Animal Rescue Stories

The Power of the Purr

I called him Mister Soft as Silk and the name so truly fit. His fur, even as an adult, was always kitten soft, each strand separate and fluffy, not a stiff guard hair in sight. He loved sitting like what I call his 'little old man pose' up against the sofa, his eyes huge as he waited for the next shoe to drop. He was so easily frightened by any sudden movement or loud noise.

He had been that way ever since he had lost his all but identical wingman to a liver destroying virus. They had eighteen months of inseparable togetherness and Mister Soft as Silk never quite recovered from their parting. He waited constantly for his shadows return, expecting to find him again at every turn of a corner. He and the Wingman had come from opposite sides of Houston to the local rescue that I worked with raising bottle babies. Both were less than a month old, but brothers in their hearts if not by blood.

Nine years passed. Mister Soft as Silk endured. He was a gentle but not especially cuddly cat. This all changed in the last months of his life.

In the first of 2006, I was recovering from being hospitalized with nearly fatal pneumonia and a fractured spine. Mister Soft as Silk knew I was in extreme pain, and gave endlessly of himself. He would stretch out along my back, purring like a diesel in overdrive. He pressed hard against me, purring nearly continuously, easing my pain and depression. He healed me, as he was slowly slipping away from life himself, never showing any outward sign of his own failing to sudden, hidden cancer. I lost him on March 30th 2006.

Because of him I know the power of the purr.

Judy Jax
Houston, TX

Bubbles

My parents had a white poodle named Cotton many years ago. After he passed, they swore they would never have another dog. Well, they lived their lives after that - they traveled a lot and basically had a great time. Now, my dad has Parkinson's disease and is legally blind. My mother is his primary caregiver. After two years, I finally convinced her that it was time to have another dog in the house, more or less as a companion for both of them. I did my research, and finally found Bubbles, also a white poodle from Wilma's Orphans on Long Island. Bubbles was already 10 years old (but with the energy of a puppy)and we all agreed it was a good match. She has turned out to be the most wonderful dog - very well trained, extremely lovable and a pleasure to have around. She gives my mother unconditional love and sits next to my dad a good part of day keeping him company. It's the perfect match and now everyone is happy.

Robin
Long Beach, NY

Who's The Fairest Of Them All?

My husband and I have a gift shop in our town. We wanted to have a "shop cat" to meet and greet our customers. We went down to the local shelter. Boo was the first cat we saw and knew she was ours immediately! She was 6 months old at the time. She's now 2 1/2 years old and very beautiful. She is everything we could have asked for. You can practically see the halo over her head. She was doing great at the shop, everyone loved her. When our cat Max finally passed away at home, the house was very empty. We brought her home and she adapted very quickly. She's a purrfect angel and we love her very much. She definitely has us both wrapped around her paw.

Robin & Rocky
Long Beach, NY

Max The Cat (RIP)

After I had lost my persian cat to kidney failure, I was missing having a cat in the house. So I took myself to the local shelter and found Max. He was already 1 1/2 years old and I knew he wouldn't be adopted as easily as the kittens that were there. I was told that his brother had been adopted and that Max's time was up. He was to be euthanized that very next day. After spending some time with him in the shelter I took him home. It took him a little while to warm up to me, but we had a great life together. He spent most of his days out on our sundeck lying in the sun relaxing or chasing the birds, leaves and anything else that moved. He finally passed away (at home in his sleep) at age 17 from cancer. Not a day goes by that I don't think about him and I miss him terribly, but I know that he's a happy kitten again, waiting at the Rainbow Bridge for me.

Robin
Long Beach, NY

Our Little Hero

Axle was found when a car pulled up in front of our shop and we heard loud wailing coming from the car. We didn't see anything at first; then we saw him, stuck on the rear axle of the car! We don't know how long he was stuck there while the car was driving around. He must have been hanging on for dear life. He was no bigger than half my hand. A little 5 week old kitten. After 45 minutes of trying to lure him out, finally, out he came right into my hands. We took him to the vet and with a little medicine, some cleaning up and a lot of tender loving care, he was ours! He may look innocent, but he's quite a handful and we love him very much!

