What the $*@! is Wrong with the Other 50% of People?

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Before you read Rasta’s blog today, first, I wish to thank our friends, family, board members and co-founders for all that you do. Our friends on Facebook have provided such tremendous moral support, love, and prayers that have kept us going, and donations have been made from $2.00 to $500.00 that have helped us weather the regular days and the really tough ones—every penny has counted and made a difference. Other friends and family have been with us on the ranch working, helping, giving time, energy, and love, or sending it via notes and prayers. For all that each and every one of you do, thank you from the girls on the ranch and all the animals, those in sanctuary, those adopted, those past and present. You make a difference in our lives every day and we appreciate you—you’re good people for whom we are so grateful.

Now on with the blog!


What the $*@! is Wrong With the Other 50% of People?
(I really hope it’s just 1%, but don’t want this confused with the 99%
because this isn’t political, it’s a sincere question from a girl on a rescue ranch)

Woke up this morning, several times to dogs asking to go out, then, finally, after a half-night’s sleep woke to realize Facebook had made changes to the way messages appear on the notification’s page. There was one we missed. A gentleman advertising a horse on Craig’s List received it and forwarded it to us. Although it was sent to him back in June, I have to respond in the wake of a series of events that have continued my life long lesson concerning how fundamentally screwed up so many people are.

You would think that animal rescue would be fairly simple once the animal is out of harms way, once it is off death row, out of the hands of an abuser, receiving food, water, love, and vet care. It’s the right thing to do, a good thing to do in a world where so much goes wrong and so many harms are committed, but, no, behind the scenes of animal rescue is really just another window into the games people play. There’s rampant jealousy, backstabbing, threats, and lies told not about the bad people who once had the animal in their possession, or the jackass backyard breeders, or the families too financially wiped out to care for their pets, but of all things, about the rescuers, about the people working daily to do the right thing. And, of course, as a rescuer, you also have to take crap from friends of people you may have rescued an animal from or those people themselves hiding behind the guise of more facades and lies.

Taking the relatively small world of animal rescue and the “theater” surrounding it we can then look at the larger picture and see this is what is wrong with the world—why there are wars, murders, inequities, starving, hatred etc.. It is because people lie, they lie to themselves, and they lie to the world. Politicians lie, pass blame, and fail to take responsibility and or a correct course of action because it’s all a game. Lives are often lost because of this and the toll on humanity as a whole is unconscionable. The world of animal rescue is a reflection of this.

Here’s the response the gentleman advertising his horse on CL received:

Had a horse on craigslist and this was one of the responses: Please be careful who comes to pickup your horses. If a nice sounding lady named C from "Rasta's Rescue Ranch" wants them please think twice. She got a pony from a friend, lied, tried to turn them in to Animal Welfare when they got upset. Because, instead of the promised vet care, she put the pony to sleep. She now runs a so called rescue named after this pony with a made up story so she can get donations. She can't afford vet care for any of her animals, just wants pets for her daughter to play with. Please do a home visit, or have a friend do so. Unless you want your friends to go up for sale and end up who knows where. Thanks, a friend

First, I have to address this blatant falsehood:

“Because, instead of the promised vet care, she put the pony to sleep.”

The day after Rasta’s arrival on our small ranch, two vets came over to check on Rasta. This Equine Hospital is a highly regarded horse hospital and the two vets were appalled by the condition of Rasta’s feet; he was severely foundered and in chronic pain for which there would never be relief. The woman who had Rasta allowed this poor pony to suffer day in and day out. The proper vet care was to relieve him of his suffering. Dr. Berkley Chesen and Dr. Feathers said there was nothing else in the world we could do for him and they would stand by that today.

Secondly this, a perpetuation of the lie:

“…made up a story so she can get donations…”

As a fiction writer, I could not have, would not have conceived of such a relentless heartbreaking story as that which Rasta told us. Rasta’s suffering was unconscionable and literally had been allowed to continue for years because those who possessed him did nothing in the earliest stages to correct the problem. They only allowed it to worsen until nothing more could be done.

On that fateful day alone, nearly one thousand dollars left my personal bank account and in the coming months thousands of more dollars, not donations, but personal money poured into the cause of animal rescue, not because we wanted donations, but because the suffering was appalling, the need too great to be ignored.

Third:

“….just wants pets for her daughter to play with.”

Oh, boy, this bothers me at the core of my being. For those who have met my daughter, you definitely feel it too. To the person who wrote this: One, don’t involve my daughter in your lying rant; two, you haven’t a clue about whom or what you are talking about.

