Animal Hall of Fame

The Animal Hall of Fame is a way to recognize those animals that have made a difference in our community and who have strengthened the human-animal bond. Below are some of the recipients.

2005 Animal  Hall of Fame Inductee:

Mrs. Butterworth, “Mrs. B”

Owners: Equest Therapeutic Horsemanship

Mrs. Butterworth has devoted her long life to serving others and making a huge impact on their lives. As a youngster “Mrs. B”, was trained as a pony hunter. Because of her quiet nature she quickly became a lesson horse. When therapeutic riding was added to the lesson program, due to her extraordinary patience level, Mrs. B became the mount of choice for those special riders. That was 22 years ago and she has been teaching scads of riders with special needs ever since, that is up until her formal retirement on May 7th, 2005.

Mrs. B is willing to devote every ounce of her sorrel, hay- bellied body to our riders. She is over-the-top on her giving level. She has taught more riders to take their first steps of independence then any other horse in the barn, past or present. She certainly possesses the patience and has given decades of her time. It seems that Mrs. B’s personal goal was to make each of her riders maximize their potential. She doesn’t care what her riders look like or how much they know, or don’t know. She was the strong shoulder they could always lean on and the forgiving spirit they could always learn on. Versatility was another one of Mrs. B’s superlatives. Sports riding of the walk, trot or canter nature, low jumping, hippotherapy, long-lining, working trail, showmanship at halter, basic dressage, and western pleasure riding were in her repertoire of skills. She’s a horse that has given multitudes of riders enough trunk stability to take their first walking steps, enough stimulation to riders to speak their first words or laugh their first laugh, enough confidence to “green” volunteers to pick up her hooves.

During Mrs. B’s tenure as a therapy horse, riders have been born, flourished and become adults. Some riders have died. With the passage of each decade Mrs. B continued to perform her job flawlessly with grace, kindness and courage, changing numerous people’s lives for the better and sending them down a better path.

2004 Animal  Hall of Fame Inductee:

Loco - Owners: Gene & Carol Autry

As an 8 month old pup, Loco was taken from his backyard in Dallas . When he was found on the front doorstep four days later, both eyes had been gouged such that their removal was necessary. Loco's owners, Greg and Carol Autry, were horrified to learn that such cruelty was only a misdemeanor, meaning that if the assailant was apprehended, punishment could consist of only a fine and a small possibility of county jail time.

This tragedy launched the Autry's into action. With the help of Representative Manny Najera and Senator David Cain, House Bill 653, The Animal Felony Cruelty Bill, was signed into law June 6, 2001 by Governor Rick Perry and Loco. Now animal cruelty is classified as a felony and subject to a penalty of up to two years in a state jail and a $10,000 fine. It also calls for mandatory counseling of those 17 or younger who commit acts of animal cruelty, since studies have shown those who abuse animals are more likely to commit future violent acts against people.

Loco has paid the ultimate price to bring heightened public awareness and hardened judicial consequences to animal cruelty.

2003 Animal  Hall of Fame Inductee:

Bailey - Owner: Renee Corbitt, DDS

Bailey is the Tarrant County Veterinary Medical Association 2003 inductee into the Animal Hall of Fame. When Dr. Renee Corbitt found her 5 years ago, she had been abandoned and badly abused. Who could have foreseen that 5 years later she would be responsible for saving someone’s life?

Bailey and Dr. Corbitt had not followed their typical routine that day and arrived home much later than usual. As Dr. Corbitt tried to hurry Bailey into the house and out of the bitterly cold wind chill, Bailey pulled Dr. Corbitt away from their front door and refused to go inside. Bailey led her across the street to the front porch of their neighbor, Mrs. Janie Payne. She had fallen onto her porch and was bleeding and in visible distress. Later, they would learn that she had broken her neck in the fall. Bailey had to be forced into her house; she did not want to leave Mrs. Payne. To survive Mrs. Payne needed immediate medical attention. She had been on her porch for about 20 minutes. Mrs. Payne continues on her road to recovery everyday.

Bailey was a “throw away” dog, but to Dr. Corbitt and Mrs. Payne her value is immeasurable. There are so many animals that are given up on daily and with love, most of them will give back more than they ever get from their human companions.

2002 Animal  Hall of Fame Inductee:

Pepe - Type II Disaster Dog, Search One Rescue Team - Owner and Handler: Patrick Gilliland

Pepe, a Border Collie, and Pat Gilliland came together in 1993 when Pepe was only 10 weeks old. Pepe’s breeder gave him to Pat free of charge after he found out that he would be trained as a search dog. They began training the next day.

Pepe became deployable as an air scent dog when he was 13 months old. He was then trained and deployed as a cadaver search dog. Members of the team that Pat and Pepe were on, Search One Rescue, jokingly said that Pat need only to arrive, show Pepe a map of the search area, and Pat could sit back and drink coffee while Pepe methodically searched the area. Pat and Pepe attended numerous disaster training seminars and in September of 1997 were accepted on the Texas Task Force. Pepe became the first FEMA certified disaster dog on Texas Task Force One in August 1998. Then in May of 2001, Texas Task Force One was accepted into the FEMA Urban Search and Rescue system. Pepe has participated in over 150 searches with his local team. Of course, none of them were more memorable than the World Trade Center . Pepe and Pat served from September 16th through September 26th, 2001 at the WTC site. The dogs that served there did not find any live victims. However, they provided comfort and peace to many of the rescuers. The men and women of the Search One Rescue Team are not paid for their service. In fact, they volunteer their weekends and free time, sometimes over 20 hours per week, to be prepared to serve in times of crisis and disaster. After tirelessly serving fellow Texans and the Country since 1993, Pat and Pepe officially retired but not before receiving some outstanding awards. Pepe, along with all dogs at Ground Zero and the Pentagon, was awarded the PDSA Dicken Medal for animal gallantry. He also received an honorable mention for the AKC ’s Award for Canine Excellence (ACE).

Pepe’s endurance, courage, and loyalty in addition to his ability to engender peace and give comfort, exemplify why many of us have chosen to dedicate our lives to the welfare of animals. Pepe’s life is proof of the bond between man and animal. A bond that cannot be explained with words but with the tears, smiles, and laughter of those Pepe has touched.