Red Sand on the Soles of Your Shoes

Morning tea in hand, I hit the road at 5am on Wednesday, May 13th, 2009 and headed toward Angel Canyon, Utah for my first of what will no doubt be a lifetime of visits to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, the largest no-kill animal sanctuary in the country, and home to Dogtown, featured on the National Geographic Channel . . . for all you fans out there ;).

Neither the photographs I took nor a carefully crafted narrative can do justice to my experience on this trip and to the nature of the people, animals, and landscape that helped comprise it. As my ode-to-Paul-Simon post title might suggest, really understanding Best Friends comes at the end of the day when you sit down at the edge of your bed after a full day of walking dogs, cleaning runs, and stuffing Kongs, and pour two shoes worth of red sand out on the floor in front of you. You just have to be there.

Nonetheless, there are still a host of moments, thoughts, and activities from my 5-day visit that bear repeating.

An abbreviated trip photo album can be viewed at: Best Friends Animal Sanctuary

The full trip album can be viewed here: Best Friends Animal Sanctuary/May 2009 Trip

An Introductory Note
Located on 3800 acres of stunning red rock real estate, Best Friends is home to nearly 2,000 animals, including dogs, cats, pigs, birds, bunnies, horses, donkeys, and a potpourri of whatever other domestic or wild animal life (not to mention its 300+ human staff members) may find their way there in need of care, or in the case of the humans, spiritual reprieve.

Now celebrating their 25th anniversary, Best Friends has given true meaning to the phrase "grassroots movement" and has become the ultimate open source platform for animal rescue and humane education. While there, I had the pleasure of having lunch with Silva Battista, one of the original founders, which was essentially like sitting down for a 1-on-1 with the Steve Jobs or Larry Yore of the animal welfare world--although I can't imagine that either of those gentlemen are nearly the lovely and gracious company that Silva was.

Silva explained that, most of the time, it is the nature of those who are successful--individuals and organizations alike-- to hold the tools behind that success close, guarding them, and pulling that information inward. But the Best Friends' model, as she likened it, is "to push out and move things outward," making the wealth of expertise and resources they've developed available to all.

Interestingly, Silva also commented during our conversation how extraordinary she continues to find it that so many people spend their vacations, holidays, weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, and other special occasions every year pitching in for the animals at the sanctuary. "It's remarkable how selfless people are," she said.

My response: "Honestly, Silva, taking this trip is probably one of the most selfish things I've ever done." Some people like to head down to Costa Rica. Others might go base jumping in Malaysia. Still others might opt for a wine tour in Tuscany. Me . . . I just like to sit in the dirt and play with dogs.

Four-Legged One-Night Stands
I'll confess. There was one aspect of volunteering at Best Friends that I was more excited about than anything else: dog sleepovers! Yep, that's right. In the spirit of continuing to find better ways to help socialize the sanctuary animals and better prepare them for permanent homes, Dogtown, Cat World, and even the Bunny House and Pig Paradise have designated certain animals as "Available for Sleepovers," meaning you can spend a night in your cottage or hotel room curled up with your favorite four-legged friend.

After reading through and signing a short policy form and waiver, and picking up an overnight bag complete with blanket, toys, and treats, you simply drive over to the appropriate venue and pick up your evening buddy by 4pm.

Most of the animals available for sleepover are viewable through the Best Friends Adoptables page. To be candid, I basically spent the 3 weeks prior to my trip scrolling through the pictures of available sleepover dogs like it was porn. I was sure Chris Hansen would be knocking on my door any night with his newest Dateline segment, "To Catch a Puppy Predator." And yet, I really didn't care.

