After last week's serious topic of Pit Bulls, this week I thought I would go a little lighter by introducing three local families and the pets they adopted from the Saratoga County Animal Shelter. Each of the three adopted pets will tell, in their own words, how they happily found a "forever home" and became an important member of their "forever family." First, we meet Luna, the cat with the most beautiful eyes. She tells us how Scott and Emily Martin brought her home in September of 2007. Next, we hear from Baxter, a beagle that was adopted in 2008 by Deb Hall and her family. Baxter explains why he is not a typical Beagle. Finally, Sparky tells her story of landing a loving home back in 1994, and how she became a sea faring dog with sailing enthusiasts and owners, Alan and Joyce Bartlett.
Luna, the elegant cat with mystical eyes
My name is Luna and I am a very classy cat that found myself in an animal shelter, no less! It must have been some grave mistake since I am of royal blood and I am exceptionally beautiful. I have been told my eyes are exquisite. So when I found myself in the shelter, I became very anxious to get out for more stylish accommodations. Once I spotted Emily and Scott walking down the rows of cages, I knew these were the ones and I made my move. I cleverly stuck my paw out through the bars and managed to tightly grab onto Scott's shirt. My next move was to meow with conviction --"don't go, don't go! I don't belong here! Take me home with you!" Scott felt compelled to open the cage and suddenly I leapt out, landing gracefully on his chest. I am a little thing, but I held on tightly because I knew I was actually a princess that deserved to find a place of comfort and style with this lovely young couple.
Style and comfort was what I found with Scott and Emily. I sit by Emily and listen to her read her poetry. I curl up by Scott and listen to him talk of legal issues and real estate opportunities. I also amuse myself by playing soccer with bottle caps, by fetching and hiding plastic ties or rubber bands, by walking on the computer keys when they are in use and by boldly drinking water from the tap. But what I enjoy most is finding shiny pieces of jewelry, carrying them to my food bowl, and one by one I drop them into the bowl. I often end up with a considerable collection of lovely jewels by the end of the day. Yes, life is good for me now. Scott and Emily treat me the way a refined lady of royalty should be treated. And I give back lots of affection and a few good-natured mischievous moments, like when I knocked over wastebaskets and artistically scattered the contents throughout the house.
Baxter, the not-so-typical beagle
I have been told it is common knowledge that Beagles, left to their own devices, will become overweight because they love to eat so much, and they have a bark or howl that is ear-piercing. Well, if being a chowhound and making lots of noise is typical of my breed, I am a not-so-typical Beagle. I am not particularly food driven and I am not inclined to bark or howl. But I am getting ahead of myself. Let me tell my story of finding a forever home in the summer of 2008 with Deb and Darren Hall, and the four kids - 17-years-old Kristcha; 15-years-old Danielle; 11-years-old Nick; and eight-year-old Erika. I love them all and they love me, except maybe Kristcha who has a love/hate relationship with me because when I want attention, I systematically take her things off her dresser. But that is my only bad habit, according to Deb.
Before Deb adopted me, I was found running loose and frightened on Rt. 29. Some very nice animal control officers saved me from getting hurt in all the traffic and took me to the county animal shelter. When it became clear that no one was coming to claim me, I was put up for adoption. Lots of people looked me over and called me a "Snoopy dog." I never figured out what a Snoopy dog was, but two different families put their names on a list of interested people. Then Deb came along and added her name. She did not think she had a chance since there were two names ahead of her, but she still had hope. I guess I really impressed her by sitting on command and by being calm, even in that hectic shelter environment. Later she said she wanted a calm dog because her large family shared a somewhat chaotic lifestyle,
On the fourth of July, the shelter people called Deb and said I was hers if she was still interested. They also told her that I tested positive for Lyme disease. Deb was not deterred by the Lyme disease and brought me home. Well, the first three days I got very sick and I worried Deb would take me back to the shelter. But instead of returning me, she took me to the Vet who gave me shots and pills. In 24 hours I was all better and back to my playful self. Since then things have been good with the Halls. I do not chew things, I do not steal food, I never mess inside, I can be trusted alone in the house, I play nicely in the back yard with Nick's old football, and I am a people person. The only time I growl is in my sleep when I dream. I don't mean to sound like a bragger, but I am a pretty wonderful pet. I look forward to many years with the Halls where I can stay close to them. A few members of the family even let me curl up to sleep with my head resting on their shoulders and neck.
