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Robbie Miller

@robert81cm

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Good news ❤️🐶 by @robert81cm

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6 hours ago

I just saw on another post that this vehicle is in the Bakersfield area right now. If you see it, please contact City or County Animal Control.
What in the heck is this world coming to? by @robert81cm

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10 hours ago

Two years ago today, I lost my soul dog.

I don’t think I’ve ever been the same since. It’s almost like something in me left that day too.

It’s weird. Some days I can go through my Facebook memories, smile at the pictures, and just feel a little sad. Other days, I can’t even look at them without crying. Today feels like that day all over again. Like I got hit by a truck.

For a while, when I saw other dogs, I knew how amazing they were, but I couldn’t let myself connect with them. My heart was broken.

And even with my new boy, who I love with all my heart, I’ve had to remind myself that he could never fill the expectations I had for Dallas. And that’s not his job. He’s a different dog, with his own place in my heart.

I don’t know if this feeling will ever completely go away.

But you know what?

It was worth it.

I got 10 years with my best friend. Ten years of memories, love, laughter, and a bond I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life.

And knowing how much it would hurt to lose you, I would still choose those 10 years. I would do it all over again.

Rest in peace, Dallas.

I love you, buddy. ❤️ by @robert81cm

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16 hours ago

I’m very good at opening jars 🫙.. I take my job very serious by @robert81cm

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16 hours ago

Today was a long day but thanks to SOS Dog Rescue - Strength of Shadow and Kern County Animal Services 9️⃣2️⃣ dogs and cats were spayed and neutered today aboard SNIP Bus-Spay Neuter Imperative Project! And because that wasn’t enough a third trailer was also onsite with SNIPMed providing access to care for pets who needed veterinary care, including our very own Pip the Pomeranian who had a dental, a neuter, bloodwork, rabies vaccine and microchip! A huge thanks to Dr Flynn, Dr Darrow, Kandice and every amazing tech who rose above a challenging day and still ensured excellent care for each and every pet . Thank you to all the standbys today who waited patiently to secure one of these coveted spots. Thank you to Officer Castillo and Officer Linebarger who transported a pet in need to and from their appointment safely. See you all next week! by @robert81cm

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a day ago

Community work ❤️🐶💪 by @robert81cm

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2 days ago

Everybody has seen the heartbreaking stuff coming out of Skid Row.

And I’m going to be honest with you: I don’t think Skid Row is just an L.A. problem. The conditions that create something like that can happen in communities all over the country when homelessness, poverty, mental health issues, and animals are left unmanaged for years.

Look at Bakersfield.

We have the riverbed. We have a homeless population. And we have people living there with dogs and having puppies. Bakersfield Animal Control goes in and picks up some of those dogs, and people get angry.

“Leave them alone.”

I understand the emotion behind that.

But here’s the part I think we’re missing.

Sometimes what looks compassionate in the moment can create a much bigger problem later.

That’s one of the biggest problems I see in animal welfare. We get so focused on what feels right today that we don’t always ask what this looks like five or ten years from now.

What happens when more people move into an area with animals?

What happens when those animals aren’t being spayed or neutered?

What happens when puppies keep being born?

What happens when there isn’t enough money, housing, veterinary care, or enforcement to manage it?

Eventually, the problem doesn’t disappear. It compounds.

So before we attack Animal Control for going into the riverbed and dealing with dogs, maybe we should step back and ask a harder question:

What happens if nobody does anything?

I’m not saying people experiencing homelessness don’t deserve compassion. I’m saying the animals deserve intervention too.

Prevention is uncomfortable because it means acting before the crisis becomes obvious to everyone.

Once it explodes, everybody wants to know why nobody did something sooner.

I’d rather we have that conversation now. by @robert81cm

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2 days ago

🐾 LOW-COST SPAY & NEUTER — TOMORROW! 🐾

📍 Heritage Park — Bakersfield

Wednesday, September 30, we’ll be looking for standbys!

Please arrive BEFORE 8:30 AM.

🐶 Dogs: Secure collar & leash
🐱 Cats: Hard plastic carriers only
🐾 Feral cats: Feral cat traps only
🍽️ Please try not to feed pets after midnight tonight.

Standby is NOT guaranteed, but there’s a pretty good chance we’ll be able to get some animals in.

