This is Pattycake. She’s a one-year-old quality abandoned by her family. Her biggest quirk? She hates different cats, adjacent their scent connected me! In galore ways, she’s a emblematic Tortie, which means she’s smart, opinionated, and stubborn. Some radical telephone this “tortitude,” but I’ve learned from acquisition that “you can’t justice a feline by her colors.”

Pattycake is with maine successful Florida, and I’m trying to find her a 2nd accidental with an experienced feline adopter who has nary kids astatine home. Her backstory breaks my heart. She was recovered arsenic a tiny kitten and brought wrong by a family. When the girl moved out, they threw Pattycake outside. Neighbors cared for her for much than a twelvemonth but started getting annoyed due to the fact that she’d tally wrong erstwhile their doors opened. All she wanted was a location of her own!

Technically, with truthful overmuch achromatic successful her coat, she’s a Tortico, and similar her Tortie cousins, she’s got a caput of her own. So we’re looking for an adopter who tin woody with her sometimes feisty nature. Pattycake mightiness not similar different cats, but she loves people, truthful her adopter indispensable beryllium good with her being the eventual thigh cat. It mightiness instrumentality a spot of time, but she’ll marque idiosyncratic a fantastic companion.

So, yes, she’s a spot similar our sassy, naughty Pebble Poopy Stern, who became a subordinate of the Stern household because, fixed her unpredictable affectional eccentricities, we thought she’d beryllium abandoned by astir different adopters. We couldn’t carnivore to deliberation of that happening to her, truthful we made her ours.

I admit it’s tempting to deliberation that each Torties/Torticos are difficult, but past on comes Thumbelina from Oman, 1 of the sweetest, friendliest, astir affectionate fosters I’ve ever cared for. She’s a young feline rescued by @street_cats_of_oman, who nurtured and took her for much-needed aesculapian attention. She had to person 1 oculus removed owed to an wounded from surviving successful the unsmooth streets. She was flown to my friends astatine North Shore Animal League America, past came to me, and is present blossoming, playing, and showing everyone however overmuch amusive she is.

Sweet Thumbelina with her rainbow, and Poopy Pebble successful a calm and snuggly mood. They could beryllium sisters, close down to the missing eye, but they could not beryllium much antithetic personality-wise.

Our pets, conscionable similar the radical successful our lives, are unsocial individuals who merit to beryllium treated with knowing and respect. I’ve placed galore Torties implicit the years, and portion immoderate stock definite characteristics, they each made fantastic companions with the close people. All they needed was understanding. (By the way, Torties are related to Calicos and are astir ever female. Male Tortoiseshells (about 1 successful 3,000) are uncommon and are usually sterile.)

Right now, I person respective big cats successful my programme who were abandoned by families that should person known that adoption is forever. Butterfly Kisses (right) was abandoned successful a feral colony. The colony feeder knew close distant that she was not feral but alternatively perfectly petrified. The feeder couldn’t trap her for weeks, truthful this poor, young, purebred British Shorthair kitty was near to fend for herself. Once successful my program, she got the clip she needed to larn to trust, and she’s present retired and about. She’s truthful beauteous and loves chin scratches…until she’s had enough! She’s inactive acrophobic of different cats, truthful we’re looking for a household who wants a “one-and-only princess.”

Mama Paisley (left) was near extracurricular erstwhile her household moved. Neighbors felt atrocious and continued to provender her. She had aggregate litters, and the neighbors don’t cognize what happened to the babies, arsenic they disappeared 1 by one. When they saw she was large yet again, I was contacted. She’s harmless with maine present arsenic she awaits her past litter. She’ll ne'er beryllium abandoned again, and this time, her small nuggets volition find safe, loving homes.

And though we can’t beryllium certain, gorgeous Harvey Dreamboat (right), different Oman rescue, was astir apt abandoned arsenic well. This charming, curious, gentle kitty is deaf and frightened of different pets. I posted a video of him connected IG taken conscionable earlier helium was rescued. He’s successful an bare batch wherever his rescuers person near food, but he’s truthful frightened and helpless that it breaks your heart. Even though he’s crying for food, he’s acrophobic to spell to the crockery and eat. It’s hard to ideate however helium survived, but today, my bosom is afloat due to the fact that he’s going location soon!

It makes maine truthful aggravated that cats and dogs are abandoned, ending up lost, alone, and betrayed by the radical they thought loved them. The fortunate ones find their mode to my program, often done the outstanding enactment of my colleagues astatine North Shore Animal League America (NSALA).

This year, NSALA is celebrating its 80th anniversary! For 8 decades, we’ve led the mode successful the no-kill structure movement, redeeming the lives of much than 1.1 cardinal dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens. And done our galore partnerships present and astir the world, we’ve facilitated the rescue and adoption of hundreds of thousands more. We’ve besides introduced programs that were erstwhile considered revolutionary but are present modular signifier successful carnal rescue, programs similar humane relocation and mobile favored adoption. As the nationalist spokesperson, committee member, and foster partner, I americium truthful arrogant of everything we’ve accomplished during the past 80 years.

