old friends, new faces

Tooky talks with Bobo, our shyest Taiwanese baby.

Last week Tooky, one of our 'original' volunteers, was back for a week. Although much has changed in the 18 months since she was here - not the least of which is the drastic reduction in numbers from the post-Katrina influx! - there was a wonderful familiarity in having her here. Her warm smile and laugh, her willingness to do whatever (even in the scorching heat!), her calm presence and deep love of animals.

Despite the fact it was now hot where it had been cold, that we are based in another building on the property, that our schedule has drastically changed - there was a thread of history that connected those early days with the Tara's Babies of now. Some of the doggy faces are still the same, and Tooky could see the changes in their behaviour. But it was even more subtle than that, for me at least, it was about a sense of continuity. Those early frenetic days are long gone, but remain as the roots of who we are today, and form the seeds of the future. Tooky is an invaluable part of that, for not only did she spend two weeks here right at the start, she has been a support ever since - not to mention she adopted the adorably plump and cuddly Katie, one of our rescue cats.

Tooky came here after completing a course at Best Friends in Utah, to be certified to assist in emergency situations. I am grateful to Best Friends for organising this - as in the future, without certification, people won't be able to dive in hands-on, as happened post-Katrina. Definitely something Tara's Babies volunteers need to do. And anyone else whose heart will call them to action should tragedy explode in our faces again.
We are also gearing ourselves better for any local emergency. We live in the middle of forest, in a state that has suffered from drought for over a decade. One of the tasks we did when Tooky was here was to ensure we had one crate per dog, should we need to evacuate. There has been so much coming and going of animals since we started, our system (?) had been haphazard. Now, however, we have the crates in one spot - the next step is to identify each crate with a dogs name, so that there will be nothing to think about should an emergency arise. We will create a small covered area, easy to access, where we can store them yet keep them out of the sun.

Bobo and his playmate Baby. Nunu is peeking through the back!

Bobo is very shy, but when you are able to coax him in close, perhaps with a little tug on the leash, you find he has the softest, plushest coat - more like a cat than a dog. He is such a timid little boy, yet you know underneath is a heart just yearning to love.

Baby, on the other hand, is just an imp!! Perhaps also a little shy, she however quickly turns to play - those long spindly legs doing her well as the runs around. So amazing to think she survived distemper, and was unable to walk at all for some time. She has the cutest pixie face, looks at you with shiny black eyes, and wants to play!! Sometimes she needs some help with feeding - which is a pleasurable task. She especially likes the canned food!! (Don't they all!)

That's me beneath the red floopy sunhat!