowing her coat.


Brooke tried out two new foster homes to meet different dogs and make sure she was adaptable to new situations. She did fantastic in each of her foster homes and we were confident that Brooke would do well in an adoptive home, when it came along.


Michelle was thrilled when she received an email asking about Brooke. A woman wanted a dog for her mom, a spunky woman in her 80s. They wanted a dog who would do well with dogs and cats, didn't have an enormous amount of energy, and would be content to spend lots of time at home. We thought it would be ideal for Brooke.

And we were right! Brooke took to her new home instantly. She's been with her new mom for several months now, and we recently received an update with some great photos.


"She's definitely put on a "little" weight.. Who wouldn't eating Oatmeal for breakfast, beans & rice for lunch and watermelon for dessert.. I think she may even eat her DOG FOOD once in awhile.. As you can see she has taken over the couch.. It now belongs to her and you are only allowed to lay there if their is a belly rub involved.. Her's a very happy girl!"

Congratulations, Brookey! You've landed a fantastic home and you certainly deserve it! Thank you, Judy, for sending this great update and bringing Brooke into your family!

Brooke was adopted through phoenixanimalrescue.petfinder.org.
www.phoenixanimalrescue.org