Nat Geo Channel gets some new Best Friends
In this country alone, between 3 and 4 million unwanted pets are euthanized every year. But there is one place where man's best friend always has hope: Dogtown. One of the largest no-kill animal facilities in the country, Dogtown is located on 33,000 acres of Southern Utah canyon country.
The sanctuary -- run by the Best Friends Animal Society -- hosts hundreds of dogs from all around the country, along with cats, horses, rabbits, goats and various other farm animals -- about 1,500 animals at any one time. For the lost canine souls that find shelter at this home in one of 12 lodging facilities, a staff of over 60 oversees their every need -- including medical attention, training and rehabilitation -- with the eventual hope of finding these dogs a new, loving home.
Dogtown is often the last hope for dogs requiring specialized or urgent medical attention or for abused and neglected animals.
Background information on the program:
Best Friends and the Fredonia Humane Society have launched a three-year partnership that will provide free spay/neuter services to residents of The Gap, an impoverished area within the Navajo Reservation in northern Arizona.
Each month, Best Friends staff volunteer to help FHS president Tom Corrigan pick up family pets to take back to the sanctuary where medical staff will perform the spay/neuter operations.
For the past two and a half years, Tom Corrigan has taken it upon himself to help the people and animals living in The Gap. Once a month, he and volunteers make the four-hour roundtrip trip from the FHS - which is located about 20 miles south of Best Friends - to pick up family dogs and cats to be spayed and neutered. They also stop to pick up stray and abandoned animals in Coconino County. Tom returns the companion animals to their humans the following week; the strays stay at FHS until they find forever homes.
Tom never shows up to The Gap empty-handed. He brings food and supplies for residents and their pets, and offers medical assistance when he can. It's an ongoing project and sometimes, he says, it really does feel like the work is never done. But now, he's got a little help.
Finding Hemi, Tikki and Polly:
One day in July - I went on The Gap trip with Tom, Sherry, Jeff, Dr. Patti and a small crew from National Geographic Television in tow.
After dropping off an entire van load of dog food for the residents on the reservation, we went to a nearby dumping ground that has several large dumpsters as well as dumped appliances and tires. It unfortunately has also become a dumping ground for unwanted animals. We leave lots of food and water there on each visit for the animals who might be around that area. On this trip, it was a very hot summer day and there was a large pile of old tires to look through. We picked through the tires carefully as it has been known to be a good hiding place for small dogs. Within moments we found a small black puppy (later named Hemi) who came out screaming. She was checked over by Dr. Patti who was with us and placed in the air conditioned van in a crate. Moments later and a thorough search of the debris and we found another puppy (later named Tikki) quietly hiding under an abandoned couch. Dr. Patti was worried that Tikki might be dehydrated because he was awfully quiet but after a short time in the van with access to food and water, he began perking up. Tom often finds dogs there that he takes back to the Fredonia Humane Society to find a better life for. In this case, we had room at our puppy building back at Best Friends and these little ones needed some extra care, so we were able to take them back to the sanctuary.
We next looked through all of the dumpsters and underneath them. It was hot and dirty work but no one wanted to miss a puppy that might be hiding. In that heat, they wouldn't have long to live. We found a cat in surprisingly good shape and were able to catch her as well.
After leaving the many bags of food and gallons of water that we had brought, we expanded our search a little. Further away from the dumping area, we found a dog who had been recently shot in the head. It made me sad to see this poor dog who had been truly cast out like garbage and I hope that our work out there, helping to provide spaying and neutering services, will result in less unwanted animals - so that no one feels they have to shoot the dogs that they don't want anymore.
Someone saw our Best Friends logo on the van and pulled in to tell us that they had recently rescued a small puppy with something wrong with her eye. She needed medical help. So we focused on the still living dog who needed our help and drove the short distance to their house and found little Polly. There wasn't actually anything wrong with her eye - one was brown and one was blue which made her look a little different - but when Dr. Patti examined her, she did have a bite wound on her tiny little head and her skull might be fractured. We were able to take her too and she joined Tikki and Hemi for a trip back to life at Best Friends.
