I Pick You

I Pick You

Six years ago my mother expressed she wanted a cat for her birthday. The Sunday before mom's birthday, my friend and I went out for lunch. Since there was a long wait for a table, we decided we would take a look in the nearby pet store which usually featured rescued cats. As we were going in we noticed a woman putting some crates with cats and kittens in her car. Not giving it a second thought we went on inside. Like a moth to a flame we were drawn to the lovely glass enclosed area where several kittens were playing. Immediately the one owl-like kitten came up to the glass and looked directly at me as if to say "I pick you!" It was love at first sight! Every time we came back to the area the kitten would come right up toward me. We inquired about the kitten, only to find that the lady who had just left was the person to talk to about adopting this insistent little bundle of joy. Within four days he was our kitty! Even though he was supposed to be mom's gift, the kitten named Sabastian bonded to me quickly after I nursed him back to health! To this day he comes running to me or calls out for me with many purrs and rubs, saying "I picked you!"

~Sandy McGrady

TUXEDO PARK, NY

Mini-Me

Mini-Me

I am a volunteer at a charity animal shelter in Spain, called "PAWS-PATAS". While working one evening, I heard very loud yelping coming from the lower area of the property. Upon investigation, I discovered a tiny puppy that had been thrown over the fence. As she was so young, I fostered the puppy for the shelter, and gave her the name "Mini-me" because she looked a lot like a miniature version of our other Jack Russell. Well, to make a long story short, Mini-me became part of the family, and we adopted her for ourselves. She's a great companion to us, and we are so happy that we kept her. I wish everyone would adopt a shelter dog.

~Didi Arias

City Not Listed, Spain

Best of Friends

Best of Friends

We found our big girl Aja (lab/Dalmatian mix) in a shelter In Thornton, Colorado in October, 2004. She was very timid and frightened as we walked past barking dogs to the play yard. I couldn't possibly take her back through the chaos to that kennel, so we adopted her on the spot. Five years later in April, 2009, I found Bo (Bichon Frise) outside our home. He looked like he had been on his own for some time, very dirty and matted with a few bumps, scrapes and a torn ear. The vet checked his chip for an owner but was not registered, so I immediately registered him to us and had him groomed. They were best buddies for 9 years until Aja went to doggie heaven October 8th, 2018. She's now waiting at the Rainbow Bridge for us to join her. And Bo, in the meantime, is very spoiled and loved!

~Debbie Gauer

MESA, AZ

My Joy

 My Joy

A few years back I was going through a very difficult time. I was praying to find joy in my life. The depression put me in a very dark place and I just couldn't get away from that dark cloud of depression that looked over me. We starting talking about getting a dog and my husband thought it might be just what I needed. But at the same time we wanted to rescue a dog. We wanted to be what a dog needed too. So I began my search on Petfinder. When I saw her picture I fell in love immediately. This poor girl had been through so much in her young life. She had been running from who knows what type of situation and was hit by a truck and left for dead. She was put in a cage basically to die. Her time was up. But THANKFULLY our dear friends at Susie Q Dog ResQ saved her precious life just in time. Little did they know they were saving mine too. She had some deep lacerations and a broken leg. A pink cast was put on her leg and they took her home to heal and to get her ready for her forever home. When they posted her on Petfinder I immediately saw her and inquired. They insisted she would need extra TLC to heal. I was ready to take care of her. But as much as she needed me, I needed her. Because she was such a happy girl during this ordeal she was given the name Joy. It's perfect. My prayers were answered. I found my Joy. They insisted she needed lots of care while she was recovering. I was ready to take care of her. We have bonded in a way that my husband describes as unlike anything he has seen. She needs me and she is there to lend a helping paw or 4 when needed. She is what I call my "soul mutt". A couple years ago she received her CGC title which I am very proud of. There's a saying, "who rescued who?" I'll let you decide. :)

~Jennifer Wright

AUBURN, NY

Dumpster dog with newborn pups....

Dumpster dog with newborn pups....