Sometimes I have considered my daughter quite blessed to be living on a rescue ranch for all the lessons she is learning, invaluable lessons that will make her one of the best people you will ever meet when she is all grown up. I can say now she is already more fully rounded out as a human being then most of the adults I know. But to the idiot that actually wrote this, here’s the reality: running a rescue ranch is work, physical labor, there are animals to be fed, water buckets to be scrubbed, pens to muck, fences to build and mend, and these things must be done regardless of rain, cold, sleet, snow, wind and there’s a girl out there working the ranch right along side the adults, unless she has too much homework or is with her dad. She does this not because she has to, but because she lives what she believes in; her compassion is tangible. She knows commitment and responsibility. The harder lesson, though, is the heartbreak she has learned, the devastating reality of what happens when human beings do not do the right thing, or they lie, cheat, steal, or abuse.

To the person that wrote that statement from the bottom of my heart, the depths of my soul, may God/Karma/the Universe forgive you your ignorance, shame, blasphemy, hatred, lies, and inability to do the right thing, take responsibility for where you failed as a human being responsible for all the world’s creatures great and small.

You will never know how many tears have been shed on this rescue ranch, never know how many a little girl has cried for the failure of others, how many vets she has spent time with, how many hopes she has had for a better world, how much love she has experienced, nor the depths of compassion she has learned.

Finally, I am a fortunate woman, not for the wealth in my bank account, the fancy car I drive, the properties I own, or 5th avenue office of Rasta’s main branch (LOL, folks), but for my experience in life and the friends and family that I know, love, and cherish, most especially my daughter and Chandon Banning, co-founder of Rasta’s.

In 2009 there was no reason in the world for us to make the personal sacrifice of starting a rescue ranch, no one held a gun to our head, and the devil did not make promises about great riches via donations. No. I had a property that went underwater, lost a job, and necessarily sold off everything I possessed of any financial value. Starting an animal rescue was the craziest thing in the world to do, but fact is the underwater property was originally just that, and the pens were available, the yards and the land, and the reality was the need was overwhelming. Equine and dog rescues and sanctuaries were full, shelters filled to capacity, people were posting ads giving their horses away, some were letting them go to fend for themselves because they could no longer afford their care. Families were losing their homes and their beloved pets, and animals were going without vet care and food. The economy was beating the hell out of good and bad people all the same. I had the time, energy, will, and knowledge that you cannot just stand idly by. I also had a friend whose compassion and passion for animals absolutely compelled our action.

“Stand up for someone other than yourself” – this is something Ms. C. not only has written on her website, but something she honestly lives by. So, to the person that wrote to the man with a horse, again, God forgive you, because I won’t. You ultimately are responsible for Rasta’s story, you wrote it every time you looked at that pony and saw his feet all overgrown and twisted. You are responsible for the creation of Rasta’s Rescue Ranch and by my calculations you owe me personally $20,000 dollars. Stand up for someone other than yourself and do the right thing for once in your life.

Please make the check payable to Rasta’s Rescue Ranch, inc. a 501 (c)(3) public charity; all the proceeds will go to animals in need of a rescue, because of people like you.

And if anyone else out there has anymore lies to spread, and you know who you are, you better make the damn effort to talk to me first, because I’ve had it with your drama, your lies and innuendo, I’ve had it with your whining, your pleads and your backstabbing jealousy/hatred. Get your ass out to the ranch meet the animals, mend a fence, bust some ice, brush a horse, love a dog, toss a ball, hug a kid, realize the magic that happens when we put those who cannot defend themselves ahead of our personal needs otherwise shut the hell up!

Yours Truly,

S
Co-Founder
Rasta’s Rescue Ranch, Inc.

August: Puppies, a Pinto, Princes, & New Friends

Updates From a Lil’ Rescue Ranch

Oh, we are crossing our fingers tight for the big Red boy, in hopes of him finding his forever and most loving home.  He’s been staying with his foster mom, Kate, since narrowly finding his way out of the shelter system in Los Angles via an avenue of great dog lovers who determined this boy needed a second chance.  They were right.  He’s smart, ready and willing to learn (after years of neglect), and really as Kate says just a big lap dog.  Rasta’s is proud of Red, grateful to Kate and Red’s fans, and happy we could help in his journey.  Applications for adoption are out—this is very exciting for Red!!!

Our loving Dancer rescued seven years ago has been diagnosed with Cushings, a condition which impairs his body’s ability to maintain weight.  His meds arrive via UPS on Monday and hopefully they will do the trick.  Dancer is well into his 20’s and a dear loving member of Rasta’s permanent residences.  He’ll have to receive the medication the rest of his life, but considering all that he has given us the cost is superfluous in comparison.  Dancer lovingly cared for the young rider on his back since she was merely seven.  He allowed her to learn and they share that special relationship that happens between a little girl with a passion for horses and a princely spirit who just wanted to be loved.

