Post your "Happy Tails" story on our blog.  

 We are back in Washington now, after spending the winter in Arizona. Maggie (Penelope) has been a wonderful addition to our family.  She is the most loving little dog and gets along with her Brittany “sisters” beautifully.  I knew she was my dog the minute I saw her at 2011 Dog Days. I was not sure if it was a good time for me get a young dog – but she was my dog and that was that.  I have a necklace with a charm that says “My dog rescued me”, on each side of the charm are three pink beads.  Maggie came into my life right in the middle of six weeks of radiation therapy for breast cancer.  She helped me a lot with the healing process.
Maggie May took a basic obedience class in AZ.  She did very well; it took awhile for her to learn “downs”.  She just did not want to do them, but does them great now.
I have enclosed some pictures of her.  She is a very happy little girl.
Hopefully we will be able to see each other this year at Dog Days and you will see how happy everyone is.
Thank you for Maggie!
 
nancy bauer

Teresa
Quick update.  Bentley is doing well.  He appears to love his new home. I think he spends most of the day watching the birds in the feeder, or dreaming about it.
He starting to learn my schedule and is watching for me to come home and is waiting
We made our 1st trip last weekend to the pet store.  He still thinks when he loaded in the car he going to a new home or the vet. I am sure after a few more trips he will grow to love it. He likes the attention.
He is doing well with the house rules, you did a good job teaching him manners.
He love my BF, they get along well.

I have included a photo,
Take care
Cheryl

 Dear SPOT, I wanted to thank you for 7 years of joy. In early 2003 I adopted my cat, Dolan, as a kitten from your organization. From his first day, he was a spoiled and pampered housecat. I had made him a nice basket with a heat lamp to keep him warm and he cried until I let him sleep on my chest. He never slept away from me if he could help it. He went through 2 boyfriends, and was with me when I married my husband. He loved my husband as much as myself from the time we moved in together. He's a world traveler, having been back and forth from Germany twice. Sadly, he succumbed to liver failure earlier today. Despite mine and my husband's grief, we want you to know that we would not have had the love and affection of our sweet baby without your organization. If you are interested in having a picture of one of the cats who you gave a chance. Thank you again for your organization and what you do, which gave us so much. Sincerely, Rachel and Chip Boyce

Dear Foster Parents
Thank you for being so nice to me and getting me all fixed up for my new family.  I think I will be staying here a long time as they really need me!   I began their training almost immediately and they do seem trainable. They give me pet pets, snakes, tummy rubs and play not to mention all the baby kitty love talk.
They seem to be easily amused by anything I do . I caught a mouse and you would have thought I performed a great fete of cleverness.  I have discovered a wonderful couch on which to take a daily sunbath and they come along and tell me how cute I look and scratch under my chin as they go by.
Believe it or not I have my own TV!   It only shows Animal Planet but I can look at it anytime sometimes the animals even look back!  There are racoons, all sorts of birds, squirrels and rats, they don't like the rats!  Once in a while I go and watch the people TV but it is not as cool.
Maybe next week I will go to see Dr. Lance and get my check up and shot, one of my moms talked to him and he said yes. She will expect me to charm him and of course I can do that.
I have my own little bed if I want to use it and I can have any one of the 3 laps. I think I will enjoy having 3 moms to fuss over me. My oldest mom thinks I'm really cute but she gets a little fussy if she sees me on her sink, otherwise I have her in my paw.
Thanks for letting me come here. I really like it.  Master Teddy


I had no idea he could use the computer!   What next?  Teddy Rose

Hi Jen

Hi Michele,

I just wanted to update you on how Robbie (now Monkey) is adjusting to his new home.   
The first day he hid under my bed (that's to be expected).  However, feeling a bit more comfortable, he came out the next day and has been running around, playing with his toys and with me ever since.  He loves to talk to me and sleeps right next to me on my pillow every night.  I fall asleep to the calming sounds of his purrs. He has a very healthy appetite and uses is kitty box regularly.
It is very hard going to work and leaving him because I could play with him and pet him all day.  He is my sidekick!  When my previous kitty passed away, I thought that I would never get out out my depression.  But when Monkey came along, the depression dissipated. 
I commend you on how well you fostered Monkey.  He is very smart, well behaved, knows his boundaries and is very clean!  Thank you for all the love and time you gave to Monkey.  I promise you that he will have a very happy, long life - never to be abused nor re-homed.  He deserves the best of everything for bringing joy and happiness into my life again.
- Ann Stryker

To Teresa,
Thank you so much for
all you do! Daisy (pit) we
adopted in 2005 and Zora
(weim) we adopted in 2006.
We just love them! We had
no issues with them when
Conrad was born and the
girls are great with him.

