Popcorn needs a home.

Popcorn is a beautiful, all white, 7 month old female pit bull. Defenseless, Popcorn's start in life was one of abandonment and abuse. Barely a few weeks old, some caring teenagers found her in a forest preserve with her face "smashed" and immediately brought her to Save-A-Pet.

The chain of events then happened rapidly, she immediately went to a vet emergency clinic, spent some days there and then moved into a foster home, but is now back at our facility. The only reminder of that horrific day is her eye. Popcorn's injuries included permanently damaging one eye which she has no vision out of now, and her skull and face had fractures which have all healed well. Popcorn has turned into an ebullient girl that lives life to the fullest. She loves to roughhouse and roll around with other dogs, but that's not always every dog's cup of "bone".

Sadly, Popcorn is living in a cage at the kennel. For months now Popcorn has watched people pass by her cage day after day...hoping one day someone would stop by her cage, pick her up, hug her, and take her home with them. Popcorn is still just a baby, and very sweet. She longs for human attention. She is very lonely and sad living in a cage at the shelter. Because Popcorn is so sad, and used to being passed by, she seems to have given up hope of ever finding a forever family. Sweet little Popcorn deserves to live in a loving forever home, and to experience love and security.

Please consider changing Popcorn's life! Popcorn will not let you down, she has a lot of love to share!

***Contact Information***

If you are interested in adopting Popcorn, or for more information on her, please contact:

Save-A-Pet Adoption Center, 31664 North Fairfield Road, Grayslake, Illinois 60030

Call and ask for an Adoption counselor at : 847-740-7788, or you may send an email to: adoptions@save-a-pet-il.org, RE: Popcorn

This is cool!

Taylor commented that the Bloggers Choice Awards are going on, and said that this site should be part of it. You will notice a badge on the sidebar, you can vote for this site by clicking on the badge. It would really be neat to win and spread the word about rescue! :)

Penny the Pom

All kinds of dogs can end up in situations where they need to be adopted. Just look at sweet Penny, she found a happy forever home thanks to Ponderosa Pomeranian Rescue Inc and her new family.

Kira's happy ending.

Kira came to us from a shelter at about 1 year of age. She had been a stray they picked up, so they didn't know anything about her. She was very afraid of people and dogs and wouldn't let them walk past us on the street. She would lunge barking and snarling to keep them from getting too close. She taught me an enormous amount about dog behavior and fearful dogs especially. She did go on to compete in agility and do some obedience workshops.

She is now 13 yrs old and has kidney disease, and has come a long way since we intially brought her home. I have three dogs and I never thought I would say this about her, but she is my easy dog. She's very sweet, and a wonderful gentle soul. I'm very greatful to have her in my life.

Thanks for sharing with us Clynch! What a great thing you have done to add a rescue animal to your family.

Happy Ending for Sam and Annabell

AdrianG wrote:

Two stories so far... (there will be more as we will always get rescued dogs from now on).

Sam 'Rufus' Greig- Age 14 years old Rescued 1996. Dumped at the vet, to be put down, in an unloved state. Hair well over grown, dirty, huge tick on his cheek. Previous owners were moving and simply didn't want him anymore. He has had 12 great years with us and we can't imagine life without him.





Annabelle Greig - Age 4 years old Rescued 2 weeks ago. Product of a divorce with neither partner wanting her. A beautiful dog (with issues). However, in her 2 short weeks with us she has become best mates with Sam and has a light in her eyes that is infectious.

Furry Friday Movie

A new way to celebrate Furry Friday!

Zappa's Happy Ending

Laurel writes about Zappa the border collie... around 3 y/o...

He was found running loose as a stray alongside a busy road near a horse farm south of Tampa. The folks who owned the barn spent nearly two weeks trying to catch him. When they finally did catch him, they were keeping him in an empty stall (to keep their dogs from him) until they turned him over to Skyway Border Collie Rescue in Palmetto, FL, just before Christmas. They called him Nick at the rescue.

In January I contacted Skyway looking for a BC and they told me his tale and evaluated our compatibility. The first week of February, I drove down from Orlando to meet him in person. He was shy and a bit overwhelmed by the several other madly hyper borders in the house, but he warmed right up to me and we took him home that very day!

He's just the sweetest little fuzzball I've ever known! Best thing to ever happen to my life! And while he may not have the extreme herding drive typical of his breed, preferring more laid-back pursuits, he's still a wonderful dog. He may never be a sheepdog, but he's a born trail dog.. he loves nothing more than to get out and explore the woods with me. =)

Cooking at home.

A lot of pet parents cook meals for their pets. After the recent recall of major pet foods, it's becoming more popular. The best way to find out about cooking for your pet is from your vet.

Recently we switched our dog to a homemade diet due to liver failure. She wasn't a fan of the liver diet dog food, and when we asked what else we could do our vet gave us some recipes. It's pretty simple, and she is loving the food.

