Call it Survivor Island for Pit Bulls.Alberta vet Pilar Gosselin wanted a place for her pit bulls, who were Hurricane Katrina survivors, so she bought an island.
The place, Rabbit Island, off the Sunshine Coast, is going to the dogs - among them Katrina, Rippie, Louie and Fay.
"It makes sense for the rescued dogs. They can run around and not irritate the neighbourhood," Gosselin said yesterday.
The pit bulls are among 30 dogs that Gosselin rescued in the aftermath of the devastating 2005 hurricane in New Orleans.
The dogs were in bad shape when she found them by the side of an Alabama road, sweltering in crates.
"The dogs suffered tremendously. It was a life-changing experience. I am committed to making their lives better," she said.
She and veterinarian Dave Brace, her life partner, sheltered homeless animals wandering around after the storm.
The 30 dogs were brought back to Alberta and 23 were adopted out. Gosselin calls the four pit bulls among the seven that remain the "special-needs cases."
"They're great with people and they get along with some dogs, but not all. They're not off-leash dogs," said Gosselin, 40, who runs a veterinary practice in Canmore with Brace.
The pair recently bought the 14-hectare island, off the south end of Texada and Lasqueti islands, along with Calgary vet Dave Szentimrey. The rabbit-less isle - named because it looks like a crouching hare from the air - cost $2.2 million. |