Animal Rescue Stories

Duka Passed Away

I was so thrilled Duka's story was posted about her FIV and FeLV status. When I got up Saturday I could tell something was wrong with her. I took her to the vet's and they referred us to another one. She was having trouble breathing and was going into liver failure. I had to make that terrible decision to let her go. They wrapped her in a blanket and let me hold her as she closed her eyes one last time. I had 14 wonderful months with her that I wouldn't trade for anything. The vet said "most people would have put her down when they were told how sick she was" at the beginning. I remember looking at her and saw the fight in her eyes and I knew it was my fight too. I had to take alot of precautions with her, but it was so worth the love she filled my heart with. Duka was born into the world a feral, but left a very much loved house cat. I also wanted all our friends from the Community Beta to know what happened. I can't thank them all enough for their help and encouragement, but most of all their love and support meant the world to both of us.

Jill
Pittsburgh, PA

Riker on vacation

We got Riker from Snow Capped Shepherd Rescue in Denver, after he was rescued from Kansas City Missouri. Riker had heartworm and was severely underweight. He did not know how to play with any toy or to have fun as a dog. Now he is just such a happy dog! He loves to play with his rope toy and his 'chubby.' He goes out biking with his 'mom' and loves to wrestle with his 'dad.' He even went on his first vacation to Phoenix AZ, with us! Riker made doggie friends (Dooley and Jackson) and people friends. It is still a little hard for Riker to stay home all by himself, and to trust people from the start, however he is progressing a little every day!

We are super happy to have him and would never ever want to be without him anymore!

marijke hoogeveen
Avon, CO

My Two Rescue Kittens

We rescued our 2 cats (Frick and Frack) from the Sussex County SPCA in Delaware when they were only 5 weeks old (the person who turned them in said they were 8 weeks old; our vet said they were only 5 weeks old and too young to be taken away from their mother). They are coming up on 5 years old and are the most loving cats I've ever been owned by.

Debra Benton
Oak Orchard, DE

THE KITTEN NOBODY WANTED

My brother, Stewart, found a kitten by the gas station he was working almost 11 years ago. He already had 3 cats and 2 dogs, ( 4 kids) so he couldn't bring her home. The mother of the kitten had pushed her away and abandoned her because I think she was the runt of the litter. Stewart kept feeding the kitten and made up a box for her bed to keep her warm. But, finally the day came that he had quit the gas station job and he couldn't care for the kitten any longer. So, he brought the kitten home to my house. At the time I didn't have any pets because my Doberman, Amanda had just died a few months before and I wasn't ready for another dog. By now, this female tiger striped kitten was about four months old and kind of cute and very wild. I said I would take her until I found a good home for her. At first, I wasn't going to keep her because she was still wild and she would claw and bite me when I picked her up. After a week, I decided to take her to the vet and get her looked at. I got her her shots, got her spayed and declawed, hoping that I would be able to handle her and pick her up. Well, that made the difference and I named her Tabitha, Tabby for short. Now after almost 11 years, I still have her. Tabby is still an outside cat but doesn't like the wind or the cold, so she stays in when the weather is bad. I also make sure that she doesn't stay out all night. Tabby has made friends with the whole neighborhood. I just love her!

Cathryn Ciccarella
Toms River, NJ

My Wanna-Be-Dogs Kitties

A friend talked me into rescuing a kitten a couple of years ago. It took some convincing since I've always considered myself a dog person, but finally I decided to go to the shelter and look at kitties. When I told my friend that the one I was leaning toward had a sister there also, she guilt-tripped me into taking both of them. Thank goodness she did! It's ridiculous how much I love Cubby and Lou. They are the funniest little kitties and actually seem more like dogs than they do cats. They're goofy, loyal and even come when I call them.

Mindy
Los Angeles, CA

Abigirl

I had lost my beloved beagle after 18 years and after 4 months I couldn't hold out any longer. I started visiting the local shelters. I found "Fizz" at the last one. She was so smart and sweet and she passed the "cat" test (she wasn't interested). We asked her to sit and she sat. When I went to pick her up the next day the shelter attendent took at least a minute to get her new collar on her as she was so squirmy and enthusiastic. I renamed her Abigirl and now I share her by doing pet therapy at a nursing facility and an orphanage and we have just started the Reading to Dogs program with kids. She brightens my life every day with her goofy spirit.

Vicki
Patchogue, NY

A Surprise Christmas Gift

One cold Christmas Eve, I was jogging with my rescued chocolate lab mix and a dog kept following us during the run. I was afraid he would get hit by a car, so we stopped and he waited with us while the police came and took him to the local SPCA. I had this strange feeling that he would end up being mine. I called the SPCA after Christmas and no one had come to claim him so I brought him home. I knew that because he is a pit bill mix that he was in danger of being euthanized and I wanted him to have a chance at life. I named him Mulder because my lab mix is named Scully. They are best buddies and bring so much joy and laughter into my life. I am thankful that Mulder "followed" me home and right into my heart.

Christie Strain
Brookhaven, PA

My first kitten

My husband had cats most of his life, and I learned that I loved them, too. When it was time to find a new companion for our cat Sven, I was excited to choose my first kitten. Our first shelter visit - no kittens! Then I saw "Dolly" at the nearby Oregon Humane Society, with one eye only partially opened due to illness as a baby. I dragged my husband to the shelter that evening to meet her, and we took her home.

Renamed Flickslanda, our Flick was a joy to older Sven in his later years. Sven taught Flick about all things cat related, retrieved her toys for her, and let us know when she was stuck in a closet. She survived a clumsy kittenhood (due to her eye problem) but is now an expert jumper.

Flick is my husband's lap cat and work mate, keeping him company as he works from home. She is a treasure to us both and the princess of the household!

Cindy
Chapel Hill, NC

Our Dear Abby

We live in an apartment building that's sadly seen some strays around the dumpster. We'd try to help, but they'd quickly be gone. Not so this little girl, whom my husband Bill found huddling under a car. She was afraid at first, but she hung around for about a week, even serenading us under our bedroom window. Convincing ourselves we didn't have room, we brought her to a shelter, but she'd wound herself so tightly around our minds and hearts we hardly talked about anything else. When we went back three weeks later, she ran up to the cage door and put her paw over my hand. That sealed it. Abigail Fenway found her forever home.

Abby is super gentle and never scratches or bites even when we're playing. She loves to sleep between us and makes sure she's touching both of us, and she's turned Bill into a bona fide cat lover. If we could have custom-ordered a cat, we could not have done any better. She is THE BEST!

Louise Beaumont
Bristol, CT

My tuff little guy Chucky

My old kitty of 12 years somehow got out of my house and I lost her. I went to the local shelter every other day for months looking for her. I would always check the hospital section of the shelter "just in case" hoping to find her. One day, after months of looking for my "old girl" I did my usual check in the Animal Shelter hospital and saw the tiniest, frail, little kitten with goobers in his eyes, hardly any hair just sitting there...swaying back and forth like he was about to keel over. I told the shelter employee that I would be taking "that one" home with me. She tried to talk me out of it, because he was so sick and "probably would not make it through the night". She told me that I should "pick a different kitten". I insisted on my little angel and took him home. Although it was a bit of work to get my little guy back into health he "made it through the night"!!! 8 years later, he is gorgeous, healthy, loving and even more precious to me than ever! My tuff little angel Chucky!!!!

Deanna Leslie
Camarillo, CA