They've recently built a big new dog run right on the East River. The turf is made of a sandy, gravelly substance that is supposed to neutralize odors, which it seems to do. Dudley loves to gallop through it, and he leaves the park with a mouth (and beard) full of the stuff. In the warmer months they keep a kiddie pool for the dogs. Dudley runs straight for it, hops in, and wades about. It is a peaceful setting, and I really enjoying sitting there, watching him play. When the sun is out, reflecting off the river, and the sky is very blue, you can almost imagine you are at the beach as you gaze across the sand and out over the water. That is until you realize you are staring at the 59th Street Bridge.
Dogs
December 02, 2008
November 27, 2008
Animal Care Affair
On September 25th Sara and I went to a benefit for Animal Care and Control. I fell in love with this cute pooch named Foxy. I held her in my arms as I walked around the party, and practically had a meltdown when her caretakers told me she had just arrived at the shelter after having been thrown from a car. One thing you do not want to do is tell someone like me, after he's had three martinis, that the doggy he is holding was recently thrown from a car. I scolded, "how can you people be telling me this? I cannot have another dog! Oh, I know, I'll call my mother! She'd love a dog!" So, not thinking clearly, I handed Foxy off and went out to the hall to call Irene, who replied, "Frank, you need to stop drinking." Not funny. I decided I was confident that a sweet little beauty like Foxy would find a new loving home in no time. So I said goodnight, and Sara and I went off to Jewel Bako, where Jack, the owner, had to serve my martinis on the sly because Sara had cut me off.
November 07, 2008
Obamas Will Adopt Rather than Buy a Dog
Article Launched: 11/05/2008 05:23:12 PM PST
Along with picking his Cabinet, finding just the right people for his White House staff and deciding what to do about two wars, President-elect Barack Obama has one other decision to make: which dog to get for daughters Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7.
In a way, the Obamas already have done the heavy lifting on that one.
After announcing they planned to buy a dog as a reward for their daughters being such good sports about the grueling campaign, animal rights and animal welfare groups started campaigns of their own — for the Obamas to adopt a shelter dog and not buy a dog from a breeder.
PETA's president sent them a letter. Best Friends Animal Society launched a petition drive on the Web site www.obamafamilydog.com that collected 50,000 signatures in just two weeks. The Humane Society of the United States made an appeal.
The American Kennel Club, the registry for purebred dogs, supported the first couple-elect's initial decision to buy a dog from a breeder.
More than 42,000 Americans voted in AKC's poll to determine the right breed of dog. The winner: the poodle, chosen from five hypoallergenic breeds so as not to irritate Malia and Sasha's allergies.
Then the news broke on "Entertainment Tonight" a little over a month ago: Michelle Obama announced the family would, indeed, adopt a rescue dog. The Obama campaign did not return a phone call Wednesday regarding the first pet, but Obama confirmed in his acceptance speech that his girls would get their dog.
The first family-elect has millions of shelter dogs to choose from. Between 6 million and 8 million dogs and cats end up in shelters every year; about half of them have to be euthanized, according to the Humane Society of the United States.
"We are very pleased to hear that President-elect Obama has decided to adopt a puppy from an animal shelter," said Jon Cicirelli, deputy director of the San Jose Animal Care Center. "Our residents can follow his lead and ask themselves if they, too, can make a difference in the life of a homeless animal. We say, 'Yes, you can!' "
October 01, 2008
Where They Used to Drown the Dogs
September 30, 2008, By Jennifer 8. Lee, New York Times
Unwanted dogs in New York City were drowned en masse in the rivers before humane societies took over the care of unwanted animals and pets. (Photo: Bideawee, Inc.)The New York leg of the national Tour de Dog publicity tour, which had its kickoff at Bideawee on Monday morning, is trying to draw attention to the city’s animal shelters.
While New York’s shelters have significantly reduced the number of animals killed annually, the city has had a long and brutal history when it comes to ridding the streets of unwanted animals.
In the late 19th century, the unwanted dogs of New York were drowned in the East River. One spot at East 26th Street was referred to as the “canine bath tub.” Just one drowning episode in 1877 dumped 738 full-grown dogs and about 20 puppies from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m.
“They would put them into big cages and dump them into the river,” said Nancy Taylor, the president and chief executive for Bideawee, one of the oldest animal humane societies in the United States, whose offices and one of its adoption centers, on East 38th Street, is not that far from where the drownings took place.
