Dr. Harp Seal | Everybody Loves Sammy

ELS and Miracles

Posted on April 7, 2016 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Thank you for stopping by. We hope you had a nice day today. As a former misery addict, its overwhelmingly gratifying to come before all of you animal lovers as a positive spirit today. Let’s remember friends, the down moments will pass. They always do.

Let’s keep the faith and hope because the sun is right around the corner starting immediately. If you doubt that, think of me and don’t doubt it. I have been lower than hell, put there by myself of course, and I am a happy man today. So use my trials and tribulations to avert further complications and have faith that you are on the rise.

Its very helpful to have visual associations to resort to like a reflex. Kind of like the Doctor used to tap our knee with a tiny rubber hammer to check our reflex sensitivity

I would like to offer my friends a visual association when you are feeling down and out that you can refer to on a dime.

Here it is.

Remember the Pops, a sweet little guy that kept getting marked down at the store because nobody wanted him. Remember that Rocky was living on the street thin as a stick and infested with large ticks. Remember Jeffery who was rescued by Vanessa and her dad from a very abusive life. Remember me who had severe life threatening problems and was a walking dead man on and off for 8 years.
On April 13th, 2012, I was arrested for my reaction over the worst betrayal I had ever seen or experienced in my life regarding Sammy. I am sure many of you saw that in the media. The four year anniversary will be coming up in 6 days from today. I can confidently say that 4 years later, I would go to war again for him or any one of my other 5 dogs in heartbeat. Fortunately I don’t have make those kind of distinctions anymore as I have smartened up regarding the selection of the company I keep.

I remember when I was in the back of the Police Car, I smiled and told the arresting officer, I am going to turn this into the biggest positive of my life.

From there, I met Vanessa on Instagram. The ELS community is much better and bigger than what I had built before. I have now been living in the Caribbean for 451 days today. I live with Vanessa, her dad Jorge, who fought in the Korean War for the U.S. when he was 19 years old, and our 6 dogs.

The ELS story is a story of miracles. One miracle after another. So if anyone asks me do miracles exist. My answer is simple; “You bet they do” — The one caveat is that a miracle requires the heart and the guts to believe you are worth receiving one.

I will close with this. I tweeted Irene Cara the other day to remind her she has one of the greatest voices of all time. Irene Cara was on of the stars of the 1980 movie; “Fame” — My lord that gal can sing. If you never heard her, please take a listen to; “Out here on my own”, “What a feeling”, “Hot Lunch”, and the song, “Remember my name”

See you tonight friends. Life was grand today on April 7th, 2016. Scott Smith for Sammy & Family. #Gemini

Continuing the spirit of Poppy Rocky on Tuesday evening

Posted on April 5, 2016 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Thank you for stopping by. Its always a privilege to have some many friends from all walks of life to come by. Sammy & Family will always be grateful.

It was great to be alive and participating with life on April 5th, 2016. I can remember many a days and nights, not participating with life at all. If anyone can relate to that, I just want to say it doesn’t have to stay that way. Everyday we wake up, we get another chance to set it straight. Let’s break free from the chains that bind us. After all, we put the chains there, it only takes a decision for us to remove them and be free.

Think about it. We can stop beating the hell out of ourselves right now, no matter what we’re going through. Doesn’t that feel refreshing ? Well that refreshment is ours for the taking.

OK, lets close out with two positive notions;

1. If we did the best we could today, then we don’t need to second guess anything. The cards will fall where they will. If they don’t all in our favor this time, well maybe they will next time. Let’s stay positive and keep our heads up.

2. We have a very important video going up tomorrow morning at 8:15 am. It’s a 6 minute video which is very informative and ends with a behind the scenes look at Dr. Harp Seal getting into his uniform.

Have a nice evening everyone. Sweet dreams. Thank you God for this gift of today. Scott Smith for Sammy & Family.

Poppy Rocky Tuesday on April 5th, 2016

Posted on April 5, 2016 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good morning friends.

Happy Poppy Rocky Tuesday. A day filled with Hope and Possibilities. Try to remember, if the Pops and Rocky can make it, anyone can.

I find Tuesday’s to have a great sense of Zeal to them. Its very refreshing. Its like we are on an upswing or something, and that’s good.

