Dogs Deserve Better Founder Case Set for Jury Trial

Grimes Turns Down Plea Bargain Which Stipulates She Return Dog;
Attorney States Intention to File for Dismissal of all Charges

Altoona, PA—The founder of Dogs Deserve Better, Tammy Grimes, was in court today in Blair County, Pennsylvania, for a pre-trial conference stemming from charges of theft and receiving stolen property for the help she gave a dying chained dog she dubbed Doogie in East Freedom, Pennsylvania on September 11, 2006.

Grimes and her attorney rejected a plea bargain which stipulated the return of Doogie in exchange for Advanced Rehabilitation for Grimes, and elected instead to go to a jury trial. Mr. Thomas Dickey will concurrently file for a motion to dismiss all charges against Grimes.

Grimes states, "All evidence in the case clearly points to abuse and cruelty neglect on the part of the Arnolds. Pennsylvania anti-cruelty law is not being upheld in this case, and with eyewitnesses, video, photos, and vet testimony, there is more than enough evidence to convict the Arnolds.

The Arnolds have shown no remorse, and have been charged with no crime by what I feel is a very corrupt system in Freedom Township and Blair County, Pennsylvania. I could never in good faith return Doogie, presently flourishing and treated with the utmost respect by his caretakers, to a situation which would lead to his most certain demise."

Kim Eicher, the Arnold's neighbor, stated that Doogie had been unable to stand for three days, and she had gotten no response from the local humane society after calling both 911 and the humane society.

Grimes, upon seeing Doogie from the road, initially felt he had already died. Her team went to investigate, and found that he was still alive, but was unable to stand, his legs flailing about in the mud and his own feces. She then documented his condition with video and photos, and took him to a local veterinarian, getting him immediate and necessary care.

She was later arrested for her refusal to return Doogie to a certain and immediate death on the end of a chain.

Video of Doogie's condition at the time of his rescue has been viewed over 41,000 times on You Tube. Subsequent videos can be also be seen on You Tube, with the latest showing Doogie's much-improved condition from October 18th. The case has made national headlines, and has been featured on Inside Edition, the National Enquirer, Animal People, animal magazines, and on blogs all over the internet.

A further pretrial conference is scheduled for February 5th, 8:30 a.m., in the Blair County Courthouse.

Dogs Deserve Better is a 501c3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Tipton, Pennsylvania, is the 2003 First Place Winner of the ASPCA Pet Protector Award, and currently has 150 area reps in 38 states as well as in Canada and Australia.

Animal Welfare or Animal Rights?

Who knows the difference between animal rights and animal welfare? I for one never really knew and never really cared. I never had to think about it before now, since being attacked by so many people who claim to know what I'm about, what Dogs Deserve Better is about, what Best Friends is about. And they have it all wrong.

Here's what I believe, classify me where you will. I believe in dedicating myself to the welfare of chained dogs. I want the best for them, I want them to receive love, vet care, food, water, exercise, and family. Those are the things that matter to me. Those are the things in which chained dogs are lacking.

I believe in the rights of chained dogs. I believe they have the right to receive love, vet care, food, water, exercise, and family. Those are the things that matter to me. Those are the things in which chained dogs are lacking.

To me welfare and rights are one and the same. I believe if you love animals you should get out there and fight for them. Notice I said for THEM, not for YOU!

Someone told me they are starting a group for Owners Rights. Haven't owners had all the rights for thousands of years? How's that working out for our companions?

5 million animals a year are dying in shelters, because we have all the rights and they have none. An estimated 1 million dogs are living chained in America, because we have all the rights and they have none.

Doogie was to die at the end of his chain, because his 'owners' have all the rights, he has none. I was arrested because his owners have all the rights, he has none. Thousands of other Doogie's are dying out there right now because their 'owners' have all the rights, they have none.

I challenge anyone who thinks anti-tethering legislation goes too far and takes away THEIR rights to go live next to a chained dog for even a month and let me know how that works out for them.

I had a call from a woman in Tennessee this morning who cried the entire conversation. She is living next to a chained dog.

Until you live next to it you have NO IDEA what it is like to see on a daily basis. I would gladly give up any and all right to ever tether a dog again to save every other dog in America. I don't do that for ME, I do that for THEM. I'm an intelligent human being, I can always find another way. And so can you.

I challenge those who say they are welfare but mostly seem to go around attacking others without justification to put their money where their mouths are. Find a solution to the Doogie's of this world. Find a solution to the 5 million deaths in shelters each year. Instead of attacking those who are out here trying.

I for one would love to have only two dogs and two cats in my home right now, instead of 16 cats and 6 dogs.

I long for the day when I am lucky to have my two cats and two dogs, and get to spoil them and be grateful for them daily. Our companions deserve that, and so do we rescuers. We deserve the peace of knowing the job is done.

Be part of the solution, stop being part of the problem.

For the record: Dogs Deserve Better is AGAINST Breed Specific Legislation, and would propose anti-tethering legislation as a good alternative.

Best Friends is AGAINST Breed Specific Legislation, and is currently working up alternative models as a result of a conference on how to address the issue last weekend.

If you have a question about a group's beliefs, ask the group. Don't believe all the hooie you see thrown about on the net.

Tammy

Visit with Doogie October 18th, 2006

October 18th I went to see Doogie to see how his health was. He was doing excellently for his age and physical challenges! He is receiving great care, love, home cooked food, and kindness. A big thanks for his wonderful caretakers. See the two latest pics of him on the site where updates are kept at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org/doogie.html


Please crosspost, as everyone has been asking about him, and we know they'd like to see him having some happiness in his life!

Vote for Doogie article and video!

Please go to Netscape and vote for the Doogie video and article! If they get enough votes, they will make it to the homepage of the site, and will get a lot more views...Only problem is, you have to join (it's free, of course) to vote...but if you're already a member or don't mind joining (it only takes a minute), please go asap and vote for both the video and the article! Let's keep spreading the word...

http://pets.netscape.com/

Let your LIGHT SHINE People!

Let Your Light SHINE People!
With all the fallout from me helping Doogie, there has been a ton of support, but also a rash of people who are 'against' me sending out hateful e-mails, allegations against me and Dogs Deserve Better, yadda, yadda, yadda.

This has been a great learning experience for me, and I've had to face some of my worst fears because of it. I've learned I will no longer buckle under to ANYONE. I will let my light shine no matter how many people hate that I do...

When I was in 7th grade, one of the most traumatic events of my youth took place on a cool fall day. I realize now that I must have been HAPPY (how dare I!), and feeling good about myself...I wore a dress to school only about 2-3 times a year, and this was one of those days. I was wearing my jean gauchos which were popular then, and my new high-heeled sandals with I think a hot pink top. I felt downright pretty!

Our bus pulled in from the middle school to the elementary school, where we waited for our connecting busses to go home. There was a big crowd of people, and I said to my friend, "looks like there's gonna be a fight".

Little did I know I was the one targeted!

When I got off the bus, someone grabbed my books, and pushed me to the center of the 'ring'. They said, "you're gonna be in a fight". I said "with who?" There stood Elise Klemann (name not changed to NOT protect the uninnocent). She was big, fat and yes, I'll say it, not the prettiest girl in school. But she sure was mean and tough, and hung out with the tough crowd, the druggies, the ones who I now realize had very bad childhoods and had to take it out on the rest of the kids because they were getting it at home.

