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Boonie Tails

By Grace Keilbach

Hoops and Hounds

Last night, I took Nellie to an NBA game. Yes, you heard that right. My Boonie dog Nellie attended a professional basketball game at the Capital One Arena in D.C. Brandywine Valley SPCA, our local shelter here, hosted their second annual ‘Hoops and Hounds’ night which was something I just had to see for myself.

I would like to start of by saying that although we had fun at this event and Nellie did wonderful, I would not recommend this for the vast majority of dogs, hence why Lottie and Tequila didn’t make the cut. It was an extremely over stimulating environment with dogs around every corner. To be honest, I was expecting a complete disaster but I must say, I was very impressed with every dog there. The owners in attendance did a great job of only bringing dogs who were up for the occasion. Every dog we saw, other than one or two, was having a great time, extremely friendly, and overall well behaved.

While standing in line for the photo booth, I found myself doing something that dogs almost always make inevitable: talking to strangers. In front of us was Bruno, a rescued dachshund mix, and his mom. Behind us was Mars, a small Pomeranian weighing in at seven and a half pounds (at least half of which I’m convinced was just fluff) and his mom.

To be honest, Mars isn’t the kind of dog I would normally gravitate toward. My world, both personally and professionally, is deeply rooted in rescue, and that lens doesn’t exactly turn off in social settings. But as the line dragged on, Nellie and I started chatting with the people around us, and it became clear that the dogs and their humans were all great and happy to be there for the same reason we were.

What surprised me most about the night was how easily it brought people together, mainly myself. Working in rescue has, in many ways ruined dogs for me. When I see a purchased dog, typically from a backyard breeder, I immediately think about the dogs who didn’t get chosen and never made it out. The ones I personally had to help hold down and sedate for euthanasia. That reality is always with me, especially when I encounter dogs who were intentionally bred and purchased. But my own, personal tension softened a bit last night.

Despite different paths to dog ownership, everyone there had shown up for the same reason: to support dogs in need (which I may argue is a catch twenty two as the large number of doodles and other backyard bred dogs in attendance directly contribute to the shelter crisis but thats another topic). There we all stood in the same line, donated to the same cause, laughed together watching the chihuahua perform during halftime, and struggled to get our dogs to look at the camera together. For a moment, my hurt and frustrations with people who don’t adopt was overcome by the love for their dog.

Mars’s mom shared with me that she’s a first-time dog mom and that she looked into adopting during covid but the shelters were cleared out. It reminded me that love for a dog often comes before education, awareness, and understanding the larger system we’re all operating within. I gently shared with her that because of all the irresponsible breeding and purchasing that took place during covid, the shelter crisis is worse than ever. I went on to share that many “Mars” are in the shelter looking for a home because it and she was horrified. I encouraged her to look in the shelter and she was very excited about the idea, vowing to get her next dog whenever that may be, from a rescue. Although there’s no guarantee she will follow through, I’m glad I had the opportunity to share the reality of rescue and how amazing rescue dogs can be, shown off thanks to Bruno and Nellie.

Change with any issue starts with conversations and small victories like this. Last night was a reminder that dogs have an incredible ability to bring us together- creating moments where conversations can happen, perspectives can shift, and people who care about dogs, even when their past choices may have caused harm, can still laugh together and work collectively toward change.

P.S. Nellie was interviewed by the official Washington Wizards media team. If all goes well, we will be seeing a Boonie on their accounts soon, fingers crossed!

Hungry Hungry Boonies

Much to our dismay, these dogs and cats keep requiring more things like food and litter. If you are interested and able, please consider showing your support by purchasing something from our wishlist HERE or Wayne’s cat wishlist HERE. All items are directly shipped to Saipan, Boonies not included with purchase. To everyone who has sent something our way wether it be a donation, item, or support by following along, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you!

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Boonie of the Week

Sallie’s tail is slightly longer than her body and snoot, and since it is always wagging, it is quite the hazard. And her nipples/glands are overstretched and saggy due to multiple litters of puppies, adding to the imperfections of her imperfect body.  She looks like a cartoon drawing with all of her mismatched body parts. 

When we first met Sallie in December, we were already fostering a dog named Baby.  Baby was a neighborhood stray who was starving, covered in skin issues and wounds, and needed medication. A visiting veterinarian suspected Baby was terminal with cancer and wouldn’t survive much longer. Baby was given our full attention and spoiled up until her last breath. 

Sallie came to us a few weeks later. We were unsure if we were emotionally healed from losing Baby or if it was too soon to fall in love with another Boonie. Sallie was also unsure. Aria had found her at the Mayor’s Shelter where she had been abandoned by her owner for having too many puppies. And she had spent a few weeks with a loving foster family who was unable to consider adoption, which meant Sallie found herself at Boonie Babies again, without a home or a future. 

Long story short, we brought her home and quickly fell under Sallie’s charm. Her main goal in life is to acquire belly rubs. Sallie will fling herself to the ground like a sack of potatoes, and then just lay there frozen and waiting for her belly rub. Picture a possum flipping itself over to play dead and remaining frozen until the threat is passed. That’s Sallie waiting for her belly rub!

Jackson and I are so proud and grateful of Sallie for showing us how to love again after the loss of Baby. We intend to give her endless belly rubs and fun days at the beach in exchange for Boonie Baby kisses and a never ending wagging tail.

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