Day 1

Today was a very long day. The crew and producer of the 48 hours show came to my apartment at 8:30 am. They wanted to tape me packing and interacting with my animals at home. We then picked up the van and headed to Animal Haven to pick up Amada, Ziggy, and Brat as well as to meet our hitchhiker, Buddy. Buddy is from Long Beach Humane Society. We pack the food, bowls, and everything else we needed and we were off. The first crew stayed with me until we arrived in Columbus, Ohio. That means we drove 530 miles today. It is now 3:30 am and I just finished getting the dogs fed and walked and to bed for the few hours. I want to make it to Kansas City tomorrow so I will meet the crew by 10:00 am. The van is wonderful. LaBoit Inc., who built it, did a great job. It was great to be able to know that the dogs were safe while we drove this far. I spent a great deal of time with Aaron the photojournalist. The sound guy was great and I hope I get to meet them both again in NY. He was so great. He wasn't feeling well but wow what a trooper. They were both great company.

Day 2

Well the crew followed me to the Ohio border where they left me. Another crew will meet me in Denver so I had some solitude today. We stopped a number of times. I started to walk the dogs in groups of two and they seem to like that. Brat and Buddy really like to stay out and boy if Buddy is not ready to get on the van there is no moving him. Ziggy has really bonded to me and he stays at my side the entire time. Amanda liked going for walks when there is not any traffic or other people around. 

I drove through a lot of rain at times so hard we had to pull off the road. When we (the dogs and I) got to Kansas City at 2:00 am it was pouring out and it began to thunder and lighting. We finally found a motel that I could park the van directly in front of a room and try to get a few hours sleep. I got really worried that the thunder would frighten the dogs so although the motel didn't allow dogs I quietly brought them in which was not easy considering I was staying in the room right next to the office. Well that was not a good move. Brat and Buddy kept trying to be the last to pee on the corner of the bed. Amanda and Ziggy could not find a place to settle down and Buddy started to bark. Well I quickly got them back on the van and Ziggy and Amanda seemed to feel more secure in what has become their new home. I gave them all some water and went back to my room. Buddy started to bark so I left my room door open to hear him. Well the motel manager called me and asked me if I had a dog in the room. I told him no but they are in the van. He reported that some of the other guests are complaining. Well I guess it was pretty late. He did finally settle down. I just couldn't get on the road again.

Day 3

The ride from Kansas City to Minturn, Colorado was smooth. We made great time. If you have never driven through the mountains for Colorado I highly recommend it. Fantastic! There are these runaway truck roads that go up a hill so that trucks have a way to stop if the brakes go. The dogs are in a real routine now. They are doing really well. Much better than I expected. Mark and Tricie, I hope I spelled that right, the next crew contacted me and we agreed to meet in Minturn and I (we) stayed at the Minturn Inn. That was an incredible treat. It was a nice quiet town, which was great for the dogs especially Amanda, and the room had a Jacuzzi tub. I didn't realize how tight I was from driving. After getting the dogs their dinner and walked I took a long hot bath and fell right to sleep. That is why this post is not being written till the morning. 

Day 4

Well we got off to a good start today but found I had a flat tire when we got to Grand Junction. We found a tire store and the crew taped the event of changing the tire. It helps having a camera crew with you. The entire thing took about 20 min. The crew then took off in their plane to Kanab and I drove through Utah almost getting to Best Friends. It was so late that I stayed about 15 miles out of town. The moon was full and bright and it was a glorious drive. We found lots of great quiet places to walk and the dogs, especially Ziggy and Amanda, were much more comfortable talking walks when no one was around. The crew met me where I was staying so that they can follow me into Best Friends. I am getting tired so I will stop writing now. Till tomorrow!

Day 5

We made it into Best Friends by 10:30 am. The dogs all had health exams and I filled the staff in on who they are. Sherry, who runs dog town, was great. The plan is to keep the dogs in the hospital for the day and tomorrow morning place them in their new home. They really got a kick out of the dogs. Sherry felt they could place Brat and Buddy easily and she had good hopes for Ziggy and Amanda. I also briefly met the two dogs that are coming back to NY with me. So cute. More on them later. I checked into my hotel in Kanab and went back to take them for a group walk with some staff member. They seem to be doing well. Tonight Sirius and Anne, two of Best Friends original founders held a dinner party for the 48 Hours crew and me. It was really nice to spend some down time with them. Tomorrow is another big day. I am really looking forward to seeing how they fit in at Best Friends and getting to know the new dogs.

