Animal Rescue Stories

Vibrating kitty

While volunteering at a local shelter, I became a cat adoption counselor. While walking through the cat ward, I noticed a colorful pillow sac shaking like crazy. I slowing peeked inside and saw a beautiful small beauty trying to make herself as small as possible. No matter how I spoke to her she wouldn't budge. I tried taking the sac into a quiet outdoor enclosure, to no avail. I returned her to her cage and went directly to the front to adopt her.
Once in my home, she continued to hide, shake, and avoid all contact. Knowing it would take time, I let her be. Some days later, a gorgeous, longhaired female cat emerged. Although she is still scared of the world, she has blossomed into a sweet loving companion She did have a case of severe stomatitis and needed all her teeth removed and several laser treatments due to the disease, but she is getting along just fine.

Sandy Goldstein
ASBURY PARK, NJ

Never Give Up

I adopted Daisey from a foster who takes on the "tougher ones" as a last chance to a new home.
Daisey acclimated pretty well to her other two "sisters" (also rescues).
Daisey was approx 3 when we got her. She had been adopted from the local rescue more than once, only to be returned. All the shelter could tell me, was that she had a rough life.
It took her 3 years to FINALLY accept and trust us humans. She didn't like to be touched, and CERTAINLY never picked up. I friended her on HER terms. Whenever I attempted to pet her, I closely watched her body language and backed off IMMEDIATELY if she seemed skittish. Eventually she allowed touch. Then, I wanted to show her the joy of laps. It took another whole year to finally come sit NEXT to me, but not my lap - not yet. Over this past year, using the same patience, I have finally got her to come to my lap, but now she even lets me brush her!!! Cutting her nails is out of the question, but I hope to work into that as well as they need to be trimmed, despite destroying her sisel scratchers 3 times over!
We love her and she loves us. I think she finally believes that she's in her forever home!

Rose-Marie Vieira
LEICESTER, NC

Humane Society Incident

14 years ago I went to our local humane society in search of my daughter's kitten that had been lost. I called my daughter only to be told that this kitten wasn't hers.
The sad thing was this kitten, now named Tabatha was to be euthanized in 2 days if not adopted. My daughter was holding out hope to find her kitten. I understood her feelings for her own kitten but I couldn't leave this kitten when I knew her fate was looming if not adopted.
Being allergic to cats I decided to adopt and make her a barn cat on my farm. After all, this was supposed to be a "no kill" facility.
So I asked to adopt her. The staff member was clueless when I explained she would be a "barn/farm" cat. I'm serious when I explained the barn/farm cat concept that neither she or her supervisor had any idea what I meant. The answer was NO adoption unless I guaranteed to keep Tabatha indoors. I could've lied but that's just not me. Instead I became stern and protested about their no kill policy that was very apparent didn't apply in this instance.
By this time, others were coming into the cat area listening to the dialogue. Well I believe the audience played a role in the supervisor's willingness to allow Tabatha her chance at life!
She's a wonderful addition to my life. She has the freedom to be indoors and out as she desires...but faithfully sleeps by my head every night, regardless of my allergies.
Oh and I can't forget Pepper and George, rabbits that came home to live out their remaining years as they rest in peace on the farm.

Jaki
GRAHAM, WA

Puppies thrown out of a car window and rescued by a Good Samaritan

A kind Good Samaritan approached our rescue with three adorable puppies. She had seen someone dump them out of a car window and she stopped to pick them up and bring them to our care. CCPAL (Cowboy Capital Pet Assistance League) stepped up and agreed to rescue the sweet pups. CCPAL named them Phoebe, Will and Bowen.

They are so adorable and now they are all in their forever homes. :-)

Veronica Barrio
BANDERA, TX

The Rescue of the Dryer Kitten

I am a dog person.

My kids are 17, 16 and 14 and I have survived this long turning down pouty pleading faces, without giving in and getting a cat.

On the day before Halloween, my son walked into the house with this tiny orange kitten, claiming it climbed up his pants leg while he was taking the garbage out, and wouldn't let go.

This thing was soaked. Shivering. Crawling with fleas. His tiny nose and one eye was crusted over almost completely. Waaaay to little, skin and bones.

