In the picture of the Guardsman with the Rott, I set up that Dog Love Station, because they didn't want us to walk dogs between 10AM and 7PM, so I made this place in our barn. (The HSUS rented a facility that holds horse shows, etc, so we had these permanent barns to use.) I called it the Dog Love Station, and it was equipped with cold waters and disposable bowls, baggies, a pile of hay for emergency potty needs, biscuits, etc.  The sign says: "Taking a break? Relax with a dog.  Share water, give love, get love, it's all good." I put a quote from a Beatles song at the bottom: "And, in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make".  People actually cried when they saw it, and it ended up being a morale booster, I saw volunteers taking pics and videos with their favorite dogs, and owners who had redeemed their pets re-uniting there.  The HSUS person who ran the whole facility that week said she would try to keep it up after I left.

We left after a week at midnight, following a horse trailer full of dogs (un-airconditioned, which is why we left after a 16 hour work day so it would be cool) and we drove a camper.  The guys driving the horse trailer were THIS CLOSE to nudging a semi because they were falling asleep.  I am so sorry it happened to you. Like you said, it was the best and worst thing you ever did.  If you feel like me, you'd do it again, but let's recover first, OK?  It took me almost a week to get back my energy, and i wasn't even in a bad wreck, so I feel like a wuss compared to you.

Regarding the rotts that other groups took:  I heard there was a lady from Medallion Rottweiler Club in Chicago there who took about 30?  Do you know?

Conclusion:  New Orleans is an armpit.  Both LA and MS need a spay-neuter program BADLY and how about some neglect and abuse laws, huh?  A lot of the dogs I saw were neglected WAY before the hurricane.

If you need anything, let us know. 

Lots of love from Amy and Mark

HSUS volunteer with scarred-up pit bull