Ms. Chloe is on the mend after her second bout with colic.  Seems our little blind Pinto likes to eat sand.  The paddocks are not particularly sandy, but she somehow manages to find it.  We will be moving her into a different pen in efforts to correct this.   Colic can be life threatening to a horse and of course Chloe forever holds a special place in our hearts.  She was rescued shortly after the loss of Rasta, the beautiful Shetland pony whose spirit inspired all that has followed.

Many have come in the wake of Rasta, most recently the pack of seven pups, who today get to celebrate the wonder of a little rescue ranch willing to go the distance.  We’re double securing their little yard, have temporarily surrendered Chandon’s studio to their needs, and will be preparing them to find their forever homes.  After rescuing them, we discovered the promised "Freedom Train" to Colorado, may not be the freedom we would hope for concerning these pups.  Preparation for forever homes is a huge emotional and financial investment, but abandoned dogs only get so many chances to be the best they can be.  This preparation involves putting weight on them, getting fully vetted including: another round of shots, micro-chipped, heartworm tested, and, of course, spayed and neutered.  The option exits to send them off to another rescue, but we’ve seen too many dogs who suffer separation anxiety from being passed from shelter to shelter, rescue to rescue, foster home to foster home.  This won’t be an easy task for the three regular caregivers on the ranch, but it will make a tremendous difference in their lives.

As much as I would love to go on with stories from the ranch this morning, I have some administrative (hate that word) tasks that must be done, some fencing to buy, and some money that needs to be found, ASAP.  There’s a little donate button on this page and if you could help we would so appreciate it.  Every dollar counts and we know times are tough for many out there, but even the smallest gift makes a big difference.

This month we’ve watched Rasta’s likes grow on Facebook and received special notes and stories from many.  Thank you for sharing your love for animals with us, your missing of loved ones, and hopes for changing the future of many. 

Sincerely,

Shawn, Chandon,  & Lilli 

STELLA!!!

A famed movie moment, Brando screaming “Stella!” at the top of his lungs, but despite my film degree, in this case we’re talking about a pit bull and a rescue facilitated by Rasta’s via Pin-Ups for Pit Bulls on Facebook.  Everyday there are posts and stories on the web and news about Pit Bulls.  Unfortunately the press is often negative and web posts are frequently pleas to save another pit from a kill-shelter. 

One of our co-founders, Chandon Banning, made rescuing pit bulls a cause in her early twenties when she began rescuing them with a friend in L.A., and this effort continues today.  One thing Rasta’s does is share the posts of organizations like Pin-Ups for Pit Bulls in efforts to find homes for the neglected, abused, abandoned, misunderstood, or just lost.  More often then not these canines are pit bulls and Stella was one of them. 

Stella!
Photo by Chandon Banning

After years of being used as a breeder, Ms. Stella was discovered wandering the streets of La Puente, known gang territory, and ended up at the Baldwin Park Animal Shelter in southern California.  One look into Stella’s huge eyes and Chandon made this girl a priority and went to work on her L.A. friends from our home base in New Mexico to find Stella a home.  Stella’s stars aligned perfectly as a friend of Rasta’s and Chandon’s stepped to the plate to care and provide for this incredibly sweet girl. 

Not everyone can take on an older dog nor afford the expenses associated with rescues.  Not everyone has the space, time, or energy, but when the time is right, the dog right, and the rescuer right something magic happens.  In Stella’s case it worked out perfectly, a safe happy home and an adoring human, doting I might say, but for Stella after years of litter upon litter, the care and affection she receives is well deserved and makes right of many wrongs, at least for her.

Pit Bulls, once renowned as the nanny dog have been vilified for years, to the point of being banned in some communities.  They are over bread, abused, and used for the gambling sport of fighting, and unfortunately part of their nanny dog nature to which they were once predisposed seems lost.  This is the doing of humans, not the nature of the breed itself.  One of our missions at Rasta’s is to change this before the “nanny dog” disappears through the calculated indifference of careless persons. 

Stella is the quintessential embodiment of the nanny dog.  She trumpets her hellos and snuggles close with waging tail.  She expresses genuine gratitude for the life she has now.  No, she was never used for fighting, but there’s a damn good chance many of her pups were.  In many shelters pit bulls make up 30 to 50 percent of the population, approximately 1 million are euthanized each year, 200 per day in Los Angeles county alone (2008), then are those not counted, abandoned on the streets where they die in accidents or from starvation, thousands on the streets of Detroit alone, and then there is dog fighting, of course, it’s illegal so real stats are non-existent, thus we’ll leave that to estimates, based on the above figures, we can guess it’s awfully grim.

