Not so good memories

This weekend is the HSUS convention in Orlando. I am not attending. I would have gone, but could not get the time off or the money to attend. The last time the HSUS was in Orlando was four years ago. I attended for the whole convention, learned so much from the seminars, had a nice weekend away and lost Bubba. This was my tribute to him and I will re-run it every year as long as I need to, which means as long as I do this blog. All rescuers have a Bubba. Read about mine below.

In memory of Bubba
There is a small, Hallmark tree ornament which sits on my desk at work. When you flip the switch, it plays "Bad to the Bone." It was given to me the Christmas after Bubba was euthanized, by another volunteer. She would leave red lip prints on his white coat from loving kisses. That was the kind of dog Bubba was.

It has been a little over 2 years since that day we discovered Bubba was killed. If you are a new reader to my blog, you don't know Bubba, so let me tell you about this wonderful, obnoxious, young, loving, pain in the ass, Mr. personality pitbull who stole our hearts.

When he was brought to the previous rescue I volunteered at, it was determined he would be killed. He believed everything which swung, whether it be arms, a ponytail, or a rope should be grabbed with his mouth and then would not let go. We thought he had been kept in a barn as part of a training program for fighting dogs and the only time any attention had been paid to him, was when he grabbed and didn't let go. But, Bubba wasn't a fighter and whoever owned him couldn't make him one, so he ended up in a shelter and certain death.

A volunteer, wise in the ways of dogs, made him a project dog. This was to show people training would work and Bubba could be a productive member of society. So, despite many bruises and scratches during this period, we all worked towards this goal.

Guess what? It worked. He was extremely smart and loving and after a couple of weeks, he improved. As his training improved, he got even better. He was fearless of the agility or any other game you could invent. Martina Navratilova even took him through his paces.

He was adopted and unfortunately, left in a backyard, chained to a tree, with little interaction with people. He ended up getting into trouble by chewing all the wires under the motor home so he was returned. We think he may have been hit, because he cowered and was afraid, like his spirit had been broken.

We went to work again and Bubba was once again adopted to a nice young man and his girlfriend. When we saw him several weeks later, it was obvious he was loved and he adored his new owner. Enter a new puppy into the mix, and Bubba was put on the back burner because the puppy got all the attention. So he once again began eating clothes and destroying things in the house and was returned.

The problem was he was not returned to us and went to a different shelter. They did not know Bubba's history and he was a pit bull, so he was euthanized before we got the note he had been taken to this shelter. No one checked his microchip to get him back to us.

Bubba convinced more of us than any dog I know, to keep fighting to stop the needless killing of shelter pets for preconceived notions about breeds and temperment.

In memory of Bubba, please continue to speak out for the animals. They have no voice except for the humans who loved them. Please volunteer your time if you can. Donate goods and services and help us all in our mission to stop the overcrowding and needless killing of companion animals. Please do it for Bubba's memory.