We Got To Meet Fay!

You've read about our trip to Missouri and the feeling of overwhelming camaraderie at the bunker, now we want to share with you some pictures of our meeting with this VERY special girl.

We appreciate getting to meet Fay and have our pictures taken with her more than anyone can imagine, because she just radiates love and is one more dog (like our own Mickey Mouth) who is a shining example of how wonderful this breed really is. We want to share our part of Fay's story with everyone who will listen, and hopefully some will walk away with a new sense of understanding about the American Pit Bull Terrier.

Gale Frey, with Mutts n Stuff, brought Fay out to the bunker while we were there and gave us a special opportunity to meet this AMAZING girl! Fay is something else and it's obvious why she's such a much loved character throughout all this. She is a huge testament to the people loving nature of these dogs and why pit bull fanciers favor this breed like they do.

It's painfully obvious that Fay's life has been anything but stellar. Nobody knows exactly what happened to this dog with a heart so full of love. Our guess would be that Fay was as loyal to her former master as she is to everyone she meets, and wanted to make him happy. You see, sometimes when dogs fight, lips get torn and rather than providing proper medical care for the dogs, dog men will simply cut away the hanging skin (in this case Fay's mouth) and use super glue to piece together what little they can.

Although Fay may look scary, she is anything but! She is so gentle and ever so careful not to be to pushy or rough when showing her love. Incredibly, and as we have experienced before with our own Mickey Mouth, Golda and so many other dogs, Fay has such a soft mouth and when she gives kisses, she seems to have an awareness that bumping a delicate human face could actually hurt.

It's always a humbling experience to meet another dog that's obviously been through a less than wonderful life. We are reminded over and over so many times, why we love the American Pit Bull Terrier so much, and just how people loving and good natured these dogs truly are. Why these dogs are so worth saving.

Fay was of course curious about the environment around her, and as most dogs will do... she would sniff the ground, the plants and the objects around us; but she would only step away for a few short seconds before she came right back to our sides wiggling her butt and wagging her tail. She would snuggle in as close as she could get and her whole body was relaxed. This is what we experience with most of the dogs we meet.

We feel so blessed to have been able to meet Fay, the face of dog fighting and spokes dog for so many, and we wish her nothing but the best that life has to offer for the rest of her many years to come.

Fay is scheduled to have multiple re-constructive surgeries to repair as much of this torturous damage to her mouth as possible. Right now, with Fay having no lips, she is suffering from serious dental disease which is causing her teeth to rot and fall out. If you are able to and would like to help pay for Fay's much needed surgery and help give her a better life, please contact Mutts n Stuff in St. Louis, Missouri to learn where to send donations. We know they will appreciate your generosity and kindness.

Welcome Back! Our Trip To St. Louis, MO.

First we'd like to apologize for keeping everyone in suspense. Our trip out to Missouri and back was a whirlwind and we're just now settling back down and able to think straight enough to share our excitement and experience with you all. Whenever anyone has asked how our trip was, there is only one thing we can say that describes our adventure.

Unimaginable...

You think you know what to expect, but then all preconceived images that you pictured in your minds eye go right out the window when you walk in the door. We were greeted by such caring and energetic staff, and they were glad to have us there; and we were glad to be there. The donations that have come in and are still coming, the support from fellow pit bull owners, breed advocates and animal lovers is just amazing and far more appreciated than anyone will ever know. The sound of dogs waking up and saying, good morning and thank you for taking care of me is deafening, but really... we knew it would be and what can you expect with literally hundreds of dogs in one space.

We sincerely wish we would have had more than a day, because we throughly enjoyed helping clean kennels and spending time with the dogs. Unfortunately we only had one day to help AND evaluate dogs that we would be bringing home, so we had to divide our time and work in the morning and evaluate in the afternoon. But the team work among volunteers and the morale is inspiring! And the system in place to make sure everything runs smoothly is incredible! Everything works like a truly well oiled machine.