If you’ve been waiting for an opportunity to get your pet fixed, this could be your chance! by @robert81cm

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2 days ago

🐼 Did you know American zoos don’t actually own the giant pandas they receive from China?

Today, pandas are generally sent under long-term agreements. The zoo pays about $1 million a year for a pair, with the money designated for panda research and conservation in China. The pandas remain China’s property, and cubs born here eventually go to China as well.

But here’s the part I didn’t know…

It wasn’t always this way.

Back in the 1970s, China actually gave pandas away as diplomatic gifts. After President Nixon’s historic 1972 visit to China, China gave the American people two pandas, Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing.

So it went from:

🐼 1970s: “These pandas are a gift.”

to:

🐼 Today: “You can have the pandas for a while, but they’re still ours—and it’s about $1 million a year.”

That’s the fascinating history behind panda diplomacy. by @robert81cm

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4 days ago

Please don’t take this personally. These are just thoughts from someone who has spent a lot of time looking at rescue from the other side.

Nobody really talks about the dogs that get “rescued” and then spend years sitting in boarding.

I’m not talking about a dog that needs a few weeks or months while a rescue works on placement. I’m talking about dogs with severe separation anxiety, reactivity toward other animals, reactivity toward people, or other behavioral challenges that are sitting in boarding facilities for YEARS with no real plan, no measurable goal, and no realistic expectation of what happens next.

And before somebody gets offended, I’m not saying every rescue does this. I’m saying this does exist, and we need to be willing to talk about it.

There are good boarding facilities. There are people who take incredible care of these dogs. But there are also people who have figured out that there is money to be made keeping rescue dogs in boarding, and not everyone doing it is providing the care those animals actually need.

A dog can be fed, cleaned and kept physically safe and still have a miserable existence.

Some dogs spend day after day in a kennel with very little enrichment, very little socialization and very little meaningful interaction. They become out of sight and, eventually, out of mind.

And sometimes you’ll notice something else: nobody wants to talk about where the dog actually is being boarded.

Maybe there’s a perfectly good explanation. Maybe there isn’t.

But shouldn’t donors be able to ask?

Where is the dog? How long has it been there? What is the monthly cost? What training is happening? What enrichment is being provided? What is the goal? And what happens if that goal never becomes achievable?

Rescue shouldn’t simply mean getting an animal out of one bad situation and finding somewhere else for it to exist indefinitely.

Rescue should mean having a plan for the life you’re responsible for.

These dogs deserve more than being saved on paper. They deserve a life. by @robert81cm

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5 days ago

If you’re local, I’m pretty sure you’ve seen the animal control video with the taser. And I understand why, when you first see 10 seconds of that video, it gets you emotional. Without knowing what happened before the camera started rolling, it can look pretty messed up.

But that’s exactly the point: we don’t know the whole story. We don’t know what the officer knew about those dogs, what was in the report, what happened before the video, or what circumstances led to that moment. The dogs could have presented a legitimate danger. We simply don’t know yet.

What I do know is that the same officer is the one I posted about earlier this week cutting a cat out of a chain-link fence. Animal control officers have tasers on their uniforms for a reason. Does that mean every use is justified? Absolutely not. But it does mean there are situations where an officer may have to make a split-second decision.

And yes, I saw the dog run toward traffic. But anyone who has trapped or worked with animals knows you cannot predict exactly what an animal is going to do.

So before we try to destroy someone’s career over 10 seconds of video, how about we wait for the facts?

I wish I saw this same level of energy directed toward city councils and county supervisors demanding better policies, better training, better procedures and real accountability.

Hold people accountable when accountability is warranted. But don’t convict someone before we even know what happened. by @robert81cm

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5 days ago

This is ONE organization in California, and when I look at the salaries and staffing costs, it honestly blows my mind.

And let me be clear: veterinarians are the exception here. They are the ones with the years of education, specialized training, and enormous responsibility for actually providing the medical care.

But when I look at the rest of the salaries on this list, I have a hard time understanding why animal welfare needs this level of administrative compensation.

If we’re going to spend this much money, shouldn’t the vast majority of it be going toward the animals and the people directly providing their care?

That’s not an attack. It’s a question about priorities—and donors have every right to ask it. by @robert81cm

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6 days ago