ALICE-THE DOG THAT NO ONE LOVED

When Kara found Alice, she called Scott Bennett, Director of the organization, Southern Comfort Animal Rescue. Scott went out to see the dog and her conditions for himself. While he was there, he spoke to an elder man who said he was caring for the dog (which at this time the man said they had never even named her!) for his son-in-law who rarely ever visited. Scott called the son-in-law and asked if he could buy the dog but his offer was refused. It was later discovered that Alice is actually owned by the elder man's daughter who produced a bill of sale for $500. The owner said that Alice had been bred "a couple of times" but rescuers believe that, from the looks of her, it's been more than a couple. I'm surprised that the pups survived in those conditions! Here's a scary thought, Alice's owner said she also owns 4 other dogs. I wonder where they are and what condition they live in..

.Southern Comfort Animal Rescue (or SoCo Rescue as they are known ) made offers to buy Alice, take her to a vet at their cost and move her to their facility until better conditions were arranged. When all of these offers were refused, Scott said that they would press charges of animal cruelty and contacted the sheriff of Toombs County to visit the premises.The sheriff who went out told SoCo rescuers that he was sickened by what he saw and would file the charges. However, Chief Magistrate John Matheson interceded by stating that he would "throw out" any charges of animal cruelty.

The first step in changing Alice's life is that the sheriff who went out to see the conditions allowed Scott to state the conditions under which it would be acceptable for the owners to keep Alice until the issue could be resolved. Scott said that she would need adequate shelter in a kennel appropriate for a dog of Alice's size, clean water and food, as well as a complete medical examination.

The owners did move Alice to a chain link kennel of a larger size (still not enough room to run or enough shade for hot sunny days though) and she now has an Igloo type dog house (with no bedding of any kind to protect from weather or the hardness of the floor.) She has a small bed pan style water dish which couldn't hold enough water for a dog her size, especially if they are leaving days in between when they check on her. Her food pan was turned over and in the same position for days which the rescuers believe means either she hasn't been fed or her owners are continuing to throw her food on the ground as before.

Tuesday 3-8-2011 "I have some shade now! And the Department of Agriculture has promised to investigate my case... things are looking brighter..." - Alice ( Tarps have been added the weekend of 3/5/11 to protect her from the sun.)

The second step for Alice was that the owner finally took Alice to the vet, she was found to have heart worms but no medication was purchased for her. Heart worms can be deadly, but apparently the owners and most officials in Toombs Co. don't care. When Scott told the magistrate judge that Alice needed medication, he informed Scott that the case was dead. "The dog is healthy. We looked at her and we can tell." Any good vet can tell you that you can't determine the health of a dog by looking at it! Alice received her first Rabies shot. Scott also asked the Judge about rabies vaccinations for the previous years and was told that there was no law saying that folks had to have their dogs vaccinated (which is an out and out lie!) He also told Scott that he wouldn't approve any animal cruelty charges because "the way the dog was treated was in the past" and things were better now. If this is the way the law works, then any crime that is committed should not be prosecuted because "it;s in the past!"

NOTE: You can see photos of Alices vet bill at:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Southern-Comfort-Animal-Rescue/109136495783025?ref=ts&sk=info#!/album.php?id= 100000508872591&aid=58888
Click on "photos" in the left column of the page, then on "Alice vet." Mouse over each photo for a description.

Many of you are wondering where we stand with the Alice case. Many of you are asking "What's next?".

I know it seems as if there's not much happening, as if we've hit a stalemate in this case. Certainly, the Toombs Co. officials are probably thinking since they "let" us have our little rally that we've reached the end of our rope, that we've run out of options. They are most likely sitting in their homes, thinking all will be back to "normal" next week, that they'll have to hear no more about "That dog".

Well, nothing is further from the truth!!!

I, for one, can not get the image of Alice's face, as we first saw her, out of my mind. The look she had that was pleading "Please help me". And I will never forget, I will never stop. Last night, I was looking at some business cards that one of our supporters had sent (see attached picture) and I started to weep. The pain in her face, the longing to be touched, the desire to be loved was so evident.

