HISTORY OF BRAT
Anne Fifield, Carol Niles Jones, and Julie Dorsey (read more about them on the Meet the Team page) founded BRAT. On May 15, 2011, they brought in their first two dogs, Bennie and Charli (nka Addie).
They started BRAT while volunteering for another Basset rescue in Houston, Basset Buddies Rescue of Texas (BBR). Bassets were still dying in the Dallas-Fort Worth shelters. Anne and Carol transported Basset after Basset after Basset to BBR to be saved. They burned up the highway between Dallas and Houston. Finally, BBR said they couldn’t keep up with the Dallas load along with the Houston load of abandoned, neglected, and abused hounds. They brainstormed with BBR. They thought of making Dallas a satellite site for BBR. However, their funds couldn’t support both locations.
It became clearly apparent that another rescue was needed in Dallas. Anne secured the funds for the start-up from an extremely generous donor. After all the paperwork was completed (Bylaws, 501c3, Organizational Development, etc), BRAT was ready for its debut. The trio wasn’t sure what they could accomplish. They said, “One Basset at a time.” They would do what they could do.
In the middle of May 2011, an online announcement was made that BRAT was formed. On May 15, 2011, they brought in their first two dogs. Since the time of this writing, BRAT has been in existence for five years and have saved over 200 Bassets and counting. They have committed volunteers (read about them on the Meet the Team page), dedicated fosters, and a loyal fan and donor base. Never in their wildest dreams did the three ladies think BRAT could accomplish so much in this short time frame. To this day, BRAT and BBR, along with other rescues, network together to save more hounds from high-kill shelters and abusive situations. They all work together to save one dog.
Be sure to attend the BRAT Basset Pawlooza held in April or May of each year to celebrate their birthday.