So being we are on a upswing, lets start the day with two Positive notions;

1. Let’s be open to a great day. Today is a gift and could have a lot in store for us.

2. If we do one thing today that we have been avoiding, but we know we have to, tomorrow we will feel very good about it.

Day 449 here in Puerto Rico, and day 139 since we rescued Rocky. That’s pretty cool, right ? See you tonight friends. Scott Smith for Sammy & Family.

A Tribute to a heroic dog named Harley

Posted on April 4, 2016 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Tonight we pay tribute to fallen angel named Harley. He passed away on March 20th, 2016. Folks as you know we have been writing about animals for the past 5 years. This is truly one of the most moving stories I’ve ever heard about. I am really surprised I never caught wind of this the story until just two days ago. Harley was brought to my attention by our good friend Kathy Watson.

Harley was a puppy mill survivor. His function was to make babies and father them until they were sold and disbursed throughout the country. Harley lived in a cage at the Puppy Mill for 10 years before being tossed in a bucket to be disposed of after the mill had no more use for him. Harley knew of no other life other than living in a wired cage where no love or kindness was ever shown to him.

The wired cage was very hard on his feet too, despite him learning to live with it. That’s part of the reason he waked crookedly. Poor little guy. Luckily for Harley, a kind hearted lady who worked at the Puppy Mill noticed Harley had still been breathing in the bucket with other dead dogs. This decent lady picked him up out of the bucket and brought Harley to a local shelter.

Harley and his human mom, Rudy Taylor sharing a moment.

Once he was treated medically and on the mend, Rudy Taylor, Harley’s Human mom noticed a picture of this crooked one eyed little trooper and felt an instant connection. Rudy knew he was meant to be with her and contacted the rescue organization immediately. Next thing you know she drove a few states away from Colorado to pick Harley up and give him the best life possible. But make no mistake, Rudy and her husband knew they had a lot of hardships to unravel for Harley.

Harley had a lot of issues Post Puppy Mill: a diseased heart, a mouth filled with rot, a fused spine, a broken tail, gnarled toes, and legs that were deformed. And then there was the missing eye – the result of his cage being power-washed with him in it (an all too common practice in puppy mills). All of these conditions were the result of years of horrendous neglect and abuse.

Just to point out. Puppy mills can have up to 100 to 800 dogs. In order to clean the cages, many a times they power wash them with the dogs still in the cage. This is precisely how Harley lost one of his eyes. That is so barbaric and cruel, i cannot get over it.

I mean think of the road that that Harley endured, and then just tossed in a bucket to die. But Harley kept breathing and kept the faith. And miraculously made it to Colorado with Rudy and Dan Taylor where this little angel got a second chance at life. What a miracle this was and still is despite Harley’s recent passing. When Rudy and Dan first rescued him, the vets said he had 3 months to live. Well with love, care and tenderness, Harley lived 5 more years and his story struck a chord with the world. Everyone that met Harley loved him.

Harley and his human Dad, Dan Taylor

Harley was so resilient to make it through ten years at the Puppy mill. When Harley was finally rescued, he was so grateful and forgiving. That’s what is so amazing, he still manged to be grateful and forgiving.

Harley brought a massive amount of awareness to the dastardly acts of Puppy mills. He personally has participated in freeing more than 500 dogs in Puppy mills across the Midwest. Harley’s campaign “Harley to the Rescue” raised over $500,000 that helped to facilitate many rescue operations that saved many many dogs. The money also helped to educate children and adults about the horrors of Puppy mills.

As I am writing this i am in shock about Harley being thrown in a bucket and then going on to change the world as we know it. Not only by putting the spotlight on the horrors of Puppy Mills, but inspiring people with disabilities and imperfections like we all have, to illustrate that all of our lives are equally important. And that we all should treat other with respect and decency, no matter what shortcoming any of us have. Harley went on to win the “2015 American Hero Dog” which is the highest honor a dog can receive. If you want to read more about Harley’s award, click link; http://harleypuppymilldog.com/ and scroll to the bottom of the home page.

When I think of puppy mills and the lives they create and sell for profits, I can’t believe this is legal. And how about the ones like Harley, who spend most of their lives in a cage, how can that be legal ? Well here is how; Puppy Mills still exist because they are legal according to the USDA. Dogs are classified as livestock and therefor are allowed to remain living in cages.

