animal kindness | Everybody Loves Sammy

The Memo from God and Mother Nature

Posted on July 21, 2015 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends. We hope everyone had a happy Poppy Tuesday. Life was good today on July 21st, 2015, it didn’t have to be that way. Thank God that it is.

You know we have been doing different kind of posts at night and such, I want to promise all our animal loving friends, we never take our eye off the injustices inflicted on our animal friends around the world. When the time is right I will hit those topics hard like I did with “Where Is the Geneva Convention for Animals?” — Or “The Second Amendment from the Perspective of an Animal” and many,many more on Youtube and SoundCloud.

At the same token, in conveying our messages for the animals with no voice to defend themselves, Sammy & Family is not here to bring our animal loving friends from around the world down. So its a pick and choose your battles kind of things. Having said that, animal equality, kindness, rescue and welfare remain the forefront of our voice.

Remember, the only thing it means that people are smarter than animals, is that people are smarter than animals, it means nothing more. I would love to see the memo or email from God or Mother Nature that says we can decide which animals live and die and by which numbers. I was never CC’ed on that. Yes I know, I will check spam.

OK friends, lets close tonight with two messages for our animals friends all over the world.

1. The path to a better world flows through the humane treatment of all animals.

2. Rescuing an animal and bringing them into your home presents such a higher sense of purpose like some have never experienced. You will be saving a life, and they will make your life. We call that a Win, Win.

Signing off from Puerto Rico on day 191, Dr. Harp Seal for Sammy and Family.

Terri Irwin The Ultimate Wildlife Warrior

Posted on July 8, 2015 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good morning friends.

Today’s featured story is about Terri Irwin, yes the wife of the late great Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter. As we all know Steve Irwin was tragically killed by in Stingray in 2006. But today I want to take it back to their beginning. You see, most of us learned about Steve and Terri Irwin from the popularity and success of their worldwide show “The Crocodile Hunter. But the wheels of fate were in motion many years before all that.

Terri was born in July of 1964 and grew up in Eugene Oregon with her family who was in the trucking business. During her childhood years, Terri’s dad used to pick up injured animals on the highways and bring them home to help rehabilitate them. Needless to say compassion for wildlife was instilled in Terri from the very beginning.

By the time she was 22 years old, Terri was running the family business, worked part time at an emergency veterinary hospital and operated a wildlife rehabilitation organization called “Cougar County” The wildlife organizations was rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing cougars, bears, bobcats and etc. Terri Irwin was no ordinary 22 year old, she was wearing many hats, and wearing them well.

Now let’s take a look at the late Steve Irwin’s earlier years.

Stephen Robert Irwin was born on the 22nd February, 1962, in upper Fern Tree Gully, Victoria, which is about 20 miles form the main business district in Melbourne Australia. He moved with his parents and two sisters to Beerwah, Queensland, where his folks opened the Beerwah Reptile and Fauna Park in June of 1970. Years later the Irwin’s changed the name to ” Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park” which now of course is called The Australia Zoo. What a miraculous transition over the decades, but even with all the success the original common denominator has stood the test of time, their love and passion for wildlife. Continue reading →

Kelly and Patreeko Came to Say Goodnight

Posted on March 25, 2015 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

It’s Great to be here with you all tonight. Kelly and Patrick wanted to come say goodnight. These two are like little lovebirds at this point. Its nice to seem them getting along so well. They are the same age so it kind of makes sense. I hope everyone enjoyed the Penguin story today.

I was blown away when i read it and immediately reached out to the Penguin Foundation in Australia. They were really nice and sent me some information so i could write a nice story about them. I always loved Penguins, its odd we never discuss them on this page. But they really are incredible little creatures. They are so interesting how they live and operate.

So tomorrow we have a world class video on aviation coming out. Yes aviation.

See you in the morning friends. Signing off from Puerto Rico on day 74, Dr. Harp Seal for Sammy & Family.

The Kolb Crew Leads us out Tonight

Posted on March 3, 2015 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Tonight we have the Kolb crew leading us out. These four beauties are members of our very dear friend Janet Knecht Kolb and family. Janice is from Mississippi and is a major friend to the animals. She visited Sammy & Family while she was in NYC. When Vanessa and her met her, I told her she is my first friend from Mississippi, that’s not a crack on her hometown, more to the fact that I never left NY. It was our pleasure to make her acquaintance. So let’s hear what Janice has to say about her crew here;

The very large brown boy is KoKo. He is 8 years old and the “Daddy” of the Krew. I got him when he was 8 weeks old. He was an only child for 7 years. The white female is Mahlee. She is a 3 year old re-home that came to me in Feb. 2014. She is a diva princess and rules the roost.