Come back often to hear more stories from the staff at Dogtown in the upcoming weeks. You can also learn more about the organization or how to help - click here.
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47 Comments
It is only through the generosity and diligence of Best Friends Animal Society and their people that we are able to keep this project alive. There are literally thousands of animals still out there that need our help. Just this very day we returned another two very happy dogs to their owners. When you turn around and see them healthy, well-fed, and playing again, that is our reward.
Tom Corrigan
President,
Fredonia Humane Society
http://www.network.bestfriends.com/fhs/news
Having volunteered with Tom and Fredonia Humane Society and seeing firsthand the condition of the stray dogs he brings in along with those for the spay/neuter days, it makes my heart sing to know this very worthy project will get national coverage.
Thank you Best Friends for your major role in facilitating the project and National Geographic for spreading the word.
Please go to this link to donate - the Gap project cannot survive without more funding. https://www.bestfriends.org/donate/gap.cfm
Wow - what an amazing story. Is this show on national geographic? i couldn't find it listed in schedule
It is, Eric - the first of a 3-part series begins on January 4, 2008 featuring Best Friends. The Gap project with Fredonia Humane Society airs a week later on January 11, 2008.
Please pass the word!
Thank you for the article and upcoming show about these wonderful organizations (Best Friends and Fredonia Humane Society). The work they do makes life better for so many animails. I can't wait to see the show.
This is fantastic, keep it up!
that is a pretty dog and how old is he or she
Is it Best Friends or Dogtown? I got confused about the name of the place - sounds AMAZING
hi
maybe you can help me stop my male scottish terrier from going to the pee in the house. he is fix,but late in doing that. he is 2 1/2 yrs old. we have a doggy door so it not like he can't go outside when he wants too. is there any herbal senses that i can spray on the furniture. our female will goes once in a while, too. they are not crated. they sleep with us or on the sofa.
help
Steve,
Best Friends Animal Society has different areas. Dogtown is aptly named for the residents. You really have to be there to appreciate what it takes to run it and help so many animals. I live 20 minutes from there and I still marvel at it all.
Tom Corrigan
Fredonia Humane Society
http://www.network.bestfriends.com/fhs/news
Hi Paula,
The best thing for you to do is post your question on the Scottish terrier message board so people who know the breed can offer suggestions. Just cut and paste this link:
http://scottishterrier.meetup.com/boards/
Best Friends is the most sacred place on Earth. The staff and volunteers are incredibly unselfish. Please visit and be sure to make reservations for the 90 minute tour. Take time to say hello to Pam, Lyn and all the wonderful ladies at the visitors center and be sure and watch the short DVD while there. On the tour make sure to see where the Lone Ranger did his famous "Hi Ho Silver!"
Dear Paula with the Scotty,
Best Friends Animal Society has an onine resource library called "Caring for Your Pets." The url is: http://www.bestfriends.org/theanimals/petcare/.
Click on "Dogs" at the top of the page and under the "Behavior & Training" section is an article on "Urine Marking in Dogs."
I hope that will be helpful.
I am so excited to see this new show! We are upgrading our cable package to include National Geographic. I wouldn't miss an episode for the world!
I was lucky enough to view a preview of the show with some Best Friends employees. You can really see how much they love their job and the dogs they care for, when during the five minute preview they were more excited to see the canine stars get airtime then they were for their own "15 minutes" of fame.
Keep up the great work!
I have 4 rescue dogs... 1 was almost euthanized at a kill shelter, one was considered "unadoptable" and shunted from foster home to foster home, one was a stray that got caught up in Hurricane Katrina, and one was dumped on me by my neightbor's daughter who is I suspect a "collector" I donate $20.00 a pay period out of my paycheck to the ASPCA with matching funds from my employer. I also use my website which is in the dance-arts to promote messages from all the agencies including Best Friends. I am a sap for helpless animals. What can I do for Dogtown?