Despite the many favorites I had from my sleepover list trolling, I somehow found myself walking into headquarters at the end of most of my afternoon shifts and simply saying, "Give me somebody who really needs to get out," which I think ends up being the case with many of the Dogtown volunteers who just want to be helpful.
My first sleepover gal was a beautiful cream-colored boxer mix named Julep. Interestingly, as I walked up to The Fairway run where Julep lived, I was greeted by another volunteer who had taken Julep for a sleepover for the past 3 nights, and had just about fallen head over heels for her. Initially, I found this kind of a turn-off, thinking, "Hey, I asked for a dog that was really in need of a night out. This one's been out with the same person for the last 3 nights!" However, my sloppy-seconds syndrome quickly shifted to an overwhelming feeling of contentment as I realized that Julep was probably one of the sweetest and most mellow dogs I'd ever met. We went on two evening hikes and I awoke the next morning to the soothing, nasally sounds of her snoring.
My second and third sleepover dogs, ironically, were both black lab mixes: Daniel and Grady. "Ironic" because my two dogs at home also happen to be black lab mixes. Daniel was as sweet as can be and was remarkably quiet with the exception of some brief barking at two mortal enemies he found residing in my cabin: his reflection in the mirror, which he saw whenever he stood up on the bed, and the television, which I promptly turned off. So we spent the evening reading quietly and with the lights dimmed--particularly those close to the mirror.

Grady, who happened to have the fuzziest little teddy bear face I'd ever seen, turned out to be the sleepover dog who really pulled at my heart. In addition to being a soft, little babyface who rested his head on my lap all night and always neatly crossed his front paws, poor little Grady turned to absolute mush in the car.
I had to lift him in each time, at which point he would press himself into the seat as though he were trying to become one with the apolstery. And by the time we arrived at wherever we happened to be headed, he would be in my lap, hugging me like one of those stuffed monkeys whose hands and feet you can velcro around your neck. Apparently, Grady already has an adoptive family in British Columbia waiting to take him home on June 5th. Let's hope he gets some more practice time in the car before then!

My grand finale sleepover pup on my last night at the sanctuary, and my one exception to the "I'll take whoever needs it" claim, was Wiggles, the stunning tuxedo-colored pittie who was among the many dogs rescued by Best Friends during Hurricane Katrina. Referred to by Dogtown staff as the Spindletop dogs, these Katrina rescue pitties recently returned to Best Friends this past February after the pitbull rescue group in Texas who took them could no longer adequately care for them.

Wiggles was among the handful of these dogs that I had been eyeing on the website weeks before and, although she had been briefly removed from the sleepover list because of a nail that had to be removed, her caregivers assured me that she was definitely in need of a night out. Well-versed in performing for rewards and efficiently removing squeakers from squeaker toys, Wiggles spent the evening throwing up high-fives and frantically waving her paws in exchange for treats and systematically dismantling a handful of the plush toys provided in her sleepover bag. She reminded me a lot of a goofy, uncoordinated adolescent, and she was definitely one of the coolest dogs I'd ever spent time with.

Dogtown Orientation: Red collars and rosy facts
Thursday morning, I headed up to Dogtown Headquarters at 8:15am for the volunteer orientation required of all volunteers interested in working in the dog areas. Despite my admiration for everything this sanctuary does for all animals, Dogtown was most definitely the primary reason for my trip.

First on the agenda was a brief but informative talk about Dogtown from our super cool volunteer manager, Don (who struck me as one of those guys whose temperament is equally suited for teaching preschool or breaking up bar fights), followed by the safety training video that brings you up to speed on fun things like what the different colored dog collars mean (i.e. red = staff only; purple = medical issue) and how to properly open and close the run gates. Also provided--perhaps as an additional reminder to the seriousness that accompanies Dogtown's work--were our emergency whistles, which were to be worn at all times and used should we have the unfortunate experience of witnessing something like a dogfight. Luckily I don't think these get used very often, if at all, and I was very happy to hand mine back unused on my last day there to be sterilized and recycled.

Among the handful of great Dogtown facts and statistics that Don threw at us (i.e. 1300+ people visited Dogtown in the month of April alone this year), the most fascinating to me was what they've accomplished through tinkering with their dog intake policies.

