'Pit Bulls & Parolees' Season 16 Episode 3: Villalobos welcomes a dog rescued from fighting rings in Kuwait
While Tia Torres and the Villalobos Rescue Center do all they can to help dogs in and around their area, there are still harrowing conditions for dogs all over the world that they can do nothing about. The team was given a harsh reminder of this when they got a call from Mission K-9 Rescue, but they were still able to help at least one puppy find joy and a new life in Assumption Parish.
In 'Rescued from War', the Villalobos team get an e-mail from their fellow dog rescuers, Mission K-9 Rescue, who were flying in a pit bull that was found in Kuwait. Tia knows that pit bulls are illegal there meaning that the only reason that breed was found there was because he was part of a dogfighting ring. Mission K-9 Rescue shared pictures of the deplorable conditions that dogs there found themselves.
Dogs suffered from malnutrition in cooped cages and faced violence and many other forms of abuse, only to be let out to fight with other dogs. Tia and her team were more than happy to be able to rescue the imported pit bull and give him all the love and attention he needed.
Lizzy drove up to rescue the dog, whom the Mission K-9 Rescue had named Marbles, and fell immediately in love with him. Despite the conditions he'd been forced to live through, including the visible cuts on his ears that all dogfighters make on their charges, Marbles had nothing but playfulness and joy in him. He was friendly around people, without a hint of violence or anxiety, and Lizzy was overwhelmed to hear the story behind his rescue, found wandering the streets of Kuwait.
She teared up as she thought of all the places in the world where dogs are put through abuse like this, with her and her family unable to help. Marbles was brought home, given an open range to run in — where it was discovered that he had a love for water. They also learned that he has a bit of a "prey drive" — nothing aggressive, but he is fond of chasing people and biting. While none of it is aggressive, Marbles doesn't know the strength of his own bite and the team immediately go to work on training that behavior out of him.
Meanwhile, Mariah helps a potential adopter named Dan find a new dog. Dan has been taking care of dogs his entire life, starting when he was 19. Now pushing his 60s, he buried his last dog, Roxy, about a year ago, and was looking for a new companion at home — possibly a dog of middling energy, one he could keep up with. Though the first two dogs he was shown were distracted and uninterested in him, he formed an immediate connection with Jin. Jin, like Dan, had a bad hip, and after their initial connection, Dan couldn't wait to bring her back home.
After some quick attention training by Mariah, Jin is taken to Dan's home, which was prepared and all ready for her arrival. Having owned dogs all his life, Dan was more than prepared to welcome Jin into his home. Mariah's only concern was a hole in Dan's fence that he had kept for his bigger dogs to look out from, but after promising to cover the hole up with chickenwire, Mariah left Jin to her new, happy home.
Lastly, Earl brought in a dog who had apparently run away from home. Earl could immediately tell that this was no stray, as the dog was freshly bathed and obviously well taken care of. He was able to track his chip and discover who the owner was, and return him safe and sound — a good day, all around.
The next episode of 'Pit Bulls & Parolees' airs on August 15 on Animal Planet.