The little apricot boy is Kleiner Bruder ( German for “little brother”). I always promised KoKo a little brother so that’s why I named him that since the previous owner didnt name him. He is was about 1 year old when rescued January 2014 according to my Vet. He is from the hills of Kentucky. He was abused and neglected for the first year of his life and finally rescued by 2 wonderful women in his town. They contacted me and I fell in love. He has been such a joy. He is smaller than he should be because he was crated in a puppy crate his whole first year and as he grew he was unable to even stand up. He has so much love to give and has come from being scared of everyone and everything ( he was scared of his water bowl) to being one spunky, loving, precious little boy.

The skinny brown boy is Kwinn Koen. He was surrendered to our local kill shelter in July 2014. The shelter contacted a local rescue that a friend of mine runs and she called me to see if I knew of anyone that could foster him till they could adopt him out. He was such a mess that you really couldn’t tell he was a Standard Poodle. His eyes were almost matted shut from infection, he smelled so bad that it made me physically ill and his ears were very infected. I fostered and then adopted him in Aug. 2014. He turns 3 on March 5. His name was Superman but he didn’t seem real attached to that so I renamed him Kwinn Koen. He has blossomed big time and has become Kleiner Bruders best friend. Those 2 rescue boys have so much energy and play nonstop. That is the Kolb Krews story. They each have very different personalities but love each other very much. I love them all.

Janice that'[s an incredible story. What a great full family you have. Its like the saying goes; who rescued who ? We can all relate to that.

Sammy & Family would like to thank Janice for making the world a better place 4 animals at a time. God Bless.

Signing off from Puerto Rico, Dr. Harp Seal for Sammy & Family.

Tonight We Say Goodbye to Sweet Little Sassy

Posted on February 27, 2015 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Today the world says goodbye to Sassy. This little angel crossed the Rainbow Bridge this afternoon. Sassy was a member of Miranda Camille Parrish and family.

Miranda posed a very good question earlier, how many pieces can one heart be broken into? Man, we can all relate to that.

Its never easy making decisions like this, but sometimes its the only loving move left to make. Sassy was given a great life and left this life very loved. We might not be able to change the world, but Miranda and family changed the world for Sassy. That’s all anyone of us can do. Rest in Peace Sassy.

Sammy & Family wants to thank Miranda for making the world a better place one Sassy at a time.

No lives will go in vain, no pain will go unnoticed. Amen. Dr. Harp Seal for Sammy & Family.

Kelly and Scott

Posted on February 17, 2015 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Kelly and I Came to say goodnight. We hope everyone had a nice Tuesday. She and I are bonding real well. As you can see Patrick and Sammy are on my right. Henry is by my feet. I’m sure everyone really needed that visual.

This is what we call QT. Quality time. Kelly has gotten very attached to me. Vanessa thinks its because i sneak her treats. But its not, it’s because i have a kinship with animals. Anyway it was a really nice moment.

Again we want to say you are all in our thoughts with this weather. Just seems relentless at this point. God bless you all.

Signing off from Puerto Rico. Dr. Harp Seal for Sammy & Family.

Prayers for Animals Finding Warmth and Safety Tonight

Posted on February 16, 2015 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Tonight we have Juniper leading us out. Juniper is a stray cat that our close friend Susanne Day keeps well fed and taken care of. Susanne has not seen Juniper for a couple of days due to the weather conditions. Lets hope this kitty cat has found some warmth and safety.

Susanne is a great friends to animals. She has several rescues, she takes cares of strays and has a heart of gold. We had the great privilege of meeting the whole family last year.

Sammy & Family prays for all animals out there in the cold. We remind people, if its too cold for you, its too cold for your pets. It’s dangerously cold out there.

No lives will go in vain, no pain will go unnoticed. Amen. Dr. Harp Seal for Sammy & Family.

Molly Ann will Lead Us out Tonight

Posted on February 6, 2015 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Hope everyone had a nice day. Tonight we have Molly Ann taking us into the weekend. This sweet Kitty Cat is a member of Cynthia D. Webb and Family from West Virginia. Cynthia is one of our close friends. We had the pleasure of meeting her when she visited NYC. Good times.