Some time ago, Best Friends was maintaining somewhere around 650 dogs at the sanctuary at any one time, and was adopting out around 900 dogs per year (I may be off a bit on this number). Then they cut back. Realizing that they needed to do a better job with fewer animals, they reduced their average dog population to ~350-400. And now, Best Friends is successfully finding homes for 1200+ dogs per year--doing a better job with fewer at a time means ultimately being equipped to care for many, many more.

Morning Puppy Chow
Probably one of the biggest surprises of the trip was the opportunity to participate in "Puppy Socialization Class" immediately following our orientation. (When Don mentioned it to the group, a couple of us glanced around at each other like we'd all just opened our Wonka Bars and found a golden ticket.)

Puppy socialization is pretty much what it sounds like: in order to better prepare the puppies at Best Friends for their adoptable homes, they attend a daily class that involves learning to sit, walk on leash, hang out with a lot of people, and acclimate themselves to common experiences like getting their ears, mouths, paws and tails poked, prodded, and tugged, such as might be the case at a vet's office.
Puppy adoption was another remarkable statistic highlighted during Don's talk. Before Best Friends started the puppy socialization classes, their return rate on adopted puppies (meaning puppies who go to new homes and are then given back later for reasons like chewing furniture or jumping on people) was somewhere around 40% (this number might have been a little higher--can't remember it all!). After socialization classes were instated at Dogtown, the return rate dropped to less than 1%. Needless to say, Best Friends has a knack for problem solving for the sake of their animals and future guardians.

I had the pleasure of handling Velvet, one of the "cake" puppies. Mom was "Patty" and so the pups naturally were "Patty cakes": Simnel, Marble, Velvet and Coffee. Velvet was quite the active little gal--pretty much bouncing off the walls--while little Coffee was a tad more reserved, having just returned from a trip to the vet.
Ultimately, the most difficult part of puppy class--for volunteers--is juggling your digital camera and the need to play with all 9 or 10 puppies. After the session, we reluctantly waved goodbye and it was back to headquarters for morning volunteer assignments, many of which are often in very high demand.

Paparazzi Tendencies: Trying not to scare the dogs . . . or the trainers
Among the many morsels of great info provided at our orientation was a brief discussion about the tidal wave of publicity brought on by the first airing of the show, Dogtown in 2008, coupled with the arrival of the Vicktory Dogs at the sanctuary. The number of visitors to Dogtown in 2008 doubled from the previous year, and the ABC news presence at the sanctuary became so overbearing with the presence of the Vicktory dogs that many of them eventually turned camera shy.

A Los Angeles native, I am not one to be star-struck and am fairly immune to the stir caused by celebrity sightings. However . . . it was all I could do to muzzle myself when, over the course of my four days there, I passed Dogtown-featured trainers Michelle Besmehn, Ann Allums and Pat Whitacre multiple times and pretty much just wanted to run up and hug them like I was five years old, and then pluck every little dog fact from their brains until I was a superstar trainer just like them. Luckily, I opted for nothing more than a "hello" or "good morning" and calmly walked on by. On Friday morning, I passed Ann Allums coming out of the clinic, and just as I was reaching for the door, I heard a woman standing next to her car in the parking lot shriek, "Oh my gosh, you are even cuter in person! I just love you on the show!" Yep, self-restraint felt pretty good right about then.

Such restraint ultimately curbed my desire to see and photograph some of my favorite Vicktory dogs too. I was particularly interested in meeting Cherry, who was one of the four dogs featured on Dogtown's "Saving the Michael Vick Dogs" episode (which has an encore airing tonite, May 22 @ 7pm PST on National Geographic) and whose photo I won in a charity auction. However, after listening to Don talk about the excessive press coverage, and listening to frequent requests to meet and photograph the dogs made by other visitors and volunteers, I decided it really didn't matter what dogs I met or photographed, as long as I got to be helpful during the day and relax with a sleepover dog at night.