As one 1877 article described:
A large crate, seven feet long, four high and five broad, made of iron bars set three inches apart, was rolled up the aisles, and the dogs, about 48 at a time, were dropped into it through a sliding top door. The crate was then wheeled out to the water’s edge, where it was attached to a crane, elevated, swung out and dropped into the river, where it was kept submerged 10 minutes, then it was lifted up, emptied and returned for another load. The carcasses were disposed of to the rendering establishment at the foot of twenty-eighth-street, where it is said, their hides have an average value of $1 apiece.
Humane societies took over the care of unwanted dogs, saying they would have a less brutal way of killing the animals. But in fact the earliest humane societies, such as Bideawee and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, were originally focused on animal cruelty to horses, in New York City and elsewhere.
From horses, they branched into dogs, then cats, which together have become the main constituency, as the number of horses declined with the rise of the automobile. (Though to this day vigorous advocacy for carriage horse welfare lives on.)
In 1894, a state law abolished the dog pound and brutal dog catchers in New York City. As a New York Times headline declared: “The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Will Take Care of Homeless Dogs and Cats — Animals Without Collars Will Be Seized and Held for Redemption — They Will Not Be Chased Over Fences.” It essentially required the licensing and collaring of dogs. (The rules on cats were less strict.)
Today, New York animal advocates are trying to take it a step further to transform the city into one of the first no-kill cities, following the lead of San Francisco (though there are debates on whether that city’s animal shelters may be wavering on the philosophy).
A no-kill community would mean “the day when we do not kill any cats or dogs of reasonable health or temperament because we do not have a home for them,” said Jane Hoffman, president of Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals, a public-private partnership with more than 140 animal-rescue groups and shelters around the city.
The alliance won a $25.4 million grant from Maddie’s Fund, the largest dog-and-cat-focused foundation in the country, which was created in 1999 by the founder of PeopleSoft software in honor of their Miniature Schnauzer, Maddie. The program has a number of strategies, including encouraging spay and neutering and aggressive policies for adoption.
So far the euthanasia rate in New York animal shelters has dropped to 43 percent at end of last year from 74 percent in 2002. The Mayor’s Alliance hopes it will drop another 5 percentage points this year. (Some had originally hoped to accomplish this by now; the aim is to get to no-kill by 2015.)
Now animal advocates are holding their breath to see what will happen with Leona Helmsley’s fortune. Ms. Helmsley’s will [pdf] left some $5 billion or more for the care and welfare of dogs as well as a catch-all for charitable purposes. The hope, Ms. Hoffman said, is that some of those funds will be used to expand no-kill shelters around the country.
“We’re all sort of waiting to see what the trustees are going to do,” she said.
Trouble, Ms. Helmsley’s 9-year-old Maltese, drew death threats and news coverage for her $12 million inheritance in the will (though it was later reduced to $2 million by a judge).
“You need to separate her dog from creating the foundation,” Ms. Hoffman said. “Animal control issues, especially in these economic times, is a quality of life issue.” She hopes to buy more spay-and-neuter trucks, build a veterinary hospital that will ease the financial burden on owners with ill pets, and create more showcases for adoptable four-legged creatures.
She added: “It’s not bling for dogs. This can really make a big impact.”
September 30, 2008
Dog Meat Trade
One year ago, I wrote to tell you about the horrific dog meat trade in the Philippines. Our investigators had just seized a shipment of 100 dogs packed tightly into the back of a truck, bound for slaughter. These were just a few of the thousands of victims claimed by this cruel industry every year.
In the months that have passed, we’ve made progress in our campaign to stop the dog meat trade. But our work is far from done. Some officials continue to look the other way. That’s why I’m writing you today, to urge you to tell local officials in dog-eating districts to enforce the ban on dog meat and close down vendors and restaurants still selling this illegal, cruel product.
The large majority of Filipinos do not condone the consumption of dog meat. While some bill it as a "cultural practice," the commercial trade is anything but. Although the trade was banned by law in 1998, it was still active in certain regions of the country due to lenient fines and light penalties.
Just last year, local organizations successfully lobbied to strengthen laws against it, and now we are working with them to ensure these tough new penalties are enforced. We are continuing the fight to end the dog meat trade. But we need your help again.
Baguio City is renowned as a tourist haven, but it also serves as a center for the trade and many restaurants and street vendors continue to sell dog meat. Please send an email to the Mayor of Baguio City and urge him to enforce the laws of the land and shut down these illegal dog meat peddlers.
The dogs used in the trade are rounded up in the streets, stolen, or even bought from their unknowing owners for a paltry sum. These animals depend on humans to care for them, but dog meat traders betray their trust -- all for a few more dollars.
Together we can take a stand for dogs and fight cruelty in all its forms. Please take action today.
Thank you for all that you do to help animals.
