Animal Rescue Stories

Apache Princess

I've had dogs most of my life. In June when I lost my last six dogs, five of the six were rescues or failed fosters. They all lived long good lives, 11-14 years old and large and a medium one. I had not been without a fur baby for over twenty years. My parents and I raised two from puppies, they out lived my parents. They lived to be 12 and a half and 14 years old, a Rottie and a German Shepherd.
I'm 65 and single, no family, my dogs after my parents died were my family. So after my last one crossed the bridge in June of last year, I knew I didn't need to be alone, so only a couple of days after Rose crossed the bridge was Father's Day weekend. The strange thing with Rose when I came home from work and found she had crossed the bridge, inside I felt for the first time since her last sibling crossed, she was again happy. She was happy to be back with her siblings who had crossed before her. She and her last two siblings all crossed the bridge within six months of each other. Even with all of the attention, her personality changed, she lost her perky spirit. The MACC near me was having a "no adoption fee" for Father's Day. So I got up on Saturday morning and decided to make the 45 minute drive to see what the shelter had. They mostly had large breed and several Pibbles. I came up one of the kennels where one sat quietly and just was looking as people went by. Our eyes made contact, and I could not believe what I felt. Looking back at me those eyes I felt my fur babies who had crossed the bridge looking back at me. I felt inside they were okay with me adopting another. And Rose was okay with me adopting another fur baby just two days after she crossed. So I visited with Apache Princess and another. The other was more spirited than Apache Princess, but inside I knew she was going to be mine. I loved her name so I kept it. Her story was, her family lost their home and had to surrender her. Her intake papers had her listed as eleven years but when I got her home and started spending time with her, I had doubts she was as old as hr owners listed her, plus she had no gray on her face or muzzle.
when a lump appeared on her left side five months after I brought her home, I took her to my vet to get it checked out. I hoped for a fatty tumor but prepared for something else, cancer. My vet drew some cells from the tumor and sent them off to the lab. A week later they came back, a Sarcoma. My vet said it was in the early stage. It was so close to the holidays and early stage, we decided to let us get through the holidays as I monitored the growth, then we do surgery. So with the holidays over and things back to normal, we are working on scheduling the surgery. For Christmas, Apache Princess had her picture made with Santa at our local Petco, where I learned they partner with Blue Buffalo to support a Cancer Fund to help pet parents financially with medical for cancer treatment.
We saw her veterinary February 4th because the lump has grown a bit. Before I can get some assistance from Petco/Blue Buffalo's Cancer Fund, Apache Princess and I have to make a trip to UT at Knoxville, TN for a Baseline Assessment to see if she qualifies for the program. Then from there, we'll take the next step whatever it may be.
I've lost three of my fur babies to cancers. I hope I won't lose a fourth. But ever how long I have with her, she is a blessing and gives me so much, even more love than I give her. She protective, barks at the drive through, we are working on that. She is my beautiful fur baby, and I'm so glad I went to Nashville, TN so soon after losing Rose or I would not have found my wonderful girl who seems to possess little things that my fur babies had before her. Seems every day I find a part of them in her. Rescue dogs are the best. I encourage you to Adopt don't Shop.

Barbara Duke
LEBANON, TN

The Story of Harry and Hermione

My 14-year old daughter had never had a kitten. When she was born, we had an older cat who passed away when she was still young. Then we adopted our present cat, Stripey. He was almost a year old and a full-grown cat. He didn't hit it off well with Holly because she was a typical noisy toddler. When Oliver came along, the senior cat I took in after my mother could no longer care for him, Holly began to bond with him, but he attached himself to me. My husband promised Holly that she could have her own cat when Oliver passed away. Five years later when that happened, it was a heartbreak for all of us. We didn't rush to get another cat, and Stripey seemed content to be an only cat again.

As the one-year mark approached that Oliver took his trip to Rainbow Bridge, a cat cafe opened up in our area called The Shabby Tabby Cat Cafe. I thought it would be fun to visit and see the cats. We took a trip there, and Holly fell in love with a kitten named Ringo. Unfortunately, another person had already laid claim to him. Holly was upset, but her dad assured her that we would get a cat for her eventually, and I explained that Ringo was just not the one meant for her.