Day 6

I let myself wake up whenever my body wanted to which was still too early. 8:00 am New York time. So I made some calls that I had neglected and sent some e-mails and I went off to Best Friends. It was perfect timing since as I drove up to dogtown the 48 Hours crew was ready for me. They wanted to tape Sherry showing me where the dogs were placed and how they are doing. As we walked to the area that Ziggy, Brat and Amada were staying Ziggy immediately became excited. He seemed very stressed as if he was saying, "OK, good, you're here now take me with you." It really made me sad and it was hard to see him that way. I do know intellectually that he will get very attached to his new caretakers and he will settle in, but it was still hard. Brat was doing the Brat dance and seemed like Brat, happy go lucky. Seeing Amanda made the trip worth it. She was relaxed, lying under a tree. When I walked in the space she calmly came over to me to be pet and she let Sherry give her attention as well. She seemed so much more confident. Just incredible. We then went to see Buddy who was in his glory with two sisters. Nice situation for an older gentleman. 

I then went to spend some time with Mina and Corgette. They are so sweet. They will get homes quickly in NY. After lunch the cameraman, Mark, found a tick bite and I told them about the two tick bites I got in Ohio. Well, due to the fear of Lymes disease we went to the local clinic and got put on two weeks of antibiotics. I don't like talking them but I guess it is better than being out of commission for 2 months. 

This evening I made dinner at Francis and Silva's house. They are also part of the group of founding members. They have been my personal connection to BF and they have grown very dear to me. Being Italian I made too much food and we invited some other people to join us. Jana was the only one who took us up on the offer. It was great to get to know her a bit more. She is from the boogie down BRONX. She is also a founding member of BF. I don't usually drink but Francis makes a mean Margarita. We had a great evening. 

Day 7

I didn't go see our guys again today because I didn't want to stress Ziggy. I did hear that he ran up to his new caretaker and took a treat. A great first step. I couldn't completely stay away so I kind of peeked around the Dog Town building and watched Ziggy for a few minutes. It was hard to not go and hug him but I know it was best for him not to.

I spent some more time with Mina and Corgette and when to lunch at Best Friends to say goodbye to my old and new friends here. Then we were off. 48 Hours taped us loading the dogs on and at the last minute Amy asked if I could transport an older deaf and almost blind Cocker Spaniel named Jack to his new home in Pennsylvania. How could I say no. What a sweet dog. So we were off.

Well on our way to Kansas City Jack kept howling and we kept stopping to let him know someone was still there. Before we got to Kansas City we had another flat tire and being that it was Sunday in Lawrence, Kansas there was no where to get it fixed so that is where we stayed our first night. We found a Comfort Inn that allowed dogs after checking three other hotels. I ordered in Chinese food and we all had a good nights sleep. All three dogs were great. We had a few walks and no one had an accident in the hotel, not even the 6 month old, Mina. She was afraid to get on the bed so I helped her up then she was afraid to get down. 

Day 8

The tire place in town opened at 10 am and we were sure to get there at 9:45. Well, there is a real difference between getting a tire changed with and without a camera crew. We didn't get out of there until noon. 

We got about 100 miles toward our next destination, Columbus, OH, when we stopped for gas and a walk break. My credit card didn't work in the prepay at the pump and when I asked inside they said just to press pay inside and go ahead and pump the gas. They noted that this has happened a few other times today. Well I filled up with about $75 worth of gas and went in to pay. The card came up to call American Express and they began to ask me about some charges from Kanab. It turns out that someone got hold of my credit card number and has been having a good time there. They had to cancel the card right away and this meant I couldn't pay for gas or my next hotel night. American Express came to the rescue. They manually approved the gas and arranged for a new card to be delivered to the hotel I was planning to stay at in Columbus, OH.

We got into Columbus at 2:30 am but the Days Inn allowed pets so I was relieved. It turns out that they charge and extra $25 per pet. They gave me a break and only charged me an extra $50 that night. That was still a lot of money but I was exhausted and felt like I had to do it. 

Day 9

LaBoit Inc., who made our van (see the outside, see the inside), came to pick up the unit to go over some things on it. It turns out that the back end was messed up from the flats and they took care of everything. Even washed it for me. This took some time so we didn't get on the road until almost 5:00pm. I was going to meet the person who is adopting Jack in Pennsylvania and our wires got crossed. I ended up taking a different route than she thought and I was 2 hours away from her. She was a trooper. I stopped in Pennsylvania for the night. She took her daughter to her father's house and she and a friend drove in the middle of the night to come get him. He will have a great home.
posted by Marcello Forte 9:52 PM
 

Day 10

Last day of the trip. Yea!!!!!! Mina, Corgette and I were off to Animal Haven. We made it in by 2:00 pm and we got them settled in. Corgette's spay scare ended up looking infected so we started her on medication. They both seemed a little disorganized and scared of all the new city sounds. I spent some time with them in their room. Cindy took them for a walk and since the shelter is open late on Tuesday's they kept getting lots of attention from everyone. I left to drop our van off in its temporary parking place in Newark, NJ. Oh, by the way if anyone has a lead on a secure parking spot in Queens please e-mail me. I cleaned the van up so that it would be ready for the Bark Breakfast at the Regency Hotel and came home. Ben and my dogs came to pick me up. It was great to see them all. It has been a long, exhausting trip and I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. Thanks for checking out my diary and I look forward to getting feedback from everyone.