> > > From: "LSM" 

> > > > Dear MOreRescuers,

> > > > Please read this carefully - it is a long and somewhat
> > complicated series of events.
> > > > I read the cross-post on MOreRescue about Poogie and
> > Albert, the Muffin Diabetic List raffle, and the questions
> > the Muffin List is asking about a rescue in MS calling itself
> > Little Bit O' Heaven and the Rainbow Connection, run by
> > Marci Huval or Chatfield and Bev Greenwood.
> >
> > There are members of MOreRescue who are acquainted
> > with this group, but some of the newer members may not be.
> > I have considered long and hard whether to post publicly
> > about some of our shared "history" with Little Bit O' Heaven
> > (LBOH), and have double-checked the reports to make sure
> > the facts are adequately documented and up to date. I feel
> > this information needs to be presented objectively and each
> > reader may then come to his own conclusions.
> >
> > There was a thread on this list about six weeks ago
> > in which several list members came forth to state they
> > no longer "do business" with LBOH. I was one of them
> > and, like the others, I did not elaborate on my reasons.
> > There had been some things that didn't directly affect dogs'
> > welfare - ex. a St. Bernard crate LBOH reported had been
> > "lost in shipping" along with the insurance reimbursement
> > (Marie), my own Adobe disk LBOH borrowed and wrote they
> > had mailed back on May 18 but which is still "lost in the mail",
> > and bail-out & vet fees that are still owed (Kelly). But these
> > matters didn't specifically affect the welfare of actual dogs,
> > and I guess we all considered them more in the category of
> > gossip, so we said nothing. (We would still like to have our
> > things/money returned, though.)
> >
> > But there have been other things which DID involve dogs -
> > more accurately, unanswered questions about specific
> > dogs. I believe now it was a mistake to not share this
> > information with other rescuers, as it seems there may
> > be two more helpless little dogs unaccounted for. And this
> > might have been avoided if the rest of us had had the
> > courage to tell of our experiences earlier.
> >
> > Nancy Mayes has already posted how LBOH made runs
> > from Ovett (southern MS) to as far as St. Louis MO to pick
> > up quantities of mostly unvaccinated and unaltered mill, and
> > occasionally shelter, dogs - as many as 20 at one time. I
> > participated in two of those runs, transporting 12 and 14 dogs
> > per run.
> >
> > On my second run in March of this year there were two Chinese
> > Cresteds headed to Victoria King in FL. One was a 12 year-old
> > senior with a large umbilical hernia. Her name was Gabby.
> > The other was a younger, typey, unaltered female named Freya.
> > There are hard-copy pre-run list posts and ICQ transcripts in which
> > LBOH refers to both Gabby and Freya as "Victoria's Cresteds" and
> > discusses details of the last leg of these girls' run from Ovett on to
> > Victoria in FL.
> >
> > Many of you will remember that Freya never made it to FL. LBOH
> > took her off that run and kept her over Victoria's most vigorous
> > objections. Consequently, Victoria stripped LBOH of their Hero's
> > Waggin Train membership, citing reasons of ethics. And for taking
> > this public stand, Victoria was thrown off the old MoRescue list by
> > the listowner, Betsy Bentz of St. Louis. I wrote to LBOH at the time,
> > asking them to please reconsider. They replied that Freya had been
> > coming to them all along and they were going to keep her. This
> > surprised me because I knew for a fact that there had been a
> > discussion mid-run (during dinner in Memphis) between them
> > about what Victoria would do and how mad would she be IF they
> > took one of HER Cresteds. I was there and I heard it. The gist
> > of it was "what could Victoria actually DO to us if we keep Freya
> > without her permission?". This conversation, plus the pre-Run
> > list posts and ICQ transcripts, led me to conclude that Freya had
> > in fact been destined for Victoria in Fl from the onset of that run,
> > as had been my understanding from all the correspondences setting
> > up the run itself. It turned out that some people believed one
> > story and some believed the other, but I was there and I know
> > what said in this particular conversation.
> >
> > Incidentally, Nancy Mayes described list posts about more than
> > one killing spree at LBOH. Seven of their animals (special needs
> > and seniors, according to their own reports at the time) were killed
> > in a dog fight during the weekend of this Freya run. There are
> > private posts from LBOH verifying this, in addition to the list posts
> > Nancy has spoken of already.