Sammy & Family wants to wish all our friends on the East Coast warmth and safety. We’ve seen its been a brutal couple of weeks weather wise.

And we will close with prayers for Bobby Kristina, Bobby Brown and the late Whitney Houston’s daughter. The news is going back and forth with her being on life support and being taken off life support. Its hard to know exactly whats going on. Needless to say it’s as dire as it gets. This kid needs a break. Please God let her pull through.

Amen. Dr. Harp Seal for Sammy & Family.

Sheba’s Haven Rescue, Ontario Canada

Posted on February 5, 2015 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Tonight we wants to give a Big shout out to Sheba’s Haven Rescue in Ontario Canada. Our ELS friends, John and Kathi McEwen brought Sheba’s Haven to our attention. They are monthly donors and after reading up on them, I can see why.

They specialize in Palliative care and Special needs dogs that are unadoptable, elderly and sometimes terminal. They help elderly dogs live out their days in peace. It’s run by a couple, Catherine Pokrywa and Bill McCormick. It was started in 2011 by Catherine. Since then, they’ve taken in over 60 dogs into their home. All of them rescues and mostly all of them in their final stages of life.

Below is a link to their Facebook Page;

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Shebas-Haven-Rescue/191396114238947

Sammy & Family thanks Sheba’s Haven Rescue for making the world a better place, many animals at a time. It doesn’t get more noble then assisting dogs in their final years with a graceful goodbye. Sounds a little bit like Heaven to me.

No lives will go in vain, no pain will go unnoticed. Amen. Dr. Harp Seal for Sammy & Family.

The Story Of Luca and Our Close Friend Mitchell

Posted on February 4, 2015 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

My friend Mitchell wanted to write to everyone in ELS about his dog Luca. We have talked about Luca before. He still needs a home. Below is the story of Mitchell and Luca;

I sincerely thank the ELS community for allowing me to share my short story and also to appeal to your altruistic and human nature.

Some Humans Just Don’t Understand

Why can’t people understand that my relationship and love for my dog, Luca, is separate from my wife and daughter? Yes, he is ‘just a dog’ as some people like to say. Given an oncoming proverbial speeding bus I would of course save my daughter first.

The reality is there is no mutually exclusive binary decision to be made from this fantasy situation.

Many fellow humans don’t even attempt to appreciate the feelings of thankfulness I have for him in my life. He makes me a better person and makes me feel great being responsible for his life given the seriousness of the oath I took when I adopted him.

Background

For 20 years I always wanted a dog, but was never ready for the responsibility or time commitment. When I turned 40yo I lost my job from the financial crisis so I was forced to cancel my first apartment purchase which I was in contract to buy; I was really down and lonely. I then decided to rescue a dog and finally take on some responsibility.

I searched and searched for many months for a dog that I would finally have a connection. There were many emotional visits to so many different shelters in the tri-state area, some found through friends and some through petfinder.com’s available 30,000 dogs.

I’ve always seen the North Shore Animal League and ASPCA commercials, but never went inside of a dog shelter before. One cannot feel anything but morose sadness at every dark and dingy shelter watching each dog trapped in its own small cage 24/7 awaiting the nod of each potential new owner. After a long stretch many will be given another type of nod – left or right – euthanized or not. It was one of the rare times in my life I felt such pity for so many innocent animals. I wanted to adopt every one of them, but I was advised by many to choose one which I would have a mutual ‘connection’.

After meeting and spending 15 minutes alone with many dogs in many different places I finally drove an hour and a half in NJ to meet a dog named Theo (his 3rd name in his first year of his life). When I first showed up the office staff was confused as there were so many dogs that they introduced me to a different dog whom immediately bit my arm. I wasn’t angry as I figured life inside a cage 24/7 without much exercise will do that to an otherwise different (and luckier) dog.

After the confusion they let a happy-go-lucky dog out of its cage and he started to trot and sniff a small patch of grass that was available. I felt so good just to be the excuse for him to get freedom for five minutes outside of his cage. He slowly came over to me and seemed very friendly. Immediately after giving him suggested back scratches he rolled over into a submissive position and smiled and played. They told me this was a great sign as he felt comfortable and I probably wouldn’t have any ‘alpha’ issues with him.

The words “I’ll take him” just came out of my smiling mouth. I felt a bit overwhelmed as I met so many dogs over the past few months and certainly wasn’t expecting this to be my last visit / meet/greet at a shelter.

