Animal Rescue Stories

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

My Bonnie Lass

After my husband passed away, I decided I needed another body in the house. I already had a 7 year old chocolate lab named Gus. So my daughter and I went to the local shelter looking for another larger dog. We ended up with a tiny female beagle mix named Bonnie. Bonnie was so small of stature that she could walk underneath Gus and her ears were so long they would flap uncontrollably whenever she ran through the yard. Well, Bonnie became the princess of our castle as soon as she moved in. She used Gus as her personal cushion, sitting on him whenever he lay down. They got along well. It was clear Bonnie had been an outside animal and getting her to adjust to being a house dog was challenging but well worth it.
Bonnie was definitely a Mama's girl. She was my shadow. If she was sound asleep and I left the room, her "mommy senses" kicked in and she was right by my feet. She was always very sweet. As Bonnie grew older her hearing and her eyesight both dimmed, but she never gave up her royal demeanor nor her love of me. After my Gus passed, Bonnie became big sister to a new rescue beagle and a kitten. She took the inconvenience in stride as royally as she could. When it was Bonnie's time to join her big brother on the other side, she was as brave a girl as I could ask for. As she peacefully passed on, I thanked her for being my princess and granting me the love she brought to my life. I still cry when I think of her and miss her very much.

Sherry S
OAKVILLE, CT

After the Tornadoes

The U.S. 2011 tornado outbreak killed 337 people in the South, 246 in Birmingham, AL alone. I was visiting my sister in Macon, GA and decided to drive to Birmingham to rescue a thin blue-eyed Cataholua Cur, whom I named Louis, pronounced as the French do, "Louie". Louis was a healthy stray found wandering a neighborhood after the tornadoes. He showed no signs of abuse and was friendly to all--men, women, other dogs, cats, children. In the years since I adopted him, he has always lived with three cats and is now 10 years old. He barks only when he feels something's a threat or out of place (he's a great watch dog!), doesn't jump on people, and is very laid back, but he does get nervous during thunder and lightning. I take him in the car whenever it isn't too hot. Catahoula Curs are wonderful dogs, read all about them at Wikipedia! They are descended from Native American dogs interbred with 17th century explorer Hernando de Sotos's European war dogs and Native American dogs that came to the Americas from Siberia, across the then existing-Bering Land Strait. Louis is always polite to his cats, waiting to jump on the bed until there is room for him! I love him to the moon and back! He is my best friend... Always adopt, don't buy a dog! There are so many lovely dogs that need a home and will bless you and your home with their love and loyalty!

Lee St. Cloud
SAINT HELENA ISLAND, SC

Sad Face Melted my Heart

I wasn't really looking for a dog at PetSmart, but our Old English sheepdog had died and my daughter wanted another dog. A woman from southern Missouri brought a van of rescues to PetSmart every weekend, so I was checking them out. In one cage was a skinny black dachshund mix along with a wild barking puppy. The doxie gave me a look that said, save me. I was hooked. He was about 6 years old and had been rescued from a kill shelter. His name was Percy, which my daughter changed to Hershey. We found out he must have been horribly abused because he was afraid of everything, hid under the bed a lot, and wouldn't come even for treats. It took a long time and a lot of patience for him to trust. But now, 10 years later, he is the sweetest dog ever. He is almost blind and deaf but still spry, and he follows me everywhere. He loves walks in the park and rides in the car. He is my Handsome Hershey.

Karol Walters
BALLWIN, MO

I just had to save him!

I got Asher from a local Atlanta-area animal shelter on January 11, 2014 while looking for my lost cat, Alex. He was very sick and, as I asked about him, they told me to just walk away because he's 'just going to die here.' I didn't. I asked them to open his cage so I could pet him and I heard him weezing. He could barely open his eyes but, when he did, the whites were blood red. Against their wishes, I claimed him and brought him to my vet.

He was a very, very sick, skinny kitty who could hardly hold his head up because of a severe upper respiratory infection AND a severe infection in both eyes. I was sent home with him and, every eight hours, gave him medication then held one of his paws as I read to him. If I left his side, he would meow for me because he couldn't see very well.

After ten days of being quarantined in a back bedroom, he started to heal. Little by little, he was allowed to come out of his room and see my other cats-and they were curious, too!

Months later I took this photo of Asher (on the right) with Cooper-a shelter cat I fell in love with months before.

Asher has blossomed into the sweetest cat who loves to cuddle with me and always follows me from room to room. He's such a precious addition to our family and is so very loved!

Susan Carr
SAINT PAUL, MN

Escape From Death Row

A few years ago, there were several dogs turned in to the City Dog Pound that had Parvo. Nugget was one of these. There was a mad scramble to get these dogs in to foster homes to avoid being put down. The shelter could not handle a Parvo outbreak. We fostered Nugget and another male pup to try and help out. Unfortunately, the other puppy did have Parvo and only lived a couple more days. We decided to keep Nugget, who is now 8 years old and going strong. He never showed any sign of Parvo. He has been a pleasure and blessing to have in our home.
We have since adopted a second dog to keep him company.

