My Life Among the Underdogs audiobook

“My mission is to rescue. My hope is that one day I won’t have to.”If you’ve heard that quote before, there’s a good chance that you’re a fan of Animal Planet’s Pit Bulls & Parolees. This memoir belongs to the feisty, red-headed woman who started Villabos Rescue Center, first rescuing wolves and wolf hybrids, then turning to one of the dog’s with the baddest reputations, the American Pit Bull Terrier. Currently, the rescue houses close to 400 dogs of all breeds and employs parolees to help with all of the work. It takes one tough person to hold all of that together.In My Life Among the Underdogs, we get a peek into Tia’s life before starting the rescue. First, being raised a cowgirl by her stepmother who taught her to depend on no one else, to a drifting young adult, to an exotic animal trainer, to a dog trainer for Hollywood, then to rescuing full time. All of this while giving birth to and raising two beautiful daughters, who would become strong, independent and compassionate just like their mother.We also learn the life stories of some of the top dogs of Tia’s life. These chapters were both uplifting and heartbreaking. You learn about these wonderful, resilient creatures and all they taught both Tia and humanity and then, you hear about their passing. How can that not tug at your heart? If you’ve had a dog, you’re probably all too familiar with that pain, so it’s impossible not to relate.There are not too many people in this world that I truly idolize but, Tia Torres is one of the them. Life spent rescuing animals is hard, I’ve dabbled in it myself, no where near the size that Tia has. While rewarding, at times it can be absolutely soul crushing. You have to look the worst of humanity in the eye, not engage to the best of your ability and just get the poor, tortured animal the fuck out of dodge. It’s a hard thing to dedicate your life to. Animal rescue workers are more prone to depression and suicide, and it’s understandable. I hope to see more memoirs from Tia Torres or anyone on her rescue crew. It helps bring more people into the rescue fold, even if it’s adopting instead of shopping, every changed mind is progress and we still have a long ways to go.My one complaint, and I don’t think I’ve said this since I was little, is that there are no pictures! I mean, I want one million dog pictures, but if there could have just have been ten or so, that would have been great. I loved hearing about these amazing dogs but I would have also really liked to see their cute little faces.

A book filled with heartwarming and heart wrenching stories. My hat is off to those that devote their lives to rescuing ,and rehabilitating those without a voice. Great read,would recommend the book and her show on Animal Planet "Pit bulls and Parolees"

I had trouble figuring out which book I wanted to read next last night, so I decided to /start/ Tia's book this morning....and promptly finished it about four hours later.I love this book for a lot of reasons. It's very reminiscent of Sy Montgomery's How To Be A Good Creature without the usual animal-memoir "I absolutely majored in writing first and animals second" elaborateness in prose. Tia is unflinchingly honest; that being said, she doesn't over-share. She doesn't whine and dwell on the negatives, she presents facts, and stories, and gives us the opportunity to be intimate with her without crossing her personal boundaries. Reading this felt like a four hour conversation with a good friend - I felt like I really got to /know/ Tia in a way sharing in her rescues didn't let me.Un-objectively, I am undeniably consoled by the hardships and the emotional difficulties others face. Tia admitting that she has low points made me feel like I wasn't alone in a truly personal way. As long as she'll write, I'll read. As long as Villalobos exists, I'll be here to support them.

This memoir has lots of ups and downs, but such a great read. Tia and pit bulls are an inspiration to me! I hope she writes another book.

The amount of times I cried 😭😭😭 I really enjoyed this book, from the colorful stories of some really sweet Pits, to even the horrors of humanity that make innocent animals suffer, it was a good and emotional read. As a lover of Pits and owner of one really really good boy myself, the amount of fear and injustice there is when it comes to these beautiful angels is still unreal.

An emotional readTia is an amazing person. This book was so emotional for me. I felt like Tia was sitting down with me telling stories of some of her favorite dogs. Her love for her children. And the dogs. Her passion for what she does shines through every single word. I literally cried and had to stop and breath after each chapter. One of the best job fiction books i have ever read.

