Oh My Dog!

The current count is ::drumroll:: 568 postcards!!!!

At last count two weeks ago, we were at 409, so this has been a huge leap forward. Keep up the momentum, everyone!! Have you posted the campaign on your Facebook page yet? Here’s the direct link to the postcard instructions: http://ohmydogblog.com/campaign-to-end-bsl-operation-denver/

I am so proud and so excited! When I launched the campaign, the mile-long stretch of postcards was sort of this crazy idea, albeit a little gimmicky. After I posted the first post about the campaign, I remember turning to hubby and saying, “Oh.my.gosh. What if I don’t get a single one?”

So the fact that you have made 568 postcards ready to be a loud voice for these animals… I consider this a humongous success already!

We have SEVEN WEEKS left until BlogPaws, the postcard deadline. If we all work together, I think we can double that number. What do you say?

Here are some ways you can help:

• Make another postcard! I’ll be making 10 this weekend!
• Share the campaign link on your Facebook page.
• Blog about BSL and encourage your readers to ACT!
• Tweet with the #endBSL hashtag.
• Any other ideas? Anything I’m forgetting?

And, once again, thank you so much for all your help and support and everyone’s time in creating postcards and spreading the message. We are definitely going to get Denver’s attention!

This past weekend, Emmett and I had two therapy dog events: his regular visit with the children residents of a mental health facility and a booth at our county’s annual fair. It was a weekend of reminders – reminders of why I write this blog, why I work with Emmett as a therapy dog, and why it’s so critically important for animals to have advocates.

Where do I even begin?

***

We arrived to the hospital early on Friday and hung out with some little girls in the waiting room. They patted Emmett, rubbed his belly, got high-fives, and squished him with big bear hugs.

Little girl: He’s so sweet! (pause) Until he turns on you.

She gave me this knowing look, a look that told me she knew dogs and knew that dogs would turn. That look broke my heart.

Me: Oh no! Emmett would never turn on you. He’s very well trained, he’s a therapy dog, he loves people, he’s well socialized. You can feel safe patting him!

Little girl: Well, my dog was really good, but one day she bit my fingers so my dad hit her head with a hammer so she died.

I wish with my whole entire being that I knew the right response. But I didn’t. My jaw dropped, my stomach sank, and I mumbled something about training, socialization, and exercise. Then we got called back for our pet therapy session, and I staggered away, gripping Emmett’s leash, saying a silent prayer for that little girl and that poor dog.

***

On Saturday, we went to the county fair. Emmett and I staffed a booth for our local humane association that was filled with educational materials, adoption promotion, and a lucky duck game for kids. The game was a big hit, and we were kept pretty busy doling out prizes. Most of the people who stopped to chat were polite and friendly and kindly asked if they could pat Emmett. A few people, though, proved why we were there…

One woman came over and said she never had her outdoor cat spayed because she thought it was unlikely she’d get pregnant. But just last night the cat came to the door with a kitten in her mouth. Then she went and got a second kitten. She birthed a litter of kittens, but those two were the only survivors. The woman wanted to know what she should do with the kittens and whether or not she should spay her cat.

Another woman reported that she knew that a man on her street hosted dog fights in his basement. She called the police – along with several other neighbors – but the police didn’t go into the house, just questioned the guy at his front door and left. She was afraid for her children’s safety – one of the guy’s dogs had gotten out one day and ripped around the neighborhood – and wanted to know if there was anyone to call other than the police.

Later, a man walked up to us and asked, “Is your dog a pit bull?” I gave him my spiel about “pit bull” being a generic term, Emmett was a Staffordshire Bull Terrier mix, therapy dog, and all-around cuddle bug. The guy proceeds to tell me that he knows pit bulls have an unfair reputation because he has a pit bull, and she’s just the best dog he’s ever had. She’s great with his kids, and she loves to go for walks or nap on the couch.

I was smiling at this point. Finally! A happy story!

Then he says, “She’s so well trained I can sic her on anything, but now she’s killing all my neighborhood’s cats. How can I get her to stop killing cats?”

***

For every 10 people who stopped by the booth, we got at least one of those types of stores. It was aggravating and disheartening. The whole way home, I fumed. I was all ready to write this big huge blog post about how overwhelmed I was and how I didn’t know what the hell else to do.

And then somewhere along the way I remembered… duh… that that was exactly why Emmett and I were at that booth. To talk to those people. To help educate them and advocate for the animals who don’t have a voice. It’s why we visit those kids, to help instill compassion and understanding, and to help them understand just how much love can pour out of an animal you’re taking good care of.

So even though it was rough in the moment, we basically achieved the goals we set for participating in those types of events. And if I focus on that, then I can sleep so much better at night.