Sparky, the ship's dog
Sixteen years ago I was born into a large litter of Springer spaniel and Labrador mix puppies. When we were about six months old we were taken to the county animal shelter where we all tried to impress the people coming through in search of the perfect puppy. When Alan and Joyce Bartlett came up and watched us for over an hour, they picked me because I was not too dominant nor was I too submissive. Alan said I was just right. Little did I know then that life with Alan and Joyce would include the thrill of sailing and the opportunity for me to be a ship's dog! Of course when I was very young, I had to learn about the sea and boats before I was worthy of the title.
The first time Alan and Joyce took me to Mystic, I stepped off the dock thinking it was going to be shallow water below, but to my shock it was deep and I was never a great swimmer. So they stood there laughing as I splashed about trying to regain my composure. But I learned from that startling experience, and later when I accidentally pushed a perfectly delicious bone off the dock, I knew I could only watch helplessly as it disappeared into the deep dark seawater. Then when Alan and Joyce took me on their 34-foot sailboat for the first time, I was "sick as a dog." But that was the one and only time I got seasick, because after that, I got my sea legs.
Soon I became an old hand at life on the ocean. I sat on the upper deck of our sailboat, smelled the salty sea air, and felt the breeze on my face. When we needed supplies from the shore towns, Alan and Joyce took me with them in the dingy, and I always stood proudly at the bow. In fact, after a while I even became a tourist attraction. In Plymouth Harbor, Massachusetts, there was a tour boat that came around every hour. The tour director would point me out standing on the bow while the tourists would clap and take pictures.
I went everywhere with Alan and Joyce. When the ship was in dry storage and they worked on maintenance and repairs, I would climb up the ladder behind Alan and he would carry me back down. When he was in a hurry and needed to make several trips up and down, he decided to leave me up there until he could climb back up again. I would not stand for that and just jumped all the way down on my own. The landing was hard but I never wanted to let Alan out of my sight. After all, he was my captain, and I was the ship's dog.
My name is Luna and I am a very classy cat that found myself in an animal shelter, no less! It must have been some grave mistake since I am of royal blood and I am exceptionally beautiful. I have been told my eyes are exquisite. So when I found myself in the shelter, I became very anxious to get out for more stylish accommodations. Once I spotted Emily and Scott walking down the rows of cages, I knew these were the ones and I made my move. I cleverly stuck my paw out through the bars and managed to tightly grab onto Scott's shirt. My next move was to meow with conviction --"don't go, don't go! I don't belong here! Take me home with you!" Scott felt compelled to open the cage and suddenly I leapt out, landing gracefully on his chest. I am a little thing, but I held on tightly because I knew I was actually a princess that deserved to find a place of comfort and style with this lovely young couple.
Style and comfort was what I found with Scott and Emily. I sit by Emily and listen to her read her poetry. I curl up by Scott and listen to him talk of legal issues and real estate opportunities. I also amuse myself by playing soccer with bottle caps, by fetching and hiding plastic ties or rubber bands, by walking on the computer keys when they are in use and by boldly drinking water from the tap. But what I enjoy most is finding shiny pieces of jewelry, carrying them to my food bowl, and one by one I drop them into the bowl. I often end up with a considerable collection of lovely jewels by the end of the day. Yes, life is good for me now. Scott and Emily treat me the way a refined lady of royalty should be treated. And I give back lots of affection and a few good-natured mischievous moments, like when I knocked over wastebaskets and artistically scattered the contents throughout the house.