I had no idea why we were to fight. All I knew was I was in the middle of all these mean kids, and NOT ONE of my friends stood up for me. Even my own brother stayed up on the wall and watched; did nothing to help me. The ring of Elise's supporters would push me and I would stumble and fall into her. She would then grab me by the hair and swing me around. And around...and around. I know I only got ONE good scratch on her, raking my fingernails down her neck and across her chest. This went on for what seemed an interminable amount of time, but was probably in reality only 5-10 minutes.

When my bus came, I told her I'm getting on my bus, and I booked it without looking back. All that night I could pull my hair out in clumps, I had a fat lip, and I was scared to death. I didn't EVER want to go back to school again. I still did not know why I was fighting her that day, although I later found out she said I'd 'called her a slut'. I hadn't.

She put out my light that day.

I was terrified after that to let my light shine, terrified to wear a dress, to feel pretty, terrified to stand out of the crowd for fear of what would happen to me. I didn't want to go to school, I was a big coward and no one I knew would stand up for me. That was a sad realization, that even my own family left me to what felt like a certain demise. My mom switched my bus so I wouldn't get off at the elementary school again, although that didn't work, and I ended up missing the connecting bus. The girls continued to pick on me as they could, and I continued to fear them, avoid them, run from them.

Then one day, my mom and I were in Kmart, and I spotted one of the leaders of the mean crowd. I told my mom, "there's one of those girls", and she asked me where. She calmly went up to her and proceeded to bulldoze her right into a table of blue-light-special clothing! The girl said, 'Hey', and turned around to see my mom just staring at her. She looked from her to me, said, "Oh", walked away, and I never had a speck of trouble with them after that...My mom loves that story, and talks about it to this day, always prefacing it with, "remember when...".

I for one have always hated that story, with the exception of the ending, of course. This story makes me feel less than, scared, cowardly, and ashamed. Ashamed I wasn't stronger, ashamed I let them terrorize me without standing up to them. For many, many years I lived in the shadow of that one middle-school afternoon.

The moment I decided to face my fears and form Dogs Deserve Better to stand against the inhumane treatment of dogs was the moment I decided to let my light shine again. I knew I would have to stand against many, many individuals, and I decided I would face my fears and do so.

The day I rescued Doogie I stood against the ultimate bullies this country holds: authority figures who misuse their position, do not do their jobs, and try to condemn those who stand up for what's right.

But guess what? This light's STILL SHINING! All those who are saying I was wrong, I deserve to go to jail, and I am a 'showboater' are nothing more than the bullies at my school bus stop. These same people probably put on their Sunday finest and spend a couple hours playing churchgoers and lovers of God once a week too.

For the last couple years I've tried to base my big decisions on two pivotal ideals: 1.) any decision that comes from fear is the wrong decision; and, the ever-popular 2.) What Would Jesus Do?

Now, I don't consider myself the most religious woman these days, due to the people I'd meet in most churches (see above), but I do consider myself to be very spiritual, and one of the leaders I most admire in this universe is still Jesus. The purity of love he exemplifies is gold standard, and his disregard for those who considered themselves above him (the Pharisees) sets an enduring example; a life to follow.

So, the question for Doogie's Day had to be, What Would Jesus Do if he were me? I believe if you have two brain cells to rub together, you can readily come up with the answer to this question..Jesus would have walked over, picked Doogie up with thoughts only of the life ebbing away before him, and healed him on the spot. He would also continue to protect him from his abusers. Now, given that I'm NOT Jesus and don't have his unique abilities, I did the next best thing..I got Doogie the vet help he needed, and I protected him from his abusers.

If you don't like that, so be it. You will not put out my light again. Even if you put me in jail for the rest of my life as you've done to some wonderful leaders, I will not allow it to be put out. If you feel you have to kill me or take everything I have, whatever. I will not return to 7th grade shame, and I say to all other animal, human, and environmental advocates out there, LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE!

If you want to die knowing you made a difference, LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE! And know that if those who are attacking you were doing the same, they would have no time to attack you...and no desire. Tammy

Grimes Finalist in Animal Planet Hero of the Year Contest

Tammy Grimes Nominated for "Changing the Lives of Many Animals and Families" through her Efforts for the Nation's Chained/Penned Dogs

Tipton, PA—Tammy Grimes, founder of Dogs Deserve Better, has been chosen as a Top Ten Finalist in the Animal Planet Hero of the Year Contest. The winning nomination came from Autumn Temple of Altoona, PA, a Dogs Deserve Better supporter and local hero in her own right through her work with the area's families and children.

Autumn's winning nomination states, "Tammy dedicates so many hours to Dogs Deserve Better that this organization is her life. Dogs Deserve Better pays for fencing for those who want to unchain their animals and allow them freedom. Tammy is also a perpetual foster mom to unwanted dogs, until she can find them a home. Tammy’s home should be considered the dogs’ home as she has installed a number of doggy doors, and has fenced the yard. Her home is very much the place for animals.

From July 1 - July 15, Tammy successfully held Dogs Deserve Better’s first annual “Chain Off Contest” to raise awareness for chained dogs. Eleven contestants were chained to doghouses and the one who lasted the longest won a new Chevy Aveo. As a result of the contest, the runner-up of the contest immediately went home and unchained his dog. Dogs Deserves Better is now working with the dog and its guardian to create an animal-friendly environment. Tammy Grimes has inspired so many others that she now has Dogs Deserve Better representatives in 37 states, plus Puerto Rico and Canada. Tammy also involves youth in the advocacy of animals as junior representatives for the organization. Tammy’s efforts have changed the lives of many animals and families."

If Grimes wins, Dogs Deserve Better will receive a $10,000 donation to further it's efforts for chained and penned dogs. To vote, go to http://animal.discovery.com/convergence/hero_of_the_year/poll/poll.html.

Dogs Deserve Better is a 501c3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Tipton, Pennsylvania, is the 2003 First Place Winner of the ASPCA Pet Protector Award, and currently has 150 area reps in 37 states as well as in Canada and Australia.

DDB PSA with Adrian Zmed on You Tube

OK, so I've uploaded the DDB Public Service Announcement starring Adrian Zmed of TJ Hooker and Grease 2 fame to You Tube. Because of that I was able to embed it onto the page on the site, so I'm going to try to embed it here too. Give it a watch, and pass it along to everyone! Please try to get this aired on your local tv stations. Send me over all the relevant info, who to mail it to with contact person, and what kind of tape they take (most take beta or digi-beta) so we need to know what format they use. Send the info to me at tammy@dogsdeservebetter.org, and we'll get them out a tape.

A Typical Day in the Grimes Household

Well, my friend Connie gave a 'typical day' analysis, and I thought it was quite interesting to read, so thought I'd go ahead and post one too.

Many of my days start out differently and end differently these days, due to DDB obligations, booths, etc., but on a general, don't need to leave home day it goes like this (when I have the kids...)

