 |
||||||||
 |
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
Abused dog flies West to begin a better life
By CARY DAVIS, Times Staff Writer Buster has entered the witness protection program. He left town Wednesday in a cowboy hat and a handkerchief. The attire was appropriate for his journey: Buster is headed out West. But the costume served another purpose. The hat and the bandana hid the grotesque wounds Buster suffered in an attack in March. Buster is a year-old boxer mix. He was attacked with a claw hammer, authorities say, by Barry Colbert, the then-39-year-old boyfriend of Buster's former owner. Buster lost an eye in the attack and is nearly blind in the remaining eye. He also suffered a deep gash on his forehead, and his jaw was shattered. After a two-month stay at Bayonet Point Animal Clinic, where he underwent a series of operations and became the darling of the staff and boxer lovers nationwide, Buster left town on an airplane Wednesday. "He's entered the boxer witness protection program," said famous standup comedian Elayne Boosler, who took a personal interest in Buster's plight. Boosler, who makes her home in Los Angeles, was instrumental in raising more than $5,000 to pay for Buster's medical bills and relocation costs. She donated $1,000 from a recent show in Sarasota and shelled out $269 for Buster's flight Wednesday aboard a Continental Airlines jetliner bound for an undisclosed location. Buster's future home will remain a secret, Boosler said. "Colbert vowed to finish him off," she said. She was referring to police reports that said Colbert never wanted Buster to be found. While in the Pasco County jail after deputies say he attacked his girlfriend, Colbert called a friend and asked him to bury the dog, authorities say. A neighbor discovered Buster two days later, malnourished and barely alive. Boosler said Buster will spend the next few months with a nurse who specializes in helping blind dogs. A nationwide search to find a permanent home for Buster is under way. But the dog will never return to Florida, Boosler said. Boosler, a noted animal activist, has helped to find homes for thousands of abused pets. Why did she take such a personal interest in Buster? "It takes some kind of soul and spirit for a dog to lay there for two days in 90-degree heat and refuse to die," she said. "He deserves a really nice home after something like that." Plenty of others felt the same way. People from all over the country have sent donations to the Pet Aid Service Society of Port Richey to help Buster. Any money left over will help other abused Pasco pets, said Marj McConkey, president of PASS. "Buster is more than just another animal abuse case," McConkey said. "This is about people uniting." McConkey, Boosler and a local publicist have also been working to help Buster's former owner, Jacki Clever, find a job. Clever lost her job while recovering from injuries she suffered when, authorities say, Colbert beat her up. "It's incredible that this dog led people to this woman," Boosler said. "She's an incredible woman and we've taken a great interest in her. It's really a wonderful story of triumph over tragedy." To learn moreFor more information about Buster and pet rescue organizations: www.flbr.org (for adoption application for Buster) Pet Aid Service Society, 9458 U.S. 19, Embassy Plaza, Port Richey, FL 34668, (727) 817-1812
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 
|
From today's Pasco Times Letters |