By chance, I did end up grabbing a quick shot of big, beautiful Lucas while he was waiting for his breakfast bowl! Similarly, I had the good fortune to be hiding in the kitchen at Amra's Run stuffing Kongs while John Garcia came in with a private tour group to talk about the work they do there and common public misperceptions about dog-aggressive dogs and pitbulls.

A Day in the Life of a Volunteer: Dog walker and chauffeur extraordinaire
Other than the small bits of time I spent on doggy housekeeping work like mopping up runs, sweeping patios, filling water buckets, and stuffing treats into Kongs, the bulk of my volunteer time was spent walking dogs on sanctuary trails and taking them for outings and car rides.

The first dog that I walked was a goofy black pittie named Hera who, as I was informed by Skip, her caregiver at The Garden, was a master manipulator with the volunteers and would routinely not walk unless offered a treat. True to form, as smiley and friendly as she was, every few yards Hera would take a seat and refuse to move unless coaxed forward with a treat.

After perfecting the carrot'n'stick routine with Hera, I headed over to Amra's Run where I spent the next few days walking, chauffeuring, and chatting with a rather entertaining collection of dogs.
First was Sophie, who was featured in Season 3, Episode 6 of Dogtown earlier this season, and who also happens to be highly intelligent and quite the looker. Sophie reminded me of that girl in high school who you wish you could hate because she's gorgeous, smart, and mesmerizes everyone around her. But you can't hate her because, frankly, she's the sweetest girl you've ever met. Sophie shares her run with Chowta, a super shy dog who is only able to live with Sophie because he lets her be in charge.
Mr. Beans, Debo, Shocky, China, Screech and Beauregard are six pitties who I spent lots of quality time with. Mr. Beans has lovely smokey eyes and was as quiet as a mouse, happy just trotting along on his walks and chilling in his run.

Debo, who believe it or not was actually hit by a semi-truck before coming to Best Friends, has fur and eyes that match the color of the sand and constantly has a look on his face that says, "Look, I've been through a lot and all I want you to do is love me." Coincidentally, the other thing he wanted was to sit in his pool all day, which I was fortunate enough to snap a picture of.

Kirsten, one of the caregivers, referred to Shocky as "her little hippy" which I thought was hysterical but quite fitting.
When Kirsten told me I was going to walk Shocky, she was in her crate, which was covered up with a towel. It sounded like there was a 200 pound Brahma bull waiting to bust out of there. And while something did bust out at about 90 mph when that door finally opened, what came out was just a small, sweet, golden-colored gal ready for a good walk and a long car ride.

China has fur so white she was almost translucent in places. Kathy loaded her up with sunblock one afternoon and I was able to take her out for a ride to the Coral Pink Sand Dunes. Alas, I think the sand was a little too hot for her paws, and we called it quits after about 10 minutes or so, at which point we just road around in the car chatting about life and taking in the views.

Screech, who was fairly mellow from a recent heartworm treatment, is a stocky reddish brown guy who loves getting attention. He was usually one of the first to greet us when we walked inside and he was pretty adamant about getting a word in edgewise during most conversations.

Beauregard is a special guy. His caregivers have to keep him separated from other dogs and indoors during the day (with the exception of walks) because he has an enlarged heart, meaning he may have 5 days left, or 5 years. They just don't know. So keeping him calm and comfortable is a priority. However, Beau does not seem to be at all fazed by his situation, and spends most of his days seducing volunteers with his charming babyface and jumping up onto counters in the kitchen in attempts to either steal food or escape through the window for an unscheduled adventure. I spent some quality time walking him and sitting on the kitchen floor with him just hanging out.

Amra's Run: All you misunderstood pitties out there, please stand up
Despite one or two morning assignments at other Dogtown areas, I was sent to Amra's Run in Dogtown Heights for most of my volunteer shifts. And I honestly could not have been happier. Amra's is where a larger number of the dog-aggressive dogs live, and all but five of them (Chakita, Sophie, Chowta, John Wyatt and Lake) are pitties.

