Astro Arrives

Finally! We're settled now. We know who the barn bosses are. We know what each other smells like and looks like and moves like. We understand things like "leave it" and "good dog" and "come here."

... Play has begun.

Gurdy figures out that Astro really likes his toys. Best game ever: "I will steal your toy."

Diva and Astro? Lemme tellya. Sittin' in a tree ....

K-I-S-S-I-N-G.

First comes love, then comes marriage.

(But ain't gonna be no puppies in this baby carriage)

nice guys finish last

Willy has something to say ...

"I've been meaning to have a talk with you....

We're cool and all, but you've seriously been ignoring me. I know, I've been the ultimate good guy - Not causing aaaaany trouble or screaming SAVE ME SAVE ME in big cap letters. That's just not my style. But nice guys finish last, so I gotta complain a little…. Why not take me home already? I mean, this Rescue Barn gig's been good and all, but it's starting to get a little (shhhhhh) boring here. I play. I sleep. I do my walks and wag at my friends. But really, I'm just waiting for you to get your act together and put that application in and bust my butt outta here, right? I got things to do, people to meet, parties to crash. Ya hear?

So let's get this moving. You know how it works - application, meet-n-greet, yadda yadda. I'm here....Waiting. Don't make me get all screamy on your ass."

- signed, Willy

temporary digs - by Jibboom

I heard that Olive wrote a blog, so I'm writing too so you'll all know where I, Jibboom the panda-faced princess (as Barn Aunty calls me), have been.

The barn is full right now and very busy since Bad Rap took some in of the Texas dogs, so I loaned out my kennel, packed my blankets and went to stay with Aunty and her family for a few weeks - a princess needs comfort and tranquility after all!



Here I am taking a car ride - I love road trips!



I thought I was going to have a nice little vacation, but nooooooo - Aunty set up a schedule that has me working - me, the panda-faced princess! Can you believe it! Oh well, it isn't so bad after all (tee hee hee).










I have to spend time relaxing in my crate to get used to brief confinement so when my forever family (are you out there reading this??) takes me home, I'll already know how to be a good girl.









I get to practice being an office dog. I go to the office, meet new friends, share my toys, and help Aunty's co-workers "de-stress".
















Easy peasy - I can do that in my sleep!









Oh oops! Here I am being busted sleeping next to my chewed through leash - but really, it was laying there next to my chew toys so can you blame a dog for getting confused??












I have to learn to be polite to cats. Aunty has a bratty little kitty that scratched up my beautiful nose one day though admittedly, I snuck into the cat's room and chased her which she did not like - but how dare that kitty scratch MY nose!! So now on walks, I have to practice leaving all of the the neighborhood cats alone (and there's lots of them!) and ignoring them when I pass. And I have to practice walking up and down the stairs without looking for, whining at, or chasing that darn kitty. Bah!





Here I am checking under the bed to make sure the kitty isn't hiding near MY crate.









I also have to exercise and take walks every day. It's lots of fun though and once I got to go on a hike with 2 new dog-friends that Aunty met through HikeABull (a Northern California Hiking Group for dogs and their people).






We saw lots of ducks and geese and I got to wade in a nice creek. The water felt so good on my paws!

I saw a turtle but couldn't find any fish - oh well, a girl can only hope.

My legs are so much stronger now that I can now jump up on Aunty's super high but super comfy bed to relax while she works.








Even though I have to work, follow rules, and have good manners, being a good house-dog comes naturally, though I'm not perfect since I sometimes try to chew Aunty's slippers, but Aunty says there's no such thing as a perfect dog anyway, just like there are no perfect children!

Here's a final picture of me at Aunty's house with my little friend the Kikster doing one of my favorite things - taking a lovely nap; Yaaaawn!


This is Jibboom at my temporary digs, signing out.

starting to breathe -- I think

We went quiet on the Barn Blog for a spell, but are finally gulping to the surface for air. Seven compromised dogs from a longtime Texas pit bull rescuer who was forced to shut down (nearly 300 dogs confiscated) descended on our wee oasis and current crew of four at the same time that six out of town shelter staff visitors landed in Oakland for Pit Ed Camp at the same time we worked to piece together the thousand details of a spay/neuter event. Trying to breathe ... trying to breathe.

Jibboom went to live at Aunt Anita's house to give her a break from the chaos, which she appreciated very much. Willy had to stay put and complained by grumbling at the new boys in the group - their energy was just way too uncivilized. Gurdy ran in tight circles in response to the excitement. Diva sat very, very quietly and looked rather shocked. Elliot laid in a heap by the back gate - waiting for his invitation to get to work.