If I'm not lucky and not smart I've had too much caffeine the day before, and I've been up from about 1:00 a.m. to 4:00 a.m., such as was the case last night. I would have gotten up to work which I've been known to do when I can't sleep and lay there thinking of everything that needs done, but Rocky was sleeping on his new bed...the couch...and I knew it would wake him up. So I just tossed and turned, petted Tuna (my beloved grey kitty), who alternated between sleeping on my head and beside me, and the new foster dog, Chipper, who was totally sacked out next to me all night.

What a cutie he is, too! He looks like a sheltie/corgi mix. A bit of a funny mix, but he's got the corgi love for chasing balls, and the sheltie ability to calm down when needed. Don't know why anyone would ever chain out such a total sweetheart of a dog!

Chipper quickly got that if he was persistent he could sleep in bed next to mommy. This was only his second night here, and there he was totally sacked out next to me. (He did get a bath yesterday morning, so he smelled fresh at least) Makes me so sad to think of him out on a chain every night, and the first chance he got he snuggled right up to me like he'd been there his whole life. Dogs are so adaptable!

If I'm lucky and I actually get a decent night's sleep, I wake up when Rayne gets up to shower at 6:30. I'm a really light sleeper, the mommy in me...and then he comes in for a few minutes before he gets on the bus at 7:20 and hangs out with me, gives me hugs, we'll talk a bit. This usually wakes up the sleeping monster, Brynnan, beside me, where she's snuggled up to my left side. She will typically start complaining right away because there's some dog or other sleeping on her blanket, and she's cold, etc. And so the Brynnan day begins. But on a good Brynnan day, there is morning snuggles and love, and kisses, and a lot of "I love yous"...those days are the best!

After Rayne leaves Brynnan and I will often hang out in bed for awhile, hopefully talking and laughing, unless she needs to shower or bath. We have an hour until her bus comes, so we get dressed, I make her breakfast, pancakes are her favorite. I pack her a snack and then we get her to the bus. We'll often take a dog down the lane to the bus stop with us, I like to take different ones all the time so the kids wonder how many dogs we have, haha.

After she goes, I vacuum (Rocky's been doing this a lot lately as 'rent'), feed the cats and dogs, throw a load of laundry in, hopefully do at least the Great Buns Guaranteed dvd, shower, and sit down to work. DDB e-mails frequently take at least an hour to go through, even if I've just been on the day before...and if I've taken the weekend off or something, ugh! Then I figure out which fires need put out for the day...freelance work, ddb work, what deadlines I have, etc. This makes every day unique, because there is always something different that needs to be done...

As for the latest on Rocky, he's a nice man...and I think if him needing to foot his share of the bills were not an issue, we'd still be together. But that is a big issue in life, and so we need to go our separate ways.

Speaking of which...if anyone rich ever needs to find a good outlet for their money (besides DDB, of course!) send someone over to clean my house...make my dream come true. haha. A small dream, really, huh?

Cats living in a dumpster in Hagerstown, MD

Well, we were on our way home last night from the Taking Action for Animals conference in D.C. It was quite costly to stay there, plus $22 a day for parking! But the conference went pretty well, we did a booth there and I got to show some of my artwork, too. Dawn from FARM bought two small pieces of art, cool!

The food, I must say, left a lot to be desired. I think that will be fixed for next year, because I imagine EVERYONE was complaining about it! The girl next to me, Quinn, at the Pangea booth made money hand over fist because there was virtuallly no other food to be had most of the time. I heard one girl ask her if she took credit cards. Quinn said, yes, we do, and the girl said, "Thank God, because this is the worst vegan food I've had in the ten years since I became a vegan!" And I think she was right. I of course, managed to find something to eat most of the time.

I have a lot of soy issues...and I think many vegetarians/vegans do, but they refuse to put two and two together. So far only Cheryl Hill and I, that I know of, realize that it's soy causing so many of the problems. Many vegetarians have bad thyroid conditions, and it's my belief based on research and the way I feel when eating it and when not eating it, that it's from the soy. At one point in time, I was drinking these 'fabulous soy shakes', touted of course for their health-giving abilities. Meanwhile, I felt worse and worse and my thyroid went from bad to worse. When I stopped eating and drinking soy for the most part, my thyroid level went from 11.64 back down to 6.75 at last check. Normal is 5.5 and below...so I'm not quite normal, but refuse to take meds, so there you have it.

Sunday I ate a lot of soy because that's pretty much all that was offered...and in the middle of the night that night I was awake much of the time because I felt so awful...Monday I barely had any, and by today I felt much better.

I did dump dairy two weeks ago, yay! Mostly as a result of Marilu Henners program, in which she calls it Bovine Slime, I finally feel able to dump it for good. I noticed also at the conference many of the people who were chubby, when I heard them say it, were actually vegetarians and not vegans. To me this attributes a lot of the problems with overweight to dairy and the junk food one is able to eat if eating dairy...milk chocolate, cakes, cookies, etc., etc., etc...so overall I think I will be much healthier, and hopefully slimmer and more svelte too! Most of the vegans I saw there looked very good. Vegans are the most thin people you will find in America as a group, I can bet on that.

Anyway, so we're on our way home and we stop in Hagerstown for gas. There were cats living outside a dumpster at the gas station, and we tried for 1/2 hour to catch these kittens and a pregnant female, but we were not able to catch them. I'm currently looking for rescue help for these poor things...the female is VERY pregnant and is a tortie. The kittens are from 3-4 months old, five of them, 3 black ones and 2 striped grey ones. There was also a male maine coon and another black and white cat. I'm about two hours from there, so have sent this around looking for help for them!

Meanwhile, we're out there with lunchmeat trying to catch them...and this young 'gentleman' comes out from the store to the dumpster. I told him that the female was very pregnant, and did they have an spca around there. He said yes, but it wasn't his problem. Of course, that led to an argument, and he said he hated cats...all the more reason for someone local to there to step up and help these poor things before it's too late!

America needs to get more active in helping...when you see a problem, don't just think it's someone else's problem...Get in there and help yourself or find someone who can! Animals, the young, and the old especially need us to take care of them. And I'm pretty sure you get some good kudos in heaven too once you get there, added incentive...

Wow, People Are Reading My Blogs!

I'm happy to report that there ARE people reading my blog...and as proof, I just found out that someone is claiming that I took her Dogs Deserve Better tax-deductible donation and used it to fund my trip to Cancun! She even printed out my blog pages as her 'proof'!

Now, besides the fact that I'm just blown away by that, and would personally like to assure ANY DDB supporters that I would never do any such thing, I just have to say, WTF?

Apparently, unbeknownst to me, founders of organizations are no longer permitted to take their children on a decent vacation after four years of wallowing in dog crap! I must have missed the memo, darnit. Can someone resend that to me?

I will tell everyone who may happen to read this, right now, that I'm DAMN PROUD that I went to Cancun! I felt like a normal human being for the first time in years. I deserved it and so did my kids. You will never take those precious moments from me, although you may try. Will not happen.

Tammy Grimes, proud mother of two and proud vacationer in Cancun.

Cancun was SO awesome!