> >
> > Kelly Cruzan has also posted her experience in sending a female
> > Springer Spaniel bailed from the Joplin, MO, shelter to Little
> > Bit O' Heaven on one of these runs. LBOH opted out of having
> > this intact girl spayed in Missouri by Kelly (where it would have
> > been inexpensive), telling her they would prefer to have it done
> > back home in Ovett. When Kelly saw, quite by chance on another
> > list, that they had placed the Springer, she asked them about it.
> > They told her that an elderly couple traveling through Ovett in
> > a motor home had adopted her, and no, LBOH had not had her
> > spayed before adopting her out, and no, they did not know the
> > name or address of the elderly couple, and no, Kelly has still not
> > received their reimbursement for the shelter bail-out fee or rabies
> > shot required for traveling, even though she was told the "traveling
> > senior citizens" had made a donation to LBOH for this adoption.
> > Kelly still wants to know where her Springer went.
> >
> > I have also gotten an update from Hollie Adcock about her
> > experience. About a year ago she let LBOH adopt unaltered
> > male and female Pugs named Isaac & Autumn. Hollie was told
> > they loved Pugs and had always wanted one, and these two
> > would stay with them permanently as their "personal pets".
> > Hollie says they didn't want any vet work done up in Missouri,
> > saying they'd prefer to wait until they got them home to their
> > vet in MS. However, Hollie went ahead and got Autumn &
> > Isaac their shots and had them treated for their skin problems
> > at her own expense just because these things were needed.
> > She did not ask for, or expect, reimbursement under the
> > circumstances since LBOH would not authorize this care.
> > Hollie did not have them neutered/spayed prior to transport.
> >
> > LBOH regularly wrote Hollie with updates about Autumn & Isaac
> > and their antics right up to September of this year, and Hollie had
> > every reason to believe her dogs were in their home and doing well.
> >
> > I'll digress here a moment. In early September, I had a phone call
> > from a Pug rescue woman near Memphis who was extremely upset.
> > Her name was Marion Goyer. She had been contacted by LBOH in
> > mid-summer about a Pug she had available named Nash. She was
> > told they "had always wanted a Pug" and didn't have one. They
> > sounded good and their website looked good, so she and two others
> > drove Nash all the way to them in Mississippi. She saw no Pugs
> > there during this visit and they repeated that they did not have
> > any Pugs. All three of the visitors have written to corroborate
> > what was said and that there were no Pugs at LBOH. (Hollie was
> > still getting e-mails long after this from LBOH telling her how
> > well Autumn & Isaac were doing at their house.)
> >
> > Within two weeks of Marion's delivering him to Little Bit of Heaven,
> > Nash was dead. LBOH told Marion that Nash died of a collapsed
> > trachea. She asked for a necropsy. She was told one was performed.
> > Time passed and she asked for the report. She was told it was
> > "in the mail". She continued to press them, and was told it must have
> > gotten "lost in the mail". She asked for the name & phone number
> > of the vet who performed it and LBOH refused to disclose the
> > information to her. She began asking in mid-summer, and to
> > date has not received any of the vet information she has repeatedly
> > requested. Marion still wants to know what really happened to Nash.
> >
> > Of course, with Marion calling around so upset about Nash, Hollie heard
> > of it and they connected. Hollie learned that there were no Pugs at LBOH
> > in mid-summer. She was disturbed and contacted LBOH trying to find
> > out what they had done with her Pugs. LBOH told her that Isaac &
> > Autumn were still there at Little Bit O' Heaven and the other people didn't
> > know what they were talking about. Witnesses still say they are not there.
> > Hollie has asked for pictures or some proof they are still there, proof they
> > were altered if they were placed out, any information at all that could
> > be verified. She has gotten no answers and still wants to know what has
> > happened to Autumn and Isaac.
> >
> > All this had slipped into the background and, since nobody seemed curious
> > why some groups were no longer "doing business" with LBOH, it stayed
> > there, until a familiar-sounding story was posted to the Muffin Diabetic
> > Pet List outlining why their raffle to benefit Little Bit of Heaven in
> > Ovett, MS, was being put on hold pending an investigation. That story
> > was cross-posted to MOreRescue a week or so ago.