We didn't have the luxury of choosing the dog personalities from the group of 287. Evaluations done by others on-site were inconclusive and missed some important details, so we just sucked it up and said "Send whoever will fit in a van. (And can we please have at least two seniors?) We'll sort'em out later."

And sort we did. Some of the new dogs slept in outside kennels for a week or so while we evaled, sorted, shuffled and sorted some more - Thank goodness for the freakin' gorgeous California weather. We scrubbed kennels a hundred times, did a thousand loads of laundry, begged up bully sticks to keep the crew satiated, administered meds, puzzled over x-rays of broken dogs, negotiated their rusty manners, quelled the barking so all could rest, drank pots of coffee, ran errands in every direction and collapsed into a tired heap at the end of every day.

As gratifying as it's been helping the new kids, I won't lie. It was difficult to absorb the unscheduled task as well as the dogs' terrible backstory and I broke down in big hot tears about it all more than once. Some of the dogs have trickled out to foster care, and some still need to find foster care. Some are already on our Available Page and for some, the barn will be their final stop.

It's much calmer here now. But did I mention we still need foster homes? ;-)

I'm so grateful to Anna Rudman Santos and Anita Joe. Without their sensitive focus and long hours, this stretch would have been just plain impossible. Photo below of our oldest Texas refugee, Alma. She couldn't begin to understand why anyone would want to feel anything less than thrilled about the nation-wide response to one of the biggest pit bull rescue efforts in U.S history. Thanks for the reminders, Alma.

PUPPIES!!!

One little girl tries very hard to stay still so she can have her picture taken.

One little boy learns about stairs and life in the big city.

And another little girl explores the wilds of the back yard.

They're not really barn dogs, but they are bad rap dogs and are looking for homes. About three months old, spayed/neutered, microchipped and have their first round of shots. If you've been looking for a baybee puppeee and the time is right, e-mail letti@badrap.org for more information.

a guest appearance

Look who made a guest appearance at the very end of the recent West Oakland Shots Fair held this Sunday at the East Bay Rats Clubhouse......


Yes, our very own Olive and her Uncle Rube. Don't they look maah-velous dahlings?

And you shoulda seen the pupparazzi flocking to take pics of these two very stylish sidecar riders. Vrooom vroom baby!!!

Mr. Jimmy

Finally

 gets to be a dog

 and do something more than just survive.

He thanks everyone who helped make it possible.

what I did on my summer vacation - by Olive

Recently me, Uncle Rube, Nice Mister and Nice Missus took a 5 day vacation.  I hear that isn't a very long vacation, but when your full time job is finding a forever family, you can't just take a big old long vacation!

The first day was spent packing and driving in the car. 

Along the way we stopped for a potty break and I found out

that it's not quite time for the wine grapes to be harvested.

When we finally got to our destination, I saw it was a very nice cabin along a river and in the forest.  Uncle and I got busy right away with smelling all of the smells that needed to be smelled.

The next morning we slept in, but not too long, since we had so much exploring to do and we only had four days left to do it!!
We had waffles for breakfast every day. I found out that I really, really, really like waffles!! I know my friend Elliot prefers banana pancakes - I have never had banana pancakes, but if they are even half as good as waffles, I guess I would like them.

Here I am asking Nice Mister if he will share his waffle with me.  Do you see how pointy my ears are and how big and brown my eyes are??
You would give me your waffles, wouldn't you??
I'm such a good girl!!!  Sorry about the drool on the floor...



Over the next few days I found out a lot of other things.  I like hammocks.  I like sunbathing (but I already knew that!!!).  I like watching Uncle and Mister and Missis playing in the river, but I prefer to NOT join in on their fun - thankyouverymuch.  A girl as pretty as me doesn't want to mess up her lipstick and nails by getting in the water like that!  I think water should be enjoyed from afar...

Look!  I can combine my love of hammocks and my love of sunbathing all at once!!!!












I think this is about as close to the river as you should get...


As amazing as it sounds, the ocean was only 15 minutes away from the river and the forest!  Can you believe it??
And can you believe that silly Nice Mister and Missis thought they could get me in the salty ocean??  I mean, if I won't go in the river, why would I go in all the wavy waves of the ocean???!!??
This is the best way to do the ocean:

Look how pretty I am with my black and white spots against the backdrop of the ocean.  You do not see sand in my fur.  You do not see salty water in my ears.  You do not see me eaten up by the Great White Sharks that I know are lurking just beyond the waves, waiting to get their teeth on a tasty morsel such as myself.  Nope...and Nope.

In fact this is as close as you will find me to the ocean...remind you of the river??

Now, I don't want you thinking that this vacation was just all about fun and games.  Nosirreebob.  I also made sure to excercise my mind along with my belly and my nose and ears and eyes and feet and my sleepy muscles.