We want to thank the Humane Society of Missouri and every employee and volunteer for doing such a wonderful job of taking care of all their charges and making sure that every dog gets as much enrichment and attention as possible each and every single day. We met so many great people in Missouri and we want them to all know how truly grateful we are for being welcomed and being allowed the opportunity to help, even if for a few short hours. The dogs seemed happy, a few even greeted us with literal smiles on their faces, and most every one wore those great big "bully grins" that we all know so well and adore. They were most definitely comfortable and there wasn't one dog that we interacted with that day who missed an opportunity to share some love and enjoy what we gave in return.

A big thank you to Gale Frey with Mutts n Stuff, for getting Eli (now Eddie Munster) out of the shelter and helping him begin his adjustment to life inside a home while he waited for us to come. And we also want to thank Gale and Pam (of HSMO) for all of their help in working with us on our first bust case. We feel like we have learned so much from you all and we hope to take this knowledge and turn it into something positive for the future of bust dogs in South Carolina.

We also want to thank, again, those of you who helped make our trip to Missouri happen. Without your support, we would have never experienced such an awesome event and brought home so much knowledge or our first 2 wonderful dogs. Thank you thank you thank you!

Shout Out To Our Friends at Mutts n Stuff!

A big congratulations is in order for our friends over at Mutts n Stuff in St. Louis, Missouri, who announced yesterday that they are building a new facility to serve as a "halfway house" for pit bulls rescued from fight bust cases who have no where else to go after being released by courts.

The dogs in the cases are held as evidence until they are no longer needed by the courts, then they're released, often with no where to go. Suitable foster homes aren't always immediately available, and the dogs often require time to learn basic manners.

"Phoenix house will provide these dogs with a place to be cared for as they make the transition from victims to evidence to beloved family pets and breed ambassadors," said Gale Frey, founder of Mutts-n-Stuff.

The facility, named for Phoenix - a dog previously rescued my Mutts-n-Stuff, is being built on land donated by a previous adopter.

While construction for the building is already in progress, your donation is greatly appreciated. Please send your love and contribution to:

Mutts n Stuff
P.O. Box 187
Foristell, MO 63348

We are so happy for and proud of our friends at Mutts n Stuff! Maybe one day we can make something like this happen for bust dogs in our own area.

5 Plead Guilty In Missouri Fight Bust Case!

St. Louis, MO, September 14, 2009 -- The Humane Society of Missouri today confirms guilty pleas have been entered in connection to the July 8, 2009 multi-state federal dog fighting raid that resulted in the rescue of more than 500 fighting dogs. Federal agents made 26 arrests and dogs were rescued in 8 states.

According to a press release issued by the Humane Society of Missouri, four eastern Missouri men, Robert Hackman of Foley, Teddy Kiriakidis of Leasburg, Ronald Creech of Leslie and Michael Morgan of Hannibal plead guilty today in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to charges connected to the dog fighting raid. Another man arrested in connection with the dog fighting raid, Jack Ruppel of Eldon plead guilty to charges on September 4 in federal court in Jefferson City.

“We can confirm that five of the individuals charged with this gruesome form of animal abuse are being brought to justice,” said Kathy Warnick, president of the Humane Society of Missouri. “Today’s guilty pleas raise awareness that dog fighting is unacceptable, inhumane and illegal and will not be tolerated. The unprecedented scale of this investigation and rescue operation should alert the entire nation to what a horrible crime dog fighting is and what a dangerous and serious affect it can have on animals and communities.”

Warnick continued, “We sincerely hope these guilty pleas will result in sentencing that sends the message that this form of animal abuse will no longer be tolerated. Humane Society of Missouri staff and our many partners have selflessly sacrificed much of their personal lives in the pursuit of this investigation and the care of these dogs. We fervently desire that this historic effort marks the beginning of the end to dog fighting in the United States.”

“This was the largest dog fighting raid in U.S. history, but it will not be the last,” warned Michael Kaste, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in St. Louis. “This case sets precedence for the FBI along with our local, state and federal partners to aggressively root out underground dog fighting rings where people have absolutely no qualms about torturing man’s best friend for money and entertainment.”

