New Film: Mine

MINE is the powerful story about the essential bond between humans and animals told against the backdrop of one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history.

MINE explores how tragedy intensifies that bond and is told from the perspective of original guardians, rescuers, and adoptive parents of the voiceless victims of Katrina. These individuals are all connected by two things, the tragic aftermath of Katrina and their love of animals.

In response to an unprecedented crisis, thousands of pets needed to be transported around the country and adopted even when their displaced guardians still desperately wanted them. Meanwhile, many adoptive guardians have forged strong bonds with their new pets, nurturing them back to health from the traumas they suffered during and after the storm.

When two families love the same pet, conflicts inevitably arise over who is the rightful "owner" and what is right for the animal. At the center of this tension are pets who are loved like family, but by law are considered property. This begs the question, who is looking out for the best interest of the animals? Set in a post-Katrina landscape of poverty, loss and moral uncertainty, MINE presents the complexity of an intensely emotional situation that has no simple answers.

A tragedy of this scale reveals the worst and brings out the best in humankind and presents an opportunity for us to bring about meaningful social change. MINE is a compelling, character-driven story that challenges us see the way we treat animals in our society as a reflection of how we treat ourselves -- and each other..." Link

Humane Society seizes nearly 500 dogs in Montague County

By ALEX BRANCH

Authorities on Tuesday seized about 500 dogs housed in wire crates and pens in Montague County, according to the Humane Society of North Texas.

The Montague County Sheriff’s Department served warrants Tuesday morning on about 1,200 acres of private property near Bowie after complaints about the animals’ living conditions and veterinary care, said Sandy Grambort, a supervisor with the Humane Society.

The property owners have for years sold puppies to the public on the Internet and through newspaper ads, Grambort said. The Humane Society has received “complaints on a regular basis.”

“Some complaints date back 10 years,” she said. “We have been unable to verify those complaints in the past and that’s why no action was taken until this point.”

As of noon, the Humane Society officials had counted 496 dogs, she said. “There are at least 25 different breeds on site,” she said. “We have seen primarily small breeds, but some large breeds, too.”

The property owners were apparently large-scale breeders, she said. Wire crates were double stacked in a series of outbuildings. Dogs were also kept in outdoor pens and kennels.
Two dogs were taken to a local veterinarian for “critical care,” she said.

“Some animals had sores and open wounds,” she said. “Some had skin conditions that needed to be diagnosed and treated.”

An official with the Montague County Sheriff’s Department could not immediately be reached for comment.

It was one of the agency’s larger dog seizures, Grambort said, A typical seizure involves 150 to 300 animals. Because of the scale, Chesapeake Energy donated use of a 4,000-square-foot warehouse in the Fort Worth stockyards to temporarily house the animals.

Company vendors spent the holiday weekend connecting plumbing, electricity and air conditioning to the warehouse, as well as mowing and trimming the lawn in anticipation of the animals’ arrival, according to a Chesapeake press statement. PetSmart Charities donated several hundred dog crates, dog food and water bowls.

Volunteers with United Animal Nations will help care for the dogs..." More

United Animal Nations