HELP SAVE DRE!

This was posted yesterday over at Scrathings and Sniffings.  I emailed Chloe and asked her if I could share this as she alerted me to this story Saturday morning and I knew she was starting a petition.  I wanted to be a part of this and I wanted to help rally people to help spread the word and get signatures.  I also need you to make a call!  Even though the story below says you can email, Dre’s court hearing is TUESDAY at 10am and I feel we will send a stronger message by calling.  DO NOT be rude or mean in any way.  We need to be heard, so that Dre has a chance.  It will not do him any good if we leave threatening voice mails or talk to them in less than pleasant tones.

PLEASE share this on your blogs, Twitter, FB, email.

Thank you!

Doreen and The Gang @doggiesandstuff

On July 26th, two dogs got out of their home because a child got a hold of the garage door remote and accidentally pressed the button. A family member was watching the kids and didn’t realize what had happened and that the dogs were loose. The dogs, Dre and Machomotto, were running amuck through the neighborhood. Dre was barking at people and apparently some lady jumped into her car…for whatever that is worth. Several people called animal control and someone called 911 reporting “vicious” dogs running loose. Supposedly it took 5 officers to obtain Dre, thou NOT ONE person was injured, bitten or scratched.

Imagine having 5 strangers chasing YOU.

Dre and Macho

Mary, Macho and Dre’s Mom, spoke with the officer who picked the dogs up. Officer Herrera originally told Mary she could pick both dogs up at 3pm. Officer Herrera said Macho was fine, but Dre was acting aggressive by chasing people and barking at them. Let me repeat, NO ONE was injured – bit, scratched, scathed, tripped or otherwise. If Dre was an aggressive dog he would not have been just running around barking at people. He would have acted. He didn’t. Feel free to email Officer Herrera and tell her that: cherrera@brightonco.gov or give her a call 303.655.2300. PLEASE do not make threats or act aggressively towards her though. We need to share our concern (no matter how angry we are) in a respectful way so that we are heard. Don’t make it easy to ignore emails and phone calls because they are brushed off as being extreme and/or angry.

Around 2:15pm that same day Officer Herrera called Mary to say that 7 people called in with complaints and she was no longer releasing Dre. Instead, she was planning to contest to the Judge that Dre be destroyed. That’s right. 7 complaints and absolutely no injuries = Dre being destroyed. Mary pushed on this because she thought he must have hurt someone, but no. Officer Herrera confirmed that he hurt “no one.”

When Mary arrived at the shelter she could hear Dre barking. It must be a haunting sound to hear your beloved pet stressed and not being able to do anything. My heart breaks for her and for Dre.

Dre calmed down when she bent down and spoke to him. She came prepared with some treats that she was able to give him through the wire kennel. Like any love-able pet parent, she came prepared to comfort him as much as she could.

Dre Sleeping

A sad reality: A side note she shared with me is that one of the other dogs at the shelter was whining and crying so loud she had to check out who was making all the noise. Low and behold, it was a blue nose Pit Bull, twice the size of Dre. He was crying, shaking and probably worried about what was going on. That Pit was labeled “VICIOUS WILL BITE”. With 2 officers and her husband standing there watching, she knelt down and stuck her hand inside the cage to comfort the scared pit. What did he do? He licked her and wagged his tail profusely while crying. She turned to the officers and said, “Wow. He’s really vicious, huh.”

About Dre: Mary had to leave the shelter 1 dog short of her family. It’s not right and we can’t let it stand. Dre is a beloved family member. He’s 5 or 6 years old. He actually was her cousins dog for several years – still a part of her family! Her cousin and wife rescued him from a terrible living environment when he was about a year old. Her cousin had to move to CA and circumstances would not allow Dre to go with them. They actually looked into finding him a new home and were told Pit Bulls could not be placed in new homes and they were better off euthanizing him. Yes, you read that right! Ridiculous! That was not an option, so Mary and her family brought him into their home as a permanent member.

They built dog runs, bought kennels, trained him and welcomed him with open arms. In the first few weeks of being their newest full time family member he barked a lot and sometimes ran at the fence when the neighbors mowed their lawn. One has to think back to his first year in a terrible situation – one I do not have the details about, but one that obviously made him scared of things. NOT aggressive!! He has never had any issues with aggression with people or other dogs. None. Ever.

How Dre’s family feels: Mary and her husband have 3 girls who love Dre. They are not fully aware of what is happening right now because Mary knows it will break their hearts. Even Macho is missing Dre. Macho is a rescue himself from an AZ pound where he was on the kill list.

Mary and her husband are devastated. They don’t understand how Dre can be taken from them without hurting anyone. He is being held in a kennel with no interaction, no walks, no playtime and no consideration for his needs. He’s on medication for allergies and has a special diet. Somehow animal control will try to say that the stressful environment they are keeping Dre in plays no role on his stress level.

Dre in a blankie

Now what? Dre has a court date of Tuesday, July 31 at 10:00am. He will be held at the shelter until then. There is very little time to try to gather evidence to show the judge that Dre is not the dog they are labeling him as. And his confinement is not helping. He needs to be back with his family.

Mary is working hard gathering testimonials from friends, family, dog sitters, neighbors and her nanny. People who actually know Dre. Please support Dre’s release and sign this petition. Show Brighton, CO that falsely labeling a dog who has hurt no one will NOT be accepted! If you live locally, please consider coming to the court and showing your support.

Brighton Municipal Court 3401 E Bromley Lane, Brighton, CO 80601 – 7/31 @ 10am

Also, you can drop the Chief of police a note or a call: Clint R Blackhurst 303.655.2304 cblackhurst@brightonco.gov. Remember to be peaceful, but to the point. Dre has done nothing wrong. He cannot be one more Pit Bull casualty.