Sincerely,
Andrew Rowan
Chief Executive Officer
Humane Society International
September 17, 2008
Aerial Killer
Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund
We’re getting the word out to voters about Governor Sarah Palin’s barbaric record on killing America’s wildlife, especially her active promotion of the brutal aerial hunting of wolves and bears.
Since Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund released our hard-hitting video on her support for the wolf slaughter last week…
- Nearly 450,000 potential voters have read our email!
- More than 68,000 potential voters have viewed the video on YouTube, with many more spread the word by re-posting the video on their websites and blogs and forwarding it to friends.
- CNN and other news outlets have picked up the story, running clips from Defenders of Wildlife Action fund and our sister organization Defenders of Wildlife.
To reach hundreds of thousands of swing voters who will help decide this election, we’ve created a powerful new television spot detailing Governor Palin’s efforts to kill wolves and bears. But we can only run it with your financial help today.
As governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin has proposed paying a $150 bounty for the foreleg of each dead wolf. The aerial hunting program she champions has already killed nearly 800 wolves. She’s opposed efforts to save America’s polar bears from extinction. She’s fought against efforts to save some of the world’s most endangered beluga whales.
At nearly every opportunity, Governor Palin has sided with Big Oil, mining companies, wealthy trophy hunters and other entrenched special interests in support of policies that would greatly harm the wild animals we treasure.
August 07, 2008
Dog Food
Dog meat has been banished from all Beijing restaurant menus until after the Olympics in order to avoid offending Western sensibilities. Does China think we are offended only because they eat their dogs?
August 03, 2008
July 30, 2008
Comment on Emelinda
I was so touched by this comment left by Beth under the post Emelinda Narvaez that I am posting it for those who may have missed it. Thanks for sharing, Beth.
"I adopted a chihuahua from Emelinda abt. 6 yrs ago. she was taken from the CACC at deaths door. she spent a month at the vet being treated. I was only going to foster her but ended up adopting her myself. she was an older girl and she lived less than a year, but I gave her a great 10 months and that was thanks to Emelinda and her huge heart who saved her to begin with..."
July 24, 2008
Emelinda Narvaez
Growing up in the South Bronx, our latest New Yorker of the Week was brought up in a household that loved animals, and more than 60 years later, makes sure that mistreated city dogs get loving homes. NY1's Annika Pergament filed the following report.
NYer of the Week
Bronx Woman Tirelessly Rescues City Dogs
Most people wouldn't want to get too close to a pit bull, but Emelinda Narvaez happily spends her time rescuing abandoned and abused pit bulls and other dogs in the South Bronx.
“I've seen a lot of mistreatment of animals there, especially the pit bulls, the Rottweilers, the dogs that they train to be vicious, to fight and many of them are hidden in basements, roofs, apartments,” said Narvaez.
Forty-five years ago, Narvaez started "Earth Angels," and dedicated herself to rescuing and finding homes for mistreated dogs. About 95 percent of them are pit bulls, and many are injured or scarred from fighting.
Narvaez has seven to 10 dogs in her home at any time -- those too sick or wounded to be immediately adopted.
Over the years, she says she has rescued and found homes for about 6,000 dogs.
“On an everyday level she does so much for the animals in New York, and for dogs especially,” said Earth Angels volunteer Christiana Olfert. “It would be sort of hard to imagine what would happen to any of these animals if she wasn't around.”
Every Wednesday through Sunday evening, Narvaez can be found with her dogs and volunteers outside the PETCO store in Manhattan’s Union Square.
Rachel Barrett got her pit bull Sessie from Narvaez almost a year ago. Like so many who adopt from Narvaez, Barrett was just walking by.
“I agreed to take her for two, three days but I was in, I was hooked,” said Barrett.
Animal Care and Control often turns to Narvaez when it has dogs that would otherwise be killed because they need expensive life-saving surgeries. Navraez gets vets to treat the dogs -- often for free.
A cancer survivor currently battling lupus, Narvaez says no matter how she is feeling she will never turn away a dog in need. Even after they're adopted or fostered, she makes home visits to make sure they're healthy and happy.
“She checks up on her dogs,” said Earth Angels volunteer Evelyn Liu. “She does home visits, surprise home visits, like the city does for foster children.”
At one point, Narvaez was working two jobs and running Earth Angels. Now retired, she says she could not wait for the day when she could dedicate all her time to rescuing dogs.
“I couldn't wait till I, I was asking the Lord, ‘Let me reach an age where I don't have to go to work that I can just give them all my attention.’ That's all I wanted,” said Narvaez.
So, for saving thousands of dogs, Emelinda Narvaez is our New Yorker of the Week.
For more information on Earth Angels, call (917) 648-7070 or visit earthangelsnyc.org
- Annika Pergament