More pictures of some of the dogs seized in this large scale effort can be seen on HSMO's online album.

We are hoping since the evil men have pleaded guilty they will forfeit the dogs very soon. We hope the dogs will be coming to us in the next few weeks...we cannot wait and lets hope the courts system acts quickly. NHPBR has been working with HSMO and Missouri based rescue group Mutts n Stuff to receive dogs and follow the progress of the cases, so please check back often for updates! We will let you know more as we are permitted.

Among the groups helping to care for the dogs are:

American Humane Association Animal Humane Society APA of MO ASPCA Atlanta Humane Society Best Friends Animal Society Brazos Animal Shelter Brew City Bullies Broken Hearts, Mended Souls Rescue Denver Dumb Friends League Hawaiian Humane Society Hickey College

Humane Society of the United States Humane Society of Central Illinois Humane Society of Greater Kansas City Kauai Humane Society Michigan Humane Society Mutts n Stuff Oregon Humane Society Pierce County Animal Response Team Pit Bull Rescue Central Seattle Humane Society Sioux Empire Pit Bull Rescue UAN

Other groups are expected to arrive in Missouri to begin helping with dogs this week. Included in these organizations is Our Pack, Inc's Tracey Cutler.

Missouri Bust Update

I assume you all have heard about the biggest dog fighting bust in US history on July 8th by our friends at Humane Society of Missouri. Over four hundred of my brothers and sisters have been rescued from the horrid life of dog fighting. I am so happy that my friends at HSMO have freed my brothers and sisters but what happens now?

Right now they are in a secret bunker safe from the bad people. The dogs have to be held for at least 40 days until the court hearing.

I, Smiley King the dog you see in the pic above with my special Pooh Bear, went through this process myself and it was scary at first being in a new place but my friends at HSMO made me feel at home right away. In the meantime, my brothers and sisters from this bust are experiencing their first toys, peanut butter, friendly hugs and kisses from humans, and fresh bedding. I wish I could talk to them to let them know their lives made a major change for the good and they will never have to fight again.

My foster mom, Gale Frey who founded MuttsNStuff is on the move to find foster homes for the dogs. She's also been on site helping the MO dogs. I've been in touch with my sister Zoe, who went to Our Pack from the same 2007 Stoddard County Mo bust that I came from. After arriving at Our Pack she went to school to become a therapist. Zoe's been asking Our Pack to ask for foster homes too.

Well heck, Zoe got adopted into an awesome home, they have toys, Kongs, balls and all the stuff that makes life wonderful! I know this is possible for all my buds out here too! Everyone should have a Pooh Bear, very comforting.

I heard that after the big bust other abused dogs outside of this case here were surrendered because their enslavers felt the heat of the FBI and HSMO. Since these dogs were owner surrenders they were able to go into rescue. But hundreds of my brothers and sisters are still waiting. Right now, I have a picture of an FBI agent and HSMO Investigator on my dog crate wall. They are my heroes.

I will send everyone updates as I know them about the Missouri Bust Dogs. They are safe in a secret place waiting for our a laws to release them to rescue. What a sight it must be having over 400 pits in one place, where I used to be! I'm so lucky to be here, with my bear and my friends. Thank you again HSMO for helping us. Your are my heroes.

Thanks for listening,
Smiley King

Our friends over in Missouri are working hard to prepare the Missouri bust dogs for rescue. We need your help to get ready for the dogs here. New Hope Pit Bull Rescue is in dire need of foster homes who can be ready to provide these dogs with a loving and nurturing environment if and when they are released. We will also be taking donations for the dogs once they are in our program, so please keep this in mind and stay with us for updates as we learn more.

Also, we still need foster homes for dogs in other shelters who need our help. Please consider opening your heart and home for a Pit Bull in need. Fostering a homeless dog is a very rewarding experience that many people truly enjoy!

Visit our web site to learn more about our foster program and to apply to become a foster home today!