Now, I see a lot of folks talking about how this isn’t helping society as a whole. I disagree. Perhaps not everyone is a fan or supports basset hound rescue, but through their fundraising, and participation in waddles and other fundraising events, Marilyn and others like her are showing the world “look, they’re seniors, look what they can do.” She takes in these dogs, that have been discarded and gives them a chance. I’d like to think that perhaps others, be it all breed rescues, or folks devoted to other breeds, would also like to take iniative and do something similar. Also, I believe it was Ghandi who said “we could judge a society by how they treat their animals,” or something similar. This is true, animal abuse often leads to, or occures in conjunction to human abuse (child, spousal, etc).

So, by showing society as a whole, look, take care of these animals, they are your responsibility until death, maybe, just maybe it’ll reach out to a few people who, though they may not be a fan of bassets, will think to treat their aging dog and their aging relatives better.

The blog’s audience comes with a particular expectation in mind–of getting basset-related news–which the blog provides admirably. Any other activities would dilute their message, so it’s smart of them to remain focused on basset hounds and to come up with creative ways to promote bassets and basset rescue.

HOP’s mission is to provide a home for homeless old bassets. So any fundraising activities would support the mission, but not add to it, nor would it be meant to.

Thank goodness there are those of us willing and able to be the voice for those who cannot speak for themselves!

I’m afraid you miss the point here. Marilyn’s dogs are seniors and short of being able to participate in belly rubbing sessions at Waddles or Meet and Greet events, Senior dogs aren’t, to the best of my knowledge, able to participate in soccer or basketball games or other activities where they can participate and be integrated with society at large. They depend entirely on Marilyn and her benefactors for their suport.

Another issue we, in rescue deal with, is the mentality of today’s society. There are more throwaway dogs than ever and any breed or all-breed rescue will back me up on this. People are much more willing to give to help humans than animals as a result, and any time any of us can come up with a fresh or novel idea on how to help our dogs is more than welcome.

Does this add to HOP’s mission? Absolutely. Marilyn’s goal is to help senior hounds, and any project proposed that puts their name out there, certainly builds their “brand.” I applaud this venture. I just wish I had some gold to donate.

Sherry Faulkner, President
Ozark Mountain Basset Rescue, Inc.

House of Puddles is run by one woman, Marilyn Brazzle. She takes in hounds that for the most part are neglected. Many of them are dumped like trash. They are all elderly. Many of us in the basset hound cyber community hold fundraisers for the HOP. In 2008 the HOP vet bills are over 10,000 dollars.

My idea for the Gold Rush came from my very own jewelry box. I know many folks want to give but times are tight. The gold rush offers another way to donate! I love firstgiving and tell folks about it all the time. Your website has brought so much joy to so many people! Firstgiving is PAWSOME!

Cathy L. Rudert
bassethoundtown.com

We all have our own individual passions and mine happens to be for this breed. It’s a small step in getting the word out there that animals aren’t to be cast off or just disposed of when they age or become ill. It’s also our responsibilty as pet owners to care for them through the end.

I happen to feel that this change in thinking is quite profound as well.

Compare this with someone like Adule Norte (http://www.citizenbase.org/audela) who, promoting the cause of integrating individuals with disabilities into society, hold events such as games of soccer where potential donors are blindfolded and play alongside those who are actually blind, or wheelchair basketball games again where potential donors and the disabled play together. In terms of an effective fundraiser I would suspect Adula Norte converts new whole-hearted advocates for their work and perhaps raised more money than a ‘clean out your closet’ campaign and they did not even have to ask for money upfront.

The difference being that one was strictly holding out a tin cup and the other was building relationships/shared ownership of the problem and subsequently a base of support in their community.

That difference is along the lines of what I have been dealing with at work lately, working with Ashoka’s Citizen Base Initiative (www.citizenbase.org). I think that change in thinking is quite profound.