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CNN Live Saturday

Update On The Chihuahua Crisis In California

Aired August 09, 2003 - 14:45   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


FREDERICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, now to a story we have been following for some time now all summer, a crisis of the Chihuahua. As you may remember, 170 of those little dogs were close to a death sentence at a California shelter well now a judge has spared their lives to turn them over to a group called Chihuahua Rescue.
Well Kimmy Peck is the founder of the organization, and she is Los Angeles with one of those cute little pooches right there. Kimmy, glad you have your friend there, and glad you are able to join us as well.

KIMMY PECK, FOUNDER, CHIHUAHUA RESCUE: Thank you for having us.

WHITFIELD: Take us back a little bit, what was at stake here?

PECK: The lives of over 200 Chihuahuas. And now I think there are about 168 left.

WHITFIELD: So what was at stake is possibly that they would be destroyed as opposed to you being able to help them go to rescue groups and eventually find homes?

PECK: Yes. We went up and had a discussion with the Baldwin Park Animal Shelter to have them released and came to a wonderful agreement. And then the attorney for the breeder came in at the last minute, this all took a month of going back and forth to court, the breeder came in and decided they were not going to release these dogs.

WHITFIELD: And they almost -- or the court almost didn't want to allow these dogs a second leash on life, so to speak, because many were deemed a little too vicious because of their breeding, and their up bringing, et cetra. So you managed to convince them to allow these dogs to live now what's the plan? These dogs are going to go to various rescue groups? I mean eventually to a home.

PECK: Yes. We had a wonderful response from over 400 people in organizations all over the country and Canada. And of those, we screened thoroughly, and have selected 20 organizations to take and work with these dogs in the hopes that in time some sooner than others, they will be able to go into homes.

WHITFIELD: And because they have special needs, that's the route you decided is the smartest to take.

PECK: Oh definitely.

WHITFIELD: I know a lot of individuals have come forward, but you are saying it's too soon to allow individuals to pick them up.

PECK: They are not ready, most of them are not ready to go into homes. Maybe 30 could go into homes.

WHITFIELD: Describe some of the conditions of some of the dogs, what makes them exhibit these vicious behaviors, or not being deemed ready to go to a home, yet?

PECK: Well, you are dealing with a certain breed. The Chihuahua is a high-strung breed to begin with, so if they are coming from a home where they lived in feral packs, and then they went into a shelfter, they were incarcerated since November, if you did this to a person, you can imagine what they would be like. So we just need to show them a lot of love.

WHITFIELD: I'm sorry, go ahead.

PECK: They just need love. We've had much worse, believe me, and we have placed over 5,000 dogs since I have been doing this.

WHITFIELD: Now Monday is a big day. Isn't it?

PECK: It's exciting, you are going to make me cry. Monday we are going to release the first 100. We are going to be there at 1:00, and we are hoping to free 100 of them that day.

WHITFIELD: So Kimmy quickly tell me about the little pooch you have in your arms there.

PECK: This is Cha-Cha. And Cha-Cha started out a couple years ago. She was rescued from a slaughter horse auction. And she was very frightened, and we worked with her. Actually, I have fallen in love with her, and she's my dog. That's Cha-Cha's story.

WHITFIELD: All right, well glad you and Cha-Cha were able to join us and give us the update on all these pooches that now have another chance at living and perhaps will eventually be found to good homes.

Kimmy Peck thanks for joining us from L.A.

PECK: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, good luck to all the little dogs there, too.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired August 9, 2003 - 14:45   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDERICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, now to a story we have been following for some time now all summer, a crisis of the Chihuahua. As you may remember, 170 of those little dogs were close to a death sentence at a California shelter well now a judge has spared their lives to turn them over to a group called Chihuahua Rescue.
Well Kimmy Peck is the founder of the organization, and she is Los Angeles with one of those cute little pooches right there. Kimmy, glad you have your friend there, and glad you are able to join us as well.

KIMMY PECK, FOUNDER, CHIHUAHUA RESCUE: Thank you for having us.

WHITFIELD: Take us back a little bit, what was at stake here?

PECK: The lives of over 200 Chihuahuas. And now I think there are about 168 left.

WHITFIELD: So what was at stake is possibly that they would be destroyed as opposed to you being able to help them go to rescue groups and eventually find homes?

PECK: Yes. We went up and had a discussion with the Baldwin Park Animal Shelter to have them released and came to a wonderful agreement. And then the attorney for the breeder came in at the last minute, this all took a month of going back and forth to court, the breeder came in and decided they were not going to release these dogs.

WHITFIELD: And they almost -- or the court almost didn't want to allow these dogs a second leash on life, so to speak, because many were deemed a little too vicious because of their breeding, and their up bringing, et cetra. So you managed to convince them to allow these dogs to live now what's the plan? These dogs are going to go to various rescue groups? I mean eventually to a home.

PECK: Yes. We had a wonderful response from over 400 people in organizations all over the country and Canada. And of those, we screened thoroughly, and have selected 20 organizations to take and work with these dogs in the hopes that in time some sooner than others, they will be able to go into homes.

WHITFIELD: And because they have special needs, that's the route you decided is the smartest to take.

PECK: Oh definitely.

WHITFIELD: I know a lot of individuals have come forward, but you are saying it's too soon to allow individuals to pick them up.

PECK: They are not ready, most of them are not ready to go into homes. Maybe 30 could go into homes.

WHITFIELD: Describe some of the conditions of some of the dogs, what makes them exhibit these vicious behaviors, or not being deemed ready to go to a home, yet?

PECK: Well, you are dealing with a certain breed. The Chihuahua is a high-strung breed to begin with, so if they are coming from a home where they lived in feral packs, and then they went into a shelfter, they were incarcerated since November, if you did this to a person, you can imagine what they would be like. So we just need to show them a lot of love.

WHITFIELD: I'm sorry, go ahead.

PECK: They just need love. We've had much worse, believe me, and we have placed over 5,000 dogs since I have been doing this.

WHITFIELD: Now Monday is a big day. Isn't it?

PECK: It's exciting, you are going to make me cry. Monday we are going to release the first 100. We are going to be there at 1:00, and we are hoping to free 100 of them that day.

WHITFIELD: So Kimmy quickly tell me about the little pooch you have in your arms there.

PECK: This is Cha-Cha. And Cha-Cha started out a couple years ago. She was rescued from a slaughter horse auction. And she was very frightened, and we worked with her. Actually, I have fallen in love with her, and she's my dog. That's Cha-Cha's story.

WHITFIELD: All right, well glad you and Cha-Cha were able to join us and give us the update on all these pooches that now have another chance at living and perhaps will eventually be found to good homes.

Kimmy Peck thanks for joining us from L.A.

PECK: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, good luck to all the little dogs there, too.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com