The adoption papers were signed and I put him in the back seat of the car. It happened pretty fast and I was nervous driving onto the highway having just committed to taking care of a living being who was relying on me for the rest of his life. This was the biggest commitment of my life.

He Changed Me

Luca was (and still is) very very sweet, timid, shy, and kind yet also a bit nervous. Three shelters before turning one year old might do that to someone. At first he didn’t bark and wouldn’t eat his food and required (asked) me to stand next to him. He was a handsome and noble gentleman in looks and attitude. He was very obedient and conscientious. He would never go to the bathroom in the house and didn’t go (or jump) anywhere he wasn’t allowed. He was an excellent behaved boy and slowly we developed a mutual trust and relationship.

For the first time I felt like an adult. I had a real challenge to learn how to train and raise a puppy correctly by researching, reading, and regular training. I enjoyed this immensely. As I got to know his innate idiosyncrasies I fell in love with him. He got along with every person and dog he ever met. I felt comfortable taking him anywhere and everywhere and I did. I think he loved me too.

He was a puppy and I now had to make sure he was walked, fed, played with every day, and kept up to date on his vaccines. In hindsight this really made me a responsible adult and gave me a ‘purpose’. I really enjoyed taking him to central park all the time and watching him run and play with the other dogs. He loved the wide open fields.

Before I adopted him I probably would have just slept late and snoozed the alarm, but now every time having Luca poke me with his nose in the morning to go hiking in the summer and playing in the snow with the other dogs in winter I leaped out of bed as I felt great knowing I would see him smile while sprinting in the park and playing with some friends before most people left their homes.

I went for long walks and took him everywhere I went – Washington DC, PA, and even Spain for a few months. Yes I was a bit attached, but I loved when he would look up at me like we were two best friends.

I lost a great job and fantastic real estate opportunity, but now I was much happier having filled a large void in my life.

I looked forward to taking him out to play in the park every day after work and to keep me company while doing errands around the neighborhood. I got so much personal enjoyment not only having an excuse to exercise and walk/play in a beautiful park, but I also get great pleasure thinking how I saved a dog from Georgia on death row providing him with a relatively good life and teaching him to trust me to take care of him and never hurt him.

Helping our relationship

My wife and I have a great relationship. We are both healthily independent having separate and necessary alone time. She enjoys some great hobbies alone and my biggest ‘hobby’ was my boy, Luca. These different interests make our relationship stronger because we have an outlet to flex our independence muscles.

I love taking Luca for walks exploring our new neighborhood borough (Brooklyn), playing and hiking in Prospect Park, and having him keep me company every time I went out to do errands such as getting my wife breakfast before she awoke.

Now

Unfortunately I would have loved for this story to have had a happy ending, but it doesn’t. Badass Brooklyn Animal Rescue says it best with their motto of “Saving Badass Dogs from Idiot Humans”. I am not with Luca anymore due to idiot humans and our society’s understanding and tolerance of our fellow canine species. Details of this horrible ending do not matter.

I am devastated and heartbroken having to lose my best friend who is the sweetest kindest boy and trusted me every day. He is simply – THE BEST DOG EVER.

I’ve only felt this horrible one other time in my life – when my father passed a few years ago. People just don’t understand the love one can give and receive from a dog that is just not possible (not better or worse) with fellow human beings. Why do many humans treat animals as inferior species and subhuman? Just because they haven’t sent fellow beings to the moon doesn’t make them inferior.

I am now asking for your help in saving Luca’s life. He is my best friend and does not deserve to be in his current predicament. Luca needs YOUR HELP NOW.

Please help save a Badass dog from death row by donating ANYTHING (the more you give the better you’ll feel) at http://bit.ly/DonateBadassBK

I IMPLORE you to help LUCA and other innocent Badass dogs by donating to Badass Brooklyn Animal Rescue. Unfortunately they are in desperate need of funding to help save dogs’ lives. PLEASE, please, help save LUCA’s life!!

Please donate NOW. It seriously only takes 30 seconds! Please! If you don’t do this now, then you will unfortunately forget to do this as we are all very busy. LUCA is sitting in a cage right now (23 hours a day) waiting for you to help. Here is the link to easily help LUCA and donate:

http://bit.ly/DonateBadassBK

Thank you so much,

Below is the link to easily help LUCA and donate:

http://bit.ly/DonateBadassBK

Would you like to donate today?