Welcome to where I am, where my kitchen's always messy, a pot's (or a poet) always about to boil over, a dog is always begging to be fed. Drafts of poems on the counter. Windows filled with leaves. Wind. Clouds moving over the mountains. If you like poetry, books, and music--especially dog howls when a siren unwinds down the hill-- you'll like it here.


MY NEW AUTHOR'S SITE, KATHRYNSTRIPLINGBYER.COM, THAT I MYSELF SET UP THROUGH WEEBLY.COM, IS NOW UP. I HAD FUN CREATING THIS SITE AND WOULD RECOMMEND WEEBLY.COM TO ANYONE INTERESTED IN SETTING UP A WEBSITE. I INVITE YOU TO VISIT MY NEW SITE TO KEEP UP WITH EVENTS RELATED TO MY NEW BOOK.


MY NC POET LAUREATE BLOG, MY LAUREATE'S LASSO, WILL REMAIN UP AS AN ARCHIVE OF NC POETS, GRADES K-INFINITY! I INVITE YOU TO VISIT WHEN YOU FEEL THE NEED TO READ SOME GOOD POEMS.

VISIT MY NEW BLOG, MOUNTAIN WOMAN, WHERE YOU WILL FIND UPDATES ON WHAT'S HAPPENING IN MY KITCHEN, IN THE ENVIRONMENT, IN MY IMAGINATION, IN MY GARDEN, AND AMONG MY MOUNTAIN WOMEN FRIENDS.




Thursday, June 12, 2008

Dog is Love


We have five "rescue dogs," or as I sometimes call them, refugee dogs. Our most recent, Ace, was rescued from the Haywood County Shelter (just hours before he was to be euthanized) by my friend, the poet Mary Adams (see her link below). Mary has become an advocate for homeless animals, housing quite a few of them at her own home until she can find families for them. It's important to support such groups, like our local Animal Relief Fund, and to make sure that our shelters are run properly, with care for the animals kept there, many of whom have been mistreated. Ace is a wonderful dog, loving and intelligent. And drop-dead gorgeous. Why would anyone have wanted to abandon him?

3 comments:

Glenda Council Beall said...

Ace is gorgeous! I'll never have any dog but a rescue from now on.
We started with a poodle who lived 19 years, then a Samoyd, and another Sammy that lived for 13 years, but our next wonderful dog was a six month old pup that had been abandoned at the dam in Clay County. He is beautiful and sweet. I have written poems about Rocky.
Our Shelters everywhere are over run with abandoned animals who need homes. Just like Ace and our Rocky.
Glenda

Kathryn Stripling Byer said...

Glenda, I hope I can meet Rocky someday. I haven't written any poems about Ace, though I did write some with our first ARF dog, Copper, in them. That was back when Cory was in elementary school.
K.

Vicki Lane said...

What a beautiful boy!

It breaks my heart to think of all the dogs and cats people treat as disposable.

Of our six, two are from the animal shelter; one was found on the road where he'd been dumped, and three were from neighbors who no longer wanted or no longer could care for them. In a long and doggy life, I've had both pure bred dogs from breeders and many rescues -- the quality of love is the same. Dog is indeed love.