Normally at Dogtown, a small group of dogs will all share a large outdoor run with access to an indoor area. But at Amra's, all of the dogs except for two have their own separate outdoor run, take turns coming indoors, and then sleep in their crates at night because they don't play too well with other dogs, inevitably making it more challenging to find them adoptive homes and increasing their length of stay at Best Friends.

I had the pleasure of chatting off and on with three of the caregivers at Amra's--McKenzie, Kathy, and Kirsten--all of whom were some of the most pleasant, gracious, and professional people I've ever met. Most importantly, these ladies had two major things going for them: they really knew how to efficiently utilize volunteers (not to mention making them feel welcome), and they really knew their dogs, going to whatever lengths necessary to meet their individual needs.


Dogtown exclusively uses what is referred to as "relationship-based training," which utilizes none of the extreme, dominance-based methods you'll see showcased on a program like Cesar Milan's Dog Whisperer. Leadership is key her, not dominance. At Best Friends it's about building trust, understanding the individual dog, and making the dogs work for everything. McKenzie referred to it as the "NILFF" program, Nothing In Life For Free. Coming inside, getting a food bowl, jumping in the car: all of these things require work, whether it be sitting, laying down or giving a high-five.

Another point emphasized by the caregivers at Amra's, was that "dog-aggressive" means exactly what it says: DOG-aggressive. Not people-aggressive, not kid-aggressive, not even cat-aggressive. Aggression doesn't automatically translate across different species, and debunking such major public misconceptions is a key piece of Dogtown trainers' work.

During one of my afternoon shifts, a tour group came through which included a woman who asked McKenzie, "Do you have any vicious dogs here?" As someone who studies teaching and learning, I couldn't help but think that this was basically tantamount to someone walking into a teacher's classroom and asking, "So do you have any dumb kids in here?" It's just the wrong question.
Like people, dogs can be fearful or aggressive for all sorts of reasons. They may love kids, women and men, but run terrified from someone wearing a hat and sunglasses, or growl at a man with a beard because someone fitting that description hurt them before. They might curl up with a cat or bunny and sleep soundly with them for the evening, but lunge at other dogs because they were trained to be aggressive to their own kind. But there is no such thing as "a vicious dog," and we'd all benefit greatly if we took more care with the language we used and the questions we ask.

Lunches at Angels Village: Great company and stunning views
Perhaps one of the biggest perks at Best Friends is the $5 all-you-can-eat vegetarian buffet provided 6 days a week at Angels Village, which sits high up on a canyon wall and overlooks all of Angel Canyon. In addition to the great food and vistas provided, the multiple opportunities you have to sit and and chat with staff and volunteers is a real treat.

My first day there, I had the pleasure of sitting with Jennifer Hayes, a Best Friends staff writer, and her lovely mother Joanne. Jennifer and Joanne visit Best Friends every year for a week around Mother's Day and spend most of their time spreading the love in Cat World. Because it was Thursday, I was also able to hear the weekly round-up that the founders and staff do for the lunch crowd. Faith, another founder, talked to the group a bit about current happenings in and beyond the sanctuary, and then each of the animal area managers gave a short update on their respective animals and projects (i.e. Michelle Besmehn talked to us a bit about the group of rescued puppy mill dogs on their way back from Missouri, due to arrive the very next day.)
On Friday, I enjoyed another great lunch on the patio with Mike and Diane, a couple from Salt Lake City, and Bob, who was working as a contract architect for Best Friends, and who had just broken ground on the new puppy buildings underway. Mike and Diane, both educators, had a soft spot for pitbulls and were excited to take a dog named Tiki for an outing right after lunch.

And Saturday was lunch with Silva Battista, Best Friends co-founder, who I honestly could have talked with all day long. I have to say that it really speaks volumes about the quality of an organization when, even after 25 years, the founders are still spending their lunch hours frequenting the busy cafeteria and giving random volunteers and visitors 1-on-1 time.

Lint-Rolled Love: Cat World
Despite my Dogtown-oriented priorities on this trip, I did spend one of my volunteer shifts at Benton's House in Cat World, mostly so that I could come home and tell my own cat that I spent the afternoon with about 50 other cats who all had better attitudes than he did.