I was recently blessed with a bouncing baby girl........with a tail, lol!! I named her Fortza, which is the Italian word (forza) for "strength,"....and here's why: Fortza was found tore up, scratched and emaciated in a dumpster with a litter (5) of day-old puppies. She was believed to have been a bait dog (used for dog fighting) based on her condition upon arriving at the Palmetto Animal Clinic. Apparently, a non-English speaking man saw the dog and her puppies in a dumpster somewhere in Palmetto, and brought all of them to the Palmetto Animal Clinic. My friend Estella Pena, made me aware of this dog/situation by tagging me in a Facebook post. I instantly offered to adopt this little angel after she was done nursing her pups. Unfortunately, Fortza was in such bad shape herself, she didnt have any immunity to pass on to her babies, so tragically they all passed away (Fading Puppy Syndrome). Fortza is only about a year and a half old. I've been visiting Fortza for the past month at the Palmetto Animal Clinic where Paula Rowell and her awesome team nursed, trained and LOVED this little gal back to good health. Paula put soooo much of her time and heart into working with Fortza!! I'm the biggest fan of Paula's heart, and feel absolutely honored to know her. She's incredible, guys!! Paula Rowell and her team at the Palmetto Animal Clinic have a non-profit, donation-based Angel Fund that is used to cover the cost of the medical recovery efforts for animals found in heartless situations, like Fortza. I'm happy to report that Fortza is gaining weight, full of energy and is an absolute lover. She never leaves my side, and falls asleep on me or in my arms every night. She's getting along incredibly well with the other dogs in my neighborhood!! She's a 'lil timid with people, but warms up instantly to women. She is still untrusting/fearful of men, but we are really working on it...just this evening she waggingly approached my (male) next door neighbor (who didn't even have treats!!)!! This 'lil mama is the epitome of strength and love. I'm in total awe of how trusting she is already, and how well she's acclimating to everyone and everything. Progress, not perfection is our goal, and baby steps will get us there. I'm so proud and completely honored to have this amazing little heartbeat as my new copilot on this journey!!

~Abby Ciosici
BRADENTON, FL

My Fluffy story

My Fluffy story

Fluffy was abandoned at an apartment complex I lived in. I made sure there was fresh food and water daily for her. It was middle of summer on AZ. She finally walked up to me when I was sitting outside and jumped on my lap and started purring. She ate the Tempation treats I had right out of my hand. Glad she picked me as her human companion.

~Sheri Blommer

MESA, AZ

Three kitties

Three kitties

Our cat, Milo, unexpectedly died at the vet’s office. We were devastated. We decided to go to the shelter to see the cats there and maybe find one or two to bring home with us. We visited with a couple of them and then took a look in the kitten room. Three litter mates were in one cage playing with each other. We fell in love, but just couldn’t fathom having three cats. We had to leave as the shelter was closing. We decided we wanted to adopt one or two of those three kittens but which ones? We couldn’t leave one by itself, so I went back as soon as the shelter opened next and ran in and asked if all three were still available for adoption. They said, “yes” and I said, “we want all three.” Maddie, Ben, and Jerry have never had to be alone. They have been so much fun! Adopting from a shelter is the best way to go for sure. We can’t imagine life without our three kitties.

~Sheryl Williams
LEANDER, TX

Lefty Loves Everyone

Lefty Loves Everyone

Lefty, around age 1, a Chihuahua-Terrier mix, was picked up in

 Southern California at a high-kill shelter by a rescue group from Washington state. This rescue group named him Lefty because

his left ear didn’t do what his right ear did...most of the time! He 

was adopted out to a woman in Oregon who owned a stable where

my daughter kept her rescued horse. She noticed that Lefty was 

always running around the stables at any time of day. When she 

asked after the dog, she was told that he wasn’t house broken, 

they didn’t have time to train him, so Lefty had become an “outside” 

dog. Knowing there were many coyotes around, my daughter offered 

to take Lefty home with her, so he wouldn’t become a coyote meal! 

She had Lefty about six months, and since he barked at squirrels 

daily, driving the neighbors nuts, Lefty came to live with me. 

He’s smaller than my cat, but he doesn’t seem to know how small 

he is. He’s a tough little guy who loves people. He’s healthy, very 

spoiled, and loved unceasingly! He goes everywhere with me. If one 

defines the term BEST FRIEND, that description fits Lefty.

                                                                                                                      ~L. Davies

                                                                                                                   PORTLAND, OR

The best birthday present ever

The best birthday present ever 

In October 2007 my niece stepped outside to feed some of the stray cats around her house. When she called for them a little black kitten streaked across the street to get his share. My niece picked him up and held the cup of food in front of him and he stuck his entire head down in it. She had no idea where he had come from but it wasn't the best of neighborhoods and cats, particularly black cats, didn't survive around there for very long. My niece called me immediately because she knew it would be love at first sight for me when I saw this precious baby. She was right! My birthday is October 27 so Mystery (the very fitting name my niece gave him) became my birthday present. When I took him to the vet to be checked out and neutered we discovered he was only 6 weeks old. Mystery was one of those special cats who loves people. He would come running when you called for him, wanted to sleep at your feet using your foot for a pillow or with his legs stretched out so that a paw was in contact with you. When he looked at you the adoration and love in his eyes was undeniable. He made me feel like I was the best thing since sliced bread. About two years ago he started suffering seizures. He was finally diagnosed with a brain tumor and we were told that treatment or surgery MIGHT extend his life for a few months. So we decided that instead of putting him through all of that for something that might or might not work we would just take him home, put him on medication to help control the seizures and love him for as long as we could. We finally had to let our baby go on January 28, 2019 and my senior cat Raven and myself grieve for him every day. I'll always be grateful for those two years we were given. I know I'll see you again someday but until then I will never, ever stop loving you.