Baxter, the not-so-typical beagle
I have been told it is common knowledge that Beagles, left to their own devices, will become overweight because they love to eat so much, and they have a bark or howl that is ear-piercing. Well, if being a chowhound and making lots of noise is typical of my breed, I am a not-so-typical Beagle. I am not particularly food driven and I am not inclined to bark or howl. But I am getting ahead of myself. Let me tell my story of finding a forever home in the summer of 2008 with Deb and Darren Hall, and the four kids - 17-years-old Kristcha; 15-years-old Danielle; 11-years-old Nick; and eight-year-old Erika. I love them all and they love me, except maybe Kristcha who has a love/hate relationship with me because when I want attention, I systematically take her things off her dresser. But that is my only bad habit, according to Deb.
Before Deb adopted me, I was found running loose and frightened on Rt. 29. Some very nice animal control officers saved me from getting hurt in all the traffic and took me to the county animal shelter. When it became clear that no one was coming to claim me, I was put up for adoption. Lots of people looked me over and called me a "Snoopy dog." I never figured out what a Snoopy dog was, but two different families put their names on a list of interested people. Then Deb came along and added her name. She did not think she had a chance since there were two names ahead of her, but she still had hope. I guess I really impressed her by sitting on command and by being calm, even in that hectic shelter environment. Later she said she wanted a calm dog because her large family shared a somewhat chaotic lifestyle,
On the fourth of July, the shelter people called Deb and said I was hers if she was still interested. They also told her that I tested positive for Lyme disease. Deb was not deterred by the Lyme disease and brought me home. Well, the first three days I got very sick and I worried Deb would take me back to the shelter. But instead of returning me, she took me to the Vet who gave me shots and pills. In 24 hours I was all better and back to my playful self. Since then things have been good with the Halls. I do not chew things, I do not steal food, I never mess inside, I can be trusted alone in the house, I play nicely in the back yard with Nick's old football, and I am a people person. The only time I growl is in my sleep when I dream. I don't mean to sound like a bragger, but I am a pretty wonderful pet. I look forward to many years with the Halls where I can stay close to them. A few members of the family even let me curl up to sleep with my head resting on their shoulders and neck.
Sparky, the ship's dog
Sixteen years ago I was born into a large litter of Springer spaniel and Labrador mix puppies. When we were about six months old we were taken to the county animal shelter where we all tried to impress the people coming through in search of the perfect puppy. When Alan and Joyce Bartlett came up and watched us for over an hour, they picked me because I was not too dominant nor was I too submissive. Alan said I was just right. Little did I know then that life with Alan and Joyce would include the thrill of sailing and the opportunity for me to be a ship's dog! Of course when I was very young, I had to learn about the sea and boats before I was worthy of the title.
The first time Alan and Joyce took me to Mystic, I stepped off the dock thinking it was going to be shallow water below, but to my shock it was deep and I was never a great swimmer. So they stood there laughing as I splashed about trying to regain my composure. But I learned from that startling experience, and later when I accidentally pushed a perfectly delicious bone off the dock, I knew I could only watch helplessly as it disappeared into the deep dark seawater. Then when Alan and Joyce took me on their 34-foot sailboat for the first time, I was "sick as a dog." But that was the one and only time I got seasick, because after that, I got my sea legs.
Soon I became an old hand at life on the ocean. I sat on the upper deck of our sailboat, smelled the salty sea air, and felt the breeze on my face. When we needed supplies from the shore towns, Alan and Joyce took me with them in the dingy, and I always stood proudly at the bow. In fact, after a while I even became a tourist attraction. In Plymouth Harbor, Massachusetts, there was a tour boat that came around every hour. The tour director would point me out standing on the bow while the tourists would clap and take pictures.
I went everywhere with Alan and Joyce. When the ship was in dry storage and they worked on maintenance and repairs, I would climb up the ladder behind Alan and he would carry me back down. When he was in a hurry and needed to make several trips up and down, he decided to leave me up there until he could climb back up again. I would not stand for that and just jumped all the way down on my own. The landing was hard but I never wanted to let Alan out of my sight. After all, he was my captain, and I was the ship's dog.
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