Man, Cancun was SO awesome! The kids and I had a great time. Gran Melia was the nicest hotel I've ever stayed in. (Not that that is saying much if you're a rich globetrotter, may be small potatoes to you...). There were about 5-7 swimming pools, with little jacuzzi inlets, etc. We were able to get this 'palapa' a little thatched hut beside the pool, for the entire time, where we could just lay down and enjoy the scenery in comfort and without getting sunburned. Of course, with Brynnan there, I didn't get much time to lay down, but I gave it my best shot. The kids and I had a really good chance to bond, and I think it's something we will always remember. I'm really glad we did it.

On the DDB side, I just had a phone call from a hilarious woman, (no, I don't know her name if the cops want to arrest someone), but she told me that one time she was in a wheelchair and she tried to go steal this dog off a chain because she couldn't stand seeing it that way, but she had to crawl on her stomach because she couldn't walk. She got caught, naturally, because she was moving at the speed of a slug, and the woman came out and started hitting her on the head with an umbrella! I was cracking up at the mental picture this created, and she said, "what are you laughing at, it really hurt too!" She was laughing, although I'm sure it wasn't funny at the time. A 70 year old woman, what a character...I really meet some characters doing this job, some people who do help me believe in the goodness of mankind.

And I also 'meet' some real a*&holes too; you would be surprised, or maybe not, how many people who chain their dogs are NOT nice! All the neighbors are afraid of them because they are typically quite disreputable in the area. So I get a lot of phone calls from these people, which rarely end well. As soon as the swearing starts I hang up on them. Then they call back, like 100 times...Thank God they don't know where I live...and, if that weren't bad enough, there is always someone against you who used to be with you because you pissed them off, or someone accusing you of stealing their money, or stealing dogs, or doing everything wrong, etc., etc. It's exhausting!

Thank God I have enough people who DO believe in me to continue. And I'm stubborn enough to not want to be seen as a quitter. Because I've wanted to quit a million times, but then I think that everyone else who started groups is going through the same thing, and I don't want to be weaker than them. So in an odd way they keep me going. When they are able to stand up to all the abuse, it makes me stop my whining and just keep going that one more time...and then next one more time...etc. etc. I hope some day it gets easier or I get more able to just brush it off...one of the other is definitely needed!

It's been Awhile: Here I come, Cancun!

How About Mel Gibson, huh? Wow, that's something. Funny thing about him, my mom and I always thought he was one of those 'perfect' men...good father, husband, funny, hot, and rich of course...and then after he made The Passion of Christ, my mom thought he could do no wrong! I actually was less impressed with him after that...not being one to enjoy watching the torture of a man for over 2 hours, like it's a good time...and since it pleased the Holier than Thou crowd made me want to run from the theatre. Well, that and did I mention the two hours of torture?

Anyway, all that aside, I've been happy to return to a 'normal life'...although my life has been far from normal since I started DDB. Normal for me now is trying to get A. the Maximum amount of work done in a day that I can amidst all the goofing off and e-mailing and other stuff...B. Get somewhere with DDB at every opportunity...C. Make enough money to pay the bills...and D. Still be a mother, a foster mother to dogs, keep a house clean enough to not walk away on it's own...and E. Fundraise enough to keep DDB going. No wonder I'm overweight!

I definitely do NOT take enough time for ME, and food is my usual solace. I want to change that in theory, but have a harder time getting there in practice.

To that end, I just charged a trip to Cancun for me, Rayne, and Brynnan...Oh, hallelujah! Yes, I'll be paying it off for awhile, but I'm tired of watching everyone around me take trips while I wallow in dog crap, no pun intended. You know, the best trip to take is to not have anyplace you NEED to go, and then you can look for trip specials and just book the cheapest thing that looks like the best for the money. That's what I did, anyway...so hopefully that is step 1 to giving a little more to myself. I don't know, though, still had two donuts today, dammit!

11 People Lived Chained to Doghouses for 13 Days

Sorry, all, that I'm just putting our releases into my blog for now, but it was a very busy month! I will get back to 'real' blogging by the end of this week, after I dig out from my foot high grass and foot high mess of a house! The event was AMAZING! Except that we didn't get the national press I feel we deserved...however, we did get a TON of press across the nation, at least 30 pieces in my home area, but in other areas and contestant areas too. Bring on Next Year in a Major City, and let's see them ignore us then!

MAN BRINGS FAMILY PET INTO THE HOME TO LIVE AS PART OF THE FAMILY AFTER EXPERIENCING LIFE AS A CHAINED DOG FOR 13 DAYS

Pennsylvania Man States "I'll Never Chain My Dog Again"

Altoona, PA—Dogs Deserve Better, a nonprofit working to bring dogs into the home and family,wrapped up its first-ever Chain Off Contest at Leidy Park in Mundys Corner, Pennsylvania approximately 1 hour east of Pittsburgh. 52-year-old Don McKendree, the only contestant with a chained dog living at home, placed second in the event, and then immediately went home and took his dog Nikki off the chain.

11 people began the contest Saturday, July 1. After nine days, 5 people remained chained, and players voted 3-2 to begin eliminations the next day. 1 person went home in elimination rounds each day until the final playoff Thursday, July, 13. Final elimination rounds pitted 52-year-old Don McKendree, the oldest contestant, against 18-year-old Aija Gillman, the youngest contestant. Aija topped Don by a final score of 9-7 to win the contest and the Chevy Aveo.

Contestants from Pennsylvania, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, South Carolina, and New York converged on the little town of Mundys Corner, PA to begin a contest like no other. They lived chained to doghouses until only one remained. They competed to survive the boredom of this life . . . no books, TV, radio, smoking, or even visitors. They were allowed the bare minimum in hygiene, only cleanliness routines undertaken within the confines of four tiny port-a-john walls. They were stripped of all comforts: receiving only a chain, a collar, water, food, doghouse, sleeping bag, and shade in their stead.

Don wrote in his journal: "My house is in a low area, and it doesn’t drain. It seems when you get wet and it continues to rain [there are] lots of mixed emotions--I could imagine the torture dogs must go through when people chain them outside. Sure, you can feed them, water them, and talk to them occasionally...but I’m talking about the feelings a dog has to go through but are unable to communicate. I sure am having a difficult time. I have been and done a lot of difficult things in my life, but being tied (chained) to a doghouse has got to be the roughest. Stripped of human communication ability sure puts things into the proper perspective. Let’s unchain our dogs."

Don allowed the organization and a journalist to document the release of Nikki, and will work with Dogs Deserve Better to install a fence and a doggie door immediately for her. To view photos of Nikki's release, go to http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org/chainoffday13-14.html. To interview Mr. McKendree or any of the contestants, please contact the organization at the numbers above.

Dogs Deserve Better is a 501c3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Tipton, Pennsylvania, is the 2003 First Place Winner of the ASPCA Pet Protector Award, and currently has 141 area reps in 37 states as well as in Canada and Australia.

18-YEAR-OLD GIRL WINS NEW CAR AFTER LIVING 13 DAYS CHAINED TO DOGHOUSE, SURVIVING 4 DAYS OF ELIMINATIONS

Youngest Contestant in Chain Off 2006 Competition Wins New Chevy Aveo

Altoona, PA—Dogs Deserve Better, a nonprofit working to bring dogs into the home and family,wrapped up its first-ever Chain Off Contest at Leidy Park in Mundys Corner, Pennsylvania approximately 1 hour east of Pittsburgh. 18-year-old Aija Gillman, the youngest contestant in the competition, went home to Illinois in her new Chevy Aveo for her efforts in beating out 10 other contestants.

