Currently in Rescue: Beginning of 2022

It has been a very active few months with foster dog and kitten adoptions along with some new faces joining the pack so far this year. I’ll try to keep it as brief as possible for this update on my rescue efforts and will dive into some details in other posts. I get lots of questions about supporting my rescue efforts, so I have lots of links at the bottom if you’re interested. I am always, always grateful for all of the support to help me help more of these sweet and innocent rescued souls. On to the updates: I […]

Emergency Safety Planning with Pets

I learned a lot of things after facing an emergency on the water with my dogs, and I know prevention and preparation can be our only hope at avoiding tragedy. In an emergency, things change quickly and it really puts my mind at ease to have a few easy things in place so I know I’m doing my very best to keep everyone I love safe. If you’re like me, I didn’t think much about emergency planning – I always just thought I would figure things out if something happened, or I assumed that nothing terrible would happen to me. […]

Happy 1st Birthday, Sadie!

Today my first puppy puppy in many years had her first birthday! And while Sadie is always celebrated – she brings a lot of life to this sleepy senior retirement home every moment – today is a special one. Today also marks our 10 month anniversary together, and that part really feels unreal. Time with her has gone so fast, and her size has increased several times over. Sadie is such an unbelievably loving, sensitive, nurturing soul. When I was going back and forth in my brain last fall about whether I “should” foster fail and adopt her, I believed […]

Currently: My Little Rescue is Keeping On

It’s Monday, July 5 – the final day of a long holiday weekend. I had plans to visit friends and family in Iowa this weekend, but with my replacement air conditioner taking its time, I couldn’t leave any animals here in the house without me. So we’ve had a pretty relaxing weekend – the dogs especially because they’ve been pretty drugged on calming treats to mitigate their anxiety due to the neighborhood fireworks. The sibling kittens are still battling ringworm, and we are doing our best. We were so blessed this weekend to be gifted a 3-level cat condo, so […]

Currently: Fleas & Ringworm & Eye Balls & Vet Visits & Heat, Oh [f-ing] My!

It’s been a real doozy of a week here. Such a doozy, in fact, that I should stop wondering why I’ve been so tired. First, the old air conditioning unit at my house has decided after 26 years of – what I assume to be – faithful service to this old house, she’s over it and so out of here. She spits out a bit of cool air every day, but her effort level is really no match for the humid heat that Kansas serves up. As a single homeowner with no independent wealth to speak of, the thought of […]

Today’s Loss

One of my new foster kittens died overnight. I named her Hope in her honor after I woke up to finding her still snuggled in with her siblings, but lifeless this morning. Hope was the teeniest 3-week-old kitten I’ve ever seen. She was the tabby kitten in this scrawny little litter, and I’m heartbroken that I couldn’t save her. I’ve lost several fosters over the years, and it is always incredibly sad. When they’re in a foster home, animals sometimes feel love and care for the first time in their lives. Sometimes being able to relax allows them to let […]

Currently: My Little Rescue June 2021

It’s been a busy few weeks here in my wannabe farm. The litter of four foster kittens I’d had since early April when they were only six days old left on Tuesday to find their forever homes. I’m really hopeful that they will be adopted in pairs. And since they’ve yet to be adopted at the humane society, I’ve also got my fingers crossed that they will join the wonderful program that puts adoptable kittens in storefront windows in our lovely downtown in Lawrence, Kansas, called the Mass Street Kitten Academy. And right after I brought those four loves of […]

Second Chances are What We Do Here

When rescue dogs come to a foster home, there is a clear turning point that they are getting their second chance at a forever home. When I foster, my role is to give them a safe place to land while their forever family finds them and to love them enough that they forget they were ever abandoned. Their second chances are so beautiful to witness. But I’m also living my second chance, and my rescues are a big part of the purpose that became even more significant to me when I started my second chance. I’ll tell you about that […]

Currently: My Little Rescue in May 2021

I started writing this post with a nearly 7-week-old kitten sleeping on my chest, and it marks a peaceful moment in this very active, high-needs but filled with love house. I thought you were due an update because a lot of changes and new faces are here, and while I was thinking about that, things changed again! I’m devoted to this rescue lifestyle, and in the middle of writing committed to picking up another senior dog foster. Murphy – a 15-year-old deaf and partially blind cocker spaniel makes my fourth senior dog foster currently. Add to that the four kittens […]

Adopt a Senior Dog – Chicken’s Story

My dear, tiny, little Chicken was one of my senior rescue dog pack for many years. She is one of the main reasons I am passionate about senior dog rescue, and foster them often. Supposedly, a dog hits their senior years when they are 7 years old, but from my experience, that milestone is just the beginning.  Caring for Chicken’s special needs really allowed me to learn what I was capable of figuring out on behalf of someone I loved, and each dog I’ve fostered since I lost Chicken has benefitted from my belief that it’s always worth it to […]