~Angela J.
MONROE, MI

Our Tiger

Our Tiger

Tiger was dumped in our neighborhood almost 15 years ago. My daughter began taking him food at the apartments up the road from our house. We already had an indoor cat and I didn't want another one. But we would see this very small cat lying in the road or in other unsafe spots and worried about it. About three days after my daughter started feeding Tiger he showed up in our backyard, peering through the sliding glass door at Sam, who didn't seem bothered to see him. We had another cat! We took him to the vet, found out he was at least a year and a half old, judging by his teeth. He went from less than 8 lbs to almost 16 lbs in six months, with access to unlimited food! On a diet ever since! Sam is gone now and Tiger is king.

~Ruth Wenzel
FREMONT, CA

Now a bonded pair

Now a bonded pair

When I was in Puerto Rico in late 2015 for a cruise, I found and fell in love with a young male cat. His instant affection informed me he had known love before. Thankfully, I was with friends who live there and do TNR work. Upon my return home, after getting the ok from my husband, I set in motion the plan to get him TNS - trapped, neutered, and sent to me in Maryland. He arrived in December, and instantly acclimated himself to the other cats in our family. Instantly, as in within an hour! The other cats ranged from 8-14 years old. My husband felt so sorry for the kitten coming into the nursing home that he suggested we find a play buddy for him. Knowing how dire the situation is for cats in PR (and this was before Hurricane Maria), we again turned to our friends on the island. We were most interested in the story of Sky, who had been trapped at a very young age, neutered, fostered, then adopted. He was returned to the shelter for reasons unknown, and was looking for a new family. There was some delay in him coming to us, which was very concerning as my husband and I were leaving soon for our winter vacation. We hoped he'd be home by Christmas, but he finally arrived - a scant four days before we left for our holiday! Sky (now Skeeter), was excited about his new home, and although we tried to keep him separate, he was in the kitchen sharing the food with the rest of the feline family literally within 5 minutes!! Twenty minutes later, he had found some toys and was running all over the house playing with them. Our first PR kitty, named PJ (Panther Junior) wasn't at all sure about Skeeter at first. He hissed at the new interloper. When the time came for us to leave for vacation, we were nervous about them getting along. My husband and I were cruising the Caribbean, and checking for updates from our catsitter every day we had WiFi, which wasn't every day. When we got to Barbados, we saw the picture that proved everything was going to be alright. Both young boys were playing, and clearly with one another. By the time we were home, the two were a bonded pair - bros - and continue to delight us with how much they love one another.

~Rebecca Day
ACCOKEEK, MD

Remington Steele

Remington Steele

Remington, a handsome chocolate lab, was crated 16 hours a day by a college student. Thankfully the young man realized this was no life for an active 8 month old lab like Remi! My husband saw Remi on a humane society rescue website. I was far from ready to welcome a new pet into our lives. We had just suffered the loss of 3 dogs within 9 weeks, and my heart was shattered to say the least. Long story short we found Remi at another rescue and we went to meet him. I knew the second we saw him he was meant to be our baby. He was perfect from the moment we got him home. He was our baby and we were his family. He and I spent countless hours on walks exploring, talking, thinking and enjoying time with each other. Last summer we found a spot on Remi that turned out to be mast cell carcinoma. He had surgery and treatment and seemed to be doing well. However, the cancer returned and our baby passed away in July at the age of 9. He was way too young and he took a piece of my heart with him. He came into our lives when we needed him and I will always be thankful that we got to share the years we had with him. We love you Remi!

~Kimberly S Hagler
SPRING VALLEY, OH

Dixie Chick

Dixie Chick

Her name tells you round about the time I found her. I would take my Irish Setter to the dog park and saw outside the park fence this pup. Truckers would stop in the area she had a burrow in and I guess drop off food. No one took her. I told her if she was here the next time I came she was going home with me. I bought a cheese burger and headed to the park. She was friendly and jumped into my car. No chip so she was my rescue. She enjoyed life for many years. One day in winter, I noticed her panting. This seemed strange to me so I took her to the vet. Her lungs were full of cancer, like popcorn. No real options. Finally she struggled to breathe and I was with her as she passed. Wish she was still here.

~Brenda Boutin
CINCINNATI, OH

IttyBitty

IttyBitty

Four years ago I was driving and I saw this little tiny animal sitting in the middle of the road not moving. At first I thought it was a squirrel, but when I got out of my car, to my surprise there was this tiny tiny little dog, just sitting there not moving. I picked him up and went around to houses close by to see if he belonged to someone, but no one claimed him. So, I took him to the vet; they said he was around 6 weeks old and weighed 3 lbs. I'll never know how this tiny little something got in the street, but it's okay, he's My Littlebitty now, all 6 lbs of him.

