After I lost my last of 3 kitties, I thought I would not get another animal for a while. It was just so painful to lose them. But after a week my husband and I decided the house was too quiet, so we went to look for a new furry family member. We found a solid gray long-haired cat named Lucy. She was 2 years old and had been returned twice. I thought, this is it, we have to have her as she needed some stability. We soon found Lucy needed a LOT of attention, which I'd never experienced before with my previous cats. We then decided we'd start looking for a dog, and we were both nervous about it as neither of us had an indoor house dog. I began to volunteer at the SPCA in my area. While I worked mainly in the cat area, I'd go into the dog room each time I volunteered to check out the dogs. One day I came upon Jesse. His kennel said he was a 3-year-old Lhassa Apso mix. His hair was so overgrown and he looked pitiful, but his eyes just captured my heart. I Immediately called my husband and said I think I found our newest family member. I took a pic and took it home to show him. I called the shelter that same night and asked if anyone had dibs on Jesse and they said no. I went to the shelter the first thing the next morning and adopted him. He had been returned twice as well: the first time for resource guarding, and the second because he had been hit by a car and had a broken jaw, so the owners surrendered him to the SPCA. He had his jaw surgery, neuter surgery, and by the time we adopted him, he was all fixed up. Soft food and toys for a while, and he needed to gain a little weight, but otherwise fine. We ended up finding out after having him for eight weeks and after a jaw recheck, he was only 14 months old. We also found out through a DNA test, he has zero Lhaso Apso in him and he is primarily a Shih Tzu mix with a lot of other doggie DNA. It's been almost 4 years we've had Lucy, and 3 1/2 years we had Jesse. We can't imagine our lives without them; they bring so much joy each and every day. I would encourage everyone to adopt and give shelter animals a chance. They want nothing more than to be loved and they give it back tenfold. My husband and I look so forward to coming home each day and seeing our 4 legged kids so happy to see us.

Cindy Chancey
OLATHE, KS