Director Story: Gemma

Those who know me know I don't have a pit bull of my own, so it may seem strange that I founded and run a pit bull rescue. I never really intended to start rescuing pit bulls; like so many of my great fellow advocates, I fell into the breed by accident. I never had any loathing for the breed -- I just never had any convictions. I liked dobermans and rottweilers. I don't have any of those, either. My dogs tend to find me, so it's not really a surprise that pit bulls found me too.

My first breed contact came from a pit bull-American Bulldog mix puppy my sister and her boyfriend procured from a person selling puppies on the side of the road. Scrappy fell ill with parvo almost immediately, and my sister diligently nursed him back to health from the brink of death. Scrappy was a very sweet and loving dog, and he put up with a lot of my sister's kissing, squishing, and fussing, which, believe me, says a lot about a dog's tolerance level! I liked Scrappy, Scrappy was a pit bull, thus, in my mind, pit bulls were a pretty decent breed of dog.

My sister Julia and Scrappy. 

When I started looking for volunteer work in Tucson, I contacted a few dog rescues, including a local pit bull rescue. The only rescue that contacted me back was Arizona Poodle Rescue, so for years I fostered and rehabilitated poodles, eventually adopting my own Standard Poodle -- a 5-month-old male who came from a breeder neglect situation and had severe emotional hurdles to overcome. I love the breed, and I loved the people with whom I worked, but my many visits to the county shelter illuminated the real need for people willing to rescue the dogs off the nightly kill list we rescuers were sent each day.

So in 2008 I founded Revamped Rovers, with the idea of taking only dogs that were going to be put down within the next 24 hours. What I got were pit bulls. Oodles of pit bulls. These dogs were all young, friendly, and adaptable; they had just run out of time. Before I knew it, I had three pit bulls and three resident dogs living in my home (Yes, peacefully). What I discovered from these first three dogs were three distinct, wonderful personalities, with one trait in common: Rain (now Sunshine) loved to snuggle, was active and bouncy, and a very quick learner; Meg (now Maggie) also loved to snuggle, was quiet and obedient, and loved all animals -- large and small; Mya (now Brendi) was spunky, feisty, and -- oh yeah -- loved to cuddle.

Meg, my all-time favorite foster 

Now, the sight or mention of a pit bull may strike terror into the hearts of some people -- and I respect that...you are afraid of what you're afraid of, although I do encourage folks to open their minds before making decisions. But a pit bull to me is a ball of snuggles and kisses and tail wags. I've just never met an exception, and this is the original breed description. Pit bulls are a breed bred to adore people, and most of them excel at this.

Somewhere in between volunteering with poodle rescue and founding my own program, I realized that pit bulls had a horrible, undeserved reputation. I started researching and found that the claims offered against the breed were baseless, exaggerated, and sensationalized. It was the moment I realized that these dogs needed a voice that I committed myself to being that voice. For the past three years I've been a champion for the breed. In 2011 I changed the name of the rescue to Tough Love Pit Bull Rescue to better represent the causes for which I advocate. Now, I know dogs bite. I know some dogs injure human beings and other dogs. But I stand by my belief that every dog deserves the chance to be treated as an individual. Every dog deserves a real second chance.

So I will work every day. I will spend my own money. I will write letters, articles, and books on behalf of these dogs. We've all made mistakes. We've all needed to start over. We've all been judged too swiftly. I am hardly the exception. So I urge people to seek their hearts and lend the compassion they'd hope be lent to them to these dogs. I believe my life experiences with dogs led me to do what I do. It isn't easy every day, and some moments are downright gut-wrenching. But I will continue to rescue and advocate for pit bulls every single day until I'm too old and feeble to press on. And I only hope I can inspire others to carry on when I'm gone.

Ted, Jade, Dylan, and I on our way from Louisiana to Seattle.