Animal Rescue Stories

She picked our place!

One morning I had left for work and my wife thought she heard something at the front door. She opened the door and this cute black kitten came into the house, went to each and every corner, chair, couch, even the bedrooms sniffing as if to look for something she might have lost. Then she jumped up on the couch, laid down with her tail flipping back and forth, and looked at my wife as if to say, "this will do me just fine". Fourteen years later, Isabelle has been a real blessing to our family.

David R Oelschlager
Leesville, LA

Roadrash

Roadrash was brought into my vet's office at the same time as I was bringing in my diabetic cat for his glucose check. The girl who brought him in was crying hysterically...she had watched this little guy get thrown from a moving car on the interstate and stopped to pick him up and took him straight to the vet. He had lost half his left ear, had a broken jaw, and his right eye was damaged so badly that we thought he would have to have it removed.
I brought him home a week later. My 17 year-old diabetic cat died 2 days after that. I believe Roadrash was meant to be with me, and that Kawie knew I would be looked after...
And we have saved his eye.

Neil
Stone Mountain, GA

Our puppies

This is TJ (left) and Kita. TJ is a rescue from our local shelter, he has been with us since June 2006 when he was about 10 weeks old. At first the folks at the shelter thought he was rotti/shepherd mix but now they say he looks more mastiff than rotti. Kita is a shepherd and is 10 years old. We rescued her late October 2008 when her former owners were talking about putting her down because they could not find a home for her. Both dogs are a huge part of our family and we could not imagine our home without them. They share our home myself and my husband and two cats, Tippy Toes and Roo.

Deborah Kirkland
Brockville, Canada

Buddy

I did not adopt Buddy he adopted me. I found him on a rural road near my house. He was way to shy to come to me and he looked awful! I use that road everyday so I knew in my heart he would find me. The day after I said that he showed up in my front yard. I fed him and put vitamins, dewormer and antibiotics in the food. It took another month or so before I could pet him. Once he began to trust me I picked him up and brought him in the house. He would not cross the threshold in to the house on his own. The once skinny, sickly puppy began to look like the handsome dog he is today. I called him "Red" but one day some one called him Buddy for some reason he responded so that became his name from that day on. He looks to be a Mastiff/Chow mix. He is the one of the sweetest dogs I have ever known. I have rescued many dogs. He is one of the finest!

Kay Carter
Atlanta, GA

Rescued Rat

Cool Whip was a classroom pet for the first two years of her life. She arrived in the clinic where I work as a veterinary technician for euthanasia one afternoon; I couldn't bare the thought of her owner putting her down simply because something was wrong with the skin on her face. I asked the owner to sign her over to me and I would attempt to treat and medicate her in hopes of allowing her some more time to live. She was the sweetest, friendliest rat that I have ever owned. It was obvious that she was grateful that I took her in and put out such a huge effort to make her feel like a pet and not a property. She was incredibly attached to me, I knew she was thankful for all that I was doing. She came to work with me everyday; I took her out in public. Everyone who took one look at her told me I was horrible for letting her skin get as bad as it was, and gave me dirty looks when they saw her. Of course, they didn't know the whole story; they didn't know she was a rescue and we were doing everything we could to figure out what was wrong. The doctor and I never could figure out what was wrong, and we never could cure it. As time progressed, Cool Whip started to develop terrible reproductive issues from not being spayed. I had to let her go barely eight months later. I know that our time was short together, but I also know it was the best 8 months of her life no doubt.