11 people began the contest Saturday, July 1. After nine days, 5 people remained chained, and players voted 3-2 to begin eliminations the next day. 1 person went home in elimination rounds each day until the final playoff Thursday, July, 13. Final elimination rounds pitted 52-year-old Don McKendree, the oldest contestant, against 18-year-old Aija Gillman, the youngest contestant. Aija topped Don by a final score of 9-7 to win the contest and the Chevy Aveo.

Contestants from Pennsylvania, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, South Carolina, and New York converged on the little town of Mundys Corner, PA to begin a contest like no other. They lived chained to doghouses until only one remained, who won a new Chevy Aveo. They competed to survive the boredom of this life . . . no books, TV, radio, smoking, or even visitors, except for members of the press. For only 1/2 hour each day they saw family members or called home. They were allowed the bare minimum in hygiene, no showers or baths, but only cleanliness routines undertaken within the confines of four tiny port-a-john walls. They were stripped of all the comforts we take so much for granted: in their place, they received only a chain, a collar, water, food, doghouse, sleeping bag, and shade.

Stated Aija, in an acceptance speech Friday, July 14, while crying for the dogs she had stood for, "I feel the issue of chaining dogs needs and deserves so much more attention. It is not right to keep your dog like this, I know; I lived it for 13 days. Dogs Deserve Better is a great organization who needs our help, and we need to bring this issue more to the awareness of this country."

To view photos, and read daily excerpts from all contestant journals, go to http://www.dogsdeservebetter.com/chainoff2006pa.html. To interview Miss Gillman or any of the contestants, please contact the organization at the numbers above.

Dogs Deserve Better is a 501c3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Tipton, Pennsylvania, is the 2003 First Place Winner of the ASPCA Pet Protector Award, and currently has 141 area reps in 37 states as well as in Canada and Australia.

Meet the Contestants who will Chain Themselves to Doghouses

Man, how can this not be the greatest contest ever? I know I'm biased and all...but still. No one has EVER had a contest like this...yes, the prize is the same as many contests, but that's because you have to go that big to attract contestants.

Go to the site at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org/chainoff2006pa.html to 'meet' the contestants. We have 8 from PA, and 1 from New York, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, and South Carolina. We're also holding a People's Choice Award Winner, who will win a $200 gift certificate to the online store of their choice...whoever gets the most votes will win the award. Each vote is $1, as we're a nonprofit and we need to fundraise, but hey, what's $1 to vote for someone, AND it goes for a good cause too!

So mosey on over and take a look. I also will be chained for 3 days, independently of the contest. So far I'm so busy I haven't had time to stress about that, but I'm sure it won't be fun. The last two years when I did 33 hours, it really stunk...now I'm more than doubling that, don't know what I was thinking!

I took Connie's advice and got Yoga Booty Ballet...and they sent extra dvd's too. So I'm making sure I exercise every day now, and taking time for ME, which I've seriously neglected the last few years, and it shows. Trying to build the org really took over my life, and I need to realize that if I don't take care of myself, I will either self-destruct or be too unhappy to even run the org effectively, so it must be done! And I feel better already...thanks, Connie.

Quick Chain Off Update

We're two weeks from Chain Off! To read all about it, ready earlier blog entries.

Quick Update:

Adrian Zmed, officer Romano from TJ Hooker, will be there July 1st, 12:00 noon to 2:30 pm. He is still hot!

Cheryl Hill, and her band from Nashville, TN, will be headlining at 8:00 p.m. that night.

We have 12 contestants right now...two dropped out so far, one because she couldn't smoke...hey, the dogs don't get to smoke, do they? Still room for three contestants. They will be up on the site by Monday, fingers crossed! Check them out at http://www.chainoff2006.html then.

Gotta run, and stop goofing off!

Dude, we Did IT! Come to Chain Off 2006

We GO! We ROCK! We are SO DARN COOL! (Don't want to swear...but I know, that doesn't sound very cool!) Well, we did it. We didn't quite get to $30,000 in 30 Days, but we got to $20,000, and will continue fundraising for the rest all month.

The most important thing is that WE ARE HOLDING SUCH A FREAKIN' AWESOME CONTEST! 15 People will live CHAINED TO DOGHOUSES for a period of up to 2 weeks. The person who stays chained the longest will win a NEW CAR!

You are all invited to attend. It's at Leidy Park in Mundy's Corner, PA, about 1-1/2 hours east of Pittsburgh, near Ebensburg, PA. Check the site at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org/chainoff2006pa.html.

I must say that I'm really proud of us, and I give Rocky a lot of credit for the idea and for all the help he's given. We'll have bands (if you want to play, please call me asap at 814.941.7447), and vendors (see the site to apply...nonprofits are FREE!)

It should be a really cool time, and hopefully raise a ton of awareness for these chained and penned dogs...I'll be chained myself for 72 hours, without competing for the car of course. I hope someone outlasts me at least!

Watch the DDB song "I Am Unseen"

We rock, if I do say so myself, and of course our supporters rock, which goes without saying!...do me a favor, anyone reading, go watch http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org/iamunseen.html. I hope this will convince you that what we are doing is needed, and convince you to help!

Plans for the event are well underway...we've got the location, and a nearby newspaper just picked up the unofficial 'yes' from the township authorities for us to use the park, and will be doing a story on it for Sunday's paper. We also did an interview on a radio station in Illinois yesterday.

We only have 4-6 prospective contestants. I don't get it, who wouldn't want to win a new car? What's wrong with being bored to death? It's not like they have to jump off a building or anything to get it...just stay chained the longest. It's the boredom that will kill you, nothing else...but go figure.

If you want to be a contestant, you have a great chance of getting in, so now's your opportunity! I wish I had a new car that was totally free...that would be awesome, wouldn't it? Go to the site at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org and get the contestant form on the left. We will take care of getting you here...food, and water, so it won't cost you anything but some time off work. If you don't work, all the better! You aren't doing anything anyway, so come on down...you're the next contestant on Chain Off 2006.

We have a Venue for Chain Off 2006! Who Wants to Win a New Car?

Well, knock on wood, we have a venue for the event! it's a great park, Leidy Park, in Mundy's Corner, PA...everything is a go except for the formalities, and we have to make sure we have liability insurance in place...so here's hoping! We'll know for absolute sure by Tuesday...he has to run it by the lawyer, and they have to waive the no dogs policy for the park.

Funny thing, Joe, the guy who runs the park, called me and asked me if people would be going to the bathroom in public...on the port-a-potty...I was confused, because aren't port-a-potties always in public? But turns out he thought they would just be using those little potties that sit by the bed or whatever so someone doesn't have to go to the bathroom. Oooi! Can you imagine that? That would be really gross. I said, no way, they will each have a port-a-john, I guess that is the proper term, who knew!

