Update: January 1-18, 2013

Notes by Dulce Garcia and Lynn Rodriguez

We had an orientation session for new volunteers last Sunday, January 13. We had a great turnout and everyone got to meet our doggies in boarding. We hope to have another volunteer session in February and will keep you posted. Thank you to everyone who attended the orientation and we look forward to seeing you at the kennel!

As of right now, each dog in boarding has different needs relating to both training and behavior. We would love to give all the dogs a basic training program but that seems to work better after they are in a foster or forever home. It's a little hectic at the boarding facility and the staff does not have time to reinforce the lessons learned in training so the process can be a little slow. We think the best thing we can do is work with each dog’s priority issues. Here are the most important ones:

Tita

Tita was abandoned by uncaring owner(s) in Houston’s East End, Hidalgo Park area, an area known for “dog dumping”. She was on the streets for several months before we rescued her in October 2012. She was in bad shape with a terrible skin condition; certain parts of her body were raw and bloody. She has recovered and is doing well. She needs to work on no jumping and no mouthing; also loose leash walking. 

Renata

Renata used to be known as Princess and some of the kennel staff may still call her that. She lived in Houston’s East End where she spent her life tried to a tree. A caring neighbor signed her up to be spayed by Barrio Dogs’ FixIt project on 12/1/12; after she was spayed and vetted that day, we realized we could not return her to life tied to a tree. The owner agreed to surrender her to us and we had a contest to pick a new name for her. We picked “Renata” which means reborn in Latin, a name that symbolizes the new and better life that is in store for her. She needs to work on no jumping and loose leash walking.

Lady

Lady was rescued in October 2012 by a police officer who does a great deal to help the animals she encounters during her patrol in East Houston. She found Lady on the street and took her home; unfortunately, her other dogs did not get along with lady and attacked her. She has been in boarding since then. Lady had a growth on her back leg; when it was removed, we learned it was cancer. We are currently debating treatment options.

Lady has been having on and off incidents at adoption events (reactive to other dogs). At boarding, the situation is managed by keeping her away from other dogs. Considering that she has cancer and has already gone through one surgery, we don't want to add stress to her situation. She seems to have days when she feels down and days when she is happy. We think her reactive behavior derives from her cancer and related pain she may be having; in the future she will need to undergo a behavior modification program to address those issues. Her ideal home will be a quiet one.

Buffy and Cooper

Cooper has been adopted by AFHA volunteer Buffy Martines. He had been in boarding for several months before we began working with him. When rescued, his face was scarred and the vet guessed he may have been used as a bait dog. He responded very well to contact with volunteers, was responsive to training and certainly enjoyed our attention. We think AFHA’s work with Cooper made him more sociable and adoptable and we wish him and Buffy the very best.

Copper recently went into a foster home and we are keeping our fingers crossed that it works out. He was a puppy when we found him in a dumpster two years ago. He was sick and emaciated and has lived most of his life in boarding. Tauna Ready knows him well and is the ideal person to talk more about his personality to you. His issues derive more from being undersocialized and spending most of his life in boarding. We hope his foster situation works out and that we don’t see him back at the kennel.

Burgie

Copper

Harietta

Harietta and Burgie are new at the kennel. They were rescued in January 2013 from a car lot in the East End. The car lot owner said they were sleeping under the building which is why they were covered with fleas. They have been vetted and spayed and we are getting to know them. We are keeping them a run together with a blanket. Burgie the boxer will come right out of the run but Harietta needs to be pulled out with a leash. Yesterday she tried to bite the leash off and refused to walk but the next day she came right out. Dogs are amazing and resilient and we have high hopes for both Burgie and Harietta. We will be evaluating them soon and can give you more information about their training needs after that.

 For more information, please contact lynn@barriodogs.org or dulce@barriodogs.org

New Volunteer Orientation

We hope that everyone had a great New Year! 

Why not kick it off the new year by volunteering your time to help socialize some of our lonely rescues in boarding? If your new year's resolution is to shed a few pounds, come on out, bring your friends and exercise some dogs.Whether you want to spend time playing, socializing, training or walking the rescues, Barrio Dogs has something for you. Become part of this rewarding experience and don't miss the upcoming volunteer orientation.

A Home For All volunteer orientation

Sunday, January 13, 2013 

2:00pm-3:00pm 

For location and to RSVP, please contact dulce@barriodogs.org or lynn@barriodogs.org

Update: December 2012

Notes by Dulce Garcia and Lynn Rodriguez

It’s a busy time of the year for most of us with the holidays right around the corner. During this time, we want to remind everyone that as we go about our holiday activities, there are still some lonely rescues living in boarding that would love your company. Please consider coming out to play, socialize or walk our Barrio Dogs in boarding; you will absolutely brighten their day. If you would like to volunteer, please contact Dulce Garcia at dulce@barriodogs.org

In the mean time please take a moment to read all about the latest on our rescues at boarding.

