Tripod Talent!

Prince is a very talented tripod! In February the handsome brindle Pit Bull won the ASPCA's 5th annual shelter dog talent competition for his amazing catching skills (check out Prince in action below).

Prince's talent as a catcher helped him capture the best prize of all: a forever home. Baseball fan Michael Garcia of Manhattan saw the video of Prince and was "inspired by his enthusiasm in the face of adversity." When Michael met Prince in person, it was love at first sight. Now, the two are inseparable.

"Prince means the world to me," Michael recently told the ASPCA. "He has a heart of gold. Each day I wake up and look at him - always smiling, tail wagging, and ready to start the day. Missing one leg doesn't dampen his mood, and as a result, I will never allow anything to dampen mine."

Farewell To The Crusty Puppies...

Our foster puppies, Amadeus and Kirby, have almost recovered from their Demodectic mange and they will find new homes in San Francisco! They were transferred to the SF SPCA last week and they will be available for adoption soon. Although we are all enjoying a quieter house (especially Miss Greta and Mr. Dewey who patiently endured a month of puppy antics), I am sure that another foster dog or two will find their way to our family sooner than later.

Photographer Melissa McDaniel Spotlights Deaf Dogs In New Book!

Melissa McDaniel is a professional photographer with a passion for spotlighting underdogs. For more than a year, she has been hard at work creating two books: Rescued In America and Deaf Dogs, which feature beautiful pictures and profiles of 183 dogs. Her goal is to sell enough copies to raise $300,000 or more for animal rescue organizations.

Melissa's personal experience with her own deaf rescue dog, Sadie, inspired her to create the books to educate people about shelter dogs. Rescued In America and Deaf Dogs will be published at the end of this month. To pre-order copies, click here and help spread the word about these wonderful books!

Special Needs Dogs In Need Of Forever Families

This summer I began volunteering at our local city shelter, Oakland Animal Services. As the municipal shelter for the city of Oakland, California, OAS has the monumental task of taking in all of the city's abandoned, stray, sick, injured, and surrendered animals. This includes not just cats and dogs, but rabbits, roosters, goats, chickens, parrots, and even the occasional alligator.

Each week when I show up for my shift, I am amazed by the number of new animals; the steady stream of homeless kittens, skinny strays, and unwanted senior dogs of all shapes and sizes never seems to diminish.

What is even more amazing, however, and what gives me enough hope to continue volunteering is that, without fail, these rejected animals are adopted and given second chances by people from all walks of life and all over the Bay Area.

Currently, OAS has some very special shelter guests who are waiting patiently for their forever families:

At just 4 pounds, Mr. Mickey (shown top) is a tiny sweetheart with limitless love to give. He craves human company and gets along well with other small dogs. According to his foster mom, "Mickey is such a sweet and happy little guy! Just full of joy at the smallest things, and has that little twinkle in his eye." Considering that this little Chihuahua is missing his lower jaw (we don't know how or why - he showed up in the night drop box that way), his sweet disposition is truly remarkable.

The first time I met Zuki (pictured bottom), I instantly fell in love. Zuki is the true definition of a cuddle bug - he will gladly snuggle on your lap and bat his eyelashes at you for as long as you'll let him. Zuki radiates pure, unconditional adoration, and I must admit that each time I see him I am tempted to take him home! Zuki has an odd way of walking and the shelter vets believe he may have sustained some type of injury when he was younger that was not properly treated. Despite his funny gait, Zuki's gentle spirit shines through and he would make a wonderful, low-maintenance lap dog.

Help me spread the word about these deserving shelter dogs! Visit www.oaklandanimalservices.org for adoption information or email me at reboundhounds@yahoo.com for more details.

Dagnabit The Disabled Dog Keeps On Rollin'

Dagnabit came from humble origins, but these days he's well on well on his way to stardom. Earlier this year, he beat out 32,000 contestants to win the Humane Society of The United States' annual Spay Day pet photo contest.

In the entry accompanying Dagnabit's winning photo, his mom, Kim Dudek wrote "We've been thru it all together! Dag was stolen and made to fight and had his ears cut off. We survived Katrina and his disability. Dag's spirit inspires me to make the most out of every moment, every day."

This resilient Pit Bull also inspired Kim to create a canine rehab center in his name: Dag's House provides rehabilitation and boarding services for special needs dogs in New Orleans.

Click here to read more about Dagnabit's incredible story.

Living With Blind Dogs

We have a reading recommendation for anyone with a blind dog in their life - Living With Blind Dogs: A Resource Book and Training Guide for the Owners of Blind and Low-Vision Dogs by Caroline D. Levin. Now in it's second edition, Living With Blind Dogs remains the only published book on the topic. Click here for an excerpt!