We took another trip to the cat cafe on October 21, three days before my daughter's 14th birthday. There was a fall fair going on in town that day, and I thought we'd just drop into Shabby Tabby and see if they had any new cats. It turned out that they had several new kittens. My daughter spotted a black one right away and began playing with him. Although Ringo had been white and orange, she'd always said she wanted a black cat, but the main thing was one that connected with her.

All the cats at the cafe are named. I found out they come from the Golden Paws Society shelter in Huntington Station. After playing with Harry for a while, Holly told me she was in love with him. I could see why. He was a playful fellow who seemed affectionate and bright. When I asked if he was available, I was told he was but that he couldn't be separated from his sister, Hermione, a calico kitten. I was also informed that Harry and Hermione had tested positive for FIV (Feline Aids) but that it was possible they hadn't contracted the disease but were testing positive because of their mother's antibodies. We wouldn't know for sure until they were retested at six months when their immune system was mature enough to function on its own.

I knew my husband wouldn't like the idea of our taking two kittens especially ones that might have FIV when we already had another cat. But when I saw Hermione, I wanted to take the chance. It was like fate because not only had I always wanted a calico cat after having so many other types of cats all my life, but I'd just written the fourth book of my mystery series that introduced a calico kitten into the town. I also thought it would be great for the two kittens to be together as playmates. Eventually, I could introduce our older cat to them. I was hopeful the kittens were healthy and were told there was a good chance that they were. In the past, many FIV cats were euthanized before research showed that kittens were less likely to catch the disease from their mothers and that it wasn't generally spread through eating or sleeping together but through a deep bite.

I completed the adoption forms that had to be approved by Golden Paws and set a pick-up date for that Wednesday night, October 24, which was the best day for us because I had the next two days off to watch the kittens while Holly was in school. It also happened to be her birthday. My husband wasn't thrilled when we broke the news about adopting them, but he finally agreed. To prepare for the new arrivals, I picked up some supplies including a pet playpen in which the kittens could stay when we weren't around. We set it up in my daughter's room because we wanted her to learn the responsibility of caring for her cats. She was able to fit food and water bowls inside, a few safe toys, and a litter box. She also cleaned her room and made it cat friendly.

On October 24, we picked the kittens up from Golden Paws in Huntington Station. When we got them home, they seemed to do fine in Holly's room. They were accustomed to the playpen from the cat cafe, although my daughter kept them out after school while she was doing her homework. At night, Harry curled up and slept on her chest.

Now that they are six-month's old, they have most of the run of the house and, although our other cat is a bit wary of them in his territory, the three of them can stay together with only occasional play fighting. We also received the wonderful news from their vet that they have now tested negative for FIV.

Harry and Hermione are playful and beautiful kittens. I'm convinced that they were meant for us, and we were meant for them.

Debbie De Louise
HICKSVILLE, NY

Wonder Mindy

Mindy is a Havanese that was rescued from a puppy mill, she was never touched by human hands the first six months of her life. When she was rescued they had to leave a leash on her to catch her. She was scared of every one and every thing, the foster parents we got her from said she had eaten the drywall, three feet high, out of the room where they were keeping her. When we first got her she stood looking at us from between our pit bulls front legs. She got along great with our other dogs. We would have to get her in a corner to catch her for the first six months. She liked going into her crate which was a blessing, I would take her out of her crate after work and hold her and stroke her body while talking softly to her. I am a diabetic and learned patience from my Mother who had to deal with the rollercoaster life of a diabetic teenager. I always look forward to coming home after work to be with Mindy. It took a (lot) of patience to work through her fears and problems. But time and special care have developed the wonderful sweet little girl we now have. After much work she would let us pick her up, but she always turns around so that her back is facing you, she still does that to this day. For a couple of years she would not let us pick her up when we were in the back yard, we can now pick her up in the yard. She has allergies and has to get a shot every two weeks and take pills every night. At first I would have to put the pills in her mouth and work to get her to swallow them. After several years her brother started taking pills too, and she learned from him how to come up get a treat then take and swallow a pill. We knew she was smart but for her to watch Ricky and come up on her own and wait for her pill is amazing. We call her our autistic child because she has to have everything in the right place at the right time or it upsets her very much. Now she will come up and ask to be scratched or held which she avoided for so long. It has been so rewarding to watch her grow into the sweet baby girl she is now. Every time we talk to her former foster parents and tell them of some new thing she is doing it just blows their mind. They say they never could have imagined that she would turn out this close to normal from where she started. I think my Mother would have said the same thing about me.

