Our little Gypsy Rose was left abandoned at one of our rental properties, so my husband brought her home to live with us and our three other cats. She has the run of our 22 acres of pine trees on a hillside overlooking the valley and city below - she's got a good life now, running and playing with the mule deer that come by the house every day. She's brought lots of love and joy to our lives.
My original owners foolishly gave me up. I lived for months at the Pet Adoption League in Emmett, ID. I was well cared for there, but life in a kennel is not ideal. Then I was adopted by two good people who could not have puppies of their own. Life is now a holiday. In the summer and fall we ride horses, hike, & fish in the Sawtooth Mountains w/numerous dog buddies. In the winter we ski and snow shoe. My roommates and I live indoors where it is warm and comfy, and the food at my house is the best!
I was living across the street from a Lake Michigan beach at the time. One summer evening, I heard a heartbreaking sound of a dog crying. I went outside and saw a couple trying to comfort a 50-pound mixed-breed dog, about a year old. The couple told me they had been strolling near the beach, and suddenly saw this dog run past them from a busy street toward the "No Diving" wall; he jumped over the wall and into the lake. The young man dived in and saved the dog from being knocked against the rocks (the lake was choppy that night). The couple was unable to take him in because they already had several dogs in a small apartment. He was so pretty, I was sure he belonged to someone, so I offered to take him in "for the night," thinking I would try to find his owner. That was 10 years ago. Happily for me, no previous owner stepped forward. Gaz has become my beloved companion, he has a hilarious sense of humor, and he's very sweet and patient toward the six cats he shares home with. The canine version of "It's a Wonderful Life!"
It was a stormy night with flooding and thunderstorms in Las Vegas. I was driving a big truck on the highway in the right lane with traffic beside me. Power was out in the city so I could only see directly in front of me with hard rain making it difficult. I suddenly heard two thumps. The person riding with me said "don't look back" because they had looked back and saw it was an animal I had run over. The dog dodged the vehicle beside me trying to cross the highway and ended up under me before I even saw it. I pulled over & we went to see if it was still alive and it was. Luckily it was in shock so it let us wrap a towel around it and I sat in the rain in the back of the truck holding the dog until we got to an emergency clinic. The vet said it was in bad shape, but not because he was run over. He said being run over may have saved him as he was malunurished, deydrated, in very bad shape & must have been on his own for a long time. He didn't have any broken bones or internal injuries,but had a torn ligament in his front arm & a lot of missing skin from road rash. He had to wear a splint & bandages & needed a lot of care. We advertised the found dog & no one claimed it. It cost over $1500.00 to heal him. Since he wasn't ours we could put down for less. I chose to pay and I nursed him to health. It was like having a baby. He was my first pet & ended up being a beautiful, gentle golden retriever I named Buddy.
My fourteen year old minature Schnauzer died on Jan. 5 and I grieved for weeks and weeks. Knowing that Ashes was not going to live much longer, I adopted a beautiful Skye Terrier just so there would be a dog in the house when Ashes was gone. Bella was just a god-send. She is definitely not a lap dog, but she was such a comfort for my broken heart. I love her so much that I adopted Sassy, a Shih Tzu, just so I'd have a lap dog. Both adoptions came from the Knoxville, TN area so I had two 14 hour trips to pick my new little angels up. They are worth every mile I had to drive, if for no other reason than they got me through the grieving in less time than if I'd not had a dog at all. Thank you Precious Paws Asian and Small Breed Dog Rescue for the wonderful work you do. Losing my Ashes was like losing a child, and you helped me deal with it.
One day HoneyBoy showed up in front of my house, no hair except for his tail, sweet as his name. Of course, we took him in. A few days later Alfie, a feral, appeared on the window sill calling and calling his friend who was inside. We tried and tried to coax him in and finally very reluctantly, he came in. He was terrified for weeks, but HoneyBoy managed to calm him. Now they are part of our 7 cat family and we adore them.
Mr. Peabody wandered into a biker party this past Labor Day, along with his sibling.
One of the fellows grabbed the other kitten for his wife. A friend who was at the party telephoned me immediately, knowing that I'd just lost my companion of 21 years, Tequila, and told me he had a new baby for me.
Mr. Peabody arrived shortly afterward in the saddle bag of the friend's motorcycle. (He has no fear!)
He's won my heart and the hearts of my other cats who were all grieving over the loss of Tequila.
My husband and I went to our local animal shelter where we found Roxxorz. She was our perfect match! We brought her to her first vet visit, where we found out she had a severe gum infection and was on her way to starving herself. After 2 mouth surgeries and lots of food and love, she's a happy healthy cat.
Lucy wandered into our courtyard during the sizzling heat of an Arizona summer. Our German Shepherd mix had lured her in though the narrow bars of our front gate. We felt very lucky that she went unclaimed as she has become an irreplaceable member of our family. Nowadays, you can find her cuddling and playing with her big sister Sasha (a rescue herself), curled up in one of her humans' laps, or sunning in the flowers.
I innocently telephoned about a "free to good home" ad for Daisy and the down & out owner said she'd have her at our home in 30 minutes. HUH ?? I was just inquiring, WHOA, my husband isn't even home!
30 minutes later 6 month old Daisy was delivered with no questions asked of us and we have loved her every minute since. Our lives revolve around this little 8 lb Shiht-Zu and life has never been better. As the song says, "Daisy, we're half crazy all for the love of you!"