Caitrin and Derek playing in the yard

Derek has been adopted by one of our very own AHFA volunteers and we are certain it was love at first sight. Thanks to Caitrin for giving Derek a loving home. We are all so happy for him and know that he will enjoy the rest of his life with his new family. He will be in boarding for a few more days until his new forever home is ready.

Copper

Copper is our newest addition. He had been previously living at another boarding facility but we wanted to bring him closer to home. He is a beautiful dog who has been in boarding for about two years and needs a foster or forever home. He has endured so much and is a survivor; he was a puppy when we found him in a trash dumpster outside a paint store in the East End. He was emaciated and sick but has recovered and needs a home. Please be advised that he does not do well with other dogs. One-on-one social time with volunteers will help him a lot and make him very happy.

Cooper being blessed with by Rev. Stein with Buffy Martines

Cooper is still in boarding and has been ready for a forever home for a while! We are certain that there is someone out there for him. He enjoys walks, playing fetch, riding in cars and would love to go home with you. He had a lot of fun at the Blessing of the Animals at Christ Church Cathedral last October.

Scotty is enjoying the holidays in his foster home!

Maya, Scotty, Sparky and Spuds have gone into foster care! We are so happy that they will get to spend the holidays in great company.

Tita

Tita was rescued from the streets near Hidalgo Park and was in horrible condition with skin issues and other illnesses. She has recovered physically but is a bit shy. She is very sweet and likes to be taken into the yard to get a break from the kennel environment. She’s used to more freedom on the street and is having some trouble living in the kennel. More walks and socialization would help her so much!

Lady

Lady is a gorgeous girl that was rescued from the streets by a Houston police officer who saw her wandering in a busy intersection. While Lady is safe now, she has sadly been diagnosed with cancer on her leg. She will be getting treated for it but would do so much better in a foster home.

Rusty is loving life in his new home

Rusty enjoying the holidays with his new mom

Rusty has been adopted! He went from being trapped in a drainage pipe under a cemetery to an orthopedic mattress in a loving home. We are so happy for Rusty and wish him and his new family the very best.

Renata

Renata is the newest addition to our Barrio Dog family in boarding. She used to be known as Princess and lived near Lawndale and Broadway in Houston’s East End where she spent her life tried to a tree. During that time, she had many litters of puppies. After her last litter, a caring neighbor signed her up for Barrio Dogs' FixIt spay/neuter project. When we picked her up for transport on Saturday, December 1, 2012, we saw how she was living. After she was spayed and vetted that day, we decided that we simply could not return her to life tied to a tree. We talked to the owner and she agreed to surrender Princess to us. We had a contest to pick a new name for her. We picked the name “Renata” which means reborn in Latin. We thought that name best symbolized the new and better life we want for her. She is doing well in boarding and is recovering from her various ailments but needs a forever home.


Happy holidays to our volunteers in the A Home for All program and thank you for blessing our Barrio Dogs with your love and companionship throughout the year. We look forward to a great 2013 and to finding wonderful forever homes for all our beautiful dogs.

New Play Area at the Boarding Facility

Thanks to the generosity of our friend Buffy Martines, the A Home for All Dogs have a new play area at the kennel where they are boarded. We cleaned out an overgrown area adjacent to to the back yard and created a new run for the doggies.

We really need more people to help us with the AFHA program. If you would like to volunteer and spend time playing with and socializing our dogs in boarding, please contact dulce@barriodogs.org or lynn@barriodogs.org.

After a new fence was added and the brush was cleared out, we brought in fresh mulch

Cooper explores the new play area

The dogs love their new run; now we just need more volunteers to bring them out to play!

Update: October 20-31, 2012

Notes by Dulce Garcia

We appreciate the time, hard work and dedication of all the volunteers in the Barrio Dogs "A Home For All" program.  They are truly working hard to make the boarding facility a great place for our rescues to stay at until they can find a forever home. In addition, the program provides various opportunities for volunteers to work hands on with the rescues to prepare them for adoption events. We have seen such a difference for the better in all  our dogs from both the individual attention and the ability to get out into the world and participate in adoption events.

Cooper playing in the yard

Cooper has been meeting new volunteers and practicing not jumping up on them.  He is advancing in the training classes he has been receiving at the boarding facility. He is starting to shed the pounds (he had gained weight) and it helps that he has excellent leash walking skills.  We can't say this enough: he is ready for a forever home!

Derek just loves to get attention!

Derek is very popular among the ladies and he loves the attention. This big boy has the personality of a lap dog.  His favorite things are going out for a short walk, playing fetch, cuddling and receiving attention!

Kiddo

Kiddo is back in boarding because her part time foster will be traveling.  Marjorie has done a great job on getting Kiddo to warm up and experience the world outside the kennel. We recommend that if volunteers walk Kiddo that they place both a harness and leash on her. She's a bit timid and some things may scare her and it is best to protect her from slipping out.

Maya has the best smile!

Maya is still in boarding and can really benefit from more breaks from the kennel.  She is very excited to see people all the time and jumps up at them. She's a social dog and looks bigger in pictures than she really is. She will begin training classes soon with Dulce and other volunteers to address her jumping issues.

