Said gun said knife

Foster pitbulls, dogs, cats, Orioles baseball, hardcore/punk. Simple life surrounded by pitbulls and awesome people.
Each one of these dogs were listed as a “pit bull mix” from the shelter.  They each look completely different from each other.  Every dog has their own personality like humans.  We never give dogs enough credit. Sprout (on the left) is a chill dog but the alpha of my home.  She takes all the fosters under her wing and teaches them about life in a loving home.  Frederick (in the middle) was a clown, goofy, friendly, and amazing with children.  I picked him up the day he was to be “put to sleep” since the shelter was full.  He was my foster and stayed with me the longest. He was adopted and returned due to landlord issues  since he looked too much like a “pit bull.”  He finally found his forever home with another dog who matched his goofiness.  Lucky (on the right), another foster, was the sweetest dog you would ever meet.  He was so shut down in the shelter I had to carry him to the car.  He slowly came out of his shell. Lucky and Frederick were best friends while they were at my house together.  Lucky now lives with two young girls and another pup in his perfect home.  These pups were all lucky and overcame all kinds of different circumstances.  They did this with unique personalities and in different ways.  We need to stop judging dogs by their “cover” and judge them by their content.  Please call Governor O’Malley today Maryland, let him know the Appeals Court Ruling needs to be over turned.  It will kill thousands of dogs and leave a lot of families missing important members.

Each one of these dogs were listed as a “pit bull mix” from the shelter.  They each look completely different from each other.  Every dog has their own personality like humans.  We never give dogs enough credit.

Sprout (on the left) is a chill dog but the alpha of my home.  She takes all the fosters under her wing and teaches them about life in a loving home.  Frederick (in the middle) was a clown, goofy, friendly, and amazing with children.  I picked him up the day he was to be “put to sleep” since the shelter was full.  He was my foster and stayed with me the longest. He was adopted and returned due to landlord issues  since he looked too much like a “pit bull.”  He finally found his forever home with another dog who matched his goofiness.  Lucky (on the right), another foster, was the sweetest dog you would ever meet.  He was so shut down in the shelter I had to carry him to the car.  He slowly came out of his shell. Lucky and Frederick were best friends while they were at my house together.  Lucky now lives with two young girls and another pup in his perfect home. 

These pups were all lucky and overcame all kinds of different circumstances.  They did this with unique personalities and in different ways.  We need to stop judging dogs by their “cover” and judge them by their content. 

Please call Governor O’Malley today Maryland, let him know the Appeals Court Ruling needs to be over turned.  It will kill thousands of dogs and leave a lot of families missing important members.

I don’t usually get personal but with this new ruling in Maryland regarding pitbulls and pitbull mixes my life has been kind of happening around me.  I went to the shelter to adopt a 5 or more year old male dog of any kind and I came home with a 7-month old female pitbull mix who I named Sprout.  She has been my light, my child, my best friend, my therapist, and my protector. I have suffered severe depression at times my entire life. Nothing had helped prior to Sprout and what she helped me realize was what I wanted to do with my life.  I wanted to help dogs and especially pit bulls.  So a year later I started foster pit bulls for BARCS and my life changed.  In a year I have fostered 10 pit bulls and about 32 cats.  My life got better, I felt like I was finally changing the world. But Sprout didn’t stop there.  After being robbed right by my house, I spiraled into depression, fear, and wouldn’t leave my house.  Everyday she curled up next to me and forced me out of bed to walk her, she would bark and pull on my feet to get me to play, and she would clean my face of the tears. Slowly I got back into a normal routine.  In December of 2011 as I was sleeping Sprout woke me up growling.  I looked to see what she was growling at and there was a large human form coming in my bedroom window.  She growled and barked and chased that person out of the window and down the fire escape.  I try to not think what could have happened if this person got into my home.  Sprout spent the rest of the night watching out while I laid crying.  She still to this day will only sleep on the outside of the bed or closest to the windows as if she thinks she will need to protect me. I beg everyone who loves and cares about me to help fight this ignorant, deadly, and filled with prejudice law.  Do it for your dogs because they could be next. I wanted to add Aniaml Farm Foundation’s nice break down of this ruling.http://www.animalfarmfoundation.org/files/Maryland-Court_Tracey-v-Solesky.pdf

I don’t usually get personal but with this new ruling in Maryland regarding pitbulls and pitbull mixes my life has been kind of happening around me.  I went to the shelter to adopt a 5 or more year old male dog of any kind and I came home with a 7-month old female pitbull mix who I named Sprout.  She has been my light, my child, my best friend, my therapist, and my protector.

I have suffered severe depression at times my entire life. Nothing had helped prior to Sprout and what she helped me realize was what I wanted to do with my life.  I wanted to help dogs and especially pit bulls.  So a year later I started foster pit bulls for BARCS and my life changed.  In a year I have fostered 10 pit bulls and about 32 cats.  My life got better, I felt like I was finally changing the world.

But Sprout didn’t stop there.  After being robbed right by my house, I spiraled into depression, fear, and wouldn’t leave my house.  Everyday she curled up next to me and forced me out of bed to walk her, she would bark and pull on my feet to get me to play, and she would clean my face of the tears. Slowly I got back into a normal routine. 

