Pet Care Online Reviews

Pit Bulls, Sharks, Survivors, and More at Reality Rocks Expo

The first ever Reality Rocks Expo was held April 9-10, 2011, at the Los Angeles Convention Center. And some great pit bulls were front and center among the participants at the show.

The Villalobos Rescue Center, built and run by Tia Torres, is the largest pit bull rescue facility in the U.S. and is featured on the Animal Planet TV show Pit Bulls and Parolees. In this reality TV program, pit bulls that have been abused and abandoned are rescued then rehabilitated by Tia, her family, and a crew of ex-convicts who are also trying to put their lives back on track. The rescue center not only had a booth at the expo, but there was also a special panel session about the TV show. Although Torres was unable to attend, the producers of the show along with some of the cast (including Tia’s daughter Mariah) were present to talk about their experiences on the show and take questions from the audience.

Also at the Reality Rocks Expo were Shorty Rossi and the crew from the Animal Planet show Pit Boss. Rossi is a former actor and entertainment guru who is dedicated to the task of rescuing, rehabilitating, and training pit bulls—traditionally the most misunderstood breed of dogs. His organization, Shorty’s Charities, is dedicated to rescuing and finding good homes for pit bulls as well as fighting discrimination against them. Some of the other goals of Shorty’s Charities are: To provide an emergency veterinarian fund for those pit bulls in need; Educating pit bull breeders; Offering a spay and neuter fund for pit bulls; And advocacy against breed specific legislation.

In addition to the pit bull shows, there were many cast members from fan favorite reality TV shows at the expo. Throughout the day, singers from American Idol performed on stage. There was also a special session saluting America’s Funniest Home Videos with executive producer Vin Di Bona and host Tom Bergeron. In their panel session, Daymond John and Mark Cuban from the show Shark Tank listened to business pitches from audience members (just like on their show) and shared some of their entrepreneurial expertise. Other sessions featured cast members from Survivor, Amazing Race, The Bachelor Series, So You Think You Can Dance?, Big Brother, and many more!

The Reality Rocks Expo gave fans a chance to see some of their favorite reality show celebrities, get pictures and autographs, learn how to become a reality show star or producer, and even to audition for some shows. Among the other reality celebs I saw at the show were Eric Roberts from Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew; Adrianne Curry and Chris Knight from The Surreal Life; Didi Benami, Katie Stevens, Michael Lynche, Tim Urban, and Paige Miles from American Idol; Bob Crowley, John Fincher, and Peih-Gee Law from Survivor; Nat Strand and Kat Chang from Amazing Race; Natalie Getz and Vienna Girardi from Bachelor Pad/The Bachelor; Mischa Barton, and Sinbad.

Tom Bergeron

Daymond John – Shark Tank

Mark Cuban – Shark Tank

Eric Roberts

Katie Stevens – American Idol

Tim Urban – American Idol

Peih-Gee Law – Survivor

Laura and Dan Dotson – Storage Wars

Bridgetta Tomarchio

Didi Benami – American Idol

Sinbad

Natalie Getz – Bachelor Pad

Mischa Barton

For more information on Villalobos Rescue Center:
http://www.vrcpitbull.com
For more information on Shorty’s Charities:
http://www.shortywood.com/charities.htm
For more information on Reality Rocks:
http://www.realityrocks.net