I was watching National Geographic when I saw a commercial for DogTown. I am part of the Anmial Rights club for my school and i would like to know if the makers of the show could come to the elementary school in my town and make an assembly for them. The club has been trying to arrange with different companies programs to help inform children of neglected animals.
I am so grateful to National Geographic for publicizing the horrendous condition of animals in the Gap area--and for highlighting the wonderful work being done there by Tom Corrigan, the Fredonia Humane Society and Best Friends. Bravo!
We just returned from a few days volunteering at Best Friends. It is the place to be on New Years Day as it makes one realize what life is all about. Thank you Best Friends. Margaret and Konrad
Congrats to y'ALL for getting this out to the public!
Hi, Dara!
Best Friends is wonderful and deserves all this good publicity.
Dog Town was a great program and really showed what wonderful people work at BF. My husband and I spent a couple of days working there last May and recently we took one of our foster dogs there for placement - the place is
wonderous!
I was watching the show on the dogs that were rescued from the puppy mills. Laws should be passed on how they operate. We just adopted a rescue golden that the mother was abandoned. This is our second rescue golden. Anyway, keep up the great work for mans best friend
and success for thier adoptions.
I watched the show when it premiered yesterday and was amazed at what this amazing facility does for these wonderful dogs. You guys are amazing! Keep up the good work! I would love to get involved one day.
This was an amazing show. Thanks so much for showing it. I have volunteered at Best Friends two times a year for the past four or five years./ It is truly an\remarkable place. You have to see it to believe it. Truly a labor of love. The staff are so dedicated and Michael Mountain ( founder) does a fantastic job. I hope you have more shows in addition to the next two. Please!!!!!!!
I caught the show today for the first time. I am very interested in developing a smaller but similar place for animals. I live on a farm in rural alabama. I currently own five dogs of my own. If you could get me started in the right direction I would appreciate it. Thanks.
dave & i spent an amazing day in december with tom & the pups @ FHS - what an experience! tom's dedication & love for what he does is incredible. i only wish we could do more & can't wait to go back. thank you, tom, for all you do.
I have a husky that was hit by a car. He had 3 and 1/2 hours of surgery to fix it. Unfortunatly it did not heal,he can barely walk. He was my son dog, but my son died at 16 from suicide. In his last letter he asked me to take care of his dog. His name is Sever. I seen that you can make some kind of support stoller to suport his back end. I have spent thousands of dollars in saving dogs. Can you help me make severs life less painfull. When my son died Alaskan Airlines paid for him to come home from Washington st. To Orlando Fl. at no cost. Also paid my way too. If any one can help I would work at dog town for nothing. I plan to spread my son ashes in Pine Valley next to St. George Utah. It is my favorite place in the whole world.
Sincerely,
Lisa Kirby
Hoooray! I have been associated with BF via their website for over a year. Somehow I found them in the midst of tears in December of 2006 when I had to put my rescue dog of 12 years down due to his back failing him--and then one week to the day, his rescue "sister" a samoyed died of what the vet told me was "a broken heart." I thought I would die. I have never felt so alone and so devastated at the loss of those two companions.
I went to Prayers, Healing and Support...I have no way of knowing now, how I even FOUND the site...but from there I have begun to heal. And those who hurt from losing a pet come there, find their way there, and we all help each other to heal. There is such healing and love in this place and I have to say, that Marion, who runs the Prayers, Healing, and Support community is so wise and comforting....
And it is the love that shows and shines. Not only for the care they give the animals, but the compassion they show the owners who have lost those and who eventually find new pets to fill the gap in their hearts that the ones who have gone over The Bridge have left. And knowing that our beloved babies WANT and ENCOURAGE us to share that love left in limbo without the physical body to love and caress...BF has managed to sidle right into our hearts.
I still encourage NatG to find out the story of Bear, Jiminy and Lisa. I have followed Lisa thru her heartstorm of losing her beloved Bear to CHF and adopting Jiminy after he'd been at BF for seven years....I follow her blog and laugh and cry as Jiminy has his forever home, his forever Momma....and his continual discovery of butterflies, fences, and dog parks...not to mention golf balls!
