Blue Lion Rescue

I never thought this day would come and my heart breaks thinking about it….As many of you know Blue Lion has rescued many behavior issue dogs as well as some medically challenged dogs. Some are able to be rehomed because their “issue” has never been about the dog but about the owner at the time. Some dogs stay as sanctuary dogs.

Currently, the CO legislature is considering a bill (HB21-1160) sponsored by the big “kill everyone who isn’t perfect multimillion dollar budget” shelters which would cause many rescues to close. They want to prohibit rescues from rescuing any dog that isn’t “healthy” (remember Lurch? They would have killed him)  or “safe” (behaviorally perfect). The language they use is lovely but does not belie the underlying problems. The language is quite vague and would give unlimited power to whomever they hire to subjectively “evaluate” a dog. They would be able to determine if an animal lives or dies. Suppose these so called evaluators are having a bad day or had a fight with their significant other or kid? Or if they just don’t like the rescuer? Innocent animals will die. No Kill Colorado has met with the sponsoring legislators and explained that the language should be changed but they didn’t care and refused to change anything.  MORE animals will die at the hands of the state of Colorado. This could include dogs who don’t care for other dogs or cats! They may consider that a behavior issue and kill that dog. Or certain breeds who are naturally more aggressive than others. If they rescued a guardian, it would have to have the personality of a Labrador! With each email I get asking for help with a dog that has a behavioral problem, I think “if this law gets passed, these people will have nowhere to turn because this state will not allow a rescue to take the dog. Unless they can transport a dog to a rescue outside of CO, their dog will have to die. “ Or all the times I’ve gotten dogs out of shelters here when the shelter evaluators deemed the dog aggressive and put them on a euthanasia list. Every time, as soon as the dog is out of that shelter, he’s suddenly fine! It is the shelter environment and fear (where am I? Where’s my family?) that usually causes them to posture. I am very appreciative when they contact me to take the dog but what happens if this bill passes?  That dog who is scared about being in a shelter will die. And that would be ok with these people. This bill would mean the end of No Kill Rescues- it would force rescues to euthanize. In addition , Blue Lion could be a target since we are well known for taking behaviorally challenged dogs.

 Since this is the second time this bill has been proposed, it is apparent that they will not give up until it passes.

What many people don’t realize is that a few years ago, my friend Sindy who runs Old Dog House (she rescues very old dogs) lost her beautiful home in the mountains in a blaze when some kids had a campfire during a fire ban. They left without making sure their campfire was extinguished. It wasn’t. Thankfully, she was able to evacuate so there was no loss of life. She had no place to go with all her dogs, so I offered my mom’s empty house for her to live in. She has been here ever since. This bill would also probably cause her dogs to get euthanized because they are old and some have physical challenges. But they are incredibly happy. And isn’t that what really matters? This bill would mean the end of No Kill Rescues- it would force rescues to euthanize.

So where does this leave Blue Lion and Old Dog House? The obvious answer is that we need to move out of Colorado. It will be monumental moving all these dogs and giving up my home and property. In addition, we’ll have to find sources for food and a veterinarian who can take care of the dogs in our new location. But we must. It would destroy both of us to have these dogs killed by this state. Since we don’t get millions of dollars in donations per year like those shelters sponsoring the bill (they have even hired lobbyists!), we need help raising the money to be able to move. It will take an enormous amount of money so we can buy property with at least one house, preferably 2 and a barn that we can renovate into indoor/outdoor kennels. There’s so much to do but your help is essential. If we can’t raise the money, we won’t be able to help any more dogs. Seventeen years of rescuing very old dogs will end for Old Dog House. Twenty seven years of rescuing behavioral dogs will end for Blue Lion. If you don’t want this to happen, please donate. No amount is too small.