On 'da Stoop... Collecting Cookiez!

Joey Meatballz is Ready to Go to His Forever Home...

Here's a quick checklist of

Our Forever Home Wish List:

Joey Meatballz' Location: Newtown, CT
Age: 1.5-2 years, possibly younger
Sex: male
Weight: 52 pounds & holding...
Kids: Yes! He Loves 'em!!!
Cats: Yes, dog savvy ones!!!
Dogs: Yes! Joey Loves the Ladies & some gentz!
Fenced Yard: Preferred, but not required

Here's a message from Joey Meatballz:

"Yeah, me & 'dis chick named Miss Libi (datz me fostah gram's dog) were hangin' on 'da stoop collectin' cookiez from my foster pops when my fostah momz decided to click some pics of me & my lil gurlfriend... don't be fooled, she may look cute but she is one spicey frog i tellz ya... she don't take lip from nobuddie, fostah momz sayz that that's cuz she's a puppymill survivah & she's done 5+ yearz of hard time. i don't care though, i likes me a fiesty girl."

Joey Meatballz has recovered from his kennel cough, has been neutered (big thanks to our spay & neuter group, SNAN!) & received additional veterinary care from a holistic doctor who specializes in nutrition. He has sensitive paws that seem to get more scratched up on the snow then the other dogs in our home so we decided to consult a nutritionist to see if he could use any dietary support for that. He has visited his favorite doctor for his skin & is taking some antibiotics to clear up a little break out.

Joey Meatballz is a hunka-hunka staffie/boxer guy & he loves all the girl dogs in our home but the boy dogs seem to really want to give him a good beat down in plain old english slang... he is probably considered more of a passive-aggressive guy in the dog world, so we are looking for a home that has one or more girls. He's a loverboy for sure. This doesn't mean we wouldn't consider a very submissive male who is relaxed, but we will require meet-ups to make sure that everyone got along.

Joey Meatballz is a favorite around here. He reminds us of our first puppy that we raised together years ago with his puppy-boy antics & he is the spitting persona of our boxer fur-nephew with his goofiness that he entertains us with all day long. He isn't picky but we are feeding him a grain-free diet & most recently we have added some raw to help support his immune system along with some liver to help his blood. He loves Bravo beef tracheas & will bury them under his bed. He will protect his tracheas, so supervision with treats like this would be needed in a home that had another or more than one dog. He appreciates company when he eats & will sometimes wait until we stand or sit next to him so that he will finish his breakfast or his dinner.

Joey Meatballz will need more training on a leash & would benefit from continued use of an EZ walk harness or halti harness. Right now, he is getting the run of over an acre of fenced in yard so we are hoping that since he is more of an athletic boy that we can find him a forever home with a fenced in yard - but that doesn't mean we wouldn't consider a home where there was someone willing to walk him regularly & continue using his harness.

One heartwarming thing we would like to point out to you about Joey Meatballz... even after all he has probably been through in his short life so far, is that he is so very loving. All he really wants is a person to call his own & a warm, broken-in sofa to sit on. He is easily made happy. We do believe that whoever had him before he went to the kill shelter may have physically hit him because when he first started sitting on the sofa, he would flinch every time we would raise our hand to pet his head.

Our dream home for Joey Meatballz is one that is filled with love & supervision... one that will let him chew on his tracheas & sit on a broken-in sofa with lots of pats on the head & belly-rubs. He is a mixed bully-breed so the forever home must be willing to do whatever training would be necessary for him if he should ever need it. Each dog is different in every home... improvisation & proper training is key in keeping the bully breeds.

Do you or someone you know want to adopt Joey Meatballz? If so, email us so we can send you an adoption application!!! Send us an email to AdoptAPup4Life@gmail.com

A Wise Clown... Whowoulda 'thunk it?

Sometimes it is difficult not to sit back & admire the beauty of God's creatures... that's just what we want to do when we look at this image of Joey Meatballz. He is so striking... even more so in this black & white rendition of the color original.

Not only is he handsome, but he's smart & silly, too... we call him our goofy sage! There is wiseness to his young year but the playfulness of a pup is still tied, indeed, to his nature.

Joey is looking for his family... we know they are out there somewhere. It's just a matter of time until they are found.

Wanna learn more about Joey Meatballz? Send us an email!

G o i n g H o m e . . .

If we think too hard about what may have been... we might never be able to move forward & see a bright new future.

G o i n g H o m e - these are the two words every single last dog & cat in the shelters across the United States should hear. After those two magic words, they should be given a loving forever family.