I imagine a lot of you don't want to hear me say "We're working on it" as a response to your questions. But, at the moment, that's all that I can release to you. Attorney Joshua Smith is putting together a number of motions to file in an attempt to get Judge Matheson to sign the warrant AND guarantee that a fair hearing will take place. These legal motions take time to prepare, to get filed, to be heard. But they are a necessity if we want to make Toombs Co. change their ways, not just for Alice, but for any and all animals that suffer due to the lax attitudes that the officials of Toombs Co. have shown, time and time again, towards animal abuse and neglect.

As recently as last week, dogs at the Lyons Animal Control have "disappeared without a trace. The Lyons shelter is not supposed to euthanizing ANY animals until their new ordinance has been written and approved. This agreement was made by and when the Toombs Co. Commissioners met with the public after the massacre of all 77 dogs in their care, in one day. (If you are unfamiliar with this story, I invite you to research this horrific incident.) Yet, even with this "promise" that those officials made, weekly post are coming across Face Book about dogs that face death at the hands of the shelter employees. This last round of dogs that 'disappeared' were not euthanized, they're just simply no longer anywhere to be found! At least four of these dogs were reported to have rescue commitments, and there is no paperwork to even say these dogs were ever at the shelter. But, thanks to a couple of rescue workers, pictures of these dogs were taken as early as the day before they 'disappeared'.

Georgia House Bill 1106 requires that a Ga. shelter possess and use a microchip scan tool on all animals that come in and before they are euthanized in an attempt to locate that animal's owner. The Toombs Co. shelter failed to even acquire a free-to-shelters scanner, citing 'no money to purchase one' as their reason for not having the scan tool that would have allowed scanning any of the dogs they euthanize.

All that said so that each of you can fully understand why we must fight for Alice through legal means. Once we have accomplished our goals, which include making the Toombs Co. officials enforce their own animal ordinances. filing charges of animal abuse against Delois Hayward, (who went on record as saying she is the owner of Alice) and taking a more proactive approach to animal abuse in their county, then we will finally rest and say "job well done".

There are many "Alices" in Toombs Co. Maybe they don't all live in a box, as Alice did, but they are suffering just as Alice did for so long because Toombs Co. officials don't consider animal abuse as a crime that needs their attention. We may not be able to save all the abused animals in Toombs Co., but, after we have completed the task at hand, anyone in Toombs Co. that is committing animal abuse will know that we will be coming for them next!

So, please, do not give up on us, as we are not giving up on getting Alice freed. As we speak,"The Alice Army" is forming. We will be a force to be reckoned with. We will put an end to the old ways that the Toombs Co. officials have had for way too long.

Scott Bennett
Director,
Southern Comfort Animal Rescue, Inc.

FURTHER NOTE ON 3-21-11

This just in...

Atty Joshua Smith will be meeting with Southern Comfort on Friday to discuss possible legal action against certain individuals and/or groups or persons for libel by claiming that the whole Alice story was a "hoax" just to get money from people. More on this as it progresses.

The reason that this is noteworthy is that this legal action will dispel any claims that the conditions that Alice was forced to live in was, as stated, a "hoax". Criminal cases, such as the animal abuse case involving Alice, can greatly benefit from a civil ruling in our favor.

Scott

Letter from Alice's atty., Joshua J. Smith
To Ms. Kathy D. Bradford, "reporter" for

The Advance
P.O. Box 669
Vidalia, Georgia 30475

TO BE SENT BY REGULAR MAIL AND CERTIFIED U.S. MAIL

Attention: Mr. William F. Ledford, CEO
RE: Alice a.k.a. Lil Momma

Dear Ms. Bradford:

This firm has been retained to represent Southern Comfort Animal Rescue in all matters. I believe you are very familiar with their
work on poor Alice's behalf.

Although you seem to go out of your way to establish your writing as fair and ethical, please understand that it is our position that
your articles, especially your latest publication, border, if not cross the line into libelous speech. You have named Southern Comfort Animal Rescue directly in past articles, even though you do not name them directly in the latest installment. You do provide
sufficient information to identify my client to the public in your latest article. Your comments about my client to the public accuse Southern Comfort Animal Rescue of scamming people out of their money. Basically you are accusing my client of committing crimes. There can be no other interpretation of your writings and we will not allow it to stand without correction.

