Babyboys Legacy Lives On

Our Story and why we turn purple every year on

June 24-30

Terri Davis is one of those people who has fought her way through depression, tears and heartache to change the bad things that happen into good.  The memory of Babyboy has touched thousands of lives and raised awareness against animal abuse, not only all over the country, but the world.  Babyboy's memory has spurred Terri to become an advocate for animal rights which has rescued countless dogs from abuse and homelessness.  She also provides comfort and counseling for those suffering from the loss of beloved animal companions.  (Terri and her fellow volunteers rescued Buford and Billy Bob from death row in Alabama, who were recently adopted into ABC families.)

In 2006 Terri brought the Basset Hound puppy, Babyboy, home for her two daughters.  Rebecca was 12 and Courtney was 13.  As any Basset savvy person knows Bassets and kids are made for each other.  Her daughters bonded with their new puppy.  Terri herself loved Babyboy as a son.  In Terri's own words: "He was with me through my darkest time in life and words can’t explain the bond we shared. That bond of love will never be broken."  Babyboy was coddled and loved as a beloved son.  He was never left outside and slept indoors with her children.

In June of 2008, Babyboy got loose from the house through an open door.  We all know that sick, frightening, gut-wrenching feeling when we notice a beloved pet is missing.  Most of the time everything turns out ok and we renew our efforts to keep the dog protected in our home or pens.  In Terri's case the nightmare became reality.  Babyboy, loose for the first and only time, wandered into a neighbor's yard where he was shot in the back and killed.  An eyewitness account said he suffered for about five minutes before passing away.  The vet who examined him said that had he lived he never would have walked again as the bullet hit his lower back in his spine.  The angle of the shot showed that Babyboy had been walking away from the shooter.

Terri and her children were distraught and traumatized.  Becca who shared a special bond with Babyboy was inconsolable and Terri sat up with her many nights trying to comfort her.  Terri herself suffered illness from depression and post-traumatic-stress disorder.  They all missed Babyboy and grieved for his passing.  They wanted his life to have some meaning and to be remembered.

Babyboy's killer admitted to shooting the Basset Hound and Terri embarked on a two year long fight to gain justice for Babyboy in the courts.  Animal cruelty can be a felony crime in Alabama and is, at the very least, a Class B misdemeanor.  Terri's intent was to hold the shooter responsible for the killing of a beloved family member.  When no criminal charges were pressed, Terri embarked on a civil suit endeavoring to provide some comfort and closure for her family to this terrible event.  As things turned out the courts did not grant her family the justice they sought and the case was settled.  However, Babyboy's murder changed the lives of Terri and her family forever.

During this process Terri learned a great deal about animal cruelty.  Turning to Facebook to connect with others who had been victims of animal cruelty she met literally thousands of folk who shared her pain.  She began to appreciate the plight of unwanted animals and set out to make a difference in their lives.  The list of her achievements since 2008 is very long (I'm sure I will miss some so take a look for yourself.)  I think that Babyboy must be very pleased at the legacy he has left the world.

Over 1,700 people attended a memorial for Babyboy on June 28, 2011 and Terri set up Babyboy's Memorial on Facebook.   It includes pictures and videos of Babyboy in his loving home.  In response to the overwhelming interest in and support for Babyboy's story, Terri set up The Official Voice for the Voiceless which reports stories of animals who were the victims of abuse and cruelty.  This site boasts more than 7,936 members and truly is their voice that tells the stories that otherwise would never be heard.

In 2008 Terri set up The Voice for the Voiceless  Blog and  Rainbow Bridge &, Paws on My Heart,facebook groups for people whose animals lost their lives to violent crime.  The blogs received 100,000 views in the first year and her Rainbow bridge page has more than 7,760 members and one of the most loving and friendly pet loss groups on facebook. In 2010  She began making beautiful jewelry and keepsake memorials for families grieving the loss of beloved animals.  She holds auctions for her memorial jewelry (Jewelry 2 Benefit Paws) and rainbow bridge artwork and donates the proceeds to Basset Hound rescues across the country she has also donated many items to rescues across the U.S. and the rescues get 100% of what ever the item brings..  Many grieving families gain comfort through Terri's wonderful artwork.In 2012 she put her talent to the test and began custom painting basset hound charms to look exactly like your dog . You can view all her Jewelry designs here                                         

JEWELRY FOR  ANIMAL LOVERS  AND

 RAINBOW BRIDGE CREATIONS Designs by Terri

She set up a Facebook Cause site to Turn FB Purple for 1 Week to Raise Awareness Against Animal Abuse.  Its mission is to raise awareness globally and to take a stand against animal cruelty by using a purple profile picture and tying purple ribbons around your mailbox or trees..  This Cause Page had an amazing 426,543 members to date from all over the world, and is growing daily.  The week she chose to change Facebook profiles purple is the week of Babyboy's shooting - June 24-30th.