Sally Blevins
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK

Found my perfect chow chow.

After losing my bonded pair of chow girls, a year to the month apart, at ages 14 1/2 and 15, I said, "That's it. I'm not going through this again." It is so heartbreaking to lose them. But, life is missing something precious without pets. And I have become very partial to chows, having been blessed with three of them. One day, several months ago, I just knew I needed rescue by a chow companion to take me on regular walks and fill my heart again. I have an adopted kitty and therefore needed to find just the right chow family member. I began searching chow chow rescue sites online & first found one available 20 min. away. But....not good w/cats. Several others drew my attention, but on inquiry learned, again, not good with cats. Met a woman online who devotes herself to working with chow chow rescues related to animal shelters who put me on her mailing list for available possibilities. I fell in love over and over again with the faces of these fur babies needing homes, but concern over compatibility with cats made me not a candidate for their adoption. I also was not considering traveling great distances, though I did do an hour trip to meet a gorgeous chow boy who had not been tested with cats until that day. To no avail. I finally considered giving up as this was becoming emotionally exhausting. (I don't know how these angels who devote their time to the vast numbers of this breed, including mixes, let alone those who persevere on behalf of other specific breeds, manage not to burn out on searching for forever homes & not always finding them.) But that evening, an email with video of a chow girl, first in a pen with other dogs, and second in a pen with cats, showed up. To claim her required an all-day round trip from my location, and I didn't even blink at the distance. The angel at the local Humane Society had named her Chia, having been brought in as a 'stray', all dirty & looking like a Chia Pet. She, Desiree, had patiently brought out her trust and sweetness that go well with her fluffiness and beauty. I immediately told my chow chow volunteer worker that both the doggie & the name were keepers, & committed to arrangements for claiming my new 'perfect' chow chow pet. She respects my cat, likes hanging out on my balcony w/o barking at dogs and activity passing by, makes friends w/other dogs on walks, & is a delightful companion who keeps me moving no matter what. I had fallen into a degree of depression, & have had my heart rescued by a fur baby named Chia.

Suzanne Sparks
LAGUNA WOODS, CA

A better life for little Oreo

My husband and I live a quiet life and try not to be nosy neighbors. However, as our house was built on a sort of knoll, if we looked out windows on our second story there were a couple of houses on the next block that we could see into their backyards.

On one of the rare occasions in Southern California, we were having a rainy spell. I was working in my home office and kept hearing this noise. I looked out to see what it was and saw a little black and white Shih Tzu dog playing with the only thing he had to play with - his food bowl. He was picking up in his mouth, throwing it up and when it landed he would repeat this process. I thought how sad that he only had a metal bowl to play with. I had previously seen him jumping up and down at the back door trying to get them to let him inside. I went back to work subconsciously listening for the sound of the metal food bowl. When my husband came home from his days work, I told him what I had seen and we went over to my window and looked out again. The little black dog was now laying in a puddle of rainwater trying to keep warm. This broke our hearts. After a discussion, we knew what we wanted to do.

The next day, my husband went around to our neighbor and asked if they had thought about getting rid of their dog, and if so, we wanted to adopt him. He was told that 'yes, they had been thinking of taking him to the humane society because they had a small child and the dog jumped up on him'.

My husband and I were going on vacation that next week, but he told her that we would take him when we returned in a week. Upon our return, we brought him into our family with the two other small dogs, and Oreo immediately became a beloved member of our family and lived a spoiled life with lots of toys to play with and a warm home to live and sleep in. He was blessed with a long life with as a full member of our family.

Gloria Knight
HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA

Heart felt love again.

