Author: Laurie

Who doesn’t love hearing happy adoption stories? Our day got a lot brighter when we received an email with this lovely letter: “Hi, my name is Luanne and this is Jocie. Jocie came to live with me on October 9, 2011. I had just recently moved into my apartment in Seminole, FL, making sure that I moved someplace that was pet friendly as I knew I wanted to find a four legged friend to share my life with. You see, I had been in a really bad relationship for many years, staying longer than I should have but stayed because of my two dogs that we had together. I tried to take them when I left but that was not fair to them as he loved them both very much and they were being taken from their yard and home that they both loved so much. Anyway, had a void in my heart for a while and one day, just decided to look online, just to see what I could come up with.

I did an Ask search, looking for pet adoptions in Pinellas County, Florida, and the Adopt-a-Pet.com website popped up. I entered the parameters for the size, gender, breed, age of pet I was looking for and it came back with several dogs in my area that were exactly what I was looking for. One in particular was Jocie. She is a Lab/Dachsund mix, has the best demeanor, estimated around 1 and 1/2, housebroken, and good with kids. I emailed her foster mom, got her background. She was rescued from a kill shelter in Virginia by PAWS after being seized from a very neglectful and bad situation. I met Jocie the following Saturday at my local PetSmart, spending 4 hours with her so I could watch her interaction with children especially. I have a 3-year-old Granddaughter and it was extremely important that she would be really good with her.

The next day, Barbara, Jocie’s foster mom, came and checked out my house, we did all of the paperwork and I became Jocie’s Mom. It has taken a little while for her to feel completely secure, but that is OK. I have lots of patience because she is worth it. My family just loves her, my Granddaughter especially. She is “home” now and never has to worry about being fed, being warm and most of all being Loved. Adopting my Jocie is one of the best things I have ever done. She makes me very happy. I will take good care of her to make sure she is with me for a very long time.

I am very proud to be able to tell people about her and how she came to live with me. Here is another picture so you can see what she looks like. She is short and long, 25 lbs, she looks like a Dachsund and a Lab both. Sounds like a Lab when she barks (which is not often, just during play and fixin’ of supper!!  She has the best of both as far as her personality.  I give my permission for the use of the pictures and the story… maybe it will inspire someone to get out and rescue one of these beautiful doggies or kitty cat, to make their life complete.

Love to all pet lovers!!
Luanne and Jocie”

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We love hearing from happy adopters like these! We received an email with this lovely letter: “Dear Adopt-a-Pet.com, I have just unsubscribed to Search Saver emails from Adopt-a-Pet.com, but wanted to take a moment to THANK YOU for finding us the absolutely perfect dog to adopt.  You sent us a notification about  Lolah in Powell River and a few days later (and two days of driving) she was part of our home. We have had Lolah for a week now and she is bringing so much joy to our lives. My daughter has wanted a corgi for several years but we had made the decision that it must be an adopted dog, and after a long search you found us Lolah. Thank you so much and Happy Holidays to all your staff. – Nora, Mireya and Lolah”

Did you find your best friend on Adopt-a-Pet.com?  Let us know by sending an email with a photo to info@cms.adoptapet.com!  We’d love to use your story in an upcoming edition of “The Scoop” the Adopt-a-Pet.com monthly email newsletter, and share it here on our blog.

We love hearing happy stories from people who found their perfect pet through Adopt-a-Pet.com, like this one from Jan D. in Florida! “Dear Adopt-a-Pet.com, Through you I found my perfect forever friend.  You sent me a notice about a Blue Tick Coon Hound that was at the Hillsborough Shelter in Tampa, FL.  I went that very afternoon and fell in love with her.  I brought her home yesterday and so far she has been perfect.  She slept in our bedroom last night in her crate and didn’t make a peep all night.  She doesn’t leave my side and she is beautiful. I got her for my October birthday to me from me.  I named her Libra, which is my birth sign.  I will be 75 in October and my husband and I hope to spend the rest of our lives making her happy. We are now a pack of 3. Thanks for your help and thank you for the good that you are doing. – Jan D.

 

We just love hearing stories of matches made on Adopt-a-Pet.com! This one comes from Julia, a woman with a heart big enough for two! “Dear Adopt-a-Pet.com, Thanks to your site, I saw Sophie’s photo on line last night and went to see her after work today and adopted her. She is the sweetest little thing. I am SO GLAD I found her. Thank you for posting her photo, I promise to make her very happy! If it had not been for your site I would have gone to the shelter totally unprepared and possible spent hours. The photos helped narrow my choices and made it easier. Sincerely, Julia”  …and then a few days later, we received a follow-up:

 

Dear Adopt-a-Pet.com,

Just wanted you to know I went and got another one that you had posted…Dixie. She’s a medium size black dog…she came with the name of Dixie and I am keeping it. They said she was at least 12. She is SO SWEET but she has some masses and will require surgery…just waiting for my vet to get back from vacation.

