Event pics + Kink's World + ART + ANIMALS

Thanks to those who have joined us for the foster fundraiser event here online + in person last Saturday. Your contributions and donations of foster supplies has been greatly appreciated !!  Below are a few pics from the event:

The following posters were created for the event and we wanted to share those also here for those who were not able to join us:

It's an understatement to say that our newbie rescue/foster journey has been a life changing event for us.  This blog will serve as a permanent archive of that initial journey and as a way to show appreciation for EVERYONE who has participated in this journey with us. 

As some of you know this journey has led to some immediate additions to our family as we have officially adopted momma Sweet Pea and 'baby' Kink (who at 12.5 weeks now weighs 24 lbs!).  Here's a recent pic of them together in a rare semi-peaceful moment :)

As we have done during the entire fostering period, we continue to work with Sweet Pea to help her gain back the confidence and trust we know she once had prior to whatever abuse she had been exposed to.  It's a daily effort and she makes great daily strides.  Her recovery from her early Ehrlichia diagnosis continues to show success although she will need to be monitored regularly and evaluated yearly for the rest of her life as the tick borne disease can sometimes return.

Kink is a whole different ball of Tasmanian devil wax .....as we like to refer to it :)   He makes us laugh each and every day and brings us joy like we can't describe but having a puppy is a HUGE undertaking and a big challenge.  Adopting a puppy and committing to doing what the puppy needs in order to grow into the best friend s/he can be takes so much more time, energy and effort than many people expect or are prepared to give.  Unfortunately, a big part of why so many animals end up in the pound and get euthanized is because someone wanted a cute puppy but were clueless what to do with it once they brought him or her home.  Fast forward a year later with no training and the near adult dog is 'misbehaving' all of a sudden and the family who adopted him or her is shocked and can't figure out why.  Many dump their 'problem' dog at the shelter and that's the end of story.  Sad but so very true in every community across the United States.  Adequate puppy training for Kink is key to our family's happiness and his happiness and ability to fully blossom into a secure, confident, loving dog.  We had no idea that it would require so many hours each day, 7 days each week but we decided the best way we might help others who may have recently adopted a puppy is to create Kink's World as an educational project.  A website is in progress but for now Kink is sharing his puppy training tips and other helpful information with the rest of the world on facebook at Kink's World.

The biggest 'next step' that we have undertaken as a result of this rescue/foster journey is in our professional lives.  Since 2007, we have served as directors for an arts non-profit project and were moved to try to figure out some way to introduce what we've learned over the last several months and explore the larger picture of this journey in our future programming.   To that end, we've created a new initiative, tentatively titled ART + ANIMALS.  We'll be combining public arts and cultural programming with animal welfare (rescue, fostering, education and sanctuary if need be for the purposes of reducing the abuse and abandonment of animals and also reduce the euthanasia rates in shelters).  Please visit: http://www.becaicad.org/art--animals.php to learn more about this new programming component and how you can become involved.  We're extremely excited about connecting these two seemingly very different worlds for the benefit of both.  You might be surprised how much these different communities of art/design and animal welfare have to offer to one another.

Our best always,

Melissa + Kurt, newbies no more