Animal Rescue Stories

She may be small, but she is fearless!

Our precious little Marjorie was found on the streets. She's a senior. She wasn't spayed and she had terrible teeth. She had clearly suffered extreme neglect. Our guess is that she was abandoned by a backyard breeder. Beagles and Buddies, a wonderful rescue group in Southern California, took her in and cared for her until we adopted her. Despite her hard life, Marjorie is confident and loving. She inspires us every day to be brave and to be deserving of her love and trust.

Heidi Mastrogiovanni
LOS ANGELES, CA

Saving 3 four week old boys

One of our workers at the back storage area heard little cries over & over. He followed the noise and up under a large metal storage container that sat 6 inches off the ground he saw the 3 kittens. No mom around anywhere. He brought them to me knowing I all ready have a lot of cats and know how to take care if small babies. I could see they were hungry & only 4 weeks old. We kept an eye out for mama for over a week but no one showed up. I took them home & bottle feed them every 3 hours, made them go to the bathroom. They are now healthy rambunctious 4 years olds.

Rhonda fletcher
SPRING, TX

Unadoptable?

This 4 year old 'Snowshoe' kitty was dropped off in a cardboard box at a local shelter. Her ear was clipped (meaning she was a TNR cat) and she hated to be picked up. The vet techs said she was unadoptable. So she languished in her cage for 6 months until I couldn't stand it. As a volunteer I observed her interaction with volunteers (she licked their hands) and with other cats who jumped into her cage (she didn't hiss, she touched noses with them). Here she is 4 years later... Does she look unadoptable?

D. N. Davis
DALLAS, TX

Homeless and Tortured

I had 2 SharPei and had just lost our 17-year-old lab. This time I wanted to adopt a dog that would never find a home, so I started my search. I came across an organization in British Columbia, Canada that arranges adoptions from countries that are generally cruel to dogs or eat them. I saw one that looked like a small yellow lab and was inquired. She had been tortured by having her ears and half her tail hacked off and one paw smashed. She was found almost dead, but a rescue saved her. She had been in the rescue for a year and a half. That was it. I wanted to give her another chance at life. The airlines lost her on the trip from Teheran, Iran to Washington State, and when found in the L.A. airport she had been in the crate so long she couldn't walk, so the rescue agency put her in a wheelchair and got her to us. She loves people and enjoys our other dogs and has worked out beautifully. It is a real joy watching her discover all the new animals and greenery of her new home.

Carol Pemberton
BELLINGHAM, WA

Needed Another Bunny Heartbeat in My Home

I had an amazing bunny named Cedric for almost 9 years. He came to me from my 17 year-old daughter by way of her devoted boyfriend. When Cedric passed I was devastated; he was always there to greet me when I returned home from work, galloping toward me each evening as I walked upstairs towards his territory. I was in a dark mood for a few weeks until I realized that I needed another heartbeat in the house. I found a bunny rescue site not far from my home in NJ, and there was an all-black guy pictured there who had been recently rescued and was now in foster care. He had been dodging cars and trucks, living on the streets after some ignorant human had no doubt dumped him there. I put in my info to adopt him, and after some very diligent background checks from the rescue people, I was cleared to adopt him. I renamed him Pete, and he has been an amazing addition to my family. He can still be a bit shy, probably due to living on the streets, but he runs to me when I call him by name (especially if I am shaking his bunny-treats)!

Lynn Kline
LAMBERTVILLE, NJ

From Charming to Mr. Gray

Two years ago, my little Ginger crossed the bridge at 16 years. After a month of there being just me and my tortie Jasmine, I decided it was time for a friend for her. I tend to lean toward older kitties because they are the ones most often ignored. Walking into my local pet store to get food for Jasmine, to my right are a whole bunch of kittens waiting to be adopted. I was about to leave the area when in the back, I see a larger gray shorthair tabby taking it all in. He's not a bit cowed by the noise and all the kids playing with kittens, but he's certainly wanting some of that attention for himself. He rubbed against my hand and that sealed the deal. He came home with me. His foster mom had named him Charming because she said he was a very loving kitty. When I got him inside the house, I opened the carrier and Jasmine came to see what was happening. It was obvious neither was impressed, but Charming walked out of the carrier past Jasmine and acted like this had been his home forever. It became very apparent that he was not always Charming, but could be when the mood struck him. I named him Mr. Gray because he was very friendly to everyone. As soon as the doorbell rang, he was at the door welcoming whomever. He would jump on any visitor's lap whether they wanted him or not. But, I had to swaddle him (including his head) just to clip his claws. He can be a bit of a bully if he's displeased about something and he will bite at a moment's notice. On the other side, he will sit on my lap and head butt me while he's being brushed (something he loves). A month ago, he stopped eating and wasn't his usual ornery self, so off to the vet we go. Seems he's allergic to something in the plastic dishes that held their water and food. Out of the 9 cats I've had, this is a first, but now we have all ceramic bowls and no more bottled water. After a mega shot of Prednisone, he will be on L-lysine for the rest of his life, but he is getting better slowly and is back to his ornery self again - irritating Jasmine and me daily. He's a pain but he's also a delight and I have zero regrets about adopting this kitty who had been rescued as a stray.