My heart broke. I STILL said no... But I told the kids we would fill his tiny belly, get him warm and clean and find out what meds he needed, and then, when he was healthy, we'd find him a forever home.

We gave him a can of tuna, and almost immediately had to start taking it away in increments because he ate it like he'd never eaten before.

When his tiny belly was finally full, the next on the agenda was a bath. Too little for flea meds, he got a bath in blue dawn every day for the next three weeks to get and keep those nasty things away from him. Because he was so tiny and was so cold for so long, baths meant being blow dried with the hair dryer and a nap on a bed with a heating pad until he was dry completely. We ordered kitten formula... He apparently was doing just fine with wet food, but the more time we spent with him the more I came to the conclusion that being sickly and the runt, mama pushed him away and I decided to supplement with the formula to make up for what he missed out on. He got meds immediately for his runny nose and eyes, and a week later, antibiotics. We also got ointment for his eye, which after getting all of the stuff cleaned off of it we realized was completely clouded over and permanently damaged. (The vet that helped us with him later confirmed that despite the clouding, he can see perfectly fine!)

Shortly after his first bath, I sent a photo of the tiny, sickly kitten to my daughter, captioning it "well, this happened."

She replied with a photo of him in her arms, a week prior. I had been duped.

The kids had found this kitten, and I'd said "no" so many times they were trying their damnedest to care for him themselves, keeping him with old towels in a discarded dryer in the barn. (This explains why our tuna was disappearing.) They were just biding their time and trying to keep him safe and warm until they thought I was in a good enough mood to say yes, apparently.

I believe it was the third day, watching him play with the dozen new kitty toys after waking up sleepily in his new cat bed with his own cozy blanket that I realized, he wasn't going to any forever home but this one.

Jack (named for Jack o lantern, since he moved in on the day before Halloween) is now about seventeen weeks old. He has gotten so big and healthy that sometimes it's hard to remember that he showed up on our doorstep at death's door. He is fifty percent our wild child, so crazy that I roll my eyes and wonder how in the hell I, the dog person, got into this mess. The other fifty percent is the most affectionate cat I've ever seen in my life. I can't sit at the table without him perched on my shoulder like a parrot. When I come home from work he runs up and tries to run up my pant leg and meows until I pick him up. The second I let him out of my son's room in the morning, he's my shadow, has to literally be in my arms while I make my coffee and work lunch and get ready for work.

While he purrs. I don't know if it was because he physically couldn't with his ailments when he first arrived or if it just took him a while before he was comfortable and felt safe enough, but the first couple of weeks he didn't purr at all. Now, if you just LOOK at Jack, he starts purring, so loud that you can literally hear it on the other side of the room.

Now, I will admit, in his crazy moods I have threatened to send him back to the dryer. If he understood Human he would laugh at us, because he knows as well as I do that this kitten will be loved and spoiled and safe as long as he lives.

And this, folks, is how I was coerced into being a dog person AND a cat person.

Jett
MILLSBORO, DE

Juno the Sick Puppy No One Wanted

We found Juno on the petfinder website and he was a few hours away. The moment we saw this "husky"/shepherd mix's picture, we knew he was the one. He looked like a cute little husky puppy with big floppy ears. When we got there we met a really sick puppy; he was constantly coughing (kennel cough). He'd had visitors before us and they passed him up. I could not leave him forever like they did, he was going to come home with us. We would get him well!! They required that he be neutered and I was terrified of them doing that since he was so sick, but he pulled though. After they had that taken care of we made the trip up there again to complete the adoption process and he was officially part of the family.
In our home Juno became Loki, and then Lo, and Man and sometimes Lowman. As a result of the kennel cough his poor little body was tired and he developed severe demodectic mange. It took 3 vets and a significant amount of money and time, but we got him well again!!
Loki became a big fluffy pup that I think is more Alaskan Malamute than Siberian Husky, his big floppy ears finally learned to stand, I knew for sure he'd be one up and one down and I would have loved him either way! Loki is the gentlest soul you'll ever meet. He gives the softest kisses and is the best good boy! He wants all the attention he can have and is an excellent bathroom guardian. Well he actually guards any door we walk out of until we come back in. The people who looked past Loki in his time of need missed out on a really incredible friend. I am so thankful they did so I could be his Mom.
Today I found out that Loki has cancer in his liver, he is 13.5 years old. I don't know what will come of that as far as treatment, but you can bet that I will keep doing whatever is reasonable necessary for him. I love my Lowman!