In December of 2011 as I was sleeping Sprout woke me up growling.  I looked to see what she was growling at and there was a large human form coming in my bedroom window.  She growled and barked and chased that person out of the window and down the fire escape.  I try to not think what could have happened if this person got into my home.  Sprout spent the rest of the night watching out while I laid crying.  She still to this day will only sleep on the outside of the bed or closest to the windows as if she thinks she will need to protect me.

I beg everyone who loves and cares about me to help fight this ignorant, deadly, and filled with prejudice law.  Do it for your dogs because they could be next.

I wanted to add Aniaml Farm Foundation’s nice break down of this ruling.
http://www.animalfarmfoundation.org/files/Maryland-Court_Tracey-v-Solesky.pdf

Friends let friends with hurt paws nap on their back (Taken with picplz.)

Friends let friends with hurt paws nap on their back (Taken with picplz.)

Sick Fix at Lady Fest.  Best thing about being in a band is you get to work through all you mental bullshit free of charge.  Thank you to everyone who made Boston Lady fest fun for us.  Now ready for Smash It Dead Fest.  girlhouse: More Sick Fix @ Ladyfest redshorts getting blown away

Sick Fix at Lady Fest.  Best thing about being in a band is you get to work through all you mental bullshit free of charge.  Thank you to everyone who made Boston Lady fest fun for us. 

Now ready for Smash It Dead Fest. 

girlhouse:

More Sick Fix @ Ladyfest

redshorts getting blown away

(Source: alisblog)

The life of a dog isn’t always that simple, it isn’t always sleep, eat, play, get belly rubs, poop, pee, eat, and more sleep.  It can be extremely complex, depressing, scary, and so full of happiness.  It used to be I would look at a dog and focus on the negative in its life, instead of focusing on all the positive that could come out of the new chances before them. With Princess Gracie my new foster I have changed my way of “viewing” her.  She is no longer the victim of neglect but a survivor who is strong and willing to move forward with change.  As a survivor of my own past I have never wanted to be viewed as a victim, never once did I want pity, maybe a bit of empathy, and of course revenge (my personality does not allow for forgiveness very easily). So why was I pigeon holing and possibly making it harder for the dog to forgo its past and move forward into a better life and light?  Who knows?  Maybe because I like to remind myself humans are evil scum, because for me it is easier to be angry than happy, or maybe I just never thought of seeing their world differently. I think we can learn a lot from dogs.  They don’t focus on the past they leave it in the back of their mind and they will carry emotional scares sometimes but who wouldn’t.  So from this day forward I will view a dog the way I think they view their life.  A dog that has been abused and neglected can be the most loving dog in the world.  Take my Judge for example: he came from neglect and over breeding but I would be damned if he ever found a human he didn’t want to rub his ears or kiss on.  Or Princess Gracie, my underweight, all white, beautiful foster pibble that never knew love until a few weeks ago, she seems like she forces herself to meet a new human just to get loved on and to love on back.  You see her push past her bashfulness and meet that person and then she relaxes.  So Princess Gracie has a bright future, probably as a dog model because she loves to wear clothes and you can teach her anything. She is no longer a victim but a survivor.  Thankfully this has been discussed quite a bit lately in a lot of blogs and it honestly got me to change my mind.  So remember you aren’t always just preaching to the choir!

The life of a dog isn’t always that simple, it isn’t always sleep, eat, play, get belly rubs, poop, pee, eat, and more sleep.  It can be extremely complex, depressing, scary, and so full of happiness.  It used to be I would look at a dog and focus on the negative in its life, instead of focusing on all the positive that could come out of the new chances before them.

With Princess Gracie my new foster I have changed my way of “viewing” her.  She is no longer the victim of neglect but a survivor who is strong and willing to move forward with change.  As a survivor of my own past I have never wanted to be viewed as a victim, never once did I want pity, maybe a bit of empathy, and of course revenge (my personality does not allow for forgiveness very easily). So why was I pigeon holing and possibly making it harder for the dog to forgo its past and move forward into a better life and light?  Who knows?  Maybe because I like to remind myself humans are evil scum, because for me it is easier to be angry than happy, or maybe I just never thought of seeing their world differently.

I think we can learn a lot from dogs.  They don’t focus on the past they leave it in the back of their mind and they will carry emotional scares sometimes but who wouldn’t.  So from this day forward I will view a dog the way I think they view their life.  A dog that has been abused and neglected can be the most loving dog in the world.  Take my Judge for example: he came from neglect and over breeding but I would be damned if he ever found a human he didn’t want to rub his ears or kiss on.  Or Princess Gracie, my underweight, all white, beautiful foster pibble that never knew love until a few weeks ago, she seems like she forces herself to meet a new human just to get loved on and to love on back.  You see her push past her bashfulness and meet that person and then she relaxes. 

So Princess Gracie has a bright future, probably as a dog model because she loves to wear clothes and you can teach her anything. She is no longer a victim but a survivor. 

Thankfully this has been discussed quite a bit lately in a lot of blogs and it honestly got me to change my mind.  So remember you aren’t always just preaching to the choir!