I think it's fair to say Tia Torres, founder and head of Villalobos Rescue Center, has lived a varied and interesting life. She has, especially, known a lot of wonderful, challenging, and interesting dogs.She tells her story organized around those dogs--Cougar, Duke, Moose, Lucky, and others, in California and in Louisiana. The rescue started as a wolf and wolf mix rescue, and the shift to pit bulls was gradual and almost accidental. Working with wolves and, as a trainer for the entertainment industry, with a variety of large and dangerous animals, she developed a confidence and an awareness of body language that helped her both to work with dogs, and to establish her reputation with the rescue community.Her more chaotic and unreliable relationships with her fellow human beings also helped to focus her attentions and efforts on dogs.Torres is a great storyteller, and in both the writing and the reading she makes her experiences compelling and absorbing. Yet she's also a very private person, and there are a lot of things I'd be interested to know more about, that she simply passes over. She respects her own privacy, and doesn't share what she doesn't want to share. Nor is she overly concerned about linear storytelling. Each of the chapters is orderly in itself, but the arrangement of them is more a flowing from theme to theme, than starting at the beginning of her story and continuing on to the present time. Sometimes this means we get two different perspectives on the same incident, how it seemed at the time, and how it seemed later, after more reflection and/or more information.Because this is a book about Tia Torres' lifetime in animal rescue, it unavoidably involves some dogs, some dogs very important to her and to her four children, dying. There's no avoiding it in telling her story properly, but for some people, who would otherwise love the book, that will be a deal-breaker. That's unfortunate, but neither do I want to trick anyone into starting a book that they won't be able to enjoy and finish.It's an excellent book, though, and highly recommended.I bought this audiobook.

This book is a must read for anyone who loves animals and especially those working in various rescue groups. It is heartwarming and tear producing, and you will be inspired in the reading of Tia's stories. The only recommendation is that she write another one or 10 as we would love to read more stories of her life with her dog and human family. I highly recommend this book because you will not be bored as her writing is spot-on, and your spirit will be uplifted hearing about her life and her hardships along the way. Her main theme in her book and her life is never let life get you down where you feel helpless. Fall down, get up and do it all again and again until you get it right. Thank You Tia Torres for being such a shining example for us all.

I really enjoyed this. I love the show Pitbulls & Parolees. Reading these in depth stories about all of these amazing animals they mention or introduce on the show was so amazing. Tia has lived one of those very FULL lives that literally sound like something out of a book or a movie. I LOVE getting to know people on a more personal level like that. She is so cool and so down to earth and I just love her. Thanks for sharing all of these stories with us. As if you guys didn’t show the world enough of your personal life... it was such a great read & I appreciate it.

Book #14 Read in 2019My Life Among the Underdogs by Tia TorriesI love the show Pit Bulls and Parolees. Tia is the founder of that organization and this book focuses on a special dog of hers in each chapter. Details of her life are disclosed through the dog stories but I would have liked to know more background. Overall, a must read of pit bull lovers.

As a life long pit bull advocate myself, the memoir really hits home. I'm dreading the day I loose my brindle pittie, Chance. This book is filled with so much heartache and love it is by far the best book I've ever read.

I love pit bulls. They are loving, smart, goofy and the most maligned of dog breeds. It is a love of wolves and dogs that led Tia Torres to devote her life to rescuing and re-homing pit bulls. Much of her work is documented on the TV series, Pit Bulls and Parolees. This book, however, is a much more intimate look at her life and the dogs that have had the greatest impact on her. Her portrayal of the dogs is delightful. They people her life with as much significance as any human. She considers herself a badass (which I truly believe she is) but her tenderness and vulnerability come through loud and clear in this memoir. If you have not watched her show (which I do faithfully) I strongly recommend it. You will meet her wonderful family as well as the dogs they love.

Savior of the UnderdogsGreat book. The real story of a woman whom raised a family of four on her own. The struggles and sacrifice that were made to look out for countless number of animals, including pit bulls. How many of us would have the stamina it took for Tia to raise four children and to have to beg for food and never give up on her rescue dogs as well. Her fighting spirit and the dogs who brought happiness to her and her family will put a lot more emphasis " on a man's / woman's best friend " Being the owner of three pit bulls that show their unconditional love and loyalty makes me sad that a great percentage of humans lack those qualities.