Jessica Brown
GORDON, GA

Ta2, a Chihuahua story

He was found in the woods, a whole 2 1/2 lbs. He was found near an area notorious for puppy mill discards. He has deformed back legs and a spine that’s not quite straight. His little ears appeared burned. My husband said let’s keep him. He had said no more dogs for years. I was shocked. The vet said he was healthy, just needed to get to about 4 lbs. It’s been 4 years now and he is such a sweet, loving and mischievous little guy. He’s adopted our 3 great granddaughters as his own. He adores them and is very protective. My daughter says he’s her kryptonite. He loves cuddles and kisses. He wants nothing more than to be loved. He is attached to me at the hip but adores my husband. He loves people and animals. I cannot imagine life without him. ❤️

Kim yurjevich
MENDOTA, IL

Timing is everything

I was on a back road 25 miles from home when a small kitten, maybe 4 weeks old, ran out in front of me and I had to swerve to miss hitting it. I stopped and backed up, got out, and called, "here kitty, kitty." Then the calico and another two came running out. I called and no more came, so I put them in a box I had in the back seat. I brought them home and made space for them in my sun room. They instantly began using the litter box, so I believe they were dumped. They weren't fond of my 5 dogs at first, but it's a year later and they're great friends now.

Jim Gallup
COLDWATER, MI

Chicago Street Dog

Munch, my newly adopted dog, was about one year old when a man found him wandering East side Chicago.
He took the young dog home, as the story goes, in hopes Munch, with no name at the time, would be a companion to his dog at home.
He set the skinny and scared Munch down in his back yard where his dog lived in.
Munch and the man's dog began to fight.
He luckily broke up the fight.
Munch had lacerations from the incident on his head and neck.
The man than dropped the ever-frightened animal off at CCAC, a high kill animal shelter.
He was on the C floor which is reserved for sick dogs.
He was not sick two rescue organizations attested.
He was there because he was deemed unadoptable.
The two rescues thought differently.
He was posted on the internet as a dog that liked people.
I called that organization.
I told them that I am a dog trainer and have the skills to train Munch.
This all happened in 2017.
When I took him to the vet for a wellness check, shots, and a appointment for neutering, I was told by the vet that he had a bad K-9 tooth that would have to be pulled.
The bad tooth hurt Munch.
This is why he was not responding to treats the staff at CCAC gave him.
How Munch turned out: he has one K-9 friend, Abbey, who is now 10 years old.
He likes most people
And, he is highly trainable for AKC obedience.
He is a good tracker.
He loves the sport
He loves walks and car rides.
He is loyal and faithful to us.
And he watches over us.
If anyone comes to the door he lets us know loud and clear.
He listens when I tell him thanks. Enough.
He than leaves the doorway.
Munch is an American Staffordshire mixed with Rottwieller and twelve-and-a-half percent German Shepherd dog.
He looks like a American Staffordshire.
I had a DNA test done when I brought him home.
He is dear to us.

Jo Collins
PEORIA, IL

Best Surprise Ever

I saw Frida (formerly Lil Bit) on Petfinder. I kept going back to her page over and over. I told my husband, who but us will adopt her? Her face called to me. She was 10 years old, only had one tooth, and had a heart murmur. The shelter said she was a puppy mill dog that they tossed out in a ditch in the country. Her fur was badly matted. I kept telling my husband we need to go look at her. One day he brought me the best surprise - Frida! I couldn't believe it. She instantly fit right into our home and lifestyle. She needed medicine, special food, and we had to remove her one tooth, but she was worth it. She had such a feisty spirit. We only had her for a short time due to the heart murmur, but she has a place forever in my heart. I miss her every day. Rescue animals give the best love.

Angela Graham
CEDAR FALLS, IA