NOW, we have the car in place, an Aveo, and we have the location...now we NEED contestants! Who wants to win a new car? All you have to do is stay chained the longest...if the contest runs longer than a week, we will start elimination games. If you want to sign up to be a contestant, (even if you don't have a dog at this point we'll consider you!) go to the website at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org/home and click on the Be a Contestant link.

Oh, and people to film the event would be great too.

Dang, Time Flies!

I can't believe it's been a week since I blogged...my, how time flies! Meanwhile, I look like hell...must be some kind of astrological thing where I'm extra accident-prone all of a sudden, because I currently have a black eye and a scrape on my face...from two separate incidences, both involving the same rotten rottie.

First, he's now decided to pee everywhere, after two weeks of being very good, not sure what's up with that...so I was trying to show him where he peed on the entertainment center so I could tell him, "no, pee outside," and I slammed my head against the corner of it, cutting my browline, and blood was pouring out everywhere.

I panicked! I felt bad because it was just me and the kids there, and I knew I was scaring them...but I started freaking out, there was so much blood...after I got up to the bathroom sink and got some cold water on it, I saw it was a very small gash, and felt like an idiot...

Then, a couple of days later, mother's day morning actually, the same dog scraped his paw across my face, so now I have a brush burn on the opposite cheek. I also almost wrecked into a lady who had her turn signal on but didn't turn...yikes!

Maybe I'm just so stressed about trying to make Chain Off work, that I'm not paying attention to what I'm doing. Last night I dreamed that I convinced Howard Stern to chain himself out for two days, but then the contest started and I didn't have any doghouses, or chains, or contestants...and I was going outside and just grabbing doghouses and bringing them in from people's yards...and grabbing contestants from people just walking by...ugh.

On the bright side, I had a wonderful Mother's Day. The kids took me out to breakfast, used their own money to pay for it, which I really enjoyed. Then we went to the batting cages, and played mini golf before dropping them at their dad's. It was funny, everytime they started to bicker (Rocky was there too, and I might as well have a third child) I would say, "I intend to have harmony on Mother's Day." (I've been listening to Wayne Dyer's cd's on intention, very good!) Well, everyone would calm down then, so I was really happy it was working.

Then, while playing mini golf, Brynnan had a meltdown (she's only six) because she wasn't getting 2's on every hole. She was crying and having a fit, and I said "I intend to have harmony on Mother's Day." She continued to sob, saying through her tears, "I don't even know WHAT harmony IS!" haha. THAT was funny!

People Thrown Out of Restaurants, Whining Dogs, Whining Kids

OK, I just read an article about a family who got thrown out of a Chinese food all you can eat buffet for wasting food. This article made netscape news! Who the hell cares? Well, OK, I guess I did because I went to read the article, haha. But it's funny, because I chained myself to a doghouse the last two years for 33 hours straight, and barely get local news for it. It's a bizarre world we live in...

Speaking of food, now that Rocky isn't living here, he's taking me to restaurants, NICE restaurants! Last night I had the best tiramisu I've ever had. Oprah said it's the best dessert in the world, so I keep trying it different places, and have yet to be impressed. However, LAST night, I had awesome tiramisu, and NOW I get it...ummm. I could definitely eat that every week.

So I told Rocky that I really like him taking me out to fancy restaurants. If ONLY he had a home to go with it. Puts a bit of a damper on the overall enthusiasm. lol.

Both the dogs and my kids whine all the time. What's that about? I bought an EASY button from Staples yesterday, I needed it because we were doing a booth where we weren't wanted, and it was really getting me down...so I thought the EASY button would help. I was right, it did! LOVE that thing...

DDB's up to $5,000 of the $30,000 needed. Chain Off 2006, here we come! Now, we need contestants...get your apps in now before it's too late.

$4,000 Raised out of $30,000!

Hey, in 4 Days we've Raise $4,000 for our Chain OFF 2006! I think that's NOT too shabby...especially in light of the fact that we could not find a major sponsor for our event. We've had to take it to the people, those who love their dogs...and all we need is another 9,000 people to send us $3 each! Could you be one of those people? Who the heck can't afford $3?

If you don't know what I'm talking about, read previous blogs, or check out the site at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org. We're holding an event in which 15 people will live chained to doghouses until one of them is left...that person will win a new car! This will be HUGE.

So come on...if you love your dog, did you know that there are as many as 10,000 dogs that look JUST LIKE YOUR DOG living chained outside at this very moment? (unless it's one of those tiny guys, then probably not as many...) If you love Akitas (my breed), shepherds, collies, rotties, pits (with horrendous logging chains), labs, retrievers, beagles, coonhounds, setters, newfoundlands, etc....and every mix thereof...there are hundreds of thousands of these guys living chained today and every day. For life. Unless we put a stop to it!

So get up and help...send us $3 (or MORE, if you like!) to P.O. Box 23, Tipton, PA, 16684 or you can donate online at www.dogsdeservebetter.org. Help us raise awareness today for something that should have been stopped centuries ago!

OK, now, on the personal side...did you know Rocky is STILL living in my driveway in his car? How funny is that? I have to say, at 42, I thought I'd seen it all...but I was wrong. He is helping greatly with Chain Off, all free to DDB of course, and mowing grass for showers...so hey, it's a win-win situation at this point!

Now, as long as God keeps providing money for the mortgage, which he-she always does, we're good to go...Oh, and God, I'm working on that worthiness for more money, so you can start sending it ANYTIME! (subliminal message from God...buy Tammy's art at http://www.littlegirllooking.com.) haha.

30 Days to Raise $30,000!

OK, folks, it's time to get serious. By now you must know about our Chain Off 2006 contest, if not, check out www.dogsdeservebetter.org.

Since we haven't been able to find a sponsor for our event, we've determined that either we at DDB are the world's WORST salespeople (and we are), or potential sponsors for our Chain Off 2006 event find us too 'risky' to sponsor.

In either case, we CANNOT and MUST NOT let that stop us from holding an event that in and of itself could bring our issue MORE AWARENESS in two weeks than its gotten in the 4 years since our inception! Isn't that worth an investment of $30,000?

To put it in perspective, $30,000 could buy us vetting for 100 chained dogs. Which would be great, as we are always in need of vet money, but then where would we put them? At this point foster homes are a more valuable commodity than vet money! And, we would only be putting a band-aid on the issue. We need awareness, legislation, and education more, so that people are motivated to take responsibility for their OWN dog. We need them to realize it's not ok, and it's not accepted by our society. This event would help change minds.

$30,000 would buy us 60 billboards. This could saturate one county or city of the country pretty well, but then what about the rest of the country? We need a nationwide event that will help the WHOLE country, not just a small part of it.This event would help change minds.

We could buy 200 fences with $30,000...once again, it would be great, but it's a band-aid. We need awareness, legislation, and education more. This event would help change minds.

$30,000 couldn't even begin to touch a national print ad campaign, or tv commercial compaign. To be effective those would both take 5 times that much money just to get started!

So, SINCE we've CONVINCED YOU of the importance of holding our Chain Off Contest, and we are apparently the world's worst salespeople, we must bring our plea to you, the individuals who love their dog. Picture your dog out on a chain for even one day. If that thought is repulsive to you, know that there are as many as 10,000 others that look just like your dog, your breed, your baby, living chained out there right now. In other circumstances, that could and would be YOUR dog living out there today. Please, don't turn a blind eye to this issue. Your dog, your favorite breed is as affected as the others.