Love,
Jared, Mary, Conrad 

We adopted Oscar in October 2007 from Collene's Litter. He is a pit 
mix and was 2 months old at the time.  We have been very happy with 
him and he has been a great dog. He gets lots and lots of attention 
and affection everywhere we take him. He loves people and wants to 
lick everybody we see when out for a walk. We just wanted to let you 
know how happy we are with him and also to send you a picture of him 
at nearly six months. And if you want to share this photo with any of 
the other people that adopted his litter mates, feel free.
Thanks,
Dan and Beth

Hi there! I just wanted to send you some photos of Clair and her crew. She is doing great and is loving her new life with her new family. She is just a little lover and I am so glad that I picked her. I am hoping that you found a good home for tiny little Tori too!
Carol

Thank You From the Rogge Family!

Hello!
Just wanted to drop a quick note and tell you THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

Our family had to have our forever friend of 12 years, Coco, go off to heaven on April 1st, and we were just so overcome with grief we needed a friend to help blunt the pain and provide us with something else to focus on to help us heal. Well, we met you folks at PETCO in Mount Vernon and immediately fell in love with Valley Girl's baby 'Hannah'. I think you were calling her Boots, but she's adjusted well to her new name and to her new family. She's definately a part of the family and we just love her to pieces. She is so much fun, and so darn smart! From what you've told us, she'll be 4 months old next weekend, and already, on command, she comes when called, sits, lays down, and goes to her bed (her crate). We could not have asked for a more loving soul in a dog, and she's provided me with smiles every single day.
She does know when she's done wrong but we don't 'punish' her. Just looking at her after she's torn up a puppy pee pee pad and she lowers her head and goes to her bed.
My husband has never let us have a dog in our bedroom, but Hannah is so well behaved that she sleeps in a dog bed on the floor right beside me.
She's an absolute angel, and I want to say, BLESS YOU FOR ALLOWING US TO ADOPT HER, AND FOR HER TO ADOPT US!!
Her new friend Dr. Thompson loves her too!
She's going to be a big girl, she weighed in at 30 lbs at 3 months old, we still aren't sure exactly what breed she is, but we don't really care. She's a lover, and she's very much loved.
Thank you again for doing what you do. The world needs more caring people like you!
Mary Brown
Everett Wa

Hello!

Nearly three years ago in March 2006, my husband and I adopted a dog from you named T-Rex (We've renamed him Ivan). My husband is in the military so you asked what we would do if we were moved to another location. We told you that we'd take him with us and we wanted to let you know that we indeed followed through with it. About a year after we got Ivan, my husband got orders to Japan which is where we are all happily living now along with his new "brother", Oliver, a dachshund we adopted from a family that could no longer care for him.

Anyways, I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for all the work you do rescuing all the pets and finding them proper homes. Not only is that great for Ivan and all the other animals who've since found a forever home, but it's great for people like us who've found their lives more enriched by the company of their new found companions :-) Keep up the great work!

Sincerely,
Lucinda Isaacson

P.S. I attached a photo of him in his new backyard in Japan. Note his leg isn't broken- He just stands funny when it's cold outside! :-)

Coming Out of His Shell:

A Happy Ending for Happy:

Hi Joan,
As Happy's foster mom for a few months, I thought you might enjoy seeing/hearing an update on your old pup. Happy and Wily have bonded well and having a wonderful time playing and wrestling. (You'll noticed in the second attached photo that Happy has figured out that his extra 25# on Wily allow him to just plant himself and let Wily do all the work.) Wily has allowed Happy to become the alpha dog, but Happy doesn't take undue advantage of it (except when it comes to ball stealing). 
I also wanted to report that I took Happy to Chuckanut Vet Clinic on Saturday and Dr. Knopf was thrilled to see how good Happy looked (I told her I couldn't take credit — that was your doing). She showed him around a bit and congratulated me on getting a great dog. And we agree. He's been a bit needy, but he's learning to trust that we'll be here every day.
Thanks for taking good care of Happy before we found him. We're thankful for his exuberant attitude every day. 

Marcia (& Robin)

From a foster mom:
Norman was a dog I wasn't sure would ever find a forever home. He was previously a feral dog and found trusting humans very difficult. Every new experience was frightening but little by little he began to trust that I wasn't going to hurt him or put him in a position in which he would get hurt.  After six months of fostering him, I was convinced he was probably a permanent fixture at our house. But then came the call...  A friend who had lost her fabulous canine companion a few months previous was in need of a doggie fix and wanted to go for a walk with my two permanent canine pals.  I asked her if she would mind if I brought Norman instead and went on to explain that he was slow to trust and not to be offended if he didn't bond with her immediately. Well, a few weeks later, she was the one providing the treats and holding Norman's leash during our walks. After a weekend sleep over at her house, Norman moved in!  Norman still has some fear issues but Kolleen and Hans have helped this dog gain confidence and trust at an astonishing speed. An obedience class, lots of love, lots of patience and some cat buddies have proven to be just what this big guy needed. As you can see by this picture, Norman has definitely adjusted well to a life of luxury!