Tiffany Dieringer
Conroe, TX

Big Boy, Duke

This is my big boy, Duke, a pit bull/mix. My daughter found him in a dark parking lot at 4:00 am, after leaving work. She had pulled into the parking lot to find her cell phone in the car and saw a grown dog. She got out of her car to check on the dog and found Duke, less than an inch from her front tire. As you can see, he is so dark and was so small (the vet said he was probably three or four weeks old), she had not seen him. We already had three dogs and two cats at the house. She knew another one would be too much. But, that did not stop her. Of course, I fell in love with the tiny bundle of fur at first sight. It's been almost two years. My daughter has moved to her own place, taking two dogs with her. One cat, also a rescue, adopted a neighbor because he couldn't take all of the dogs. I've moved to a new place. I still have a cat named Courtney, my dachshund mix named Harley (aka Bebe) and big boy Duke. They have kept me going after my fiance died suddenly of a heart attack. Their unconditional love and companionship are a constant joy.

Bett
Nashville, TN

Life Saver

While singing in a band years ago, I was driving very late one night on my way to the next gig. There were very steep and dangerous ditches on either side of the road. Spanky Scissorpaws traveled in his kennel in the passenger seat with the door open so he could reach his food and litter box.
I don't remember nodding off but a sudden, a extremely loud, "Yow wow!" woke me just in time for me to avoid ending up in the right hand ditch - a crash that would have killed us both.
Spanky will be 18 years old March 19 2009, and I love him more every day.

Karen Hjalmarson
Calgary, Canada

old friends

Sugar the lab & Bush the boxer were found one rainy winter morning, tethered together and tied the gate of the pound. Apparently they grew up together and were abandonned by their owner,at the age of five. We were looking for a boxer pup, but one look at their picture on the net melted our hearts. Bush was sooo emaciated and Sugar had a limp. Today at the age of 10, they are loving and devoted to each other and to the family, enjoying their golden years to the fullest. PLEASE - ADOPT SENIORS! So much love, without the puddles!!

KS
Beer Sheba, Israel

Starving Pup

I got a call from some friends who knew that sometimes I was involved with dog rescue. They had some rough neighbors who had a baby pit bull that they had tied to a pole with no shelter and were starving it off and on to "make him mean". When I arrived the poor puppy was skin and bones, shaking and cold, I had no choice to remove him and take him home,all the while receiving licks to my face and a tail that wouldn't stop wagging even though he was in a very weakend state. Butch has turned out to be the most sweetest, loving, fun dog I have ever had, plus he has changed the attitude of hundreds of people regarding the nature of pit bulls. He has traveled the US with me incluing Hawaii. As a side note I did return the next day to the original "owners" and told them I had their dog, suggested they clean up their act. They wanted to know if I wanted to buy him! I got a kick out of that, then showed them the pictures I had of Butch's condition and was on my to Humane Society to show them the pictures. Such cruelty to a creature that only wants to love and please. Thanks goodness I had the courage to rescue him that day 10 years ago. He is a blessing.

Lori Singmaster
Ventura, CA

Ah, The Love Of An English Springer Spaniel

During the summer of 2006, I watched our senior Springer Willie age very quickly and slow down. I wasn't prepared to spend my life without a Springer in our home. I started researching rescue organizations and found Mid-Atlantic English Springer Spaniel Rescue (MAESSR). We adopted Max in November 2006. I am absolutely positive that Max gave Willie the will to continue on for another year. I helped Willie cross to the Rainbow Bridge in May, 2008, at the ripe young doggy age of 15. We lost our other dog, an 8 1/2 year old Rottweiler named Sophie, in July 2008 to cancer. We weren't ready to open our hearts to another dog, but Max had never been without canine companionship, so we decided to try fostering for MAESSR. We failed Fostering 101 on our first try, and adopted Winnie in September 2008.

In the picture, Winnie is sitting and Max is laying down. Winnie was presumably a special needs Springer, having lost one of her front legs at a young age after getting hit by a car. She doesn't know she's handicapped, and gets around better than many four-legged animals. She gives hugs and kisses, even when we're not expecting them, and has a wonderful smile that she won't let me capture on camera. Max has become a much more affectionate pet since we lost the other two dogs. Needless to say, they bring us much joy.

Rescue organizations are great. I hope more people will adopt through their local rescues and shelters.

Julie B.
Springfield, VA