By Susan Spisak
During their honeymoon weekend in 2016, rescue advocate Britt Bolnik had an idea—let’s start a dog rescue! Hubbie Todd “Sully” Sullivan, also a rescue advocate, jumped on board—he came up with the name, and they quickly secured their 501(c)(3) status. Their goals are to save bully breeds and their “cousins,” promote responsible dog ownership, make force & fear-free training a core part of their efforts, and educate the public about the breed’s challenges.
In the past almost 10 years, PPR has saved around 900 animals, mostly dogs, but a few cats as well. Most of their adoptable dogs are rescued from a high-kill shelter in Clayton County, Georgia. They also take in local owner surrenders and may get dogs from cruelty cases and criminal seizures of dogs here in Maine.
PPR is a foster-based non-profit and they’re hopeful for more. Britt explained: “We desperately need fosters, and we also are desperately fundraising right now to pay down a $20,000 bill that we accrued in Georgia—partly from some medical cases that we took on, but also larger than normal boarding bills because we couldn’t get fosters opened up here, so we had to keep dogs in Georgia longer than necessary.”
If you’d like to step up and help, know that all expenses are covered, fosters just provide love, a stable environment, and work on basic training (like housebreaking for puppies and simple commands such as sit, stay, and come).
PPR supports their community by offering a free pet food pantry for those in need in Southern Maine. “For the last six or so years, we have done a minimum of three public distributions a month—Lewiston/Auburn, Biddeford, and Steep Falls, in addition to handing out food personally to a handful of veterans and homeless folks around those areas. We are always in need of dry cat food on a constant basis for the food pantry,” she said.
Britt and Sully own The Bark Yard (https://thebarkyard.me/) in South Portland that provides trusted dog care, grooming, boarding, and positive training, and it serves PPR. “It supports us in having an emergency spot for fosters who need boarding, as well as sending both foster and adopted dogs to daycare for socialization and our multiple positive training programs which benefit dogs both before and after adoption.”
They need event volunteers to organize and staff them. They need specific volunteers, most of whom are almost entirely (if not entirely) virtual. They appreciate monetary donations for vet bills. An example of how quickly vet bills add up, two dogs from Georgia, Mary Kate and Ashley, ran over $20,000 this year. For all donation info including Amazon and Chewy Wish Lists, all applications and adoptables, linktr.ee/pittieposserescue.
Support them by attending their events, find them on their Facebook page, facebook.com/pittieposse. For a fun one in the near future, head to Sacred Profane Brewery August 14, 6 to 8 pm, 50 Washington St, Biddeford.
BIGGIE
2 years old
Biggie, Biggie, Biggie, Can't You See? Sometimes Your Smile Just Hypnotizes Me! Meet Biggie, one of the newest faces at Pittie Posse Rescue! At just two years old, this sweet boy found himself on the euthanasia list at a Georgia shelter. But with that irresistible smile, we couldn't leave him behind. Biggie weighs about 60 pounds, is dog-friendly, and is looking for a foster or adopter!
ANGELO
1 year old
This one-year-old sweetheart is ready to grow up with a loving family by his side. Angelo adores people, gets along well with other dogs, and is even cat-friendly! His favorite things include going for walks, chewing on bones, and, of course, enjoying snacks. Angelo is a quick learner, walks nicely on a leash, and is ready to be your loyal companion--all he needs is a human to call his own.
If you're ready to welcome Angelo or Biggie into your home as a foster or adopter, apply today, pittieposserescue.com/adopt/.