Here I am reading a book - It only took me two days to read "Sense and Sensibility" by Jane Austen...even though that sun kept lulling me to sleep...just don't ask me to write a book report about it!!!!

And here I am with Uncle checking out some local art.  This artist must be very smart AND talented...just lookit the subject matter!!!!  "Dog Love"?  Who doesn't love a dog??  I wonder what I would look like as a totem pole.  Probably AMAZING - and super dignified.

 Finally, we had to make our way home.  Sigh.  It was such a fun vacation, I hated to see it end.  It was such a beautiful day on our way home we took the highway right next to the ocean, so we could continue seeing all the beautiful sights.  Beautiful, right???

sunrise at the barn

meet the inspector

Before dinner can be served to the waiting and oh so hungry barn dogs, it must meet the eagle-eyed scrutiny of Inspector Diva who is making sure everything is JUST right.

Diva: Kibble? Check
Salmon Oil? Check
Bowls? Check
Treat toys (to dispense kibble)? Check
Kongs plugged with peanut butter. Check
(not visible in this photo, but they're there!)

Very well, tonight's dinner meets my approval. You may serve.






Me: Gee thanks Inspector Diva. Coming right up.

working for breakfast

Jibboom has a new job to do ... To muscle up her legs and strengthen her hip area especially, she has to complete one slow incline and one gradual decline on the A-frame for each mouthful of breakfast. She's not thrilled with this silly game, but she looooves herself some kibble, so she obliges.

That doesn't stop her from making sad, pathetic faces with each pass.

"Are ya kiddin' me? I gotta climb DOWN now? Call animal protection services! I'm better than this!"

"No. Way."

Oh Boom-Boom .... How we love ya' darlin!

the 'not-olympic' games

Overheard this conversation at the barn yesterday - I swear!




Jibboom: Yawn!! I'm bored.

Gurdy: Hmmm - I know what to do Boom Boom! Let's pretend we're at the Oympics...I know some games we can play (and some even a little dog like me could win, bahahaha)!










Gurdy: I'll call the others over so we can start the games.

Jibboom: I'll be the Queen and welcome everyone to the big event. See, look at the regal arch of my neck as I watch for the approaching dog-thletes.










Gurdy: Let's do a 'dive' competition - look here's a nice little 'pool'.

Diva: No way, I'm looking for the 'chase the sprinkler' competition. I could definitely win that one!

Willy: Water??? Blehh!!! Get me the 'bleep' outta here!







Diva: Wait, where are you guys going?

Willy: Forget the games! I think I heard a cookie jar opening inside the barn. I'm outta here!!

Gurdy: Cookie??? What he said - let's go! Race ya to the barn!

Texas sized smiles!

Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy. A package came in the mail all the way from Texas, with this note inside:

For Elliot and all the Barn Dogs from big fans of yours in Texas! We hope you all enjoy the goodies! - Love, Jenny & Brent Yager, Plano, Texas (and Paddington & Zoey too ... our Pugs)

Elliot's ears perked up high when he heard his name. A gift ---- with Elliot's name included! That was too wonderful.

Usually El-Man has to sneaky-sneak or beg or - ahem - steal a toy from his barn buddies, but this note clearly said he could indulge in the gift. So we laid out the box and let him pick his favorite item before swifting it away to the barn.

He nosed everything carefully, but finally settled on a piece of 'Texas Taffy' (rawhidey thing) and gobbled it right down. Thank you Yager family for bringing so much fun to the gang -- and for remembering the furry one, too. You made his day.

peanut butter

the best entertainment three bucks can buy.

more photos heeeere.

sneak peek at Olive's weekend

by the way, this place sucks

We got to work today and found a list of complaints that the girls put together about life at the barn. Such a shock - We thought they were basically happy. Here are just a few ...

"You call this a dog bed? I've got special needs.
I need a Sealy Posturepedic in a Queen size - minimum!"

"These people are so touchy about their leather chew toys - Like this one.
All I do is take one tiny little taste, and they're all running over waving
their arms and wagging their fingers, "No! No!"
That's just Rude."

"This fountain is just way too small for a proper dip. 

Please replace with a bigger model asap."

"Waiting for meals when I'm hungry? That's just wrong.

Stop the power tripping and give me my food already."

"

"Being kenneled all night is for zoo animals -- Not Divas.

I need my freedom. Please allow me to go wherever I want, whenever I want."

Sweet Willy on the other hand had no complaints. 

"I ... um .... I like it here just fine."

It seems that we're going to be forced to make some difficult decisions. 

It's time to re-home the girls as soon as possible to places where 

their demands can be met. 

If you can help with this, please let us know!