As animal loving people just because laws allow this, we know people should NOT engage in this. To the people engaged in this line of work, you might be a law abiding citizen, but make no mistake, your character and moral fiber are deplorable. Puppy Mills are every bit as evil as human trafficking, legal or not. Demand for puppy’s does Not justify the continuance of this vicious cycle. Money is important in this life, we all know that. But not this important. Absolutely not. No amount of money is worth the kind of hell puppy mills dogs have to endure. This is a question of people’s character, not money.

I encourage everyone to watch this 4 minute video about Harley the Emerging Hero Dog. This is the kind of message that could really change the way we look at life. It’s truly one of the most inspiring videos I’ve ever seen.

To Rudy and Dan Taylor, thank you for extending your hand to Harley. That gesture allowed Harley to light up the world with love and kindness.

Harley, thank you for making the world a better place. Rest in peace sweet angel.

No lives will go in Vain. No pain will go unnoticed. Dr. Harp Seal for Sammy & Family.

Innocence and a Pizza box

Posted on April 1, 2016 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Thank you for stopping by. Life was good today on April 1st, 2016. We hope everyone had a great day today. If you did not, the good news is that its over and its the weekend.

Fun story to illustrate how innocent dogs really are. I took Rocky for his usual walk in the park. It was very windy here in Puerto Rico today. So as we were passing a garbage can, the wind listed a pizza box of of the top of the garbage can.

Rocky immediately zero’ed in on the pizza box. Every time the wind hit it, the pizza box would be blown a foot in the air and tossed like 3 feet away. Rocky was wigging out. He literally thought an Alien was hopping around. He was ducking for cover. I had to calm him down so he he would know everything is OK.

But it dawned on me, dogs have remained the same throughout the centuries. They don’t know about a modern world, they just have their instincts. A pizza box makes no sense to them. So naturally it startled Rocky. It was nice to see it in those terms today.

Whether its the horse and buggy days, the social media days, or the virtual reality days we are heading into, dogs have stood the test of time. They are now, and have always been, sweet, loving and loyal.

Several years ago I said; “Animals are angels walking amongst us” — And that ain’t no witchcraft talking, that is what animals are. They are angels living and breathing with us through thick and thin.

Signing off from Puerto Rico on day 445 and day 135 since we rescued Rocky, Scott Smith for Sammy & Family.

Happy Throwback Thursday to Barry and Jo Ann Smith

Posted on March 31, 2016 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Happy Throwback Thursday to my parents on their wedding night in 1967 in Great Neck, New York at a place called; “Leonard’s”

Jo Ann was 23 years old here, and Barry was about 29 or 30 years old in this picture. A snapshot of moment in time. Its interesting to see a picture like this from 1967 when you weren’t even born yet, and then looking back on it 4 decades later in your 40’s.

I didn’t agree with Barry on a lot of the things and didn’t have much in common with him. But as time marches on, a lot of what he said has played out as he said it would. My father had no feelings about animals. He was not cruel to them, don’t get me wrong. But he had no connection with them at all in his life. I never understood that nor identified with it.

He was the type of man that would go to the beach and sprint into the ocean. I never like to get sand or seaweed on my body and preferred to sit by the pool. He liked to travel and see things, I never enjoyed any of that, none of it. I always preferred to be home.

I think if I ran into him today, I would say; “Do you want to catch a movie?” He would say; “Not really, do you want to go to a ballgame?” — I would say; “Not at all” — And we would shake hands and that would be all.

Barry also went on to have 6 kids, I think that was crazy. We really had very little in common. But as I said, I do respect a lot of his opinions that over time have proved to be correct.

Rest in Peace Barry Smith.

With that. Happy Throwback Thursday to a snapshot of a moment in time.

Scott Smith for Sammy & Family.

ELS was built one step at a time

Posted on March 29, 2016 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Thank you for stopping by. Its always a privilege to connect with so many animal lovers all over the world.

In the spirit of Poppy and Rocky Tuesday, I would like to share a story that I hope inspires some people. Recently some friends asked me where i come up with all these stories and audios and what not that I share.