~Crysmyra Hopkins
NORCROSS, GA

My Peppy

My Peppy

One day my parents where going to church. All of the sudden I hear my father call my name; there was this little white kitten, he must've been about 8 weeks old. I went around asking if he belonged to any one, but no one claimed him, so we kept him. I love this little man with all my heart, and thank God every day for him.

~Graceann Esposto
UPPER DARBY, PA

Happy Ending

Happy Ending

In December of 2017 my husband and I lost our cat Callie to an illness. She was just 8 years old. We were broken. We didn’t even celebrate Christmas that year. Since she was our only cat the house seemed very empty. So, we began looking for another cat. We found him at Arizona Animal Welfare League. We named him Cooper and he was the perfect salve for our hearts. He is the most loving and funny cat, and he still is, even at almost 9 years old. But then last November I saw a cute 4-month-old kitten at another shelter. We went and got him, named him Jax, and believe it or not Cooper welcomed the new kitty. Now they’re good friends that play and clean each other. And since Jax is so young, he’s always doing something silly to make us laugh. I will forever miss my Callie but, I can’t imagine my life without these two silly cats.

~Cathy Cook

APACHE JUNCTION, AZ

My Aerial Bomber

My Aerial Bomber

We finally had a house, 2 cats in the yard, as the song goes... and it was finally time to add a puppy to the mix. Enter Aerial Bomber who turned into one of those best-dogs-in-the-world kind of dog. Stressful days at work called for a lunch trip to our local nursery to look at flowers. One day instead fate intervened and pulled me to our local humane society. And there was this tiny ball of gold and white fluff, a cut paw, no tail and looking very lost. She had been brought in as a 6 week old stray puppy. I wasn’t sure what type of breed she was but knew in my heart she was exactly the right one for me. Being a stray I had to wait a few days for the hold in case someone claimed her. Adopting her wasn’t going to be as easy as I thought. That night a forest fire was creeping close to the humane society and a call went out to come and rescue the animals. I tried to get there as quick as I could but the road was already closed. To save the building they called in an aerial bomber to fight the fires! Two days later the road was open and the stray hold was lifted. Arriving bright and early so I could be first in line to adopt her, she was gone. I was heartbroken. Slowly that day rescuers trickled back in, returning the animals they had saved from the fire. Staff said they would call if she was returned and many anxious hours later we received that call. The person who had rescued her during the fires wanted to know if we still wanted her. Of course we did! After all that, it was only fitting to name her Aerial Bomber. Aerial lived up to her name. An Aussie or Border collie mix, she loved to fly through the air catching Frisbees, and ran like the wind. She learned tricks in minutes. Understood every word I said. I had to change the word for squirrel at least 5 times because she learned every name I used and her mission was to keep them from our yard. She loved everyone and every dog she met, and made me smile every day. Aerial will always live in my heart, and truly was the best dog in the world.

~Lisa Smith

FLAGSTAFF, AZ

She made our broken hearts whole again.....

She made our broken hearts whole again.....

After having to euthanize our cherished Maltese, Dandy, after 15 years & 23 days of pure joy, we were reluctant to get another dog due to not having the peace of mind of knowing it would be adopted by a family member when we are gone. After grieving for almost 2 years, an acquaintance who volunteers with Puppy Haven Rescue assured me that a pet adopted from a rescue group would be accepted back at any time for any reason & it would be fostered for the rest of its days or until adopted into another loving home. A three-year-old chihuahua named Gabby adopted from Pet Adoption League in Tulsa, OK became our new fur baby, after having a complete physical exam, her teeth cleaned, lab work performed, & being microchipped. She quickly became trained to indoor potty pads and bonded with both of us in her forever home. We should change her name to "Velcro" because she is always beside us while we are busy, in a lap when we sit & snuggled against one of us in bed. Life is just better with a dog in your lap.

~Mary-Alyce Huenefeld

TULSA, OK

Unwanted kitties

Unwanted kitties

We lost our Willy to old age (he was almost 18 years old), and a month later went to a shelter of the state of Madrid (in Spain) to adopt a kitten. When we arrived, the shelter staff took a look at us (we must have I LOVE KITTIES written on our face) and showed us the older kitties, which according to them, nobody wants. My sister wanted an orange cat and I wanted a tuxedo, so after looking at all the available cats, we came home with Max and Henry, who at this time were 2 and 1 year old. What a great decision; I will never again adopt a small kitten! These two adapted really well and although it took some time for them to hop on our laps and to let us cuddle them, they are now, 4 years later, two purring and lovable family members, who give us so much love and good moments! Adopt an older kitty (or two!). You will never regret it.

~ELISABETH ROTHFRITZ
               MADRID, Spain