Linda T
CHANDLER, AZ

She chose us.

Over 18 years ago, a young adult calico kitty began to hang out in our yard and around us as were fixing up our new home's property. She would watch us work and occasionally come over for attention. My husband would relax after hard work by laying on the grass while this kitty would climb up and lay on his chest.
A neighbor said she was another neighbor's cat and she was in great condition, but that began to change. We noticed she was sleeping in our shrubs and would pop out when we drove in the driveway looking for a meal. Ticks began to show up on her. We started feeding her, treating her for ticks and having her stay in our breezeway between house and garage since we had other cats. All kitties became familiar with each other through the glass doors.
Then came the day she brought us a dead bird. That did it. We marched over to the house where she supposedly was from, knocked on the door and asked if she was their cat. Their response: "Oh, that cat moved out over a year ago" My husband said "MOVED OUT?!? Did she pack a bag too?" We didn't ask, we informed them that this kitty was now ours; they didn't care. Next day, Moochee (named for being a mooch for food) went to the vet, got a clean bill of health and moved inside. Just in time: it was October in New England. After some adjustment time she was integrated, became buddies with my boy kitty, and never asked to go outside again.
20 years old now, aging but healthy, she is an only-cat. We're preparing for retirement and an eventual move out of this house, but will put this off as long as Moochee is with us. This is ALL the love she's ever known. To up-root her would be cruel, so we will wait and love her ever day she has left with us. She chose us. It's our job to be sure she chose wisely.

Roberta Reynolds
SHELTON, CT

From homeless to home loved.

9 years ago, a neighbor called me to help her catch a kitten running around in the parking lot. It took 3 adults over 15 minutes to catch “Zippy”. I fostered the 1-1/2 pound 10-week-old kitten. Turns out he was a she, so her new name became Lucy. A Russian Blue, she is loyal to me, and now weighs 15 pounds and enjoys taking naps on my lap.

Lupe Martinez
ROGERS, AR

Headed Straight for the Leopard!

I was house-sitting for a staff member at a big cat sanctuary when I heard an odd noise just at dusk. I went out to investigate, and saw a a housecat headed straight for the leopard enclosure some yards away.
The leopard had a history of catching squirrels and birds, so I was very concerned for this domestic cat!
I knew calling her with fear in my voice would only drive her in the wrong direction, so I closed my eyes for a moment and then calmly called her over. Thankfully, the little cat changed directions and headed towards me. "Would you like something to eat?" I asked her. She came closer. I invited her to come into the screened porch, and she cautiously stepped in.
After I got her some food and setting up a litter box, she looked at me with the biggest eyes I've ever seen on a cat. I could see gratitude and hope in them.
A visit to the vet checked her as healthy. She was chipped, but the previous caretaker never responded to calls. The address listed on the chip was miles and miles away, so we thought perhaps she had been dropped off at the sanctuary.
7 years later, and Ginger is happy, healthy, and much loved. I am so grateful I heard that little odd noise that night . . . . .

Annette Pedersen
PHOENIX, AZ

Matt the WonderCat

Matt showed up in our neighborhood about 5 years ago and immediately charmed all the neighbors (we have a network of neighbors who trap/spay/feed and shelter our community cats). He is a Maine Coon mix and has the perfect personality of that breed. At the time, we had two cats and didn't want to add a third one, but we continued to feed him (along with the other community cats) and provide shelter in our garage in the winter. He decided that we were the family that he wanted to be with--for example, he jumped into my husband's lap one evening when he was sitting outside; he followed me into the house one morning as I prepared breakfast for the outside kitties; and made it his business to worm his way into our hearts! One day at work I was talking to a co-worker about him and she said she would adopt him-yay! The weekend she was supposed to pick him up she had an out-of-state house heater emergency and asked if we could keep him until she returned in a couple of days. Well, the couple of days turned into two weeks and by the time she came to get him, we had fallen completely in love with him and he had immediately settled into our house routine. However, a promise was a promise, so she picked him up on a Saturday. After he left, we sat in the house crying our eyes out and realized we had made a terrible mistake giving him up. We decided to give our emotions until Tuesday to settle down but even by that time, we knew we had to ask for him back. Fortunately, my co-worker completely understood (as I asked her between my sobs) that we wanted to keep him. Two nights later, Matt was back home with us (we explained to him that he just went away to kitty camp...) and he acted like he had never left. He has been with us for three years now--he is the best cat and we love him so much. Matt the WonderCat indeed!

Yesmeen
LITTLESTOWN, PA