Happily, these were the words Fancy - renamed Meli Jo (named for her foster mom & foster auntie) by her forever family - has heard this past weekend & now knows.

Meli Jo made the very long trip with her foster auntie who drove her instead of putting her on the transport since the transport would have been too stressful on her after all that she has been through over the past month. Meli Jo will live in the country in North Carolina with a new forever mommy & a new forever daddy. She will have two 4-legger fursisters to play with. Her forever family has a large fenced in yard & a doggie friendly home to play in. We heard last night from her forever mommy that Meli Jo slept in bed with her new parents & she is quite a snuggler.

We arrived quite late that night, it was a long ride!  While we are sad to see her go home, we know she has a brand new life ahead of her with many sunrises & sunsets. Please Meli Jo, send some pics of those sunrises & sunsets to share with us. Sending all our love to you little pretty girl!

Lastly & with very teary eyes & quivering lips - but in a happy way of course - we say thank you to Meli Jo's foster mom & foster family... because without you, this day would never have been possible.

Joey Meatballz... What Can I Say... Ferghettabowdit!

A Note From Joey Meatballz...

"Hey, what can I say... I'm handsome, ya know it... my fostah momz, well, she tells me every time she lookz at me so I knowz it's true. She'z a good egg, ya know, she'z takin' real good care of me & my new doctor has given me extra medz cuz fostah momz says I haven't gotten any bettah with this here kennel cough thang. So, I'm on some more medz. Fostah momz has been teachin' me sit, stay, down & speak. She laughz herself somethin' silly when i speak... but that'z just me voice... can't help nuthin' 'bout that. Fostah momz is still lookin' fer a home fer me cuz she says I need someone real special who is gonna take da best care of me as is possible she sayz. I like other dogs, except fer me fostah brother, dat dude'z name is Petey, he hates me gutz, dunno why... I just run in my house when fostah momz says so. I get bossed around by me fostah grama'z dog, her name is miss libi & she'z real bossy fer an 19 pound dog, but I likez her, she's good peoples. I like my other fostah sister Sippy but fostah momz keeps me away from her til I get the big snippity-snip (what is that anywayz?) because she sayz she don't need no puppiez & my fostah sister Sippy is in heat... man, I dunno why cuz it's like way too cold to be hot... I mean I guess that's what being in heat meanz, but who knowz? Fostah momz says I got natural hockey player ability cuz I can cruise along the icy patches in da backyard like nobody'z bizness... whowouldathunkit? na me, datz fer sure. Fostah momz says it'z cuz i got low center of gravity, whadeva dat meanz. I'm still learnin' to walk on that dang leash but fostah momz sayz i'm da best boy ever when it comes to my housetrainin' & she sayz i am da best fer crate training manners. i loves dat fostah momz... & you knowz what??? that fostah momz, well she loves me wid all her big heart... i knowz it cuz fostah dad, he tellz me so... so, hey... give us a ring-a-ding if you think you or somebody you know wants to welcome me to der family... if not, ferghettabowdit!!! OOOOhh!"

Our boy Joey Meatballz from Brooklyn is still looking for his forever home. Are you someone with a big heart that will love a 45 pound teddybear with a little boy voice? Are you someone that loves to snuggle & catch bear hugs from a handsome staffie boy? Are you someone that will keep on training an awesome lil man on his halti? If so, email us because we are looking for the perfect fit for our Joey Meatballz!

At Death's Door... A Story From the Frontlines at the Kill Shelter.

" A story of the power of prayer, the determination of rescuers, the love of a foster family & the open hearts of a forever family..."

If you have never been to a kill shelter, please find it somewhere in your soul to visit one to understand what it is like for any animal going in to one, whether it be surrendered by the owner or found as a stray. It is one of the most gut-wrenching places to visit on the planet because chances are... more than half of the cats & dogs you look at will never make it out alive. This is just one tale we would like to tell - - - this is Fancy's story.

The little girl that we are going to tell you the story of is a very typical, classic example of the "stray" at your local kill shelter. A beautifully colored staffordshire bull terrier at just about 40 pounds with an amazing personality (that remained hidden the whole time while she was in the kill shelter). She was brought into the shelter & immediately rated moderate for behavior because she was shaking with fear, would not move & held her head low with her tail between her legs. This is a large strike against any animal that finds him/herself at the kill shelter. She was not placed on the adoption list. She was, however, vetted & given a couple of days. A few days later, she contracted what was thought to be kennel cough because she got a little sniffle. Another large strike again her. Another strike & she was done for. She had her behavior retested & this time after a few days in the shelter, her behavior was rated mild so then at least she was able to be put into a program by the shelter that offers her to rescues that will help.