The cat houses are truly remarkable, and are really hard to picture without actually visiting. More importantly, the work that the cat house staff members do is some of the most time-intensive, back-breaking activity I've ever seen, and they do it all while exhibiting constant love and affection for all of the cats in their care. I saw happy, mobile cats with amputated, crushed, and/or paralyzed legs.

I saw cats with neurological disorders, like Gimbel and Tighe, whose mother had distemper while they were in the womb. They are two of the most stunningly beautiful cats you'll ever see and yet have zero control over their body movements, and tend to flail and stumble like fluffy drunken sailors when they walk around. Fortunately, they have no idea they're walking that way.

I saw cats running through the rafters, lounging in the sun, hiding in boxes and bins, and stretched across volunteers, leaving no empty lap in sight.

Perhaps the best part about the cat houses is how popular you are just by being present in the room. Encouraged by the staff to go hang out in the patio areas while they work tirelessly washing blankets, prepping food, and administering meds to sick cats, volunteers can spend hours lounging in the sun or shade, surrounded by 15-20 furry, adoring fans, all in the spirit of caring for the cats and preparing them for adoptive homes.

Angels Rest
During our conversation at lunch, Silva Battista told me that she and the other founders never really set out to create the monolith animal haven that Best Friends has now become. When they purchased the original 3000 acres in Angel Canyon where the sanctuary now sits, they had envisioned creating, as she described it, "more of a spiritual retreat" before agreeing that if they were going to continue taking in homeless animals as they had always done, that they better start building some facilities that could accomodate all of them!

Regardless of this shift in focus, the sanctuary is most definitely a spiritual slice of earth, perhaps best represented by its meticulously designed and cared for pet cemetary, Angels Rest. Adorned with thousands of pavers, stones, turquoise markers, and native flora, Angels Rest is a must-see for anybody visiting the sanctuary and was my last stop before heading out of town.

In addition to the markers of past sanctuary celebs like Tomato the Cat, small tokens of lost pets left by visitors are evident throughout the site, all of which are left undisturbed as long as they don't pose a danger to the local wildlife. Just as I was leaving, I was greeted by "Uncle Lenny," the groundskeeper who graciously offered to locate any particular marker I might be looking for and chatted with me about the resident bunnies, squirrels and quails he feeds there every morning. Like all the staff at Best Friends, he was as gracious, informative, and friendly as anybody could possibly be.
He also told me that on my next trip, I had to visit the cemetary in the evening when the wind picks up, because apparently it turns the hundreds of wind chimes dangling from the trees and poles into a lovely hillside symphony.

Sanctuary Lodging: Where to hang your hat after a full day of volunteering
I would be remiss not to mention the housing options available to those interested in visiting the sanctuary some day.


After an 8-hour drive, a 90-minute sanctuary tour upon arrival, and a 20-minute volunteer orientation (complete with a wee bit of altitude sickness), I was, in a word, beat. While the town of Kanab, Utah, located just 5 miles south of the sanctuary, offers a handful of lodging options--most of which are pet friendly, the eight cottages available to visitors on the sanctuary
property are, in my opinion, the ultimate place to stay. Nestled right up against a canyon wall overlooking the Horse Haven and complete with amenities like high-speed wireless internet and a stocked kitchenette, the 1-bedroom cottages are the epitomy of clean, comfortable and calm.

After heading into town for a camera adapter cord and some dinner on my first night there, I happily spent the remainder of my evening sitting on my cottage deck eating pizza, drinking a Corona and taking ~5000 pictures of the horses strolling around in front of me.

Living a mere two miles from Los Angeles International Airport, I live with a whole lotta deafening white noise. But on the decks of the sanctuary cottages, it's so quiet you can actually hear a horse take a step and the voices of friends chatting over 200 yards away. If I were a doctor, I'd send my patients with high blood pressure and heart problems here.

