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OK, GOOGLE — WHAT DOES A PIT BULL SOUND LIKE?
Have you ever wondered what a pit bull sounds like? Do us a favor and ask Google — “Hey Google, what does a pit bull sound like?” Take a look and listen to this video.
If you’ve never heard the sound of a pit bull, don’t be alarmed — we promise they aren’t undercover dinosaurs! If you have heard a pit bull, then you’re probably confused as to why they are portrayed on Google Assistant as vicious, rabid creatures while Labrador Retrievers, Rottweilers, Dobermans, Chihuahuas and dogs in general consistently sound happy and sweet.
So, what do we do about it? Well, we want you to #showgoogleyourpitties! Please take a moment to post pictures, videos, and comments on your personal social media pages, and Google / Google Assistant pages. Be sure to tag Google, Google Assistant, Love-A-Bull and all of your other favorite pittie rescues and let them know that you want this corrected. Don’t forget to use the hashtag #showgoogleyourpitties!
Google clearly does not know the nature of pit bull-type dogs, and we want to take this opportunity to teach them. Please be sure to be constructive — we want to resolve the issue so that the harm being done to the image of these dogs can be corrected. Please share our video with friends and family!
MONTHLY PITTIE FUN WALKS RESUME
Yes, you read that right! Our popular monthly Pittie Fun Walks have resumed, with our first pack walk in a year and a half successfully launching in June!
Join us for our next Pittie Fun Walk on Sunday, July 4, at 9 a.m. Meet at the spider sculpture in the Mueller development! This could be a great day to take your dog for a pack walk to tucker them out before the fireworks and celebrations later in the evening.
A few important reminders:
This is a casual, fun, on-leash stroll with our dogs to showcase responsible pit bull guardianship. We kindly request just ONE dog per person on these walks, please (if you have more than one dog, one handler per dog is fine!) Make sure to bring a 6-foot or shorter leash, poop bags, and whatever equipment your dog needs for a safe, enjoyable walk with people and other dogs (harness, head halter, muzzle, etc.). The walk is about 3 miles total, but there are several points to turn around to make it shorter. Don’t forget water, as well, for both you and your pup!
To RSVP, visit our Facebook event page or Meetup. Please note: While we began as an organization on this platform, we will be phasing out our use of Meetup over the coming months!
OTHER UPCOMING EVENTS
Sunday, July 11 – K9 WORKINGMIND OPEN HOUSE
Join Love-A-Bull at an open house for K9 Workingmind, Training by Tara in East Austin! The open house runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, July 11, and we’ll be selling merch! Come learn more about our organization and our current needs, plus get some awesome training tips! K9 Workingmind will have stations for experiencing their fun classes and meeting some of their staff. They’ll also be holding cafe classes to practice proper cafe etiquette with your dog. Contact K9 Workingmind with questions at k9workingmind@gmail.com!
Sunday, July 11 – VOLUNTEER ORIENTATION / STILL AUSTIN FUNDRAISER
We are finally ready to resume our Volunteer Orientation, in person! If you’ve filled out our volunteer application, come on out and join us at The Grackle in East Austin from noon to 2 p.m. on Sunday, July 11! We will mingle until 12:30 p.m., then start our orientation. We’ll also have merch on site, so you can buy your volunteer T-shirts and other Love-A-Bull gear! Metered parking is free on Sundays! Still Austin and The Grackle also have partnered to offer proceeds from select drink specials back to Love-A-Bull, so feel free to bring some friends for a Sunday Funday, and support us at the same time!
Sunday, July 18 – ADOPTION EVENT
Get your Adopt-A-Bulls fix at Central Machine Works in East Austin during our first Adoption Event at this brewery! Central Machine Works hosts a weekly music series on Sundays, and our emcee will be showcasing our dogs between sets to help them get adopter interest! Join us from 5 to 8 p.m. Sunday, July 18, and tell your friends!
*SAVE THE DATES*
Keep an eye on our social media and website calendar for more details on the following events as they become available.
Saturday, July 31 – SWEAT FOR PETS FUNDRAISER
Come sweat with us at F45 at The Domain during a one-hour workout class at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, July 31 benefiting Love-A-Bull! Tickets will cost $30 each, with proceeds going back to us. Tickets on sale NOW!
Saturday, Aug. 14 – ADOPTION EVENT
Join Love-A-Bull at the grand opening of The Watering Bowl Dog Park & Bar in South Austin/Manchaca from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 14!
Saturday, Sept. 11 – OUTREACH EVENT
Learn more about Love-A-Bull, and maybe meet some Adopt-A-Bulls, at the Austin Flea market event that runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 11 at Capt. Quackenbush’s Coffeehouse in South Austin!