Late on the evening that we had seen her on the euthanasia list at the kill shelter, we could not get her little face out of our heads, her picture spoke volumes to us of the utter fear she was in when she was taken in to the kill shelter. We were haunted by the image. We networked through the night... we called people, we emailed people, we bugged the crap out of a few of our fellow rescue friends. We knew we couldn't foster her, we were at legal limit at the time for our city. We didn't know what to do... it seemed so hopeless at every avenue. The one last thing we could do was pray for Fancy... we know that prayer can help at a time when it seems so dark as if there is nothing to do but to wait at death's door.

While asking for Divine Intervention, we remembered that there is an online community of people who pray for eachother when their pets are sick... we recently had gone through some very traumatic events with one of our younger dogs & we had asked our friends at the pet prayer community to pray for her. So, we went to their page, posted Fancy's picture & asked them to pray... pray hard for Fancy to find a foster home if only for a very temporary few weeks until we could get one of our fosters placed. Members prayed for Fancy... a few hours later, a wonderful lady posted & asked how her family could adopt her - she wanted to save Fancy's life & give her a forever home!!! Imagine that, praying for a foster home & low & behold... a forever home appears. So, we posted to the kill shelter group that there was a forever family waiting if we could find temporary foster... less than an hour later - low & behold, a foster family came forward! It is amazing what can be accomplished when you reach out to people & ask them to pray for a good outcome.

So, this little girl dog was transported finally to her loving foster family - after just hours away from being euthanized for her kennel cough. She was now happily in a foster family's loving arms & being given great food, lots of love, treats & loving her foster siblings... even if they didn't want to be loved! It turned out she never had kennel cough but maybe she had a little runny nose from some sort of allergy while at the shelter but her foster family gave her the antibiotics just in case. Her foster mom said that she does not like to be crated but is house trained & leash trained. She also said that she loves to be with people & dogs. She even got to go running with her foster mom, too! If it were not for Fancy's foster family, we know all would have been lost. You know how when you earn merits or credits in a video game & your strength or life line goes up (trust us, we listen to video games all. night. long) ... well, Fancy's foster family probably has doubled their good karma for all that they have done for her. We want to send a very special thank you to them for giving of themselves at a time when everything was very dark for this little girl.

Two days ago she came to us so we could take her for her spay surgery, which she had yesterday. Before we took her in for her spay, she spent some time with our dogs, running around & playing with them... prancing around with her little tail in the air & doing the very familiar down dog play bows to all the dogs in the house. Obviously, she was someone's dog. How could she not be? She is well socialized, walks well on a leash, she is a people & dog oriented girl & she is house trained... of course she was someone's dog... but why was she at the kill shelter after she was picked up on the street? And why did her family not come to find her?

We formally challenge all people who want to talk negatively about the dogs & puppies at the kill shelter. Recently, we went toe to toe with a woman who was completely oblivious to the actual type of dog that finds him/herself there. Honestly, (& please forgive us because we are about to get a little angry here) we wanted to smack the crap out of such an ignorant, clueless & uneducated person... it's time for people to wake up & smell the coffee - there are millions of good dogs & cats dying in the shelters all because of the irresponsibility of their previous owners. Just because you have had a dog for 16 years, does not qualify you as an expert on what types of dogs wind up in shelters. OOOOHHH... remembering this conversation still makes our blood boil. We told the woman to go walk the frontlines through kill shelters & look at the dogs. Look at the hoplessness on the shelter workers' faces & see the undying love of the shelter volunteers who have the steel grace to walk these dogs & love on them until their last dying breath. At least at the shelter where Fancy came from the dogs die there from lethal injection done by a professional. For the most part, many shelters still gas & heartstick, which is a terrifying & painful way to die. So we say, walk the frontlines & get your hands dirty & then come back & tell us what kinds of dogs are dying in the shelters... but this particular idiot we are talking about probably will never walk through a shelter because she wouldn't want to mess up her $20 manicure nor leave her laptop behind. Again, please excuse our frustration with the stupidity of mankind.

Fancy's story is, unfortunately, very common. All we can do is ask people to please spay/neuter their dogs & cats & remind them that microchipping their family members will ensure that they are returned home if they are ever lost. Please protect your family members... because Fancy's story from the frontlines of the kill shelter could be how your family member winds up if you do not protect them.

On a happier note, Fancy is recovering well from her spay surgery & she is hanging out with her foster uncle today in his office. Her forever family is going to adopt her this weekend... so stay tuned for some forever home pictures & news!