Alas, the cottages book up many months in advance, and I was only able to stay in one for the first night before moving to the much smaller and simpler (albeit very comfortable) cabins.

Some final thoughts
Despite the varied and endless highlights of my visit, there are probably two things related to this trip that I am most grateful for:

1) I did not see a single rattlesnake during my entire 5 day stay! Rattlesnakes are a fact of life at the sanctuary during the summer months and caregivers have definitely had some mornings where they've come in to a handful of puffy-faced dogs wondering what that big coil was that bit them (luckily dogs are considerably less susceptible to snake venom than we are).


2) After a visit to Best Friends, a question often asked is, "Didn't you just want to bring all those animals home with you?" I was sure that after a week at the sanctuary that I would undoubtedly be dying to bring home another dog or two. Even more worrisome was wondering if, once home, that my own dogs might actually bore me. But as it turned out, not only was I really looking forward to seeing my dogs again (and my wonderful husband too, of course :) on my drive home, but I was considerably more excited and motivated at the idea of training and taking better care of them.

And that is probably the most remarkable thing of all when it comes to Best Friends: by doing what they do for animals, they are, in turn, making us all considerably better, more responsible people.

Other Fun Facts and Random Info
Some other random fun Best Friends anecdotes and information gathered during my visit:

1) According to his wife McKenzie, John Garcia, manager and trainer at Dogtown, is a bit of an adrenaline junky and in addition to seeking out confident, often aggressive dogs to work with, he is a total snake lover. Apparently he even rehabbed a rattlesnake in their home once. Um, yeah, no thanks.

2) Lake, one of the dogs at Amra's, in addition to being diabetic, was also blind until Best Friends vets performed lasic eye surgery on her and restored 40% of her vision, which now allows her to successfully maneuver around objects on her walks with volunteers. Another Amra's dog, Jude, shown below, is partially incontinent and the devoted Best Friends staff team up every afternoon to help him urinate, with one caregiver massaging and petting his head in front (I took on this role during one of my afternoon shifts) while the other massages his abdomen to help release his bladder. The lengths caregivers go to here are . . . stunning.

3) "Red Collar Dogs" are dogs who only Dogtown staff are permitted to work with, mostly because of their unpredictable behavior around people. At Amra's Run, where many of the pitbulls live, there is only ONE red collar dog . . . and it's a border collie named John Wyatt. Dispelling myths about pitbulls and bully breeds is a full-time job at Dogtown. This is Kima Bear, also a red collar dog, shown below.


4) Nearly all of the original founders still have lunch with guests and volunteers at Angel's Village every day, and are ultimately hoping to pass the Best Friends reins on to a new generation pretty soon.

5) The original 3000 acres in Angel Canyon purchased in the 80s by the founders was bought for a whopping $5,000.


6) Every day at 2pm, 7 days a week, a Dogtown trainer hosts a free dog training and leadership seminar open to anyone. I had the pleasure of attending Tamara's talk on leadership vs. dominance, and Jen's clicker training demonstration titled "101 things to do with a box" and featuring Kendra the super savvy yellow lab, who was recently rescued from a local construction site.


7) Every day I met at least one staff member who had walked away from a completely unrelated career and picked up and moved to Utah to work for Best Friends simply because they wanted to help contribute to something that mattered to them. I even met a former stock broker working at Cat World who was originally from Ann Arbor! Fortunately I think the Cat World cats have had a considerably better run this past season than the Michigan Wolverines.

8) In addition to the many animals designated as Best Friends residents who I had the pleasure of passing during my visit, I also happened upon about 400 cottontail rabbits, 20 wild turkeys, a handful of quail, and a remarkably large coyote who darted about 10 feet in front of my car on my way out of Angel Village.

9) Sadly, I learned upon my arrival at the sanctuary that Riley, the amazing and much beloved 3-legged horse who was successfully fitted with and walking on his prosthetic leg, had suddenly taken a turn for the worse and finally had to be put down the day before I got there.