visit our success page <\/a>for some inspiration. All these dogs and kitties were rescued from the streets of Oak Cliff and now lead fantastical lives. \u00a0We can make a difference with the choices we make, these animals are proof. Let\u2019s put our passion for animals to work and create positive change.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"“Old friends pass away, new friends appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend – or a meaningful day. -Dalai Lama It is with great sadness that we share that the sick black dog has passed.\u00a0 We are able to save and rehabilitate so many of these of the \u2018street\u2019 dogs that it saddens us to lose even one. Thank you for everyone who volunteered to help the sick, mangy black dog Sombra (Spanish for Shadow) and made it possible for us to give him the chance to get off the street. If you are saddened by\u00a0Sombra’s passing over the rainbow bridge, ask yourself how to make his suffering and passing \u201ca meaningful day\u201d. How can YOU\u00a0HELP prevent the overpopulation of animals in our neighborhood and our city? Adopt. Foster. Volunteer. Spay\/Neuter. Donate. Educate. Advocate. Please understand that the idea that you \u201cdon\u2019t want to have an intact loose or stray dog picked up because you don\u2019t want him to die at the shelter\u201d is counterproductive. \u00a0Sombra was about to die a very horrible and graphic death in the next\u00a0weeks or days due to complications from his heartworms. As much as we wished for it to happen, he was not going to get better because everyone was feeding and watering him. From Ravenwood Rescue on heartworms: \u00a0“death from heartworms is a very unpleasant way to go. As the disease progresses the dog develops cough, shortness of breath, and weakness as the heart struggles to pump with its burden of worms. As the number of worms in the heart increases, the worms migrate into the large vein called the vena cava where they cause a condition called caval syndrome which frequently results in liver failure and death within a few days. Worms in the pulmonary blood vessels (going from the heart to the lungs) cause chronic heart failure and may result in sudden death from blood clots and bleeding into the lungs.” In the next few weeks, Sombra would have been found coughing up blood and suffering miserably in the heat. He deserved to die in a more peaceful and humane way and picking him up and getting him medical attention did just that. We fully understand the intent of the caring hearts that wanted to help him and didn\u2019t want him to die in a shelter, but the reality is that NOT picking up the intact dogs compounds the euthanasia rate at the shelter in a big way. Picking up that ONE dog can stop THOUSANDS of euthanasias and stop the spread of disease throughout the neighborhood. Slowing the breeding slows the amount of unwanted unsocialized dogs living on the streets.\u00a0 Slowing down the breeding population slows the shelter intake AT THE SOURCE and is critically important to: saving lives, lowering the city\u2019s high rate of euthanasia, and eventually turning the city shelter into a no kill shelter. Picking up intact dogs also gives a dog\u2019s owner an opportunity to find their dog at the shelter. It is what the SPCA recommends.\u00a0It is a hard decision, but picking up intact dogs has to happen in order for them to not perpetuate the problem we are all trying to avoid. Understanding the challenges of shelter statistics, there are many rescue groups that have the sole mission of pulling dogs out of the shelters and finding them forever homes. If you feel strongly about turning in dogs, volunteer or donate to these rescues’ causes. The four intact male dogs that were roaming our neighborhood had the ability and the potential to produce hundreds of unwanted puppies.\u00a0 If they each bred a single intact female in only one day of roaming the streets then they would have created between 24-32 unwanted puppies in 2 months time.\u00a0 Do the math, it adds up quickly to a serious problem.\u00a0 This is how packs are formed on the streets, and what they are generally made of \u2013 intact breeding dogs and their offspring and would be suitors.\u00a0 Loose dogs are a risk for every person and animal \u2013 aggression towards people, aggression toward house pets being walked, fighting, and they remain reservoirs of disease and parasites like rabies, distemper, parvovirus, mange, and heartworms that can affect your pets and families. We understand that they were sweet and seemingly good dogs, but leaving them on the streets is not an answer. If you hate this choice, get involved. There are many ways to help street dogs and shelter dogs. This article from Dogs Out Loud (they are in Austin, but the same principles apply to Dallas) explains the various ways YOU can help. Additionally, you can support Gypsy Dog Ops in their effort to work with the city to reform Dallas Animal Services\u2019 policy to make their field services more effective, behaviorally sound, and humane. Contact us to be on our email list. We are currently putting together a petition to present to the city. Please honor Sombra by advocating for his rights and the rights of all loose, abandoned, neglected, and unsocialized dogs. Help educate your neighbors and encourage them to call intact loose dogs into groups like Duck Team 6 or to Dallas Animal Services. It is too late for Sombra, but your help and your action can save others like him. Of the other three dogs spotted running around the neighborhood, two were identified as owned dogs and their owners were ticket and educated to spay and neuter laws. The red dog, Clifford, is currently at a rescue, but he needs a foster and or a forever home. He is a sweet dog. Raven and Karen can speak to more to his disposition and house manners. Raven has posted an adorable video of the dog here: If you are interested in fostering or adopting Clifford\u00a0 – please contact Karen: krsimmons69@yahoo.com If you find all of this terribly upsetting, visit our success page for some inspiration. 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<\/a>Of the other three dogs spotted running around the neighborhood, two were identified as owned dogs and their owners were ticket and educated to spay and neuter laws<\/a>. The red dog, Clifford, is currently at a rescue, but he needs a foster and or a forever home. He is a sweet dog. Raven and Karen can speak to more to his disposition and house manners. Raven has posted an adorable video of the dog here:<\/a><\/p>\n