February 05, 2008

New leash on life: Raiders' Cooper dedicates himself to care of abused and mean dogs at animal shelter.: A heartwarming story about an undeniably dedicated volunteer.

posted by evixir to football at 05:45 PM - 6 comments

This can't be right. Has hell frozen over? A positive story about an NFL player? And he's a Raider? WOW!

posted by docshredder at 07:32 PM on February 05, 2008

I'd never heard of the breed of dog he owns. Turns out they're rather fearsome.

posted by BitterOldPunk at 09:46 PM on February 05, 2008

I love the fact that he was thinking of breeding them for profit originally, but after a couple days of volunteering, he had them neutered immediately. Smart move.

posted by evixir at 11:22 AM on February 06, 2008

Working at an animal shelter is one of the hardest jobs I've ever undertaken, emotionally speaking. The first time you have to hold an animal so a doc can give them euthenasia drugs is an unforgettable experience, no matter how badly you wish you could forget it. Actually, every time you have to do that is pretty horrible, but the first time for me was the worst. Props to Cooper for doing what he's doing. Pretty work, indeed.

posted by The_Black_Hand at 10:04 AM on February 07, 2008

Check the comments with the story... That Live Wrong is a piece of work

posted by ajaffe at 10:10 AM on February 07, 2008

Ajaffe, you're right. It should make us happy to be members of SpoFi. Which is usually the feeling I get after reading comments from other blogs. As far as the article is concerned, Cooper is doing a great thing. One quote that stood out to me was : "I think I wanted to get the big dogs for a macho thing," Cooper said. "That's not a very educated reason to get a big dog. ... Thank God it got corrected by volunteering here. It probably saved me and my dogs." It might have saved the toddler next door too. Unfortunately, there are many irresponsible dog owners in my locale who own the pit bulls, or mastiffs, or something big and mean purely for social status. But it's very clear that the human is not in control. Dangerous thing for everyone included, dog as well. I hope others can learn from Cooper's example.

posted by BoKnows at 10:30 AM on February 07, 2008

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