Miss Pitty Bull... How Do You Do?

"Excuse me, madam, do not call me a Pitty Bull... why, I am an American Pit Bull Terrier and I do like to be treated with respect. Whilst I shan't say whether or not I have fully grasped the concept of this thing you refer to as 'crate training', I will say that I am highly intelligent, extremely athletic & fiercely loyal. And do not forget that I am fabulous on a leash and love to engage in a good game of ball."




Miss Sippy, what can we say? You are goooorrrrrgeous! You look like a little lioness when you prance around the yard playing with your ball. You simply are elegant... now if only you would get your crate manners in check.




Sippy was on the euthanasia list in New York City with hours to live & we couldn't let her die... so she came to us for fostering & we found out later that she has an adopting family once her kennel cough subsides. When we look at Sippy, it is apparent that she is a happy girl, despite her misfortune of winding up being abandoned at the kill shelter. Through no fault of her own, Sippy sat in a tiny little kennel of the shelter waiting for someone to help her. She is just one of a million plus innocent souls that suffer at the hands of humans each day.


It is important to understand that many dogs are bred by inner city people in order to sell their puppies for money. If they can make a few hundred bucks, why not? These people don't spend the time studying the bloodlines, doing the necessary genetic testing & raising the puppies with TLC that a REAL breeder does. Most breeders will also show their dogs... this is not the case with people who are just breeding for money. Because of Sippy's age & some other physical signs, we strongly believe that Sippy was one of these puppies bred by someone who was looking to make a fast buck. It isn't just inner city people, but it is very common in rural/suburban areas as well - everyone knows the infamous back yard breeder - looking to turn his dogs over to make a quick buck. Well, now, we won't go into a rant about these types of people, but let's just say that they aren't our favorites because not only do they not do a good job of breeding dogs but they also are contributing to the millions of dogs/puppies dying across the US in shelters... if not by producing puppies & thus taking one less person away from the shelter to adopt a puppy but by, alas... their puppies winding up in the shelter when they get a little older & the novelty has worn off.


Sippy will be spayed very soon & the generous people at SNAN have offered to pay for her spay. Her potential adopting mom is coming sometime in the next week or so to visit as well... Sippy has really come a long way from her days at the kill shelter!


Sippy is just over one year of age, so she is really just a puppy... & the person who had her didn't give her much attention at all. She is learning new things & getting lots of love. Most of all, she wants the love, which tells us she was pretty much neglected for the beginning of her life... but Sippy's luck has changed & soon she will get a new family & a new name (her new mom will name her Sofie because it sounds similar to Sippy) with a fresh start.

AAAOOoohhh... it's Joey Meatballz from Brooklyn

"So there I was... sitting in the shelter with a real bad cold, hawkin' up the snooties & coughin' up a lung & the shelter worker said I was done 'fer. Man, I was so sad 'cuz I thought I was gonna go in the room where my pals never come back from. Next thing I know, this dude says I've got a foster family & I'm going to Connecticut... imagine 'dat, me... a big city boy chillin' in da country... whoowoulda thunkit? Na me, dats fer sure. So, they put me in dis van with alota otha furry punks headin' out to da country. Wells, now here I is & I'm gettin' better day by day & my foster family is takin' real good care of me. I like it here but I need my own forever family to love me fureva... I'm hopin' dis otha dude, that me foster moms keeps talkin' 'bout, named Santa gives me one of dose fer Christmas!"

Joey from Brooklyn has arrived. He's almost done with his kennel cough medicine & soon he'll get the snip-snip if you know what we mean. He's a real affectionate boy with a lotta love to give & he would love to have a family or a person to call his very own. Joey is about 1-2 years of age & he's full of puppy energy so we think it's closer to 1 year of age. He's crate trained, not sure yet if house trained & he loves to eat, eat, eat... what Italian boy from Brooklyn doesn't??? He likes other dogs so far & wants to play. He's not so great on a leash, so we're thinking of getting him a halti harness to correct him & make him an easier boy to walk. He is right now a skinny 46 pounds but we expect him to put on more weight. We think Joey is Staffordshire Bull Terrier mixed with some sort of other pitty mix & we also think he looks like he's got a little bit of Boxer in him. He's a real love bug & loves to lean in to his peoples' legs & cuddle. He's ok hanging out in his crate & loves to chew on his beef tracheas & other unmentionable beef parts.

When Joey first came into fostercare, we took this video of him on the first day of his freedom:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIh7Xztoujs


Joey is lookin' fer his forever family... could that be you? Contact us today!!!