I had lost my fur baby at the age of 8. For 3 months I gave her IV fluids every night because her kidneys were shutting down. I did everything I could, but after 3 month of IV's she looked at me and I could tell it was time to let her go. It took me 4 years to get another fur baby. Now my heart is filled again with the love I get every day. I just love her very much. I will never forget the fur baby I lost, but at least my heart is not empty anymore.

Denise Gentile
SELDEN, NY

His Parting Gift

My ex-boyfriend's dog, Buddy, who was my first dog's best friend of 13 years, came calling for him on Valentine's Day (two weeks after he had passed away on 2/3/2015). My first boy, Happy, left me to be with him two weeks thereafter, 3/2/2015; he was three days shy of his 14th birthday. Happy had left such an emptiness that I wanted to fill, so I looked on Petfinder to rescue a similar breed. My mourning wasn't over, I just knew that I wanted to find a dog who was like Happy and Buddy. One day I saw his face online and called the shelter to ask about him. I ordered a crate and paid for a plane ticket. I never met him until I had picked him up at the airport cargo area. He wasn't a purebred like Happy, but he was close. When I brought my rescue boy home, he ran straight upstairs and started rubbing and rolling on the futon couch like Happy did. The very next day I went through the paperwork that had came with him in the crate. I was in disbelief that my rescue boy was surrendered on the very day that my Happy had passed away; 3/2/2015. My Happy had left a parting gift for me... He didn't want me to be lonely.

LCK
PORTSMOUTH, NH

Mercy Joe

Mercy was a dog that had been rescued by Living Free Animal Sanctuary. She had been running around Idyllwild with a broken leg and a choke chain embedded in her mouth. They rehabbed her for a year and then put her up for adoption. We adopted her. At first she was very timid, but after several months she was doing summersaults on the couch after dinner. One of my greatest blessings was when one morning I saw a blanket hanging half way out of the doggie door. Upon investigation I found that she had gathered everything she could find in the yard during the night and brought it to the blanket and made herself a "nest". She knew that she was loved and this was her forever home!

Lorna Blechyneden
SAN DIEGO, CA

MISS BAGLADY

Miss Baglady was my first calico cat, born on 03/17,1995. She was an awesome cat. She saved my life one night as I was resting. She pounced on my chest several times and calmed my heartbeat down. Back then, we didn't hear about service animals. I went to my heart doctor and told him what happened; he said I was very lucky to have her, she saved my life!

I named her miss Baglady because, when I sold Avon and my order came in, she would sit on the bags that I had to fill. I loved her so very much. I miss her, but I know she is at the rainbow bridge, and playing with all of the animals there. We lived in Schenectady, N.Y. at the time, then we moved to Marshfield, M.O. One of my sons drove us, and she took the trip very well. I had to call the vet several months later; she wasn't acting right. They said they were filled up; I said this was an emergency. We drove over there, and Miss Baglady passed away in my arms, in the car. Once we went inside the vet's, there was no one there at all. I know I will see Miss Baglady again someday. What I reunion we will have!

Janice Sheehan
NIANGUA, MO

Feeding the ferals

Me and my husband live in a area that has many feral cats. A few years ago, there was a Siamese mix that kept coming around. So we fed him and always left water, food and covering to keep him safe. After a few weeks, he brought us his girlfriend. We noticed all the male cats were always following her and the male cat would let himself get beat up to give her time to hide. One night we were sitting watching the sunset when the female cat was running from another cat and jumped into his lap. We noticed she was very pregnant so we wrapped her in a towel and made our 2nd bedroom her home. The next morning, we were greeted by the male cat which we named JJ. He would not leave sight of the window of the bedroom of where we placed his girlfriend. So my husband threw a towel on him and brought him inside to be with her. We have 5 other cats that were not thrilled with our new additions. They were very jealous, especially when we would go in to check on them and close the door. 2 days later, the female, which we named Miss Sue, gave us 2 beautiful twin cats in the same sack. Well now it's been 2 years and we have 4 more cats that are now inside and very domesticated & spoiled kitties.

Penny Correa
IMPERIAL BEACH, CA