Animal Rescue Stories

Missing

Electro didn't show up to eat one morning. I knew something was wrong, he wasn't in the habit of disappearing. I started searching for him immediately, I knocked on doors, distributed pamphlets, walked and drove up and down streets calling, placed adds and responded to many false alarms before I finally found him 2 weeks and a day later, almost starved to death in tree in the back of someone's yard not far from where I lived. There was a dog underneath the tree, my brother had to get past the dog and rescue him. The sad thing is that if we didn't go into the yard to look for him we wouldn't have known. The people living there didn't care that there was a cat crying in the tree. Never stop looking if a pet goes missing. Who could think that anything could survive that long in a tree. He did have more of a liking in insects afterwards.

Christelle
Bloemfontein, South Africa

Finally friends

Both my girls were rescue kittens, one from our local SPCA and the other found in a tree in a friends garden. Having moved them to a gardenless flat recently, I was worried about them not adjusting very well, but they are thriving and seem to finally enjoy each others company after years of simply ignoring one another. Nothing beats the warm bodies on the bed at night and when they wrap themselves around your legs looking for attention.

KC
Cape Town, South Africa

Believe in love at first sight? These huskies do.

We got Chinook (left) as a puppy from a reputable breeder. My fiance and I had both always wanted a husky since we were kids. He was our dream dog. After he was about 1 1/2 years old I kept looking at the local shelter for a companion for him. One day I was looking on the website and I saw Koda (right). I got my fiance, packed up Chinook, and we raced down to the shelter to meet her. She was the sweetest dog ever and still is. Chinook and her hit it off right away and were running around the meet and greet room together. We brought her home and gave her a bath. Probably brushed 5 pounds of hair out of her. We got her at 1 year old and she had always been kept outside, even since she was a baby. She was turned in because they had no time for her. I am so glad they didn't know what they had because she is the perfect addition to our family and now she never has to spend another night outside. I will never get another dog from anywhere a shelter. We also have a cat Scooter we rescued from a shelter 4 years ago. Chinook is turning 4 this year and Koda just turned 3. They are completely inseperable and never spend a minute apart. They are the greatest dogs ever and make our lives complete.

Nicole
BEAVERTON, OR

KAREN'S KITTIES

I work for Sotheby's International Realty in Cape Road, Port Elizabeth, South Africa. We started noticing at night when we were leaving the office that there was a cat or two underneath our cars, or sleeping in the sun on the bonnet. They were completely wild and would dash away immediately we approached. They were very thin and in poor condition. I have 4 cats of my own, a legacy of 2 years of working in a veterinary practice. I started buying inexpensive cat food and putting it out at night for them, and of course every morning it was finished. After a couple of days of doing this, I noticed more and more cats, and one or 2 kittens. I got in touch with my local Catcare Society, who very kindly let me have a trap and over a period of a few weeks, managed to trap them one by one, and have them sterilised. One poor, old ginger boy I had euthanased as he had skin cancer on his nose that was starting to spread. To cut a long story short, I now have a colony of 7 feral cats that I feed daily and who have come to trust me - I have even been able to touch one or two of them. Their names are Callie (a gorgeous calico and my personal favourite), Tigger, a very inquisitive tabby, Big Boo, Fluffy and Scaredy Cat (two longhaired moggies)Smokey and Al Capone, who looks like a gangster! They are all looking much healthier now. Some of my work colleagues contribute to my cause and I have earned the nickname of The Cat Whisperer!

Karen Bowker
Port Elizabeth, South Africa

He's No Longer Chained to a Tree

After the passing of our Golden Retriever, Charlie, we decided that getting a rescue Golden was a good way to pay tribute to our sweet boy. I got the email that River (he was called "Buddy" at that time), had just been rescued from being chained to a tree the first 2 1/2 years of his life. He had no shelter except a picnic table. He had snow in the winter and extreme heat in the summer. We fell in love at first sight and the rest is history. He is a beautiful, happy, healthy boy who brings us such love. Thank you to Rescue for allowing us to bring this sweet boy into our family. He is now at his "forever" home and will be loved and cherished always.
Don't hesitate to contact the rescues in your area to meet some of the most deserving and sweetest animals you could ever find.

Marge
Visalia, CA

Holly

Me and my family rescued this beautiful dog from the humane society. The first time we saw her we fell in love. The very next day we came back and got her, and I'm so happy that she is part of our family. We spent all night thinking of names trying to find the perfect one. It was toward Christmas so at last we thought why not name her Holly. She liked it and it was suitable for her personality. She is shy towards visitors, but is the sweetest dog I have ever seen. She does have a mean side though, so don't think you can coming knocking down our door without her going in attack mode. :) She would never hurt a guest, and doesn't bark at every little thing. We all love our little Holly, and are very blessed to have found her. I have always wondered why anyone would want to give up this sweet little girl.

Bam Bam
Tucson, AZ

Losing one to save another.

We lost our beloved Nipper in Feb 06 at the age of six. Since the house was too quiet, we found Jasper on a website near our hometown. Jazzy as we call her, was from Indiana where she would have been killed unless the people from K9 Lifeline wouldn't have rescued her. It took losing our "buddy" Nipper, to get our "baby" Jasper. She makes our lives complete!

Dave & Conne
Janesville, WI

My baby

One day, my brother came to me, and told me he saw an ad for shih-tzus in the paper, and he wanted to go look at them. So, me being a dog lover, I was all over that! So my brother, my mom and I went. When we got there, we saw him and we heard his snorts and had to get him. Well, my brother moved out, and he was going through a rough time, so he asked me to keep the dog. I said yes, of coarse. Ever since, he has been my baby, and my brother moved back in, but he knows how much I love him. His name is Charlie Brown, and he has soooo many nicknames!

Summer
Lynchburg, VA

A Close Call

This is Annie and next week it will be one year since she came to live with us. Annie was found roaming the streets of Ohio and was taken to a local dog shelter. My husband and I were looking on PetFinder.com for a new buddy for our Weimaraner whose companion dog had passed away and saw Annie. Her description was marked "URGENT" -- that's all we needed to make our decision to get her to Vermont somehow! Thanks to several wonderful volunteers from the Dog Rescue Railroad and other pet rescue organizations, we were able to arrange for her transport to the Northeast. We are thankful everyday that we discovered this wonderful dog in time! Annie is now working on becoming a therapy dog.

Deborah Cianca-Mayer
Richmond, VT

"Libby--from homeless in Mexico to livin' life in luxury"

Libby was found roaming the streets in Rosarito, Mexico barely hanging on to life. She had a severe case of Mange, which left most of her fur gone and she was extremely underweight. She was a living a life no dog should have to live. Then, one day, she was rescued by two compassionate women who operated a sanctuary for dogs near the US border in Mexico. It was there she was treated for her Mange and began to get the nutrition she desperately needed. Within a couple months, she was ready for adoption.

I just so happened to be looking for a dog at the time and stumbled upon Libby. I went to "meet" her right after work the day I saw her photo and fell in love with her on the spot. I brought her home with me that night.

It took some time to domesticate my new little girl and it took her a few days to trust me, but after about a week, she was glued to my side. She's come a long way and her personality has really shined though. I can't imagine having any other dog and I'm so happy I can give her the life she deserves. Libby has changed my life for the better and I know if she could talk, she would say the same!

Tricia
San Diego, CA