Who knew?
Please develop this series. It will teach everyone so much about love, compassion, and acceptance...and that miracles happen. Not just for the animals, but for humans too...and our lives are changed forever...
Candi Bowen
My husband and I were watching last nites episode of dogtown (with the rescued puppies) and couldn't believe our ears. We too have a little black furball rescued from a reservation whose name is hemi and we love her to pieces. Keep up the good work-we look forward to more episodes.
Fabulous series on Dogtown. Thank you National Geographic for the insight to feature a section of Best Friends. Please continue with this series and expand into the other animal areas of Best Friends.
We have five dogs and we loved this show. It is loving and caring. Dogs are our best friends though we have cats too. I hope National Geographic keeps airing this show. Best wishes to these people.
We received a dog through Best Friends 6 years ago and he's been the best!!! We love what they do for animals and pray for much more success. Very happy that they are finally getting more recognized and hope that others out there will donate and help out.
This is a touching story - yet I am trying to get Best Friends interested in an action that will end this situation and they will not respond. I do not understand why.
There is a bill that has just been passed to eliminate veterinarian student loans if they give service to poor counties (and big agri-business and govt agencies). I am trying to get the bill amended to provide services to every county in every state because there are unwanted, stray and ferals in every county of every state. These vets could give spay/neuter, preventive care and euthanasia as well. 10 years of free spay and neuter 30 hours a month by 10/15 vets in every county will eliminate the unwanted animal problem. In the really wealthy counties they could raise money to get Mobil vans for the less fortunate counties. I need a big website like Best Friends to make a petition so that the FRIEND OF ANIMALS CAUCUS in the House will take on the project of amending this bill to include every county of every state. Heartwarming stories may raise funds but they are not enough to end the suffering for all animals in the US.
National veterinary medical service act (P.L. 108-161)
Current Status:
Enacted in December 2003 and appropriated in FY06, FY07, and FY08, NVMSA’s rules remain unwritten by the USDA, rendering the program non-functional.
The Bush Administration has yet to request funding for NVMSA, prioritize its rule-making process, or attempt to develop NVMSA’s reserve emergency veterinary corps component.
The USDA has reprogrammed NVMSA money to a pre-existing loan repayment program, previously funded by FSIS’s budget, for federal employees.
The Senate’s 2007 Farm Bill amended NVMSA to prioritize rural large and mixed animal practitioners in the program’s initial implementation, made illegal the transfer of NVMSA money to the federal employee loan repayment program, and provided a deadline for rule promulgation.
The Senate Appropriation Committee’s FY08 Committee Report requested from the USDA an implementation plan by May 2008.
Virginia,
I'm a business owner and even I am in awe of the vast undertaking by those at Best Friends / Dog Town. Have you made an appointment to visit in person with someone at the facility? I would imagine that Best Friends receives an inordinate amount of requests, inquiries, etc., and their first priority is the care & rehab of their animals and then finding proper homes for those animals. Rather than expecting them to contact you, why not make an appointment, offer a concise presentation of what you are proposing, and then leave them pertinent information for their review.
Just a suggestion, hope it helps. And, please, don't be to critical if they prefer not to participate. It may be that they have enough on their plate already or some other reason that is none of our business. By their actions alone, they are true saints on this earth!!! What dedication and compassion for God's creatures who have been abandoned, mistreated, or ??? by man.
Dear Mary
I do not have the funds to travel to Utah - beyond that there is no contact on their website to a specific CEO at BF in charge of political action. If I were wealthy there are many things I would do. I found out about this bill and believe it is the avenue to ending the unwanted animal suffering. I EXPECT the rescue groups to help with this. Or have they become something like a business that does not want to see an end to the problem? I do not really believe this but they do not respond and this is very clearly the answer to the problem. My hands are empty - I am not wealthy - I must find a way to reach them. And my only hope now is people like you Mary,--- help me.