OCTOBER – PIT BULL AWARENESS MONTH – SILENT AUCTION AND MORE!
We are currently deep in the planning stages for an amazing month full of activities for Pit Bull Awareness Day, celebrated annually on Oct. 26! Stay tuned to our social media pages, but for now, we are bringing back our successful online silent auction! If you have any items you’d like to donate, such as gift baskets (you can make your own!), gift cards or tickets to experiences, please email amber@love-a-bull.org.
LEADERSHIP UPDATE
We are proud to announce a few changes, and welcome new members to our leadership team!
Sara Stein, Board President — Sara is a fierce advocate for pit bull-type dogs, and has years of dog experience with past nonprofit rescues as well as private practice as a Registered Veterinary Technician. She has run our foster program for the past two years. Sara was elected board president in April, taking the reins from outgoing board president Lindsey Ortiz, a 10+ year Love-A-Bull volunteer who continues to serve the organization as our main training consultant.
Amber Krosel, Vice President/Treasurer — Amber is now serving a dual role as VP and treasurer, overseeing our fundraising efforts, events and social media.
Ruth Nobile, Volunteer Coordinator — Ruth has been behind the scenes running our social media for the last 8+ months, and now is the face of our volunteer program! She is mom to Love-A-Bull alumna Daisy, fka Paprika.
Kristin Davis, Events Committee Co-Chair — Kristin is a seasoned events professional, and stepped up into this leadership role to help in our fundraising efforts! She is mom to Love-A-Bull alumnus Boulder, fka Dom.
Christian Coronado, Events Committee Co-Chair — Christian has deep ties to the service industry and is working on bringing back our Pints for Pits fundraisers, and other fun business-partner events! He is dad to Love-A-Bull alumna Meg.
Congratulations to all!
JOIN THE LOVE-A-BULL BOARD
We are currently recruiting for the most active role in our organization, Board Member! Our Board of Directors is a “working board,” meaning we run the rescue, adoption, education and advocacy efforts of Love-A-Bull … and we’re all volunteers! The estimated time commitment is 5-10 hours per week, including monthly virtual board meetings, helping at dog meet and greets, overseeing important committee work, and more! Our board members serve 2-year volunteer terms, and make an impact every day in advocacy and lifesaving work. This role is perfect for those who have previous shelter/rescue experience, especially if any have been in leadership roles! Interested in learning more? Email getinvolved@love-a-bull.org. Any of our current board members would be happy to speak with individuals in greater detail.
OTHER VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES
Please email getinvolved@love-a-bull.org if you are interested in any of the following opportunities.
***URGENT*** Fosters — we are in desperate need of fosters, particularly ones who do not currently have pets at home! It’s also puppy season, which means we are getting several requests from rural kill shelters to help us save pregnant mama dogs or just puppies who have been left on their own. We ask our fosters to hold on to mama and babies until puppies are 10 weeks old. If you are interested in fostering and live in the Austin, TX area, please email foster@love-a-bull.org!
**NEW** Dog Walkers — while we don’t have a physical shelter, some of our pups stay at our vet for a few days as they recover from medical issues or otherwise need to be boarded. We’d love to have a roster of dog walkers willing to visit New Hope Animal Hospital in Cedar Park!
Dog Trainers — work as an apprentice under our training/behavior consultants to conduct safe, in-person training classes, create virtual training opportunities and assist at foster/adoption meet and greets.
Data Entry/Research Assistants — calling all data nerds! We’re always looking for ways to improve the information we have on our website about pit bulls, or assist with data entry on Adopt-A-Bulls’ records.
Community Outreach Coordinator — we are still seeking a volunteer Community Outreach Coordinator to help with our goal of reducing the homeless animal population by hosting more spay/neuter clinics, shot clinics, and other outreach and education efforts in our most vulnerable areas of rural TX! We are tentatively planning our first spay/neuter and microchip clinic in a few years for September 2021, and could definitely use the help!
2021 ADOPTED DOGS — SO FAR!
Since our last newsletter in April, our adopted-dogs count has gone up, up, up! Our current totals are 56 dogs adopted for the year! We are so proud to announce that among those adoptions, our Star Wars puppy litter that Austin Pets Alive! graciously helped recover from parvovirus ALL have been adopted!
View all available Adopt-A-Bulls here.
SUPPORT OUR MISSION
Can’t volunteer or foster? We have countless ways you can help us!
To donate: https://love-a-bull.org/support/donate-to-our-mission/
To Shop for a Cause, including our Amazon wishlist: https://love-a-bull.org/support/shop-for-a-cause/
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