January, 2008
Hello,
I would just like to update you on Georgie (Number 10602) who we adopted from Chuck and Don's Pet Store in Elk River, MN. about 2 weeks ago. We are in Love. Georgie has adapted well and stolen our hearts. He snuggles, purrs, plays and seems to love us back. Our 2 year old male cat, Bandit, has come to life and runs and plays with Georgie and then they crash and sleep.
Thank you for your great service and compassion with animals.
God Bless you all!.
Sincerely,.
Sally Pesta
November, 2007
This is for Chester. We adopted Chester from you 6 months ago. He came into our home with bare elbows & a propencity to pee whenever confronted with something new. He's no looker, but from the start he has been sweet and so very, very hopeful that our home will be his. It is. He's a wonderful, silly, dork. We love him. Thank you for keeping him for 13 months and believing that he should go "home". I can see how Chester could become a background dog. He'll take what anyone wants to give him & be thrilled with that. He's a wonderful dog with some issues and not very pretty, but.....he's developed a gentle playful relationship with our older, arthritic dog, has discovered furniture (no more bare spots on those elbows!), and is the best running partner I've ever had. He actually makes those weird Chesapeake Bay Retriever "chuffs" at me whenever I start to slow down. If that isn't enough, he pretends to "run" in slo-mo until I keep up. He has his own bed, his own Kong, and a huge place in the hearts of us, our families, and friends. I can't imagine how heart breaking your job is. So very many dogs, so few homes. I wanted to tip my hat to you all because Chester's size (75lbs), looks (he ain't pretty), and bad habits (yes, he can be a bit of a chewer when left alone), yes, he pees when anything is new, yes, a large-pawed affectionate dog can be very physically painful) you kept him waiting. Waiting because your job is to find a good home for very, very good dogs. Chester is a wonderful dog. As much as he waited for us, our home waited for him. He is loved here, I hope he feels the same way, and I hope you can sleep a little easier tonight knowing that one of your "good guys" is home.
Sue and Bill
October 17, 2007
We adopted “Titan” in June. We renamed him Cabo (or BoBo) because we thought the name suited him better. He is an energetic, happy, loving addition to our family. When we first got him, Cabo would sleep on the bathroom floor – probably because it was similar to a kennel floor. Now he is found at night in-between us, on his back, with his head on the pillow, and his feet curled up into the air. You have to pull him out of bed in the morning because he would stay there cuddling for hours if you let him. He loves to be outdoors, playing with dogs or hanging with anyone that will scratch him for long periods of time. He also learned to swim…he just loves it. His vet says he is the most well-mannered one-year-old she has ever seen. Everyone who meets him says he is the best!! We definitely got a great dog!!!! Thanks!!
Julie Olson & Mark Hopkins
October 8, 2007
Thank you for having this little polydactyl for adoption in PetSmart in Coon Rapids. I had recently lost my cat the month before and was wanting another "cuddle bug." Well I found him! He is the sweetest kitten! His name has changed to "Jimmy Six Toes" and is living up to his gangster name. His little body still hasn't grown into those feet, it may never happen. I have to say I appreciate that he was dewormed, no ear mites, no URI, and neutered all for a minimal fee. Not to knock the Animal Humane Society but very kitten that comes from there has horrible URI's and need more deworming. It was very nice to have a healthy kitten right away. Thank You, Thank You, a thousand times over for what the heart ordered!
Vicki - Champlin, MN
September 23, 2007
Hi, I would like to thank your organization for allowing me to make Jimmy a part of our family. My youngest son and I met him last Sunday at the Coon Rapids Petsmart and fell instantly in love, we were not in the market for another cat as we already have two, but something about his face changed that. We ran home to pick up my two other children and our cat carrier and came immediately back to get aquainted, the vote was unanimous and we brought him home that day.
It's been an interesting week with the introductions to our two other cats, a 3 year old brother /sister pair we rescued from an undesirable family situation when they were only 5 weeks old. The male cat took to him within a few days, the female took a bit longer, 5 days (she's quite the princess) but now the sounds of them chasing each other around at all hours of the day and night is music to my ears.
