Celebrating My Adopted Pets In October & Year-Round

Post by Blog Manager Robbi Hess

I want a Siamese kitten. There I’ve said it out loud. Yes, I realize I have four cats right now but Siamese cats have long been my absolute favorites (don’t tell Calico Lucy!). Do I need another kitten? I would say, probably no. Do I want another kitten? The answer is likely, yes! I admit that a kitten will likely fit best in my pet household because two of my older cats are a teeny bit aggressive with one another and I am not certain how it would be to throw another adult into the mix. Besides, I love the playfulness that a kitten brings and Henrietta loves kittens.

Where did I turn when I began my stealth search for a Siamese? The local animal shelters. Yes, there were kittens for sale in the newspaper, but I honestly don’t see any reason to 1) pay that amount for a kitten and 2) and this is the HUGE reason to deprive a kitten in a shelter of a loving home.

Three of our cats were adopted from either a shelter or a rescue; two were kittens and one was a a year-old; our fourth was a kitten my daughter saw with a “free kitten” sign when she went to a local farmer’s market so home he came. Our family spends a lot of time celebrating our adopted cats. How do we do that? By loving on them. Buying them toys. Taking them to the veterinarian’s for their annual check ups. Feeding them food that keeps them healthy.

All of the pets in our house are either adopted or rescued, except for the bearded dragon. Henrietta, my Diva Poodle, I purchased from a place that I later found out was a puppy mill. I should have seen the warning signs in my negotiations with the breeder, and once I became involved with BlogPaws I looked back and saw all of the red flags in my dealings. But by the time I held her in my hands (and had to bottle feed her because they made me take her when she was only six weeks old) there was no way I was going to let her go.

Our “big dog” Spenser, I rescued from a neighbor. How? The kids next store brought this tiny puppy home, tied a chain to his neck and chained him to the bumper of a car. They threw a bag of dry dog food out next to him and then proceeded to ignore him. I would go over every day and spend time with this puppy that they had named, “Beer.” One night, in early October when it started sleeting and he was huddled under the car crying I banged on their door and told them they’d either better take care of that puppy or I would call animal control or take him home. Their response, “He’s all yours.” I walked in the door with this puppy that we were totally unprepared to own and made him part of our family. Because he had spent his early months tied to a car and not being socialized he was a true handful and destroyed several of our carpets because of his digging and chewing. We got through that, trained him and he grew into an amazing 125 pound part of the family.

Am I making a point here? Actually, yes. BlogPaws is celebrating Adopt a Shelter Pet in October and we want to raise awareness of the need for loving, forever homes for pets in shelters. Does this mean you can’t love or own a dog you procured from a responsible breeder? No way! It means that if you’re looking to add a new family member to your brood, take time to check the local shelters. If you want a particular breed of dog or cat, do a Google search and chances are you will find a rescue that would love to have you adopt one of theirs.

Share your adoption stories with us. Do you have a pet you rescued, who you truly believe, rescued you? Tell us your stories. Share any blog posts you’ve written about adoption. We’d love to hear from you!

Don’t forget our Adopt A Shelter Pet photo contest. More details here.

(Photos: Lucy at top right; Spenser center: Jessie top left; Henrietta and her minions, Lucy, Parker and Clyde)