So what can you do?

It's simple: All we need is 10,000 people to send us $3 each. That's it!

Surely, surely, there are 10,000 people out there in the U.S. who believe that dogs should live inside with the family and love dogs enough to give $3? Please DON'T prove us wrong, or we will indeed be heartbroken.

So, here's the plan:

You send $3 to P.O. Box 23, Tipton, PA 16684 (or send via the paypal link below). You make sure two of your friends send $3 to P.O. Box 23, Tipton, PA 16684. If they don't want to be on any mailing list, (which we DON'T sell, btw), they can just mail 3-$1 bills in an unmarked envelope (yes, it WILL still need a stamp), and they can remain anonymous.

If you're reading this, you care enough to make this happen...so please, stand over your friends to ensure that the envelope makes it to the mailbox. The road to hell is paved with good intentions!

So, now that THAT's out of the way and you've put your $3 in the mailbox (you did, didn't you?), we have a couple fun contests to encourage you to seek event sponsors (we don't give up easily!):

1. The Biggest Failure

Everyone hates to fail, right? So that's why none of us ask as much as we should. Helen Mueller, who just stepped up to help us with the event, told us something very memorable. She said "Every NO I get, I say, good, that means I'm ONE STEP closer to my YES!"

In this contest, we will make it fun for you to fail, and fail BIG! Whoever gets a NO from the most famous person or company will win their name and photo on the website, as well as a selection of their choice from our cafepress store (up to a $50.00 value.)

So far Tammy Grimes has the biggest star-power NO, from Jason Reitman, director of the recently released movie "Thank You for Smoking". When asked if he could sponsor, he replied, "I love my dogs, but I don't have time for this right now." (Don't have time to write a check? Hey, at least he responded.) So, Jason Reitman is the current star to beat! BTW, a no reply doesn't count...you have to receive an actual NO. If we had $1 for every time we received no response to a request for help, we would have our training center built by now...

Rocky Shepheard has a NO from Animal Planet, who said it sounded like a great idea, but they just weren't interested. So on the corporate side, beat Animal Planet.

Just download this letter, and send it or your own letter plea (since ours doesn't seem to work!) to as many stars/companies as you possibly can. When you get a NO, forward it to Tammy@dogsdeservebetter.org. We will compile a list of our NOs; the board of directors will vote on the best NO, and one of you will WIN for being the biggest failure. Pretty cool, huh?

2. The Biggest Success

If one of you actually SUCCEEDS to find a major sponsor where we've failed, not only will we KISS your feet, but we will pay to bring you to the event if you'd like to come, put your name, photo, and story on the site, and give you three items of your choice from our cafepress store.

3. The Biggest Gatherer

Whoever gathers $3 donations from the MOST people and forwards them to us will win their name and photo on the site, plus an item of their choice from our cafepress store. Just use this form in .pdf to gather names and $3 (or MORE!) donations, and send them in to us at P.O. Box 23, Tipton, PA 16684.

That's the plan. If you have questions, or you DO happen to succeed, call us immediately at 814.941.7447. We'll start the party right away...you're all invited!

Dogs Killing Cats

Well, today I lost my fourth cat to a foster dog. It's probably a bad time to be writing this, because I'm very angry. I created an art piece last time, entitled "Who Died and Left YOU Boss?" about my foster Spotty, click the title to take you to it. That time they killed Purrsia, who is the sister of Exhia.

Exhia died today. She was featured in another art piece called "The Dog Doesn't Agree", because she had such a 'crush' on our Akita and used to knead in her fur with her claws and try to suckle at her belly. The dog didn't like it, but never tried to hurt her...

I wish I knew how to handle this. I just don't want to foster anymore, because I can't handle them killing my cats. It's not fair to the cats...they are NOT LESS than the dogs, but it sure seems like they are. Cats have always been my soul...I relate to cats, they are independent, fierce, loving when they want to be. But when a dog is set on killing one, if there is no escape route, they don't have a chance.

It must have happened between 8:00 a.m. when Kim was out cleaning up the yard, and 11:00 a.m., when I got home from some errands. She shut Spotty and the new rottie Atlas out in the yard for awhile with Beauty. Big mistake. Spotty is the one who helped kill Purrsia, and all three of these dogs are bad with cats. Exhia probably tried to come in the doggie door, but it was closed and they trapped her.

I feel like it is my job to protect them, and I failed again. When I was a child, my dad killed all of our cats, one of which was a striped tabby like Exhia...she was my cat, named Streaker. Streaker was very shy, and really only loved me, because I spent a lot of time out in the barn with her. But because the cats all sat outside the door to the house wanting to get in, and my mom didn't want them in, my dad killed them all. I think since that time, I'm very protective of my cats (and my kids!).

But how do I stop fostering? As the leader of the org, I feel it's my duty to set a good example. Still, I've done it for four years...and have paid a heavy price for it. Maybe it's time to stop fostering until we get the funding to build our training center, and in the training center there will be no cats, for their own protection...I don't feel it's fair to me, my family, or the cats that we have to go through this pain over and over again.

Career vs. Family

Last night I make my first-ever PAID speech, at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in PA. How exciting! And I did quite well, considering that in the past public speaking was my greatest fear in all the world, me and about 700 million other people. I even was able to ad-lib a bit, although then I had a struggle to get back into line with my notes.

I think I've joined the ranks of those who, if not out and out thrilled by it, are finding their way to acceptance, and am now looking at ways to better myself in this arena. Most of the speaking engagements I've done to this point have been free, just as a way to get our message out. It's such a great feeling to finally be paid for it! And, part of the money was for me as an artist, which was neat too, a double blessing.

I signed up for a seminar this weekend in Philly by Nathan Winograd of No-Kill Solutions. I've long been a fan of his amazing work, and was looking forward to meeting him in person. But herein lies the rub...Rayne's first Little League game of the year is Saturday, plus it's my weekend to have the kids. So I'm faced with the eternal parental struggle...to put more time into my career, or more time into my family.

It's very important to Rayne that I come to his games, he's made that abundantly clear. I usually do make all of them unless I'm scheduled to speak or something for DDB. I'm sure I'll be missing a few for those reasons in May, and since I was just going as a participant to the No-Kill seminar, I guess you can see who wins out this time. Rayne. And he's worth it. He's the best kid I could ever ask for!

Gettysburg and Rottweilers

Rayne, my 12 year old son, and I went to Gettysburg this weekend. Our Gettysburg rep went to a seminar, and was kind enough to lend us her place to crash Thursday and Friday nights. We had a great time, except for something that Rayne will kill me if I mention....which led to a fair amount of arguing.

We did the double decker battlefield tour, and lasted about 2/3 of the way on the top of the bus, before we decided freezing our buns off wasn't our idea of a good time. It rained all day Saturday and now today, so we were lucky to get it done on Friday. I definitely liked the electric map overview of the war, gave me some idea what exactly happened and where. I also bought the movie Gettysburg while I was there, and plan to watch it soon now that I'm more familiar with the whole thing.