One of my favourite NSALA programs is Tour For Life^®, the largest mobile cooperative favored adoption lawsuit successful the world! Every spring, we nonstop our mobile adoption units crossed the state to enactment with section shelters to enactment section adoptions. This year, with enactment from my person Rachael Ray’s Nutrish^®, the lawsuit volition sojourn 37 states and 60 cities from Philadelphia to Honolulu (we won’t beryllium driving to Hawaii!!), and from Palm Beach to Parma, Ohio, to big peculiar adoption events to marque uncovering your caller champion person easier and much fun. For much details, sojourn animalleague.org/tourforlife2024.

I’m definite that astir of the shelters participating successful Tour For Life volition beryllium stocked with adorable puppies of each shapes and sizes eagerly looking for homes. But if you’re looking for a caller canine companion, I anticipation you’ll besides see adopting an big oregon elder dog. There are truthful galore advantages to inviting an older canine into your life. Older dogs are mostly housebroken, are little destructive, and person astir apt developed bully canine manners. They are besides much apt to beryllium calm, which means they’ll larn the rules of your location much readily. With older dogs, what you spot is what you get; nary surprises erstwhile it comes to size and personality.

So, successful grant of National Puppy Day, which is March 23, I’m flipping the communicative a small and featuring 2 fantastic big dogs astatine Animal League America who would emotion to conscionable you!

Foster Opportunity: Koda (T105803) has been cleared for foster attraction and is acceptable to blossom.

Rescued with her sister Riley successful August 2022, Koda is precise tense astir caller radical and spaces. She utilized to person Riley astatine her broadside to boost her confidence, but since Riley was adopted, Koda has had to tackle the satellite connected her own.

This adorable, loving Shepherd Mix volition beryllium turning 2 years aged adjacent month, and though she mightiness bark astatine you erstwhile you archetypal meet, successful 10 minutes, she’ll beryllium kissing you similar you’re the champion person she’s ever dreamt of.

Crate-trained and housebroken, Koda is an highly affectionate canine who loves to nap, chew connected her favourite antlers, and bask successful the prima similar immoderate different dog. She’s a small picky astir food, truthful we’re inactive figuring retired her favourite flavors. Koda has a congenital defect wherever determination is small separation betwixt her backstage areas. This increases her hazard for UTI; however, I’m blessed to study that she has not had immoderate issues since her accomplishment astatine NSALA.

As a subordinate of NSALA’s Foster Care Program, I wholeheartedly urge fostering. I cannot explicit however rewarding it is to assistance an carnal instrumentality that adjacent beauteous measurement toward a everlastingly home. So, if you unrecorded locally, delight see fostering Koda. Contact fostercare@animalleague.org for details.

Adoption Alert: Senior dog Toby (V28985) is simply a saccharine Black Labrador Mix who truly enjoys being a companion! When we archetypal met Toby, helium was an proprietor surrender and was successful unsmooth shape. Over the people of a fewer months, we were capable to get his tegument allergies nether power and enactment him connected a bully regimen. This regimen includes an allergy changeable every two months oregon so, which is covered done our Pet Health Centers. Toby’s tegument has ne'er looked truthful good, and each helium needs present is simply a loving location to works his roots for good! Toby is successful our Foster Care Program. His foster ma says Toby loves to beryllium astir radical and will thrive successful a location wherever idiosyncratic is location much often than not, oregon successful a multi-person household truthful that Toby tin stock his emotion with everyone. He’s a larger-than-life beingness and volition support you laughing each day. We’re looking for a family to instrumentality a accidental connected our large guy, Toby, who is truthful deserving!

And finally, a connection for the rabbits. As you know, I emotion our bunnies, but they are a batch of precise hard work. So, if you’re reasoning of adopting oregon buying a bunny arsenic an Easter dainty for your kids, DON’T DO IT! Most radical who get rabbits rapidly privation they hadn’t, and who suffers for this mistake? The rabbits!

Every year, countless home rabbits are bred to beryllium sold. But erstwhile the novelty wears disconnected and radical recognize rabbits are precise high-maintenance, destructive pets, these mediocre bunnies extremity up abandoned successful parks oregon connected the street, wherever they simply cannot survive.

And each year, carnal shelters are inundated with unwanted, traumatized rabbits. In fact, they are the 3rd astir abandoned pets aft dogs and cats. It’s conscionable truthful cruel.

In last month’s blog, I recognized National Adopt a Rescued Rabbit Month by detailing immoderate of the issues you must see earlier adopting oregon buying a bunny. And the database of problems is long! If you determine to spell up anyway, bash your probe and beryllium a well-informed, committed adopter.

For much information, delight sojourn my friends astatine the San Diego Rabbit Society astatine www.sandiegorabbits.org or @sandiegorabbits connected IG.

Or amended yet, if you privation to observe outpouring and Easter with rabbits, opt for the cocoa oregon plush artifact versions. They don’t consciousness symptom and suffer.

Wishing you a blessed spring!

xo
Beth

P.S. The aforesaid warnings use to babe chickens. Just don’t!