DENNIS WEST
KELLER, TX

Highway Rescrews

From my house into town, I drive 8 miles on this two lane, 55 MPH highway, mostly through farmland. I drive it every day unless I stay home. One August in 2001, taking my daughter to a 4H meeting, a tiny kitten runs out in front of the car ahead of us, and dodges back to the ditch. My daughter wanted me to stop, so I did, cautioning her that this is farm country with lots of feral cats, and he probably wouldn't let us pick him up. Well, there he sat, in the grass, meowing loud enough for us to find him. So, we have our first cat ever! We fittingly named him Dodger. Home he goes with us, and to the vet the next day, and we have a healthy 8 week old male. So, about 10 weeks later, I was headed to town for a bunch of errands, on this same highway, to see an tiny orange kitten in the oncoming lane, dodging cars. One car straddled him, as I passed and held my breath. In my rear view mirror I saw him run back into a field. I found a place to turn around and thought, if he let me, I'd pick him up. Well, no sooner did I get out of my truck, this cat found me and ran up my pants leg. So, here we go, into town to finish my errands. Later at the feed store, he gobbled up some cat food samples. He was a mess, with bloated tummy, crawling with fleas, a scab over one eye, and a tail missing most of it's fur. Next day at the vet, he was declared healthy, just full of worms and only 14 ounces. We brought him home to the other cat, now accustomed to our three large dogs. We had never had cats, but now lived in the country with so many mice, we needed some. Over the years the two boys, Dodger (the grey one) and Bubba, have been both rivals and snuggle buddies. Bubba was the bossy one, and Dodger just put up with it. Once, when a new puppy was annoying the the cats, Dodger just moved himself to the barn with the horses and barn cats, and a couple years later he made peace with the puppy, and moved back to the house. For 17 years, they were a joy to watch, always enjoying our back deck in the sun, and waiting for an empty lap in the evening. Neither of them played with toys. I think their beginnings were too traumatic to really act like kittens. Bubba died last year, and we worried Dodger would need a companion besides the dogs. But his personality has completely changed without Bubba bossing him around. He is obviously enjoying being the only cat, with his routines he insists on. He meows loudly on the bed till my husband settles in and invites him to his pillow. He demands fresh food if it has been sitting on the plate for more than a few hours. He has multiple health issues now, and gets subcutaneous fluids twice a week. We will enjoy him for his last years and his demanding bossy ways. Funny thing is, I've never seen another stray cat on that highway. Only that summer, 18 years ago, and 10 weeks apart. They were meant to be brothers, and meant to be ours.

Diane, Chehalis, WA
CHEHALIS, WA

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

My Buddy

In April 2011, I was visiting my daughter. As I was leaving, a cat dashed up and started rubbing around my legs. He was skinny and had large red sores behind his ears. I was about to scoop him up and take him home, but my daughter said, "You can't just take someone's cat." So I knocked on a few doors, and one woman said, "Oh, he's just some old tom. We throw food out for him." I said I would take him to the vet. At the vet, he just loved everyone, he was so anxious to be loved. It turned out the sores behind his ears were because he scratched at them, as he had a bad case of ear mites. Most of his back teeth were bad and had to be removed. I just had to take him home after he was treated and neutered. You could see he was so grateful to have a home. He never wants to go outside again. Once I'd left the door ajar. He saw a squirrel and dashed out, took a quick look around and dashed back outside. A year later, a neighbor phoned and said, "You'd better rescue your cat." Buddy was by my side, as usual, but I went outside. There was a little kitten fighting off a Jack Russell terrier. I brought the little kitten inside, and Buddy immediately took over and became his big brother. I put up notices and asked around, but no one seemed to own this little kitten. The vet said he was about 2 months old. Buddy is very protective of him.
I hadn't planned to have more cats as I was afraid they would out live me, but 8 years later, we are all happy and healthy.

Valerie Paterson
POCAHONTAS, AR

My soul kitty

We lost our first kitty together, "Itsa" in April of 1998, 18 days after we lost my Dad. The grief was unbearable. That December, we decided it was time to adopt another kitty to love. We met "Holly" 9 days before Christmas of that same year, and although I was still grieving my double loss, it was time. When we met Holly, it was love at first sight and I just knew she was "the one for me". I cried before we brought her home but my husband confirmed that we were giving another kitty a home to be loved in. We took to me like glue and she became my baby, my soul kitty, my best friend. She would stare at me like I was the only thing in the world that mattered to her and she shared so many kisses and constantly purred with contentment. She would call out to me when I wasn't in the same room with her and I swear when she did, it sounded like she was saying "Hello". We lost her in November of 2018 after 20 full loving years, and my life will never be the same without her. I still cry without her companionship, but we were so fortunate to have her in our lives. She would have been 21 on September 20, 2019. Miss you, "Mom's Love".

Flossie O'Donnell
GLENOLDEN, PA