Terri is also very involved in local rescue of homeless animals and her own house is always full.  She started a local group called  Basset Hound Rescuers AL and Surround States  They are a group of hound lovers who work tirelessly for homeless and abused Bassets and are saving as many lives as they possibly can without funding of any kind.  In appreciation to ABC for their work in the March Southern transport (which brought Buford, Billy Bob and six other houndies to NY to find their forever homes) Terri set up the page Cause to Raise Funds for ABC Basset Hound Rescue of NY which has raised $475 for ABC Basset Rescue of NY

Terri's philanthropy through her Cause page is so successful mainly due to the huge member base her 'Raise Awareness' page  now boasts.  In 2011  Terri was struck by the awful losses AL suffered in the terrible March storms and tornadoes.  She came across the now famous photo of Greg Cook finding his dog Coco alive in his home, which was leveled to the ground in a tornado. That photo, depicting the love of a man for his dog, prompted Terri to create a Cause page to raise funds for Mr. Cook which raised an amazing $2,400.  Here is a video of Terri Delivering Donation to Mr. Cook.

There are way too many rescue efforts Terri has been involved in to mention here but one more that really touched our hearts was for the House of Puddles, a nonprofit sanctuary for senior, homeless Basset Hounds.  Terri's Cause page for the Basset Hound Retirement Home raised almost $920 for their rescue. 

To date Terri has raised over $ 10,000  for the Causes she has championed.  Quite an amazing achievement for one person!  You can view her Causes at Turn FB Purple to Raise Awareness Against Animal Abuse.

Terri's campaign against animal abuse has spread far and wide.  Maria Daines is a multi-award winning international vocalist and songwriter who was deeply touched by Babyboy's story.  Her music is called United for Animals.  Maria calls her music 'rock for the voiceless'.  Her band opened for US artist Pink, at Cardiff International Arena for the Party For Animals World Wide concert in August 2007. The concert raised over £90,000 for six animal welfare charities. Based in the UK, Maria and her guitarist/ producer Paul Killington, write songs in many genres, including rock, country, folk, blues and soul.  Here is a link to Maria Daines website - "Rock for the Good Times, Blues for the Bad, Music for the Soul."  On her website Maria describes her mission, "I endeavour to give voiceless beings songs to make their plight visible and their stories heard, the fight to overcome injustice and cruelty must never be silent! Compassion is the vital link that makes life bearable when all else fails." They donate their music CDs to rescues around the world to raise funds for rescue.  Daines/Killington wrote and produced this beautiful song In Memory of Babyboy.

The following article was published on Terri and Babyboy's storyDogasaur.com article - 'Animal Cruelty: What Can We Do To Stop It' (5/29/2011).

Terri's remarkable journey from the very pit of animal cruelty is an inspiration and example for animal rescuers everywhere.  Her love and devotion for her Basset Hound Babyboy has raised awareness against animal cruelty all over the world.  The comments on these sites are amazing.  So many people connected with Babyboy's story and now keep him in loving memory.  A fitting legacy for a loving Basset Hound who had a very short life that ended in tragedy, but a very long reach that is educating and comforting thousands.  All we can say is, thank you Terri for making such a difference in the lives of our beloved homeless hounds.

In Loving Memory of Babyboy.  We will always remember you.

                                                                                        Article by Bunny Corti

                                                                                                         

Popular Berlin polar bear found dead in mysterious circumstances

Knut lived in Berlin's zoo. He was 4 and raised by zookeepers since a cub after his mother rejected him

Now reports say the attention-loving polar bear was found dead in a pool in his cage at the Zoologischer Garten Berlin Saturday, with no immediate cause of death announced.

