Animal Rescue Stories

Buddies for Buddy

We volunteer at our local animal shelter every Saturday. One particular Saturday I found a dirty little terrier mix sitting in between a pomeranian and a jack russell, and puppies in cages above him. He was the smelliest, dirtiest dog with matted, felt-like fur and spikey eyebrows. I took him out for his walk and he spent his time rolling in the grass. I could see he had some skin issues. I took him back to his cage when his time was up. A few moments later a lady brought him out and immediately sent him back when she seen how dirty and smelly he was. I knew this dog did not have a chance if he didn't get a bath and a grooming. He had already been there for two months.

That week he was on my mind constantly. I went back the next Saturday and adopted him. He was due for euthanization the following Monday! We cleaned him up, took him to the groomer and the vet, and named him Buddy. He has been our Buddy ever since. He does have a skin condition we are working on, but we got the best dog when we chose him. Under all that mess was a wonderful, loving, beautiful dog. Buddy reminds me daily that under the mess, there is hope. The same thing a lot of people need to realize about other people. I do believe that dogs are angels with invisible wings.

Tammy Lyons
Springfield, GA

IZZY

I saw Izzy on pet finder one day after I had clicked on the "click for food" There she was, smiling at me. She had been left tied up to a post outside a vet's office. We rescued her from a rescue group, and have loved having her as an addition to our family. She has three Maltese sisters now, and I must admit, it was different at first, but now we can't imagine the house without her.

Linda Raney
Memphis, TN.

Linda Raney
Memphis, TN

Good for each other!

When we adopted STyler he weighed a little less than a pound and was 5 weeks old. He had been brought to the veterinary hospital 10 days earlier, beat up and nearly dead. Our vet took him home, fed him round the clock and then called us because we had recently lost our dear cat and were really grieving. This tiny kitten healed our hearts as he grew bigger and stronger each day. Today he is a big, tall boy and the most lovable cat we've ever known. We can't imagine life without him.

Betsy Fenik
East Greenwich, RI

Katie

We adopted Katie from Echo White German Shepherd Rescue. She was a pregnant stray in Georgia. Unfortunately, the pound that Echo rescued her from put all six of her puppies to sleep. Katie is a very energetic and outgoing Husky/Shepherd mix with one blue and one brown eye. She is one happy dog living with her two sisters (also rescued dogs) here in southern Florida. We just love her and thank Echo for saving her life.

Tracey & Jeff
North Port, FL

MISS POOJI

Approximately 10 yrs. ago we rescued Pooji Jude from a puppy mill. She was only 8wks old & had "precious" written all over her face. We found after taking her to our vet for what we thought was a sore on her leg that she had a fungal infection which had entered her bloodstream. It took a number of weeks and injections, but she survived. Two years later I suffered a severe viral infection which made me bedridden for 18mos. during which time Pooji only left my side for calls of nature. She was a "super nurse" and companion during those dark days. Today, we've grown old together and I give thanks for our little gift from heaven.

Maxine Raham
Connersville, IN

Major Tom Turtle's Amazing Rescue

All last winter this ball of fur showed up at the back door for breakfast and dinner then would disappear as soon as he ate his fill. One morning during a really brutal snowstorm I was putting his food out and for the first time he came very close and cried so loudly I sat down in the snow and let him jump into my lap. His long fur was so matted it was almost solid and tearing away in clumps. We lured him into a carrier with stinky cat food and off to our long-suffering vet (we've provided him with quite a few challenges over the years). His entire body except for head, tail and legs was shaved to the skin -- we called him our Space Monkey. He turned out to be completely healthy and a fabulous looking Maine Coon when his luxury coat grew back. He is quite a character and like all Maine Coons -- affectionate and calm. He fit himself right in with the rest of the guys that showed up at the back door and asked for a home in that particular cat way.

lorraine huth
wauwatosa, WI

Bernard, sibling, and friends

My neighbor rescued pups thrown into the creek nearby... to drown. There were 6 of them. 2 died of parvo and the neighbor left the remaining in the care of their son, who never fed the pups. One survivor pulled himself from the creek and managed to make it to my home. He was so afraid, it took a day of patience to even allow me to get close enough to touch him. I named him David, who conquered the giant on his own! These pups were terrorized by the lack of care and abuse. I broght them out of hiding, into my arms, and into my home. They are all nearly a year old. Worth every second, and every penny spent on food. The picture is of Bernard, the most terrorized and antisocial of them all. The photo says it all!

Martha Mason
Dothan, AL

The boy next door

Buster lived in the barn at the farm nextdoor to our house, he turned up one May morning looking pathetic. He was so cuddly & sweet we couldn't resist loving him up whenever he came around. Well after a month or two of visiting he decided it was time to move in & in he came, right through our doggy door. At first we tried to find him a home with some friends, but no one wanted him & we thank our lucky stars everyday that he chose us. Our vet tells us he is a gorgeous example of a purebred American Shorthair. He is without a doubt the sweetest, cuddliest cat you'll ever meet (except we're pretty sure he thinks he 's a dog).
Our catchphrase is "Everyone loves Buster", and that's everyone..even people who don't like cats. We can't imagine our home without him, he's a happy member of our 4 cat, 3 dog household & he shares the love with every last one of us. He's been a lifesaver to our very old orange tabby, when old Beau found grooming himself too hard Buster took over & when they curl up together in their little basket there's nothing more adorable!

Karen R
Guelph, Canada

Jake and Max

Jake and Max are both rescued dogs. Max was literally rescued from a very busy intersection on Pac Hwy by my husband. We put up fliers and now 5 years later, Max is still with us. We added Jake to our family through the Humane Society when he was 2 months old. They are quite a team, and both are very special parts of our family.

Patti Francis
Des Moines, WA

Callisto and Magellan

My husband and I adopted Magellan (right) through Petfinder shortly after we were married six years ago. My husband had never had a pet and seemed intimidated, so I chose the shelter's smallest kitten, who had been found in a trash can. When we brought him home, he earned his name after exploring the dishwasher and falling asleep in the top rack.

Four years later, I found a tiny, dirty calico kitten crying in the bushes outside our apartment. I brought her inside where she nuzzled Magellan for milk, but seemed overjoyed to find his cat food instead; she ate desperately, shaking. Then she nuzzled with me for a while and went to sleep in a potted plant. We put up found-cat signs but no one claimed her, so we named her after the moon of Jupiter, because when I was little I thought it sounded like calico.

Magellan was afraid of tiny Callisto at first. And although she grew up to be half his size, he is still a little afraid of her. She loves to chase him and starts fights which she always loses. But she grooms him, too, and once in a while they even sit together, like this.

Summer
Webster, TX