There are times when I sometimes don’t want to play another show and then I see photos of how much fun it all is. corkyberlin: Sick Fix | Washington, DC

There are times when I sometimes don’t want to play another show and then I see photos of how much fun it all is.

corkyberlin:

Sick Fix | Washington, DC

I went to have my foster dog Frederick evaluated for the BARCS Pit Bull Ambassador program.  While there, Savannah, the dog trainer who evaluates the dogs for the PBA told me about this giant headed pit/english bulldog mix.  She took me back to see him and I fell in love.  It was a huge bummer (I know completely wrong) that he had an adoption pending because I HAD to foster him.  Well the adoption pending fell through and I went to pick up Typhoon.  He was everything I love in a dog, laid back, big headed, attention seeking, and loyal from the start.  It was a few days in I decided to adopt him. Aaron says that I had decided to adopt him the moment I saw him but I don’t think that is true. This was a huge decision because it would mean reducing my ability to foster more than one dog at a time.  But there was no way his was ever leaving my home, there was no way I was risking him going back into a home of neglect and abuse. Typhoon, who is now named Judge, was a seizure by animal control.  Judge wasn’t house broken, he never played with a toy, never ate good dog food, and was terrified when you went to pet him.  He spent most of his 3-years of his life in a crate living in his own urine and poop.  He was part of a epidemic in our country of people using dogs for profit and giving two shits about the welfare of the dogs.  He is the love of my life like Sprout.  I promised him he will never go hungry, he will never be abused, he will never be fought, he will never be locked away, he will never see the inside of animal control again, and he will never want for anything.  Judge spends his days napping away in his crate with his stuffed shark and night sleeping cuddled up with me.  He plays with his sister when not napping (he naps a lot).  He lives the life I wish all dogs could live. He is proof that it isn’t just how a dog is raised that makes them who they are, that each dog has their own personality and should be judged individually.

I went to have my foster dog Frederick evaluated for the BARCS Pit Bull Ambassador program.  While there, Savannah, the dog trainer who evaluates the dogs for the PBA told me about this giant headed pit/english bulldog mix.  She took me back to see him and I fell in love.  It was a huge bummer (I know completely wrong) that he had an adoption pending because I HAD to foster him.  Well the adoption pending fell through and I went to pick up Typhoon.  He was everything I love in a dog, laid back, big headed, attention seeking, and loyal from the start.  It was a few days in I decided to adopt him. Aaron says that I had decided to adopt him the moment I saw him but I don’t think that is true.

This was a huge decision because it would mean reducing my ability to foster more than one dog at a time.  But there was no way his was ever leaving my home, there was no way I was risking him going back into a home of neglect and abuse.

Typhoon, who is now named Judge, was a seizure by animal control.  Judge wasn’t house broken, he never played with a toy, never ate good dog food, and was terrified when you went to pet him.  He spent most of his 3-years of his life in a crate living in his own urine and poop.  He was part of a epidemic in our country of people using dogs for profit and giving two shits about the welfare of the dogs. 

He is the love of my life like Sprout.  I promised him he will never go hungry, he will never be abused, he will never be fought, he will never be locked away, he will never see the inside of animal control again, and he will never want for anything. 

Judge spends his days napping away in his crate with his stuffed shark and night sleeping cuddled up with me.  He plays with his sister when not napping (he naps a lot).  He lives the life I wish all dogs could live. He is proof that it isn’t just how a dog is raised that makes them who they are, that each dog has their own personality and should be judged individually.

my cry for the day.

I’m Just a Pit Bull

A scowl genetically embedded on my face, as I didn’t come from the greatest place. I was born out of brutality and cruelty. Any act of kindness towards me would be something completely new to me. I never win the popularity contest, as I am not liked by many. When they handed out chances, I never received any. I always walk alone, but not by choice, I cant even plead my case, as I have no voice. The jury is out before my trial even begins. I have become a storage facility that is full of humanity’s sins. My friends are sentenced to death without committing a crime..The hurt and the pain that is inflicted on me is overlooked all the time. I have been racially profiled because of my breed… Fought to the death for other peoples greed. I have viewed much of my life on chains, or behind bars… You cant even see my smile, because its been hidden by scars. You read horrific stories of all my heinous acts… the press exploits me without knowing all the facts. My neck has grown heavy with your weights and your chains…I have been fed nothing but torture, and I have absorbed all the pain. My life can be compared to that of slavery… Is this the path that society has made for me? I am resilient by nature and I have way too much pride… That’s why it is rare to see someone like me ever cry. What I really want is to be by your side. I’m loyal to you forever, or at least until I die. What few of you know is how emotional I can be. All I want is to be part of your family. I am not saying that all of us are perfect or great. Humans come in both and good and bad, so you should be able to relate. I don’t want to be beaten down any longer… you need to make laws to protect me, much stronger. Don’t stand there and let this happen one more day. The cruelty I am subjected to, is not OK. I know it will take time and your schedule is full. Why would you want to try and help me? I’m just a Pit Bull.

by Jason M. Flatt, Founder, Friends to the Forlorn