This is awful," said Berlin's mayor Klaus Wowereit said, according to the Sydney (Australia) Herald. "We had all taken him to our hearts. He was the star of the Berlin Zoo."

Most reports say Knut was alone when he died, as visitors watched him suddenly fall into the water. The celebrity news site TMZ.com carried news of his death and says People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals' German branch had previously complained that his mother and other bears were tormenting Knut. And a PETA rep told TMZ that polar bears don't belong in captivity.

Knut was a celebrity, who by all accounts seemed to love the limelight. After his debut at the popular zoo, he became its star attraction, raising revenue and spawning toys, DVDs and more. He was not diagnosed as being ill at the time, reports say. An investigation into the cause of his death is underway.

Eerily, his beloved keeper, Thomas Doerflein (shown above), also died at an early age. Doerflein died at 44 in 2008 in his apartment after he had reared the cub and slept by its side, but later was told no longer to play or wrestle with Knut, who was becoming an adult polar bear and considered too dangerous to interact with closely. Doerflein reportedly suffered a heart attack. Knut acted morose after his friend's death.

Other Reports 
BERLIN – Berlin's beloved polar bear Knut, an international star who as a cuddly, fluffy cub graced magazine covers, movies and merchandise, died Saturday. His death at the young age of four took zookeepers and animal experts by surprise.
The celebrity bear died suddenly in his compound at the Berlin Zoo on Saturday afternoon, bear keeper Heiner Kloes told The Associated Press. He waded into the water in his enclosure before having a short spasm and then dying in front of hundreds of zoo visitors.

While the life expectancy of polar bear in the wild is between 15 and 20 years, animals in captivity can live even longer because they are not exposed to hunger, thirst or infections. A postmortem will be conducted on Monday to try to pinpoint the cause of death, Kloes said.

"He certainly did not die of old age," Thomas Pietsch from the Vier Pfoten group for the prevention of cruelty to animals told German news agency DAPD.

His death was met by an immediate outpouring of sorrow. As the news of Knut's death spread through the city, more Knut fans showed up at the zoo, assembling in front of the bear compound to mourn his loss.

Berlin Mayor Klaus Wowereit called Knut's death "awful," telling the B.Z. daily, "we all held him so dear."

"He was the star of the Berlin zoos," he said.

Abandoned at birth on December 5, 2006, along with his twin brother, who only survived a couple of days, Knut first attracted attention when his main caregiver, Thomas Doerflein, camped out at the zoo to give the button-eyed cub his bottle every two hours. Doerflein cuddled and played with him at daily public appearances to the delight of thousands of people who came to watch.

Fan clubs sprung up across the globe, including in Japan, the United States and Germany. Fans followed his every move, including his weight battle — he had a weakness for croissants — or plans to move to a different zoo.

"Knutmania" led to a 2007 Vanity Fair cover with actor Leonardo DiCaprio shot by photographer Annie Leibovitz, a film and plush likenesses. Though the zoo has never released exact numbers, Knut merchandise including postcards, key chains, candy and stuffed Knuts have brought in hundreds of thousands of euros.

He was so adored, and profitable, Berlin's zoo paid some euro430,000 ($600,000) to the Neumuenster zoo to settle a financial dispute over his ownership. Neumuenster owns Knut's father and had insisted it was the legal owner of Knut, the elder bear's first offspring.

No longer a cub, Knut grew rapidly, weighing a hulking 440-pounds (200-kilograms) by age two, and trading in white fluff for yellowish fur. Doerflein, the zookeeper who raised him, died in 2008 of a heart attack, earning front page headlines in German newspapaper as "Knut's daddy."

Between 600 and 700 people were at his compound when Knut died, zoo officials said. One visitor said she watched Knut lying on the surface of the water motionless with only his back showing for ten minutes until zookeepers came and fenced off the compound.

"Everybody was asking, 'What's going on, why is Knut not moving?'" said Camilla Verde, a 30-year-old Italian who lives in Berlin.

"All the zoo keepers who put up the fences were so very sad. One of them said, 'He was our baby,'" she said.

Some said they feared Knut had died from all the stress that stardom brings.

"I suspect he died of a heart attack," said Elke Neumann, who had come to Knut's enclosure when she heard of his death. "And I hope the medical officials will be able to confirm that it was because of stress."