I had explained to them that I write what I’m feeling and thinking at that moment. When you think of it in those terms, you never run out of things to say. Just like none of us run out of things to think. A message transcends through sincerity. If you’re real, you never have to remember anything, you just be.

Years ago when we started over I was already exhausted. I said to myself, “Remember, 90 percent of success is just showing up”. So I just put one foot in front of the other, day in and day out. And now I can look back and see all the tracks we laid to down to get here. It really was one day at a time. Each day was just another track, and yet miles and miles of tracks have been laid down now.

If someone told me years ago that ELS was going to be a ginormous happy family, I would have said how ? And the experienced person would have said, “One step at a time”

So that is what I want to share with everyone tonight. With one step at a time, over time, you can move mountains and make miracles happen.

ELS is a mountain that was built with one rock at a time. There was nothing fancy about it. As I was taught by from very smart people, we suit up and show up.

See you tomorrow friends. Scott Smith for Sammy & Family.

Pakistan Easter Sunday Park bombing

Posted on March 28, 2016 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

By now I’m sure we’ve all heard of the “Easter” park bombing in Lahore, Pakistan. Over 70 people have been killed and 300 injured. The casualty numbers are likely to go up as some of the injured are in critical condition.

A faction of the Taliban militant faction credit for the attack. The intention of the attack was to kill Christians inside of Holy week and on Easter itself.

The park in Lahore Pakistan is know to be a scenic and placid park. After yesterday, its hard to believe this park will ever known for that again.

Christians have been been pounding the drum to the government to do more to protect them. They feel the government is quick to dish our thoughts and prayers, but not real steps in preventive measures.

Friends this was a total massacre. No two ways about it. I am leaving it out the graphics of what i read today, an absolute nightmare.

This is a global problem. It lives everywhere now. Pakistan, Brussels, Paris, Iraq, Syria, California, New York, and everywhere.

Sammy & Family prays for all the victims and their families from this cowardly Easter massacre. And that goes for all victims and their families in countries that mainstream media is not even reporting.

No lives will go in Vain. No Pain will go unnoticed. Amen. Scott Smith for Sammy & Family.

Easter Evening and Animal Welfare

Posted on March 27, 2016 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good evening friends.

Thank you for stopping by. We hope everyone had a nice Easter weekend. Sammy boy came to say to goodnight.

Sammy hangs his head with humility this evening. He knows that too many animals don’t have a warm and safe place to sleep. Many years ago I told him about the plight of the animals and that it was Not all Rose Gardens for them.

As a result of those conversations we used to have, Sammy is very conscientious and in tuned with Animal Welfare issues.

A lot of life can be just random luck. Take Rocky for example, I decided to take Sammy, Henry and Patrick for a walk, and next think I know this stray dog just decided to walk with us. When we stopped, he stopped, when we walked, he walked.

How many animals get that lucky ? The answer is not enough of them. Nobody can change everything, but everyone can change something.

In the lyrics of the late great Micheal Jackson in 1988; ♫♫♫ Make that change ♫♫♫

No lives will go in vain. No pain will go unnoticed. Amen. Dr. Harp Seal.

The Glass is Half Full versus The Glass is half empty

Posted on March 27, 2016 by Dr. Harp Seal

Good morning friends. Dr. Harp Seal here.

We have a fun one for you this morning. We all the know principals behind the slogan; “The Glass is half full or “The Glass is half Empty” — Lets take a closer look at each one.

You see, technically speaking, The Glass is half full and half empty. So lets look at each one so we can see the divergence that is created by choosing one over the other.

OK, lets consider an upbeat person who has a half glass of water. He will say to himself, “I am really going to enjoy whats left of this glass.” — So he drinks the glass of water and is thoroughly satisfied.

Now lets consider more of a downer kind of person. He also has a half glass of water. but this gentleman says to himself; “I wish I had a full glass of water. I wonder where i can get some more water” — In conclusion, when Mr. Downer drinks his half glass of water, he does Not enjoy any of it and is left completely unsatisfied still looking for more water.

This is a great illustration about how positive thinking really does make our lives better. Its not just an old wives tale. Positive thinking is a real tool that is applicable to all of us. We all get to use it and benefit from it.

With that friends. Have a wonderful Monday. We’ll see you tonight.

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