Jessica
I am thinking of this but it is not ideal at all. What I need is a petition which will capture by zip code people's name and address in a data base for future mailings and then a form letter which they sign electronically and is then sent to their reps and senators. If I were to set this up my self i would have to incorporate as a 501c3 and raise money to do it. But ASPCA and BF are already organized on line to do it.
We will all need to conduct a year campaign and there will be multiple targets. BUT at the end we would have 5/10/15 vets in every county of every state giving 20 to 30 hours a week free spay neuter and preventative care. In 10 years we will have drastically reduced the number of unwanted animals. My dream is that BF, ASPCA and National Humane lead smaller rescues by putting the petition and form letter on their own sites and work with the House of Representative's Friend of Animal Caucus to make this happen.
During Katrina, I said on my blog with anger that pets must be evacuated with their owners during disasters and FEMA must provide shelters. I wrote about this on my blog and everyone called me crazy. But the PEOPLE. ordinary people, like Jessica and Mary, refused to leave without their animals and the organizations like BF publicized the misery.
Today we have the Pet Evacuation Bill and the states do not get FEMA disaster money unless they have pet evacuation procedures in place. We can do the same thing with the National Vet Medical Service Act if we work together.
We can achieve a radical solution to the overpopulation problem and reduce the strain of continuous and unlimited rescue. And when we have achieved this, we can develop teams to go overseas and set up the program in other countries.
I guess I will have to incorporate but it is so foolish when clearly the great national groups have the real power to do it. I wish I could meet with them and show them that the American Vet Association pushed the bill through this far and would welcome their participation in developing masses of people to insist that it be expanded. Please keep giving me suggestions as I need encouragement not to stop trying. I know this must be done somehow.
The DogTown series was excellent. I am glad to hear they will be filming more episodes.
I think it would be terrific if NG could do a series on all of Best Friends work. There are some wonderful stories of other animals. The surrounding scenery in Angel Canyon is awesome.
I was there last summer and it is truly a remarkable place with a wonderful staff.
Someone asked how to contact them. Simple!
bestfriends.org.
Thank you for deciding to air more episodes of that wonderful program, Dogtown. The three shows that aired were beautifully done and heart-warming.
I seldom plan my activities around TV shows, but once I learned that Dogtown was to be aired on Friday evenings, I made it a point to be home Friday evenings specifically to see those shows. When I realized that Dogtown hadn't been scheduled for a fourth week, I was disappointed as well as perplexed that such a beautiful show about the amazing work done at Best Friends was apparently going to be limited to only three shows.
I believe Best Friends to be the best animal shelter in the world. They deserve the wonderful recognition you are providing them via Dogtown.
I loved the three shows that already aired and can hardly wait for the new shows. Please keep 'em coming! Thank you, National Geographic, for such an awesome series.
Great show! I thought it was going to be a regular series and then it wasn't there last week. Please bring it back and make it a weekly Friday night show. I really enjoyed it and it make the end of the work week extra special
I comment the friends at DogTown and the BestFriends facility. I can't wait to see more shows now that the initial 3 are come and gone. DogTown NEEDS to be on the air, it needs to be visible to everyone, we need to be aware these compasionate people are doing this job and that we all should support this center. We love DogTown. Hopefully thru NatGeo the word will spread.
peace
Carla
What a fantastic show! Watched it last night with my husband and we were both glad to hear about a plcae with such dedication. Thanks for caring and sharing. It means a lot to those of us who understand how precious animals are and that they need humans to look out for them.
Way To Go!
why is this show no longer on the air and what can we do to get it back on?
Does Nat Geo have any DVD's
of the dog town series and
will there be any more shows in the future???? WRS
I heard National Geo will be airing Dogtown again in June. I can't wait.
i am a vet from india send your feed back
Michelle...just another great day in your life...great job, luv ya...and to John, who can still mend a fence, and mend a tough pooch... not to mention landing the lovely McK. Hugs and very proud of you both.
I wondered if you kept Willa (dog traumatized from puppy mill), she loved you so. Please let the public know, she was so adorable.
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