Animal Rescue Stories

MISSY WONDERGIRL

Missy escaped from an exceptionally abusive community but in doing so collided with a passing motorcycle. The nerve endings in her leg were badly damaged but fortunately the SPCA was able to go forward with the amputation.
We adopted her 2 weeks later & she was already dashing around without any problem.
Since then she has saved at least one of our lives during a bungled burglary & continues to surprise us every day with her intelligence, kindness & sense of humour.

Vivienne Burton
Randpark Ridge, South Africa

Jack

A friend of mine found Jack almost beaten to death on the side of the road a few years ago, so he took him home to try and get him healthy again. After about 6 months he brought Jack to my house because he couldn't care for him anymore. When I got him, almost all of his teeth were rotten and his gums were always bleeding, his feet and nails were tore up and nearly gone, he had patches of hair missing all over his body, and he was very weak and scared of people. It's been about a year now that I've had him and he's perfectly healthy! All his teeth are now fixed, his hair grew back, and I did my best to heal his paws. The best part about the whole thing is now he loves people again. He sleeps with me every night, and like most dogs, he misses me when I leave the house! He's my baby Jack and I'm so glad that he was brought to me because now I have a best friend for the rest of my life.

Aerialle Rieff
Denton, TX

Skye

I adopted Skye from a local shelter and was told she was found abandoned as a kitten after her mother had been hit by a car. She had a rough start to her life, but was rescued by a local shelter, taken care of and now has a wonderful life living with me and being treated like a queen!

Maryellen
Chelsea, MA

Second Chances

During a bitter divorce my ex-husband decided to keep our two dogs since he was keeping the house. After two months I received a phone call from the humane society that they wanted permission to euthanize a dog since he wasn't adapting very well. Frantically I went down there to get my dogs back only to find out that my dear companion Harley was already euthanized and they only had Raider. Thankfully I received that one phone call that unfortunately was too late for Harley but gave Raider a second chance.

B. Aldrich
Colorado Springs, CO

2 Lucky Dogs...

Lucky and Osco both found us, rather than us finding them. Osco, or "Ozzie", is what we believe is a Cocker Spaniel mix that we stumbled upon while shopping for a gift for a neighbor. He was wandering in and out of the neighborhood Jewel-Osco (hence the name) when we arrived. We took him home "until we found the owner" and posted Lost Dog notices everywhere. That was 8 years ago, and he's been a wonderful addition to our family. He is such a well behaved dog, and he is a certified therapy dog. He goes to hospitals and offers the children a fun approach to their physical therapy.

Lucky is a Beagle/Rat Terrier mix that we adopted from a shelter in August of '08. She was 7 months old at the time and had been adopted and returned twice already due to behavior issues. She had the sweetest face and looked so sad in her kennel, we couldn't pass her up. With a little hard work (and patience) she has become one of the best dogs I have ever had. She's sweet, loving, and playful, and she loves to cuddle.

Both of these dogs have been unexpected blessings to our home, and I couldn't imagine life without either one of them.

Karen
Chicago, IL

My Clover - always lucky for me

I got Clover when she was only 3.5 weeks old after her mother got hit by a car. The woman who owned her was 82 years old and could not bottle feed 4 puppies so I rescued one puppy and called her Clover. Mainly because I felt so lucky to find her. She has been my pride, my joy and my lifeline when I split with my ex. She always loves me and when i am feeling down, always hugs me and snuggles with me until I feel better (which is usually pretty fast when she is around!!) My life has been truly blessed with Clover in my life.

Laura
Simpsonville, SC

pettie mesquitie

My dad found an abandoned baby ground squirrel one day and brought him home to take care of. I was so excited to have a pet this unique. His eyes hadn't opened yet and he seemed so fragile. We went to the pet store and bought a bottle and animal milk to feed him. We named him Pettie Mequitie. We kept him in a tank with rodent bedding inside. A week went by and his eyes opened for the first time. We were so happy and thought for sure he would grow up with us. We got very attached with him the week and a half we had him. Sadly he died, and I was so upset that I cried and cried. I don't have my dear little pet but I have his pictures that remind me of how great having him was. I learned you don't really know how much you love something until you lose it. Pettie will always be in my memories and in my heart.

Bam Bam
Tucson, AZ

Zorro, King of the Cul-de-sac

Almost 11 years ago we rescued a 3 year old Lab/Shepard mix from a no-kill shelter in Washington State. He was brought to the shelter because his previous owner's son had been involved in a life-threatening accident and they could no longer care for the dog. Their horrible misfortune was our wonderful gain. Zorro is the best thing that has come into our lives. He loves to sit in our front yard and play "King of the Cul-de-sac". He's smart, playful, talkative and we wouldn't know what to do without him.

Connie S.
San Diego, CA

Gus

I rescued "Gus" from the Center for Animal Care and Control in Harlem, NY. He was a tiny 6 week-old with enormous ears. Well, he grew into those ears and is now a 6 year old 17 lb monster! He is very dog-like and filled with tons of both mischievous and affectionate energy. He is my best buddy and I wouldn't trade him for any mild mannered cat (or dog) in the world.

Wendy Wasserman
Brooklyn, NY

Joey -- a boy from Downunder!

Joey traveled nearly half way around the world at just four months old to become part of our small family on the Big Island of Hawaii. Joey is his pet name, given to him by his breeder in Sydney, Australia before we met him there. As she tells it, Joey needed "a little extra love and care when he was newborn so I carried him in my pocket those first few days. The name Joey was a natural...instead of a 'roo in the pouch, I had a puppy in my pocket." Joey is a beautiful 5-year-old now...still small for a male at 65 pounds. A rascal, a love, an angel in a fur coat!
Margaret

margaret kearns
Kailua-Kona, HI