Jimmy was obviously well loved and taken care of in the 3 months prior to him coming home with us, our two current cats and the one prior who passed on, were not as lucky as Jimmy, the two current were malnourished and had severe ear mite infestations, eye infections along with other minor problems, so it was a while before they really were happy and "cat-like" but well worth the wait! Our previous cat was a stray that moved into our garage one very cold winter, roughly a year old, severly underweight, beat-up, quite ill and very feral, he was so ill he didn't even complain when I caught him and brought him to the vet for a check-up, shots and lots of medicine and a special diet to help him put on some weight, it was heartbreaking, and touch and go for the first couple of months, but within a year he was a big strong beautiful cat, he remained slightly feral for all of his years with us, never really completely trusting, and demanded to spend his nights outside despite the weather, but it didn't change our love and devotion to him.
Jimmy is great with the kids 15, 12 and 10 years, and with the other cats, he's sweet, loving, full of energy and hilarious, a fantastic addition to our family.
I'm already spreading the word about your organization to all my animal loving friends, and, rest assured, he will be well loved and well spoiled for the rest of his life.
Thanks again for Jimmy, he is fantastic!
September 2007
I just have to tell you that it was love at first sight, and I know that the feelings were mutual. He is exactly the kind of kitten that I was looking for - appearance and personality. He was super on the ride to Wisconsin (3-1/2 hours). He seems to be very comfortable and happy in my home. He is so much company. It was a perfect match. You did a wonderful job of preparing him for adoption. I would highly recommend RPAW to anyone looking for a pet. Thank you very much.
Marcia Conn
August 2007
Gertie's one year anniversary
It is so hard to believe our Gertie has been with us for one whole year (August 4, 2006), and what a wonderful year it has been! We have had such great times. She gets along great with our 4 cats, and is still the favorite everywhere she goes. She has such an awesome personality! We would be lost without her!! She is so great with kids that she even helped our three year old neighbor girl get over her fear of dogs! They had become great friends before she (the neighbor) had to move.
Gertie is still somewhat of a "Houdini" as she has been able to slip out of ever collar I have tried (even the escape proof ones). The good news is that every time she has got loose, she comes right to the back door to come in.
She loves romping in the snow! I wish I could find a way to have her shovel our sidewalk. She loves to lay in the back yard under our shade trees in the summer and has only dug two little holes to lay in. If we ever get our yard landscaped, those holes will have to be incorporated into it.
When we got Gertie, she weighed 88 pounds. By April, she had gone up to 100 pounds (oops!). So under our vets guidance, she has gone on a diet and has lost 15 pound and is almost to her ideal weight. We went to obedience training this summer, so that I could learn how to be more consistent with her. We both learned a lot.
Scott and I are so thankful to have her in our lives. We keep RPAW's in our prayers and are grateful for all you do for our four legged friends.
Sincerely,
Maggi and Scott Bramhall and Gertie
August 2007
Elisha
Elisha is doing great and is part of the family. He loves the dogpark and his confidence is growing as he likes to wrestle with the dogs there. He's over 50 lbs now I believe, I'm not sure exactly what he weighs and after some stops at the vet is up to date on all that he needed. He is a pretty good match now in a game of tug of war as well! He's been a great dog.
Thanks, Jeff
July 2007
Update on Lucky
Last October, our cat Bud, got really sick. He had lived the life of a king for 14 years and it got to the point where we had to decide to put him down. Very tough thing to do, for sure.
I've fostered cats and dogs before and after about a week of missing Bud, I called Kari to see if there were any kittens that I could foster.
At the St. Paul Midway Petco, my husband and I were given a dark gray and white kitten. I asked Kari if I could foster a male kitten...just a personal preference.
Kari told us that she had stopped at the shelter and the kittens were on their last day before they would be.....well, you know the end of that story. We brought the kitten home and named him Lucky. We felt he was lucky to have been saved by Kari and Rescued Pets are Wonderful, AND we were lucky to have him in our family.
Two weeks later I asked Kari for the adoption papers for Lucky.
Lucky has been SO much fun! He is such a good tempered cat and gets along with my other cats and dogs.
Please ALWAYS adopt. There are so many wonderful animals who need loving forever homes. Kari at Rescued Pets are Wonderful will help you find exactly what you wish for!
Carol and Michael Ersing.
Lucky... a very lucky cat!