I’d love to hear from you. What messages of education or compassion or advocacy do you try to pass along to these types of folks? Any tips or words of wisdom for those of us who are passionate about animal welfare?

After a crazy week last week, we went out of town to visit hubby’s family in Maryland. And, boy, do I have a lot of catching up to do! Plus, Emmett and Lucas went to their grandma’s house for a little “vacation,” so no new stories to share about them – except to say that after 5 days of chasing chipmunks, the boys are exhausted!

Tired Lucas.

So for today, I thought I’d share a couple links to recent BSL-related media.

First up, education is key! New University Study in to Dog Bite Prevention

Also, I got to write a guest post for Grouchy Puppy’s Dog Days blog! Why BSL fails our dogs

And, lastly, I got to interview Nichole, a board member for Indy Pit Crew – an AWESOME pit bull advocacy group – about how they use social media.

Thanks for your patience with the recent lack of posting. Lots more to come as I get back on schedule!

This post is my contribution to Blog the Change! Thanks to Amy and Rod of GoPetFriendly.com and Kim of  This One Wild Life for coming up with such an awesome, positive initiative!

A bully available for adoption in Salt Lake. Flickr image with adoption details: http://www.flickr.com/photos/just_steph/4389189964/

I have a confession.

It’s sort of embarrassing.

Here goes.

Prior to late 2006, I had no clue what a “pit bull” was. None. No idea. If you had shown me a lineup of 50 dogs and asked me to pick out the bully breed, I would’ve had to guess. And, here’s the worst part, I probably would’ve thought… Hmmm. Which one looks the meanest?

And then Emmett came into my life. One look at the shelter, and he was it. We fell in love right there on the spot. As soon as we got him home to our little condo in DC, on our very first walk with our brand new dog, this guy on our block came over and asked, “Is that a pit bull?” I recoiled. No way! Emmett is sweet and silly, and we just love him.

But then a lot of people asked us if he was a pit bull. So I looked up pit bull. Hmm. Maybe he is?? And for a moment, for a split second, I looked at him out of the corner of my eye and thought… Are you waiting to eat me?

I’m glad I was clueless. Had I thought that I was bringing home a pit bull, I may have thought twice. Or even thrice. But I didn’t. And now I have Emmett. And he has truly changed our lives.

My former ignorance is probably why I now work so hard to combat bully prejudices. Because now I know that my previous bully education was limited to only the things I saw on the evening news. Because now I know that I was so wrong and that the media is so sadly biased. Because now I know Emmett, and now that I’ve seen Emmett literally change lives – mine and the kids’ he works with as a therapy animal – I am so attuned to these wonderful dogs.

The reality is that the traits that make bullies such amazing family dogs – loyalty, courage, determination, dedication to their people at all costs – are the exact traits that make them exploitable. We who love these dogs owe it to them to educate others, to spread positive bully love, to keep them from dying senselessly, whether its at the hands of a misinformed, reactive city government or at the hands of dog fighters.

These dogs desperately need our help. They are literally dying because of misinformation. As animal lovers and as members of the animal welfare community, we have the power to be the voice for these animals and to enact change.

So here’s my call to action:

• Create a postcard to end BSL in Denver. It’s but one city, I know, but it’s a start.
• When you come across a positive bully-related story, tweet it. Facebook it. Email it. Call your mom and read it to her. Spread positive news!
• When you see misinformation posted on news sites, blogs, wherever, post polite comments correcting facts. It really does help!
• Adopt a pit bull! Then once you have the little love bug, train him, socialize him, and take his big, smiling face wherever you can to introduce people to your ambassadog!

Currently, the campaign to end BSL is focused on Denver. I chose Denver for two reasons: First, their ban has been in place on and off since 1989, and since that time have killed thousands of “pit-bull like” dogs. Now that their mayor, who has previously upheld the ban, is running for governor, it’s crucial to get his attention on this issue. Second, BlogPaws is being held in Denver in September, and with hundreds of pet bloggers pouring their money into the city, I thought we needed to be a voice for these animals.

But it’s important to remember that this is a national issue. Do you know if your city has any type of breed ban or restriction in place? I follow the news of dog bites, breed bans, city council meetings, etc. and wanted to share a few recent stories with you:

New dangerous dog ordinance before Toledo City Council: This is an excellent story. The council considers repealing their breed-specific laws for ones that hold owners responsible.

“If we can make owners more responsible by levying fines against those who are not and cut down on the number of dog bites in City of Toledo, then I think we’re doing our job,” said Council Member Rob Kudeman. “That’s what people expect council and the administration to do.”

Public’s turn to howl over pit bulls: This one really gets me. The proposed ordinance in Lynn, MA defines pit bulls as: “dangerous animals” with “powerful instincts for dominance” and “unyielding aggressiveness.” If passed, the ordinance will require pit bull owners to leash and possibly muzzle their dogs when out in public. It seems to make more sense to require all dog owners to have all dogs leashed when out in public. Why make these things breed specific?

