About one year ago, on July 15, 2020, I went to HSHV with my brother to simply look at what kinds of cats were up for adoption. I was not looking to adopt one that day, but to simply look at my options. I knew I wanted a girl cat and that I wanted an adult cat, because adults have a harder time getting adopted compared to kittens. After taking a look around and meeting lots of cats and kittens, I walked into room and saw a skinny, black cat playing by herself in the back corner of the room.
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At the beginning of the pandemic, I found myself on the private adoption page of HSHV’s website. There was a little 18 year old ragdoll kitty posted, and I knew the moment I saw her picture I had to have her. Her mom had gone into hospice and she needed a home to live out her final years. The story was heartwarming, and the family I adopted her from was wonderful. Bibi quickly became my best friend and #1 companion during the pandemic. She loved cuddling, sleeping next to me in bed, basking in the sun, sitting on her porch,
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So in my head, having a dog meant going on hikes, walks, snuggles, head tilts and kisses. But reality in the first few days was far from it. Rory would walk away if we pet her for more than 5 seconds. She would bark so loud at anything that moved that I thought my eardrums would disintegrate. She scared us so very much when she displayed frustrated aggression, she would nip even as much as if we walked in a different direction than she wanted. It took us a while to understand she was as scared as we were. One
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Our cat passed away and our other cat was lonely. We went to HSHV – it was the old shelter. We walked into the common room and were looking at the sign on the wall. It said Calico. Female. My husband looked down and said, “is she a calico?” She was all white with a calico tail, and a few calico spots. She walked up to him, head butted his leg and we got Chey. She is 14 now. Sleeps on our heads at night. Casey-Cheyanne now Cheyanne
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Our beloved former HSHV cat, Dante, passed away at the age of 16. Our home and our hearts felt empty without him. We decided to get two kittens this time out, and signed up to go to the Tiny Lions Lounge and Adoption Center to find them. There we got to socialize with all the kittens, and found Annabella (Clover) and Malcolm (Gritty) and they stole our hearts. We still miss Dante, but our home and our hearts are no longer empty. These two have helped us begin to heal and they are a joy to have around. Clover &
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May 28th, 2021 is 1 year since I adopted Lettie from HSHV. I had to put one of my cats to sleep in April 2020 and my other cat seemed very lonely. I remember seeing Lettie’s listing and thinking she was so cute there was no way someone wouldn’t immediately adopt her. I kept her in mind, but there was another cat at a different rescue I had been thinking about applying for who had been up for adoption for 2 years. That cat ended up getting adopted the next day, so I immediately went and checked to see if
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I adopted sweet Wilbur in August 2020. I was looking for an older cat and the volunteer showed me Wilby, named Kiki at the time, and said something like “He’s super sweet, he just has that little grumpy face.” He didn’t move from his bolster bed, but immediately stretched his little wedge head out to bump my hand over and over and purr. When I got him home, he immediately squeezed under my bed (he was almost too fat to fit) – but then turned right around, laid his face on my hand, and purred. The first week I had
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When we first met, Aleu was very shy and uncertain of us. It seemed she might be a challenge. However, we have earned her trust and she has even begun to understand that not all humans are to be feared. She has learned to go for walks/hikes and play in her yard, especially during her favorite season, winter! She is our loving, cuddly, quiet, playful joy. We have been blessed for taking a chance with her. I think she might feel similarly about us! Aleu (LuLu)
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Teddy and I have both lived in Tennessee — he was a Love Train puppy. He was born on May 6, 2019, my first day on the job that brought me back to Ann Arbor. I didn’t know either of those things when I singled out Teddy among a roomful of puppies. I saw his expressive eyes and the small bald spot on his back — maybe he got into a puppy brawl, because the fur grew back later — and decided that he was it. Best decision I ever made. Is it fate when everything aligns, or are we
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My sister Alex and I decided to stop in and browse the animals one afternoon. One dog in particular caught our eye. She was petite, oddly quiet among her howling companions, and had the sweetest brown eyes I’ve ever seen. We were asked if we wanted to take her for a stroll, and we figured why not?! It was a sunny day and a dog walk would be fun. What we didn’t anticipate is that we would be unable to stop thinking about her all night long. We rushed back the next day—simply put, this was our dog. We were
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