July 2007
Hi, Liz-
I thought I would update you on how our adopted pup is doing. We have started calling him Bahamut, and he knows his name already. He will usually come when called, unless something distracts him on the way (attention span of a gnat). It took a couple of days to adjust, but he and his big sister Bowser are good friends now. I don't know what she did before she had somebody to wrestle and play with all of the time. Bahamut gets trampled a lot because Bowser doesn't realize how much bigger and faster she is, but he is quick to jump back up and keep playing. He is eating like crazy and getting bigger every day; we took him to the vet last Tuesday and he was already 27 lbs, and he's even bigger by now I'm sure. We are working hard on housetraining and commands now that he is settled in. Bahamut has been making the rounds, meeting all of the neighborhood people and dogs, visiting family, and going to the dog park. He loves the water. Bowser has always been rather shy and reserved, but Bahamut is bringing her out of her shell. Mostly, I think she can't stand to see him getting all of the attention, so now she will insist on saying hello and being petted when normally she would hide behind my legs. It's a lot of work having a small puppy in the house again, but well worth every minute. Bahamut is the friendliest, sweetest, kissy-est little boy I have ever met. Greg and I both know that we could not have gotten a better second dog. I have attached some photos that were taken about a week ago. I will send more as I get them.
Thanks,
Casey
June 2007
Hi folks-
My name's Joe, my wife is Joanie, and we're the ones that recently
adopted Tango at Petsmart in St. Paul Midway.
I wanted to take a few minutes to let you know how he's doing.
Tango has adapted himself perfectly to our home and our other animals. He's the sweetest little guy, very gentle and loving with us. He sleeps
with me, curled up against me, and he keeps our other cats entertained
well. They're somewhat older, and they've found a huge reserve of
energy, brought on by Tango's own irrepressible self, chasing them
around and teasing them. They do the same to him too, now that they
understand here's one that likes it. Heh.... He's a very, very good cat.
We do have a dog, a big, floppy Afghan Hound, 10 years old. I raised him all his life with cats, and the principle has been that cats ALWAYS
win, even if they're wrong. It's just fair. He got his nose bloodied
just once, as a pupster, and hasn't had that happen since. The cats
we've had have always found him eventually to be little more than a
really big cat, he's extremely gentle with them. The point is, he's a
cat- friendly, indeed catlike dog, and Tango, like all the others, has
already totally accepted him. He walks around and under Auggie, they're
frequently nose-to-nose, or nose-to-, er, tail, without the least bit of
trepidation. For a cat that's not been around dogs, Tango has adjusted
very well. As, of course, we expected. We've done this before. Tango is
in a stable, loving home, with lots of good food, clean boxes, other
cats and people to play with, and a warm place to sleep by people that
love him. I wish we could say that all animals have that.
Joanie and one of her friends went shopping at Petsmart and saw him, noted how sweet and loving he was, and that was all it took. We came
down the next day and got him. He's proven to be a perfect cat, and I
wanted to thank you. Someone obviously spent time with him, and he
speaks extremely well of your place and your people.
Thank you, all, for Tango, and for all you're doing. You can count on us to look for another one from RPAW when it's time, and to speak very
well of you to others we know.
--Joe, Joanie, and the rest of the zoo. ;)
June 2007
Hello, Its been 7 months since we adopted Bob. He is doing very well. He has adjusted to our home and it feels like he's been here for years. He is just the sweetest boy. He is so friendly to everyone and everyone loves him. My little Shih Tzu loves him and they sleep together every night. Bob went to obediance school and learned basic obediance. He didn't really need it,but it was fun to do with him. He came in 3rd place. He loves to go for walks and play fetch. We found out he loves to swim. We can't keep him out of the water. This is truley a happy ending for Bob. I can't say enough how much we love him and love spoiling him. He deserves it. Thank you for rescueing him and giving him a chance for a good life. He is living a good life and we love giving it to him.
Shar and Jeff
March 2007
I found Ella on Petfinder.com and from the moment I looked into her eyes in her picture, I knew she was the one for us. During a four month period of 2006, I lost both of my dogs, Patches, a 12 year old Shitzu, and Reba, an 11 year old black Labrador, to cancer and I was devastated. their absence left a tremendous hole in my heart and my life. It took me six months of grieving before I was ready to open up my heart and home to a new dog. When I was ready, it took only one look at Ella to know that she was the one!
Ella settled in fast, loving how we spoil her and enjoying spending her days at doggie day care while we work. She has made our home complete again and we are thankful that in our grief, we can share our love with another animal who needed love and a home. Thank you, Petfinders.Com!