Police chief sees to reason for dog breed ban: Here’s an instance where a resident is concerned that his neighbors’ rottie and pit bull *might* get out of their fence and *might* bite, even though he admits that the dogs haven’t caused any problems.

And to end on a happy note, Rescued Pit Bull Defies Deformity Through Therapy Work: This is an absolutely darling story that shows the resilience and people-loving nature of a very handsome boy!

If you haven’t made your postcard yet, now’s the time to do it! The BlogPaws deadline is quickly approaching (September 12), so please share the campaign across your networks!

Have you seen any recent stories in the news about pit bulls? Please share them in the comments!

BSL Update

Number of Postcards: 409

Donations to Printing/Mailing: $200

Wahoo! I’m so excited and so proud of everyone for taking the time to create such inspiring postcards. While we’re making lots of progress, I’d like to challenge you to post the campaign on your Facebook page, tweet it, send emails to your pet-friendly networks. Let’s keep this momentum going!

Exciting News

And on that note… I’m so excited to announce that we are the inaugural campaign on Be the Change for the Animals! Have you seen this site yet? It’s a genius collaboration to encourage the animal community to take action to help animals. Each week, they feature a campaign with a simple step you can take to make a noticeable difference in animal welfare – and this week it’s all about creating End BSL postcards! Definitely check out the site to learn more about this awesome initiative. I am so proud to be a part of it!

Let’s TWEET!

Lastly, when the campaign launched, Rod at GoPetFriendly.com had the brilliant idea to get everyone to tweet #endBSL at the same time. Well, I say… let’s do that again! Let’s make #endBSL a trending topic!

This Friday, July 6 at 3 pm EST, tweet with the #endBSL hashtag. Please feel free to leave your Twitter handle in the comments, and I’ll be sure to follow you between now and then!

I hope you all had a great weekend, and thank you for all that you do to help and support this campaign!

So far I’ve received 373 postcards and countless other commitments for submissions! I estimate that if all the postcards arrive from the folks who have requested my mailing address for hard copies, we’ll be close to 500!

This is awesome progress! But I’d like to throw out another challenge: This week, I’d like to challenge you to post a link to the postcard page or the Oh My Dog! Facebook page on your Facebook page. If we could each get at least one friend to create a postcard, that will more than double our current total! Heck, many of you have several thousand followers on Twitter! Let’s see if we can double the postcards this week! Light up those networks!! I know we can do it! I’ll post the next status update one week from today.

And now for a little inspiration… I received nearly 100 postcards from fourth and fifth graders in North Carolina. A very special dog named Gunny taught these kids about pit bulls, and their messages are so incredibly heartfelt. I shared a few of the fifth grade postcards already, but here are some of the fourth graders’ along with a couple postcards received from other children across the U.S. (Click on the photos to enlarge.)

One of the funniest postcard pics yet!

Recently, I had the opportunity to watch a well-done DVD called The Pit Bull Hoax: The Truth Behind the Media’s Mythical Monster. Produced by Drayton Michaels, the video “examines the facts behind dog bite incidents, effective methods of prevention, and the opinions of today’s leading animal behaviorists on how one breed, the Pit Bull Terrier, has been unfairly cast as the villain.” The DVD is fantastic, and the message is really simple: These are human problems, not “pit bull” problems. So the question is: Why have pit bulls become “the media’s mythical monster?”

A powerful message

Unfortunately, splashy headlines sell newspapers and magazines. They get clicks on web stories. Media professionals capitalize on this and toss around the “pit bull” headline – at least when it suits their needs. Take this story, for example, “Female Dog Leads Chained Friend to Freedom.” It’s a darling, heart-warming story. Though the dogs are pit bulls, the headline certainly doesn’t reflect that. Would the story have been less appealing to readers if it had been advertised in the headline that it was a pit bull who did the courageous deed for another pit bull?

Even cats want to end BSL!

And that media bias just fuels the breed’s bad reputation. Unfair reporting means that the dogs are constantly vilified without getting the equal positive coverage that they so clearly deserve. This unjust reporting exacerbates the problem – bad people who want a status dog see the pit bull portrayed as the biggest bad ass out there, so they gravitate to the breed, then neglect, mistreat, abuse, and under-socialize their dogs, who might then bite the neighbor’s kid, which gets reported as another pit bull biting a child, and on it goes.

Oh, the sweetness!

As an aside, I can’t help but apply my years as a media professional to this situation. With nearly a decade of marketing, branding, editorial, and public relations experience under my belt, there is a tremendous opportunity here. While we’re combating BSL in Denver, I’m also starting to think about what’s next…

In the meantime, I am so incredibly excited about the progress we’re making with the Campaign to End BSL! In fact, a recent Denver Post article indicates that we’re on a winning path! I will never, ever be able to express how grateful I am to all of you for your support, your efforts, your blogging, your tweeting!