Journalism has no obligation to be favorable to one side or the other. Journalists do have an absolute duty to avoid harmful speech that is libelous.At this point, we are evaluating the legal situation regarding both your actions and those of your employer. My client has done nothing wrong, unethical or illegal. A retraction of your statements about Southern Comfort Animal Rescue will go a long
way towards resolving this issue. My client wants nothing but the best for all animals and we ask that if you cannot avoid libelous
statements in the future, please refrain from publishing anything about their noble efforts.

If you have any questions, please contact my office. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Cordially,

Joshua J. Smith

We are all anxious to see if Ms. Bradford and her employer take this letter seriously (or if they even bother to read it) and what action they take, if any. I LIKE this atty.! The army for Alice, Scott and SoCo Rescue are behind you as well, Joshua!

Please forgive my not keeping up with my updates, here is the latest from SoCo and friends:

On Friday, April 8, 2011, Southern Comfort Animal Rescue suffered a huge loss in an electrical fire. They lost one puppy and another is struggling due to smoke inhalation. (This one has since recovered, thank God!) One of the founders also lost her beloved macaw.
They are located in Southern GA. They have found places for the dogs to go temporarily, but they desperately need indefinite foster homes or forever homes for these wonderful dogs A.S.A.P.

From SoCo Rescue:
"So that everyone is clear: This fire occurred in our home. It started in the kitchen. From what we can tell, improper wiring, that was installed when the home was built.Like so many rescues, the home was a vital part of our rescue. Our small, senior and special needs rescues were inside and had access to kennels attached to the house.... We are unable to continue operating the rescue as normal at this time."

It's amazing and so heart warming to see the outpouring of love and support from all of the followers of SoCo Rescue! People have offered /provided everything from spreading the story and saying prayers (like me) to a huge load of cinder blocks to start the rebuilding of the rescue.

Someone from Texas had offered SoCo a load of cinder blocks and someone else asked what they would be used for. Scott answered "The blocks would be for a new SoCo building. This home can be repaired as the structure is OK. It's the wiring, drywall, flooring and kitchen appliances that have to be reworked in the house." The problem was the cost and the means to get the blocks from Texas to Georgia. Then Kelly Allen wrote "If you get a material donation from someone who is a distance away, let me know. I drive a semi and pull a flat bed trailer and I might be able to help with transporting it." There have been other offers of help as well but it will still take time to get things set back to rights. Mr. William Whitright-Tyrrell boils it all down to this: "There are a lot of us on this site/page... if it becomes a question of money, let ALL OF US KNOW... It's pretty easy to do electronic transfers or the old fashioned way,,,,,,, mailing a check. Just sayin'"

Through all of this, NONE of us has forgotten Alice. SoCo and everyone who is working with them in any way have not stopped or given up. There are a lot of things going on behind the scenes that Scott can't talk or write about due to legalities, the word is still spreading and the prayers are still going up! Here's what Scott wrote recently: "There is an Army that is coming. One that will fight for the rights and protection of the animals in ways that no other has done. This Army has been tried and tested yet has not faltered. This Army is fearless, determined and dedicated. This Army will bring a new day in animal protection.
Watch for more details in the coming days."

If you would like to help with donations of time, money, materials, or services of any kind, please go to "SoCo Rescue" on Facebook, "like" the page and leave a message for Scott or Terry. The more help they get, the faster they can get back to the work God intended them for: Rescuing animals!
Thank all of you and God bless you also.

The photo is of Scott and Terry at the "Free Alice Now" rally that was held in front of the court house in Toombs Co., Georgia.

I believe that this shows just how dedicated to rescuing dogs Scott really is. How many rescues do you know that would put in the time, effort, patience and love that it will take to get this dog to a point where he will be adoptable?

Meet Freight Train, one of the dogs we kept. Freight Train is not a very socialable fellow to most people, in fact he seems to have a very limited number of friends, myself being the only one. Freight Train did have a girl friend, but she's now receiving care at Pet Rescues by Judy.
I kept Freight Train because I know he would not have been adoptable. He would fit into that group of dogs that would be euthanized at most shelters. Freight Train came to us from the Macon train depot, where he and his former female friend were strays. When he arrived, he was all matted, limping on one leg, not using another and had puss from a wound on his worst leg. He looked as if he had been hit by a freight train!
I have been working with Freight Train. Today, he was very playful and even allowed me to give him a belly rub!
You watch, ole Freight Train will be adoptable one day!