March 2007
Hello,
I wanted to send an update on Marley (Marla). We changed her name to Marley as I like the ee sound at the end of a puppy’s name. She adjusted instantly as the names are so close in sound.
We never did take her to a vet for an exam. She must have just been tired because she really did wake up and start acting like a normal puppy.
She has really grown. She weighed 50 lbs. yesterday when we weighed her. She still looks very slim and trim, but has really gotten tall and is bulking up a little. She is so pretty and so loving.
We have even become better parents and have very few accidents in the house anymore. She doesn’t give us a sound signal for going outside yet, but she does start to just wander around the house and we let her out then. We are really hoping that she will learn to go to the door and whine for us. Maybe in time! She is such a fast learner and is doing so well at the field with John. She willingly gets into the car now and goes to the field. She stays pretty close to the greenhouses and is being a good girl. She did scare a big male neighbor dog the other day with her back hair bristled up and barking. He backed away at first, but then they did the dog thing and became friendly towards each other.
She really has accepted us as friends and she has become much more careful around the little grand daughter. We love her dearly and will write again. Next week she gets her first trip to the vet for lyme vaccine and rabies.
Have a great week.
Sincerely, John & Ruth Jansen
March 2007
Pucky is great, very chilled out like Marla but still able to do such goofy puppy things. She still thinks the cat is a toy (believe me, he is not impressed), she also loves playing with Jazz who is far more fun since she has got used to Pucky being here. Pucky has started school and is doing well although it is truly very exciting for her meeting so many other dogs and puppies! She has got all her grown up teeth pretty much now, such a relief to not be chewed with needles any more, but her ears still don't know what they are meant to be doing, one minute they stand up the next they are all over the place!
You are right, she loved the snow, in fact much to Eric's horror she loves anything messy, especially mud! Knowing what messy drinker German Shepherds are it seems he has her fathers drinking manners...very sloppy and water everywhere!
She also barked for the first time at the weekend when there was some coyotes in the field behind our house but she has not barked since! She is actually pretty quiet in that respect which is great in my book.
Attached is a photo of her in the snow.
March 2007
Dear RPAWS:
Today is the one year anniversary of my family's adoption of "Sparkles", a fivish year old Eskie we adopted last year at the Midway Pet Smart- Saint Paul location during one of the adoption drives. THANK YOU for being there for her! When I brought her home, we were not sure if she would respond to a loving home with another dog, but I am pleased to report that slowly but surely this girl is healing from whatever circumstance brought her to us.
I think she finally realizes she has her own place here and has only recently begun to initiate play with the other dog. She loves to run outside and then run in again during the cold snowy season because she knows she gets cuddled after being cold. I am painstakingly taking her to the vet, for the teeth, the stomach problems, and the skin condition. I am in touch by email with an Eskie rescue organization out of CA and am cooking a lot of her food myself. She follows me everywhere, is perfect on a leash, loves to ride in the car and bark at other cars, makes up her bed, says 'prayers', dances and has other tricks that I wonder where they came from. She is shy, but has a beautiful disposition and is a joy to be a Mom to.
I believe Eskies are super intelligent and she acts as if she would answer my questions if she could. I am happy to report that her health is excellent now. She is a little Tomboy, if I take her to the groomer, you can bet she'll roll in the grass as soon as I have her home. The sad note is that somewhere in her background someone must've yelled at her, she will spook and hide in the presence of raised voices. I just tell her she's a good dog all the time, even when she's naughty. Seems to work if I just ask her what I want her to do.
Thank you so much for my furry friend, Jeni, the Shiba and Anthony, my son thank you as well. She is a lovely addition to our family and we couldn't imagine life without her now. WE ARE CELEBRATING ONE YEAR TODAY!
Sincerely,
Deb Porrazzo, Jeni, Anthony and Sparkles the miracle dog
March 2007
Hello,
We are writing to thank you for helping us find a wonderful family member- Sammi! (Formerly named Daytona we adopted her in December 2005).
She is a wonderful girl, loves to cuddle and play in the back yard. And of course tease and play with Osirus, the cat! :) In the summer, she loves to visit her "Grandparents" at the lake and play with their dog, Duke.
Thank you again for rescuing Sammi and placing her in our family, we are so lucky to have her!
