Reeses Pieces!

CONGRATS to my good friend, Danielle, and her husband Jeremy for ADOPTING their very first dog, Reese. Danielle and Jeremy have been wanting to rescue a dog for quite some time now, but were waiting until they moved into their new home, which they bought in August. Just a couple weeks ago, they met a beautiful black-lab mix at the Petsmart Adoption site in Billings, Montana. They fell in love & brought her home. Danielle has expressed her amazement in how well-behaved & comfortable Reese is in their home...it was just meant to be! I cannot wait to meet her.

My sister, Lindsey, also has a beautiful dog named Reese ( a boy! )
Reese was a stray that I found in a grocery-store parking lot when I was living in Las Vegas. I took him in, posted an ad on Craigslist, checked him for a microchip, and after 2 weeks of no one claiming him, I started looking for a 'forever home' for him. My sister was REALLY wanting to rescue a dog for my 8 year old nephew, Bradon. This seemed to be perfect timing! I drove Reese down to Los Angeles before I moved to the east coast and introduced Reese to his new family. He is now living happily and spoiled :-)
(I hear he has developed quite the Napoleon Complex while in the company of my Mom's dogs! I think his days on the street have made him feel a bit inferior & mighty! Needless to say, he is very playful with other dogs and nothing but a ball of love.)

Congratulations to Lindsey and Danielle!

xoxo

Shelter pets hit the airwaves!

Great advertising campaign called The Shelter Pet Project, aimed at raising awareness to adopt shelter pets. More than ever, it seems that shelters are overflowing due to the economy. People are losing their jobs & homes and with that, often means losing their pets. Many shelters have a program that provides free food for those who want to keep their pets, but are having really hard times making ends meet.

This is such a great interactive website, educational & comical. It's a joint venture between the Humane Society of the United States, the Ad Council, and Maddie's Fund. I love how their giving the pets a "voice" ...something that I feel is so important that we as humans can provide for dogs. They have no voice and thus are more vulnerable to painful situations. Help stand up for shelter animals and spread the word about this amazing website!

http://theshelterpetproject.org/

Bark in the Park

I am now a volunteer at the Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City, NJ.
Yea! I will be trying to volunteer 2-3 times/week, socializing the dogs/cats, walking the dogs, helping to clean the cages, etc.

The first event I'll be helping at is the annual "Bark in the Park" at the Jersey City waterfront in Liberty State Park. It will be held October 11th from 11-3.

Click here for more information:

http://www.libertyhumane.org/

I was reading "Real Simple" this weekend (one of my favorite magazines!) and saw this quote. I loved it so much, so I have to post it here:

"The knowledge that you have emerged wiser and stronger from setbacks means that you are, ever after, secure in your ability to survive. You will never truly know yourself, or the strength of your relationships, until both have been tested by adversity. Such knowledge is a true gift....It is painfully won, and it has been worth more to me than any qualification I ever earned."
--from J.K. Rowling's 2008 Harvard commencement address

I think this quote is so timely, due to the economic crunch that has taken a toll on all of our lives. I know we will look back at this time, stronger and smarter because of it. I thank God that I am young and resilient during this time. Although I have been laid-off and have had my own days of hell, it is the people with families who have lost their jobs that my heart aches for, the people that have lost retirement money, the people who were planning to retire and cannot, those that cannot move out of high-unemployment areas because of their mortgages that are tying them there.....I pray for these people and think of them often.

I pray that we will all survive and be better people because of this experience. Adversity is a true test of character, strength, determination, and pride.

Two thumbs up for Delia's! No more Ringling Bros T-shirts in their inventory.

http://blog.peta.org/archives/2009/09/victory_delia.php

P & G's partnership with HSUS to support alternatives to animal testing / research

I wasn't aware of this until recently, and I think in my head, I owe P & G an apology for thinking very negatively of them the past few years; I didn't realize they had teamed up with the Humane Society to support alternatives to animal testing.

Great stuff, hopefully others will find this news to be promising as well.

--Alexis

http://www.pg.com/science/animal_alt.shtml

http://www.pg.com/science/Brochure%20on%20Research%20with%20Animals.pdf