On the way home I met someone to pick up a rottie that had lived a chained life in PA. He had the evidence of an embedded collar, and was so skinny I didn't even recognize he was a rottie at first, until I saw his massive head. Luckily, Adio had gone home with his new parents from Rhode Island Saturday morning, and that allowed me to bring the new guy in with less stress overall. He's doing great with the other dogs, he's pretty submissive for a big boy, and OK with the cats...a bit too interested, but I don't think it's anything I can't handle.

This morning he did something I've never seen before. I bathed him, as he stunk to high heaven. After he was all done and I'd cleaned up the bathroom, he came back up and jumped back IN the bathtub! That was a first...normally they never want to step foot in that bathroom again, the scene of their ultimate horror...the cleansing ritual.

I Am Unseen: A Chained/Penned Dog Presentation

I finished the I Am Unseen song, written by Rocky Shepheard and sung by Heidi Pollyea. I just realized, and this is TRES embarrassing, given that I've just lived with the guy for two years...that I spelled Rocky's name wrong on the song and on the cover art page! Oops...don't you just hate it when someone spells your name wrong? It makes me feel like I'm unimportant...crap. I wouldn't want to do that to anyone, now I feel bad, but don't want to go in and revise it all again...Oh, well, I'll have to do that before I run out the next batch and debut the song on the internet. Oddly enough, he looked at his name when I wrote it, and he didn't say anything (of course, he needs glasses to see and won't admit it). Maybe it's right on the movie file but not on the cover, I hope so.

I really love the song...granted, I've listened to it 10,000 times by now, so maybe I was forced to love it or hate it. I'll be interested to see what others think of it.

You can order it with the rest of our presentation now at our store, the link is above.

Brynnan had me writing love notes back and forth over the weekend. It was fun, and really had me reaching for sweet things to say to her. She wrote this note to me "Wrcing for Dogs Devre Badr is the Bast shing tht afr hapind to me, evind mor van jooping on the vraplen. Love, Brynnan". Which, for you non-six-year-old having parents, translates to "Working for Dogs Deserve Better is the best thing that ever happened to me, even more than jumping on the trampoline." Isn't that just the sweetest thing you've ever heard? Friday she was 'working for DDB', and she created a new piece of art for me to sell on our cafepress store (visit the site to see this), plus Kim had her putting stamps and labels on envelopes, and cutting donation receipts and thank yous...simple things that a child can do. Just goes to show you how making the effort to include children in what you're doing can really make a difference in their lives, really make them feel good about themselves!

Breaking Up is Hard to Do

My boyfriend and I are breaking up...after many failed attempts to make it work for the past two years. Yesterday was the moving out day, Easter...what a joy! It was also the day of crying (him), begging (him again), and bitching (you guessed it, me). Turns out he says he's going to live in his car...not sure what's up with that or if he'll really follow through. More on that later.

So today I did cry, as I'm working on a new song he wrote just for Dogs Deserve Better. He is very creative, I'll give him that. I'm 'renovating' our presentation video/dvd, which you can buy on our store at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org/store.html. If you buy it now I'll make sure that you get the new, updated version with the song I'm crying to! I love the music, I think it's very beautifully written, and hopefully will be very moving to others too. I'm working in Flash to combine it with images of chained and penned dogs, not the easiest program in the world to operate. I think it's turning out superbly, all in all. Especially given the fact that I haven't used Flash in forever, and had to relearn it for half of the day to even get going.

I have a speech at Indiana University of Pennsylvania Monday, hence the crunchtime work this week to get our stuff updated. Being a graphic designer, I work to deadline, always have. I keep a constantly revising log in my head of what has to be done next, what can be put off in order to get that done, etc., etc...so this week is the presentation video and our new song, "I Am Unseen", and also work more on the eBay auction and sponsor-hunting... begging more public figures and corporations for sponsorship.

Yesterday I got the guts to ask Jason Reitman, director of Thank You for Smoking, for sponsorship, since he mentioned how much he loves his dogs. He turned me down, but I survived it, which I guess is the important thing! Maybe I should keep a running log of how many rejections we get. It's all a numbers game...until you hopefully hit that one person who had a chained dog as a child and always pitied the poor thing, like my dog Maggie...or grew up next to one and never did anything about it. That will be our sponsor!

Is Anyone Reading This?

This is my first attempt at having a blog...and with the millions of bloggers out there, my first thought is, will anyone ever read this? Who knows...who knows.

Something funny that my daughter, six, said to me the other day. We were jumping on the trampoline after a rain. I was doing the seated jumps, where you bounce down butt first and then back up, and was leaving 'butt tracks' on the trampoline. We started singing, "Mama's got a big 'ol butt, oh yeah...mama's got a big ol' butt" over and over again, you know that song. Later, after a bath, we started singing it again and she said to me. "No, but seriously Mommy, you really DO have a big butt." haha. I cracked up...kids say the darnedest things. (yeah, it really IS big!)

Still no takers on the sponsor needed for the DDB contest. I don't give up easily, though, and I DO expect to make this happen!

People Chained to Doghouses - Contest!

My first blog is just reiterating my profileon myspace.com, so you can get to know me if you pop by through the blogs...we REALLY HAVE to make this contest happen, so please, check out the links and send them to anyone you know who A. loves dogs B. has enough money or influence to sponsor this contest C. has a chained dog at home or lives near one; these two are our top two choices for contestants, but others will be needed too, so if you want a new car and have nothing better to do than be chained for up to two weeks over the 4th of July, go for it! Dogs Deserve Better

Current Mood cracks me up...one of my best friends from the service, Darren, once told me, after I asked him how I was dancing, that I danced very 'determined'. I guess that underlines my life, and this cause, this contest, makes me feel very 'determined'!

Currently, we are seeking a sponsor for our Chain Off 2006 Contest, in which 15 people will live chained to doghouses until only one is left, who wins a new car and raises awareness for our issue! Please go to www.dogsdeservebetter.org to find links to our sponsor pages, download flyers, and get a contest application. Hurry, our contest starts over the July 4th weekend, and we need help and contestants lined up asap!

I am founder and executive director of Dogs Deserve Better, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to ending the chaining and penning of dogs, and bringing 'man's best friend' into the home and family. I currently live in rural Pennsylvania, and credit my animal advocacy to a childhood living with the tragedy I work againsta sad, chained beagle (Maggie) and a beloved black lab (Gally) and cats, all living outside and longing to be in.

I started Dogs Deserve Better because of Bo, formerly Worthless, a black lab mix I was later able to rescue and who lived as part of my family until passing in 2003. If my heart didnt break every time I drove past his beautifully sweet face for six years, I would still be seeking my mission today. To read more about the work and programs of Dogs Deserve Better, go to http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org.

My animal-advocacy-focused art has produced 27 pieces and 4 series to date, among which are: Little Girl Looking, which documents my journey from that of a young girl who does not see or care about the plight of the animals to an adult who now, even in the midst of pleasure, cannot forget their pain; and the New Orleans After Katrina Series, which reflects the feelings of rescuers in the wake of the tragedy and my experiences from rescuing there in November 2005. My art site can be reached at http://www.littlegirllooking.com. Art of Tammy Grimes