So what do you think: Why is the media so biased against pit bulls? What can change their perceptions?

Great message, darling little face!

Next Tuesday: From the mouths of babes! Thanks to a wonderful dog named Gunny, schoolchildren from North Carolina sent stacks of heartfelt, well-written postcards. They’re impressive beyond what I could have ever imagined. I’m in the process of scanning them in and will post some here next week and in a photo album on Facebook!

And don’t forget to comment if you’ve written about BSL so I can add it to the growing Anti-BSL Link Library!

We’re making a lot of progress with the Campaign to End BSL! Thanks to fabulous bloggers, the project has circled the internet, and the #endBSL Twitter hashtag is getting daily use! Thanks, everyone, for all your help and support.

So far, I’ve received $200 in donations to offset printing and mailing costs (thank you, thank you, thank you) and nearly 200 postcards! Let’s keep those postcards coming!

To provide a little inspiration, I wanted to share with you a package of postcards I received at the end of last week. There is an awe-inspiring dog named Gunny who lives in North Carolina. From his fan page, here’s Gunny’s story:

In May of 2008, Gunny was rescued from his life as a “Bait Dog” in illegal dog fighting activities. He underwent three complex surgeries to remove a badly mangled leg and to repair severe crush injuries to his throat. Gunny’s incredible will to live, and innately gentle nature, have gained him fans quite literally around the globe. He works diligently to educate the public about the horrors of dog fighting, the needs of animal rescues, and the myths about his breed. Gunny has been a key player in community programs around the Charlotte area. Recently, he paved the way to pilot an effort to link an elementary school with an animal rescue for educational and fundraising opportunities. Gunny is no stranger to the local TV news and paper, and was recently contacted by an international newspaper re: a possible highlight in an upcoming story on Dog Heroes. He won a nationwide search for The World’s Most Amazing Dog, earning a year’s worth of dog food (that he donated to the rescue group that saved his life) and a trip for his humans to ride in the Rose Parade. It was a unique opportunity to spread the news of this special boy around the West Coast.
Learn all the details of Gunny’s journey at: http://www.northmecklenburganimalrescue.org/id125.html

Gunny, in his role as a pit bull ambassador, has touched the lives of schoolchildren in North Carolina. Last week, I received a package of 44 postcards from 5th graders at one of the schools Gunny visited. I wanted to share a few with you because the messages are so simple and heart-felt that they’re incredibly inspiring! (Click to enlarge.)

I’m so impressed with how thoughtful these fifth graders are! My favorite phrase is on the cover above that says, “Be heartful to the dogs.” Love it.

So… campaign next steps:

• I’m writing letters to organizations, celebrities, and TV shows! I’m focusing on those who are sympathetic to pit bulls.
• Next week I will be reaching out to the press in Denver with a press release and individual follow ups. Thanks to so many of you, I’ve received emails with the names and direct email addresses of a lot of sympathetic journalists!
• I’m going to keep creating 5 postcards each week. In truth, I’m not considering this campaign a success only if we reach the 10,560 postcard goal. The main objective is to get Denver’s attention and get the Mayor to seriously reconsider his stance – it will only help his play for the governorship anyway! So now’s the time!

Keep sending in those postcards! Thanks to everyone who’s been blogging, tweeting, and Facebooking! Let’s keep it up!

And if you’ve blogged about BSL or the campaign, please leave the link in the comments! I’m trying to keep an eye out through a Google alert, but it seems to be missing a few blogs. I want to keep the link library updated. Plus, this Friday I’m putting together a little pit bull link love – send me a comment if you have a particular blog or post that you’d like me to check out for inclusion!

In the meantime, hope you’re all having a great week! Thank you for all your help and support to end BSL.

I’m excited to announce that we’ve hit our first 100 postcards! Thank you, everyone, for all your hard work!

I’d like to toss out a challenge: Can we get another 100 between today and next Tuesday? I think we can! Activate your networks, share the campaign on Twitter and Facebook, I know we can do this! I will commit to making 5 more with some of the bullies from our therapy dog program! Let’s do this!

For a little inspiration, I wanted to share the two most beautiful postcards I received in the mail. These were hand-done in watercolor! I’m so impressed and so proud! I scanned them in, and it doesn’t quite do them justice, but take a look:

Aren’t those amazing? And so many of the postcards that have come in have really powerful, personal messages. I’ve been uploading them to the Facebook Page. (Have you joined the Facebook page yet??)

I’ll keep a daily total between now and next Tuesday – I know we can hit 100 in one week!