Best regards,
Annette & Tony
February 2007
We were looking for a small to medium dog, we have 2 cats who were also rescue
pets from the humane society, we found our dog on petfinder and went to visit
him in his foster home in White Bear Lake and fell in love immediately. He has
been with us since Aug 06 and is a huge addition to our family. His best friend
is our cat Charlie who is bigger than small-fry, the wrestle with each other all day. Since last year our dog has been on a road trip to South Dakota and goes with us everywhere - this weekend he is flying to Toronto with me to visit some friends.
We can't imagine our life without him now.
Jan
February 2007
Dear Wanda and Kari,
We adopted Cookie in August, and I just wanted you to know how much we treasure her! Her coat is now beautiful and grown out, and she is brushed every day. She goes to the dog park almost every day, and has even gone in our kayak with us, with her own life jacket! She has been through two obedience training sessions, and at the last one received first prize. I am taking her to intermediate obedience next - then agility, which I know she'll love. She is sweet and happy, and we just love her! She sleeps in our bed every night.
NANCY, DALE & JOEL VAILLANCOURT
February 2007
Hi there,
I see by the website that Marla is still with you...everytime a friend says how lovely Pucky is I tell them about Marla, I feel very bad that another Pucky is still not adopted because if she is anything like Pucky she is stunning too. Can I write a testimonial for your website about Pucky that might help you get interest in Marla?
Pucky has had her dramas. Just after I got back from England I noticed she had a swollen paw, the vet thought she had an infected cut so onto antibiotics she went, but it did not get better and suddenly abcessed so we ended up in emergency surgery in Eden Prairie on the Sunday to the tune of $900! The vet thinks that some while back she had skewered her foot on something that had gone right through, it had healed quickly but their was a bit of her own fur in the puncture and that is what caused the abcess, poor girly. Can you remember if she did anything when she was with you that would explain the mystery? Well after constant dressing changes and having to restrict her exercise she is now back to being a normal little girl now. She was a brilliant patient and has everyone at my vets won over with her calm and excellent behaviour.
She weighs about 35lbs so far and has got some grown up teeth and is almost 100% house trained although it is very cold to be house training at the moment so we have the occasional accident although she does ask to go out which is very good. Her and Jazz get on famously now and play so well toghether...the cat is still not too impressed by her though!! No doubt like Marla, she is growing into a beautiful dog and is still so wonderfully comical in play and enthusiasm for life!
I have to tell you that I have a very good feeling about this little dog. After losing my GSD Ula I never thought I would be able to feel about another dog the same but Pucky is doing something to my heart, I am not sure what it is but I like it.
I attach a photo of the wounded solider and please do let me know if I can write anything that will help Marla...
Much love
Emma and Pucky
From RPAW:
She is huge! Have her sisters found homes yet?
Glad to hear she survived your being gone. She sounds like she is having a ball. And not spoiled at all....
Nancy as adopted this week. She had turned into a huge furball. She went to be a playmate for a Gordon Setter and to go to work with a computer tech. He adores her.
So all that is left is Marla. She is keeping Gavin busy. He is more sedate till he gets outside. Then they run, but he has taught her how to leave the fence. Then all you do is call her and she comes right to the front door to be let in. She is so funny. My daughter arrived this week with her 3 dogs. So we are up to our bottoms in border collies and shelties...
February 2007
We adopted Lil Bit, Chihuahua/min-pin, on October 25,2006 and we are so glad we did. He has brought so much joy to us. Among his wonderful attributes he is a clown. I don't think a day has gone by that we haven't laughed at something he has done. He is always surprising us with some new thing. Would you please convey our thanks to Lucy and her husband for bringing him to us and tell them we are all very happy. Bits started ruling our home within a day of his arrival.
Thank you so much for rescuing him and so many other unfortunate pets.
Sincerely,
Laura Webb
Lindstrom
January 2007
Hello:
I wanted to update you on George who I adopted May 12th, 2006. I can't imagine being without him. We had a rough start but everything has worked out. George is healthy and happy and has completed me. He loves toys (especially squeeky ones) and stuffed animals. I had never owned a dog before so I did not know how it would turn out but it's better than I expected. I have added a few pictures with this email to let you know how happy he is. Thanks again.
Rebecca
February 2007
Hello there,
Just wanted to give you an update; Homer is a happy and healthy puppy and life in his eyes couldn’t be better. Again I can’t thank you enough for working with the 'group' that came to pick him up.
Proving once again all YOUR hard work does pay off and that there is a home out there for these unfortunate animals.
Thanks,
John Bolduc
