Stefan Bechtel - DogTown: Tales of Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Redemption

I raised some eyebrows when I thanked my dogs when I accepted my Golden Globe for Best Actor in The Wrestler. I said, Id like to thank all my dogs. The ones that are here, the ones that arent here anymore. Because sometimes, when a mans alone, thats all youve got is your dog. And theyve meant the world to me. It was the truth, and I was thanking my best friends.

No bones about it, I am an animal lover, and, more than that, I have been an advocate for animals when they have needed a voice, so I was pleased to have this opportunity to write a few words about Best Friends Animal Society and DogTown. I know from personal experience how much a dog gives and how deeply the bond that they create with us affects our lives and our well being. Thats why its truly painful to me to know that millions of beautiful dogs are dying in shelters across the country every year for no good reason.

I believe in second chances, and who deserves a second chance more than a dog who is just down on his or her luck? And of course, thats what DogTown is all about and why National Geographics coverage of Best Friends work on television and now in this book is so important.

There are a few very simple things that we can all learn from dogs that would make the world a better placeloyalty, commitment, trust and unembarrassed affection are just a few. If you like dogs, youll love DogTown.

Mickey Rourke

Actor and Best Friends Member

I will never forget the day when, standing on the porch of the Old Town Hall, one of the buildings at Dogtown, a chink of light shone through my consciousness, and in a flash, I could see Dogtown through the eyes of the dogs. I saw that they had created their own society in spite of our attempts to control every aspect of their lives. It was easy to assume that we humans were calling all the shots. After all, we arranged who lived with whom, what time food appeared, and when cleanup happened. But what became clear to me in that instant was that at Dogtown, dogs rule.

I am one of the co-founders of Best Friends and Dogtowns first manager. When we were fortunate enough to build our facility in Kanab, Utah, we knew it was a special opportunity to change how dogs were sheltered. Right from the beginning, all of us knew we didnt want to replicate the concrete-and-wire prisons of traditional shelters at Dogtown. We all had groups of dogs living in our homes, so why not have them live in groups at the sanctuary? As a result, we came up with new building designs to accommodate dogs living in family groups.

I had always been fascinated by the interactions and relationships between dogs. Dogs speak a different language, and it takes a while for people to pick up on the subtleties. But once those of us who started Dogtown got the hang of it, we started to see how they relate to each other, who leads, who follows, who hangs back, and who needs some manners. We had to learn new dog-to-dog introduction skills to keep things peaceful in their groups. And we had to become adept interpreters of this languagefor instance, when is a growl a good thing, and when is it a bad thing? When does that bark mean Hello, lets play! or Get out of my face!?

We learned that each dog presents a set of behaviors different enough from another to be unique. What works for one dog might not work for another. Its easy to want to group dogs by breed, by general characteristics, by size, even by color, but if you are around dogs long enough, you get to see that no two dogs are alike. This has kept us on our toes from day one.

And not only do we help the dogs, the dogs teach each other. A frightened dog would arrive, and within a short time he or she would calm down after being around some other residents. I knew that the others passed the word: They feed you regularly, No one yells at you, and You get to run around freeno chains here. We will never know all of the situations dogs have had to deal with in the past, but we know that Dogtown will be a new beginning for each one of them.

Dogtown grew and grew over the years. Residents came and went. Most left to go to new homes, while some lived their whole lives at the sanctuary. The place became a haven for the dogs no one else wanted to deal with for either medical or behavioral reasons. A visiting dog trainer remarked that we had a university here. Because the dogs come from such a wide variety of situations, a student of dogs would have enough material to study for a lifetime.

Indeed, dogs do rule at Dogtown. Being part of their lives is a privilege. Helping to make this a better world for them is an obligation. They deserve the very best from us as we share this time together.

Faith Maloney, Animal Care Consultant

Best Friends Animal Society

Rescued pit bull Georgia cuddles with John Garcia, her trainer at Dogtown.

J ohn Garcia is under attack. With single-minded focus, a playful, tawny pit bull named Georgia is staging the assault of a thousand licks. She launched the affectionate assault as John, her trainer at Best Friends Dogtown, entered her enclosure, and now her wriggling, joyful body pushes its way through the 27-year-olds upraised forearms to find his face with her warm, wet tongue. Then she playfully pins his arms and licks some more.

Oh, baby! Oh, darlin! Youre killin me! John laughs, breathlessly. Oh, Georgia! But Georgia does not stop. She seems intent on covering every square inch of John with her tongue, finding his ears, his nose, his cheeks, his lips. John cannot stop laughing and surrenders to her affection. Victory secured, Georgia joyfully bounds and jumps around him, her body dancing with happiness. Its plain to see that Georgia and John share a special bond, one that will be crucial in helping her overcome a traumatic past.

Georgia first came to Dogtown in January 2008. She and 21 other dogs were rescued from a large dogfighting operation run by former NFL quarterback Michael Vick. Immediately, the big brown dogs relationship with John Garcia was special: From day one, I just absolutely loved Georgia, John says. And the big dog appeared to return the feeling: People joked that John must have been carrying a pork chop in his pocket, the way Georgia followed him around.