Robin & Rocky
Long Beach, NY

Tornado Survivor

Bebee is from the city of Bebee (which she is named for after the fire department rescued her) in Arkansas and a survivor of the outbreak of tornadoes that swept through the state in January 1999. She was brought into the clinic with broken bones sticking out in her front leg, a dislocated knee, full of maggots and weighing only 3-1/2 pounds. She was but one of the thousands displaced and brought into Little Rock over a period of weeks. In all her pain and suffering when I placed my hand in the box, she purred, and that sealed our fate. I had only planned to foster her but after 3 surgeries and living under my bed for 6 months, she became a family member. She was the first of our 3 rescues we now have. She is a healthy inside, 17 pound door greeter and just had her 12th birthday. Sometimes in tragedy the most beautiful gifts are found. More then 100 animals were adopted from our clinic alone among the reunions to owners and families.

DryRiver
Pembroke Pines, FL

Tuffy

This is 10 month old,"Tuffy". His mama, who lived in the woods, deposited him and his sister on the door step of a near by house. She did this several times before the lady of the house got the hint and took the babies in. She gave the two kittens to her neighbor who owned a dog grooming shop. That's where I found Tuffy. He was only 1 1/2 pounds and about 4 weeks old. He had been weaned and had very good bathroom manners. It took 24 hours for him to get used to being handled and now he can't get enough "handling"!

Roxanne Snyder
Titusville, FL

Awww, Lucy, give me five minutes to 'splain!

This is Lucy. We adopted her from Adams County SCPA when she was 4 months old. She had already been adopted by a family but was returned for "exhibiting puppy behavior!" Huh?? Well, she was a PUPPY and required training and lots of love!!!

That's were we came in! We have adopted before and even rescued a litter of feral kittens.

Lucy is a JOY!! She is now four years old and the most loving, easy-going dog. She now has a sister, Twiggy, who was also adopted (she was a stray) and two kitty-siblings, Thomas and Ozzy, both rescued.

If everyone who wants a pet would ADOPT instead of buying from a pet shop or a breeder, this world would be a better place for both humans and the abandoned animals...IMAGINE!!

Kathleen Faber
Glenville, PA

Georgie

Georgie always looked like he knew far too much about bad situations in his past. But he had a strong constitution for going ahead with life and hoping things would get better. I hope his time with me was as good for him as it was for me. I got Georgie in his middle to late years, as I don't know how old he was. He had been living with a distant neighbor who was moving and wasn't real sure what would become of Georgie or his mother. I took both cats home. Sadly, Georgie's mom had inoperable cancer, but she was given lots of love and TLC in the last 3 months of her life. Georgie loved to come and sit on the couch with my boyfriend and I and be petted. He had never lived inside before. He had a favorite catnip mouse that he used to carry around in the middle of the night while meowing loudly. He loved to lay in the sun on the slate patio, especially near the end of his days with us. One summer he was outside and didn't come in before dark as per usual. We had a storm which caused massive flooding in the neighborhood. Our grounds were underwater, and he would have had to swim home for the next 3 days. Of course I was frantic and put up signs and went looking everyday. On the 10th day, when I got up for work, his little face greeted me outside the french doors to the patio! I was never so happy to see anyone! And he never strayed far from home again!

Pam
Sarasota, FL

Rooty the Fluffball

Rooty had many sisters and brothers, but the owner couldn't take all of them in. She was about to drop them off at a shelter when I went over to check them out, and I saw a little black fluffball dancing around and trying to climb up my leg. I knew she was meant to be my companion and took her home. I went through a long period of depression, and when Rooty saw me sad, she would climb up on my chest, lick my chin and purr until I felt better. I couldn't imagine my life without my sweet fluffball.

brittany stasiak
chicago, IL