Rusty

Rusty is a gorgeous dog with piercing hazel eyes that are not hard to miss when volunteers walk by the kennels.  He has come a long way; once a confused shy dog, he is now excited when people go up to his kennel. He loves when volunteers take him out on a walk to explore his surroundings. We encourage volunteers to continue socializing him so that he can continue making improvements.

Scotty is now in foster care and we couldn't be happier we are certain he is enjoying his time away from the kennels. Our fosters are very valuable to us and the rescues

Spuds

Sparky

Sparky and Spuds (siblings ) are new to the program and belong to an independent rescuer.  They have been in boarding for a while and undergoing treatment for their skin condition. They are around 5 months old and taking a 3 week training course which they are mastering.  Volunteers are more than welcome to spend time with them, but they are still uncertain about going out for a walk. They are fearful of cars and the loud noise outside. The best is to stick to taking them out only in the play yard area.

Bruno is still only to be handled by staff Ernie and Dulce because of our concerns with his behavior. He has been receiving social time in the play yard area on his own. Although he spends time alone in the yard he is supervised the whole time while he runs around enjoying his tug toys. The idea is for him not to practice mouthing or jumping on anyone; prevention is key. Arrangements are being made for him to be transferred to another facility that can give him the individualized behavioral attention he needs.

Volunteers are more than welcome to join Dulce while she is training any of the dogs; contact her at dulce@barriodogs.org for times she will be at the kennel.

Update: October 4-18, 2012

Notes by: Dulce Garcia

Barrio Dogs does not own a facility and relies on boarding our rescues until they find a foster or forever home. Many thanks to all the volunteers who come out weekly to walk, socialize and play with the rescues; it really helps maintain their health and happiness. In addition, Ernie Z. who visits and feeds the dogs daily plays a major part in helping socialize the rescues and all of them love him. Please read below to find out about the latest developments.

Scotty and his wonderful smile

Scotty is back at the boarding facility. He was living at Pet Paradise but we moved him closer to home. We look forward to working with Scotty; he is a terrific dog who has been in boarding too long! We don’t know why a lucky person or family has not adopted him yet.

Bruno

Bruno should only be handled by Ernie and the staff. He will be evaluated to analyze the cause of his behavior issues and work closely with a trainer to address any issues. Please click here to read the special notice regarding Bruno.

Cooper on his way to an adoption event

Cooper has been doing well and attended several adoption events recently. He has received a lot of attention from visitors and it is good for him to spend some time out of the kennel.  His outings help him practice his social skills that are limited in the kennel environment. We noticed that he barks at some men especially if they are wearing caps. This good boy is still looking for a forever home and this weather is perfect for him to accompany you on your walks!

Derek at Rover Oaks adoption event

Derek has also been on his best behavior when out of his kennel. His favorite thing to do is play fetch and he will let you know when he’s tired by resting under the shade. He would really enjoy a home to call his own where he can just crash peacefully on your couch!

Molly and Hoover our youngest rescues at boarding have gone into foster care in different homes each. We are very happy that they will get to spend the rest of their puppyhood stages out in the real world as the kennels are no place for them. Thanks to these fosters for stepping up and giving these two puppies a chance at a normal life.

Kiddo

Kiddo is being fostered on a part time basis by Marjorie, one of our volunteers, and we are so happy to see her coming out of her shell. Marjorie has put a lot of time, effort and patience into getting Kiddo to where she is now.

Maya at the kennel

Maya is one of the new rescues and our first dog spayed under the upcoming Fix It project. She is social with people and other dogs. She jumps up a lot for attention so be careful when getting her out of the kennel.

Rusty

Rusty is one of the new rescues in boarding and at first he was very withdrawn but with time, has taken an interest in hanging out with volunteers. He enjoys going out on walks and spending time in the yard where he receives attention from the volunteers. 

Phoebe has also gone into foster care and is enjoying her days away from the kennel. We are so thankful and happy for her. We are sure she is really enjoying it.

Greyson is no longer at boarding because he has gone to foster care and we couldn’t be happier. He was beginning to feel a little down at the kennels. He has also had eye surgery and is recovering well at his foster home.

Bruno

Bruno

Bruno has been living at AC Boarding for several weeks now. He is not a Barrio Dog but was brought in by an independent rescuer. We have been including him in A Home for All activities for his own benefit; however, we learned today that last week, Bruno jumped on and snapped at a volunteer who was trying to walk him. The volunteer was not injured but did get  bruised.

We had previously alerted our A Home for All volunteers to use extra care when working with Bruno. We are now asking all volunteers to please not take Bruno out at all when you visit the kennel. We have reached out to Bruno's rescuer and owner to tell her of this incident as well our observation and concern that Bruno does not seem to be doing well at the kennel. We are urging her to work with a trainer and make other arrangements for him. In the meantime, please leave Bruno in his kennel when you are at AC; the staff at AC takes care of him along with the other boarded dogs there.

If you have questions or comments, please contact lynn@barriodogs.org.