I got lucky with both my babies. Thanks again for having your site!

Sincerely, Julia

Dear Adopt-a-Pet.com, I was looking for a Samoyed who needed rescuing.  My dog friend Lasky died in 2009 at the age of 17.  She was my second Sammy.  My first, Kira, lived to be 14. They are such great dogs.   I was looking casually, not rushing into another dog, but wanting the door to be open should the right dog come along.  I saw Zack on the Adopt-a-Pet.com website, inquired about him, and each step of the process, from the adoption application to picking Zack up in New Hampshire, went smoothly.  Zack has been in his new home for 5 days.  In that time he has become a smiler and a tail wagger.  He is small for a Sammy and looked like he had some other breed in his mix but, cleaned up, he turns out to be totally Samoyed, with all of the paw gestures, intelligence, manners and great temperament that is typical of Sammys.  He is very sweet.

It’s really tragic that, through the irresponsibility of humans, there are literally millions of dogs who need homes, who live desperate lives and meet sad ends.  Rescuing a dog, if you are in a position to take good care of them, is a gift not only to the dog but to the humans involved.

Sincerely,
Baruch Z.

Has Adopt-a-Pet.com helped YOU find your best friend?  Email us and let us know!  We’d love to share your Happy Beginnings story.

On July 30, 2010, my seven year old daughter Stella was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.  What she thought was going to be a regular visit with her doctor turned into an ambulance ride to the hospital and four days of needles, tests, and round-the-clock visits from doctors and nurses.  She was scared and unhappy about everything she was learning about her new future with diabetes.  Aside from being allowed to stay up as late as she wanted, there wasn’t much about her stay that she would have considered fun.  At least until she got a visit from Bruin.

On our second day in the hospital, a little beige dog trotted through her hospital room door followed by her owner, who explained that Bruin, a Havanese, was a therapy dog and that he was visiting all of the children at the hospital that day.  My daughter Stella is a HUGE dog lover and could not have been more excited to receive such an unexpected visitor.  She looked like a prisoner who was getting a visit from a family member.  “Finally!” she was thinking, “Someone who understands me!”  Bruin jumped up on her bed and lay down next to her so she could pet him as the adults chatted.  Bruin’s mom even had treats that Stella could give him, which they both enjoyed.  Before leaving, Bruin’s owner took a photo, which they gave us, of Stella and Bruin together.  A little memento to remember her new friend!

When Bruin finally left to visit another child, I could see a definite change in Stella’s attitude and it remained visible for quite some time.  That little fuzzy dog had soothed her in a way that none of us had been able to do.  It was a pretty amazing thing to see.

The very next day we got another surprise visit.  The same organization (www.LOVEON4PAWS.org) had a whole group of dogs at the hospital for a tour.  These were dogs who were signed up to be therapy dogs but who hadn’t met with their first patient yet.  They stopped at Stella’s room and asked if it was okay if they came in to say hi.  They hadn’t stopped in any other patient rooms so Stella was thrilled.  At least ten dogs and their owners piled into her room…big dogs and little dogs, all of them happy and calm and excited to be visiting with someone.  Stella was able to pet several of them before they had to leave to continue their tour.  As soon as they were gone, Stella asked me if I thought they would be back the next day.  That was the first of many times she would ask that question that day.

We are now several months into my daughter’s new life with diabetes and she still talks about her hospital visit with fuzzy little Bruin and how cool it was that the kids at the hospital get to visit with dogs.  I’m so thankful for the work this organization, and others like them, does.  They gave my daughter a happy memory to carry with her from her time at the hospital and I never would have thought that was possible.

As you can see, therapy dogs and their owners do a wonderful service to anyone who is sick, scared, and lonely.  All of the volunteers I spoke with told me how rewarding the work is.  Many of their therapy dogs had been adopted from animal shelters or rescue groups.  I encourage anyone who is interested in finding out what it takes to become a therapy dog team to visit http://www.deltasociety.org. Delta Society is a wonderful organization that certifies therapy animals of all kinds and helps connect volunteers to volunteer opportunities.

Editor’s note: Laurie Wisneski is Director of Adoption Services for Adopt-a-Pet.com.  This is her first blog post, but with three rescued dogs, two kids, and an adopted Guinea Pig named Molly, you can bet she has a lot to say.  We look forward to more of her posts!