> >
> > It seems that there is a trust fund for the medical needs of diabetic pets
> > which is overseen by the 400 member Muffin Diabetic Pet List, owned
> > and moderated by Susan Flewelling. In March of this year, LBOH took
> > into their rescue a diabetic poodle named Poogie and his poodle/shih tzu
> > son, Albert, from this group. The boys were flown to them at the Muffin's
> > expense, and the Muffin fund and individual contributors have been
> > sending donations to LBOH for Poogie's upkeep. The Muffin List had
> > also set up a raffle of a digital camera, the proceeds to be divided equally
> > between Little Bit O' Heaven and the Muffin general fund. (Susan had
> > been told back in May that LBOH had found a wonderful adoptive home
> > for Albert and she had given permission to place him, assuming that they
> > would follow their self-described adoption procedures.) When I read
> > the Muffin raffle post here, I wrote to Susan, thinking perhaps if LBOH
> > did tell her their vet's identity, it might help Marion Goyer find out
> > what happened to Nash.
> >
> > Susan stated LBOH had recently told her Poogie was not well and was being
> > treated by their vet for a newly discovered "heart problem". The Muffins
> > wanted to do a veterinary consult and asked LBOH for the name and
> > phone # of the vet treating Poogie. Susan said she received numerous
> > replies to her many, many e-mails asking for the information, but none
> > of them gave the identity of Poogie's vet in MS. I should probably add
> > here that Susan is located in Canada, which has put her at an even
> > greater disadvantage in obtaining any first-hand knowledge of what
> > is going on in Ovett, MS.
> >
> > She began making some inquiries of other rescue people and as a result
> > decided it might be advisable for the Muffins to follow up on Albert
> > as well, talk with his adopters, and at the very least find out where to
> > send him a little Christmas present from the Muffins. She said LBOH
> > told her they had no way to reach Albert's adoptive family. When she
> > pressed them for info off of Albert's adoption contract, they said they
> > could not give her any details except that they were a "nice elderly
> > couple passing through in a motor home". The Muffins immediately
> > stopped their raffle and all other financial support to Little Bit O' Heaven
> > until they could get some answers. As of this past weekend, they have
> > had no reply from LBOH about either Poogie's vet info or Albert's
> > adoptive family's name and address.
> >
> > However, Susan told me within the last few days Poogie's picture, story,
> > and all reference to him has been removed from the LBOH website, with
> > no explanation to either her or to the Muffin List. The Muffins feel this
> > is something to be worried about. They still want to know what has
> > happened to Albert, and they want to remove Poogie from the Little Bit
> > O' Heaven facility and place him elsewhere.
> >
> > I have tried to be as accurate as I possible in relating these matters.
> > The information supplied by other people is being freely shared, and
> > has been checked, double-checked and documented. It is not our place
> > to tell other rescuers where, or where not, to send dogs. I have never
> > personally been to Little Bit O' Heaven in Ovett, MS, so I cannot
> > comment one way or the other on the facility, on the numbers or
> > conditions of the dogs, or on their animal management practices.
> > I was not present during any of the fatal dog fights. I do not know
> > for a fact if Poogie, Autumn, or Isaac are there, or not there. I do not
> > know the whereabouts of Kelly's Springer, or of Albert. And, I don't
> > know what really happened to Nash. But I do believe that any rescuer
> > who entrusts an animal to another rescue group is entitled to straight,
> > honest answers about that animal. And if they are not getting them,
> > the rest of the rescue community should have the right to know it, come
> > to their own individual conclusions about who is telling the truth and
> > who is not, and make their decisions accordingly.
> >
> > I truly hope that Little Bit O' Heaven will come forward with all the
> > information that has been requested, so that each story can be verified
> > and each of these people can finally put their minds at rest about their
> > dogs. Not returning personal property is a fairly minor matter compared
> > with the well-being of these animals. People are suffering a lot of
> > grief and guilt about the dogs they have sent there, and the continued
> > silence from Little Bit O' Heaven is only serving to fuel everyone's
> > fears and speculations.
> >
> > We are following the Muffin List's efforts to recover Poogie with
> > great interest and I will cross-post any news that appears on their
> > list about either Poogie or Albert. We all hope that it will be good
> > news. Situations like this are a blot on the reputation of every one
> > of us in rescue, and this needs to be cleared up, not swept further
> > under the rug.
> >
> > I give my permission to share this post with any individuals who might
> > be able to help with information about these dogs or any matters
> > related to them. Please be aware that most internet rescue lists do
> > not permit posting of things of this nature when specific rescue
> > organizations or individuals are mentioned by name. For this
> > reason, I ask this not be posted to any public list without permisson in
> > in advance from that listowner, as I have obtained before posting it
> > here.
> >
> > Thank you.
> >
> > Shannon McClure
> > Addie's Safehouse IG Rescue
> > smcclur1@midsouth.rr.com
> >