Taz lives up to his name
I adopted two kittens on Aug 5 that you had fostered and I just wanted to say thank you, they are great kittens. I adopted the little boy tabby with the kinks in his tail, we named him Taz and he is living up to it.  Taz is into everything and he chews on everything.  We also adopted a little black girl, she has little spots of a couple of white hairs, she spooks easy so she ended up being named Spooky. Spooky is starting to be very loving and she loves to head butt. Both of them run around the house tussling and just being kittens, they are so much fun to watch..... 

Thank you again
Michelle

White Toes & Serena
Hi there - I just wanted to give you a little update on the kitties I adopted on Sunday. White Toes is now known as Angus the Gray, and Serena is now Annabelle. They are both doing extraordinarily well.

You did a most wonderful job of providing foster care & socializing them. They are very friendly & loving purr machines, and have adjusted very well to their new home. Our dog, Maggie, a Mini-schnauzer, has been around kitties before & is not at all bothered by them, and they have warmed up to her quite a bit. The kitties have lots of new toys to play with, and have a great window to watch the birds that fly around our yard. They have busy days, playing with each other & exploring, and they do very well at night, usually getting us up at 6 a.m. with sniffs & purrs. 

Thanks for doing such a wonderful job in raising them to be such secure & friendly little furballs. We are just delighted.

Yvonne Madsen
Bellingham WA

Bailey & Harley
Sorry I haven't written in a while. I forgot I wanted to send you this photo. Bailey and his brother Harley love each other. They really get along great..... Bailey tolerates the dogs but still prefers not to snuggle with them.... not yet anyway!

I thought this was a cute photo for the website!

Thanks,
Nancy

 

Joey exhausted playing with Buster
Here is a picture of Buster and our newest addition "Joey" on his second day at the new home. As you can tell he is exhausted from playing with his new big brother Buster all day. I even swiped a lollipop over his tongue and he didn't budge. I couldn't resist this picture with his tongue out.

I just wanted to say thanks to SPOT for allowing my boyfriend and I to adopt Joey a Staffordshire terrier mix. We adopted Buster from SSP about a year ago and we decided that he needed a younger dog to play with.  So one weekend we went looking and came upon a litter of adorable puppies that needed to be adopted at SPOT in Burlington. They were so adorable and we wish we could take them all home! We decided to go take a look at the "biggest one" aka Goliath... of the litter who was spending the day at Petsmart and once my boyfriend saw little Joey he knew he was the one to bring home. Ever since then my 1 1/2 year Lab mix Buster and Joey have been inseparable. I like to call these two  "Scooby Doo and Scrappy Doo." They play none stop. One can't go outside without the other going out to investigate as well! Its so cute. I am so glad we brought Joey home with us! He has brought even more joy to our family.

Thanks SPOT.
Trisha
Bellingham

I needed Emma as much as she needed me

We are so very happy with our little Emma. She was called  "Mama Kitty" or "Nicki." She was found in a junk car with her babies. That was what really caught my eye about her. You see I was never one to like a black cat, but I was so touched with her story that I wanted to meet her. Well it was love at first visit. She was so sweet and you could tell she wanted a home in the worse way. We had to have our cat of 16 years put down several months before and I was having such a hard time with that.

I think I needed her as much as she needed me. She came home with us a week after we saw her the first time. She came into our home like she had lived there all along. I have never seen a cat adjust to a home like she did. I really feel that having these animals in a foster care home before they are put in their permit homes is the best thing that can happen to them. She sleeps with us every night. She was a perfect fit. I do have to say that when you are looking for a new pet give them all a chance as the color doesn't matter it is the personality that makes the animal. I found that this little black cat makes a wonderful friend.

Judie, Arnie & Emma Thompson
Stanwood

Lady Katherin...
Sorry... it has been too long. Kate was given the name Lady Katherin, and has not been fazed with it. She is doing very well, and is healthy as ever. Her and Rouge get along very well, and it is hard trying to get the two apart sometimes. She is a very needy cat, and meows when she gets ignored, which is rarely. She still sleeps on me at night, as well as any time during the day. She is getting use to people, but knows her limit and goes for her favorite hiding spot under the bed. She is getting so big, but still the cutest kitten. She will be two, and rouge will be four next month, and they will be spoiled with a new scratching post, as
well as other catly goods.

Jessica & Lady Katherin

Dear SPOT
Just dropping a quick note on Amber. I think she found her forever home.

Take a look at this picture!

Consider Amber's story a Happy Ending. She is part of our family and we love her unique personality. We are very lucky to have found such a wonderful pet to share our lives with. Oh yes, she has gained weight and is happy but she was spoiled before we got her so we are just continuing your tradition.

John & Linda Crum
Amber's parents since Aug of 2004