During a recent visit to Twelve’s elementary school I noted a bulletin board outside her classroom.  Apparently the children were learning about charts, graphs, and statistics.  They gathered information from their schoolmates to compile their statistics and from these created pie charts and bar graphs.  Not surprisingly among the expected inquiries of sixth graders, like favorite sports, subjects, colors, there were several dedicated to favorite or most popular breed of dog.  Again and again the top ranked, most wanted, most popular, coolest, and most owned— the pit bull.  I doubted the boys selected the pit because of its long ago nanny dog title and wondered why the girls too voted it top dog.  For the pit in America it is currently the top dog, most popular, most over bread, most abused, abandoned, fought, used, and talked about.  Sometimes it’s great to be top dog, other times, especially in the case of pits, it’s a terrible position to occupy.  One of Rasta’s missions is to change that.

For Stella we helped advocate that change via Pin-ups for Pit Bulls and a ready and willing rescuer, but for thousands more and generations to follow chances of a good, healthy, and happy life are just one in six-hundred.  Being top dog has placed the breed at the bottom of the barrel.  If you’re interested in having a pit bull or know someone who is, there is one in a shelter nearby in need of a rescue.  Paying for a pup only perpetuates what has become a nasty trade.  If you know of abuse or suspect it, report it.  If you suspect a dog fighting operation or know of one contact local authorities.  Change is advocated for through actions and it’s time to return the pit to its proper heritage— the nanny dog.  In doing so, so much else will change too and for the better.  The world can be made a better place and, in this case, it’s one dog at a time—Stella is happily down with that.

Rasta’s Rescue Ranch, Inc. in Santa Fe, New Mexico wishes to extend much appreciation to Pinups for Pit Bulls and all those who share their posts, Jana Savage at the Animal Advocate Alliance, who shared Stella’s story beautifully, the staff at the Baldwin Park Shelter who posted a video of Stella on youtube that truly captured the spirit of this great dog, and Kate who stepped to the plate, giving Stella a world of love, treats, and her forever home.     

Bucky: A Tribute To

A little over 18 months ago, I met one of the most extraordinary human beings I know, accompanying her was a most extraordinary canine, Bucky, Bucklava, Bucka (as a little girl is fond of calling her), Buck, Mama Dog, Grandma Dog, Buckatune (as I often call her), and Bucky Marie.  

At seventeen and weighing upwards of seventy pounds, when I met her, she greeted me with wagging tail and held her own alongside the pit bull youngster beside her.  I’ve been told over the years our animal companions often reflect our personalities and spirits, in this instance I can declare a definitive truth to this.  Bucky Marie Banning was a formidable personality and most compassionate soul.

In a way, I can tell you, the first shimmering light of Rasta’s Rescue Ranch shown the day a twenty-two year old girl wrapped an eight week old pup into her fluffy white sweater and carried her home.  I say girl, because at early twenty- something we have so much growing up yet to do.  Bucky would grow up with C, help her grow—learn.  As a pup, she taught responsibility and selflessness; they ask a lot of us when they are young, and when they are old. They teach patience and tolerance, always-invaluable lessons in life, but perhaps what they show teaches us most—our very best.  They love us without condition and in this love we find ourselves—the best of ourselves, because we cannot let them down.  When they look at us with those big adoring eyes, full of soul and love, and Bucky had them, we discover great temperament, true compassion, and extraordinary love in ourselves.

Bucky gave great love to my partner in Rasta’s.  She gave companionship in the times of being alone and feeling defeated.  Her smile gave assurance in times of doubt and uncertainty.  Her proud and waging tail offered approval, and happiness, and hope always.  She’d wink and give confidence, snuggle close and provide warmth.  She would stare with genuine affection that said, “I know you and you are my everything.”  

I have known many dogs, but Bucky and Cowboy were my first pit bulls, my first opportunity to understand a misunderstood breed and the mistakes humans have made with them, but more than that Buckatune found a huge place in my heart like the great companions that helped me grow up from childhood to adulthood.  She wasn’t a dog’s dog, but a true devoted companion to her caretaker and friend.  Having had Bucky share with me her smile, I can say I am grateful for having the chance to know her.  And it makes writing this that much harder, because she was a very special presence.  She’s the kind of companion writers tell stories about, the kind that win our hearts, and teach us how special it is to be human, to experience love and heartbreak.  

A few best dogs have broken my heart, I loved them so much because they taught me so much about love, then time for them to go came.

Rasta’s Rescue Ranch lost a most formidable presence, a heart of gold, a genuine character of her own design, a stubborn ‘my way’ kind of girl, an intelligent giving giant in her own right.  She winked at me just the day before, I know she understood everything I ever said to her and I know she hears me now—we love you, Bucky.  God Bless and take care.  Come back and walk with us down to the horses anytime.  We’ll always hear your bark, the tapping of your feet, always see pictures of your memory in our minds, but most of all, always have a place in our hearts that is yours.

I love you and thank you for taking care of your human being.  You’re an awesome girl!  A beautiful girl!   

Rasta’s Rescue Ranch, August 13, 2010