We use a basic recipe of cooked brown rice, turkey, and cottage cheese. The recipe also calls for broccoli, which she happens to love as a treat, so we often leave it out of the meal and keep it as a treat. It's not too hard to whip up a batch either, and she thinks she is getting the royal treatment by eating "people food".

Anyway, it's worth asking about if you are concerned with the saftey of your pet's food. You can even cook for other animals as well, our bird loves the "birdie bread" recipe (cornbread with veggies cooked into it).

Homeless dog honored.

This is a great story, although it is also a very sad story. The citizens of Moscow banded together after a homeless dog was stabbed to death. They raised funds to create a monument called "Sympathy". Click here to read all about it and see the monument.

Furry Friday!

Another happy ending.

Cody sent in his story about his rescue Kenya. Thanks Cody!

I've been looking for a dog of my own for about 7 or 8 months now. I was pretty desperate to get one because my dog of 15 years had just passed away. I've always been a big fan of arctic breed dogs, and was really looking for a pure-bred husky from several local breeders, but I was also checking the local pound every once in a while to see if one would catch my eye. Sure enough, I went in there one day and not only did they have a husky and a malamute, they had Kenya. Now I was dead set on getting a puppy, but she really caught my eye and I knew she was the dog I wanted. Kenya was a 4-year-old German Shepard hybrid, so the tag said. They were very leary of her being adopted out because of her size and wolf-like appearance, but they eventually let me adopt her. She was clearly underfed (you can see/feel EVERY bone in her body) and her fur is a bit raggedy, but she is otherwise a very healthy and good dog. She's been trained before and listens very well to me. I think the thing that I love most about her though, she is EXACTLY, down to the color and personality, like the dog I had for 15 years.

A must read.

This post came to me via email from a reader, and is a great read for all who love animals. Actually, it's a great post period. Please head on over to Christine's blog and read The Truth about Inconvenience. Thank you for sharing this Christine!

Go Orange Day!

 

Today is the day to Go Orange for animals.

Ready to go Orange??

Tomorrow is the day to Go Orange for Animals. April 10th is ASPCA Day, and they want everyone to go orange in celebration. Click the link to learn more, and don't forget to Go Orange tomorrow!

Hoppy Easter!

Hopefully your Easter holiday was as fun as ours was. Here is a video of our pup trying to get her Easter egg. Enjoy!

Adorable Otters

Even otters hold hands with each other... go hold the hand of someone you love this weekend.

Awww...

Now, I can't say anything about dressing up dogs because our dogs have all loved clothes. This cutie looks adorable, but not too thrilled, in her jacket.



You can see more of Ab at her blog. Thanks Ab for the email, we totally think you are cute!

Contest update

For those of you who entered and won the Steve Irwin Wildlife Warrior contest, never fear! There has been a delay in getting the prizes out, but they will be out by the first of next week.

For those who missed the contest don't worry, there may be more contests in the future! :)

Why pets are great therapy!

Pets have been proven to lower blood pressure, helping people live longer, healthier lives. Anyone with a pet knows that they are great therapy, they all do quirky things that you can't help but chuckle over. Here is our dog, she is totally in love with computers... no, she isn't actually upset by the tray. She is barking for joy! Click the link to see the video!

Murphy and Max

Another happy ending! Thank you Leslie for sharing.



"Murphy and his pregnant mate were dumped at the SPCA a couple of years ago when he was around 1.5 years old. We now believe it was because of some of his behaviors - he's an obsessive marker, and it's now pretty clear that we need to just accept him as he is and work around that, since we've found no training or therapies that have put a dent in that habit. It's sad in a way that it means that he's confined to a fairly small area in the house, other than the times when we can get his wiggly butt into a "belly band" and watch him like a hawk to make sure that he doesn't work his way out of it, but we spend as much time as we can with him, though we know he'd love to just be at our feet all the time. We love him to pieces.

Max was rescued way back in '94 when he was also (the vet guessed) about 1.5 years old, so he's now a very old man. You can see the pit in him (head-ridge and some other characteristic features) but you can also see whippet, which makes for a VERY interesting combination! Before I brought him home, the rescue group who took him in had him treated for his fight wounds -- he'd apparently been used as pitbull fight bait -- and to have his too-small chain collar surgically removed from his neck, where it was starting to grow into the skin of his neck. When I first brought him home, he would cower and growl if I lifted my hand to pet him, but it wasn't long before he became the biggest lovebug out there."

Furry Friday!

Triumph gets her legs.

This story is both heartbreaking and wonderful. Triumph the dog was found on the side of the road, both of her legs had been cut off and she was left to die. Luckily some wonderful people stepped in, and through a series of many events, Triumph has become the first dog ever to have permenant artifical legs.
You can read the full story here, and also see video clips of Triumph in action.

Luck o'the Irish

Happy St. Patricks to you all! The contest for the Wildlife Warrior wristbands has ended, and the winners will be recieving their prize soon!

Remember, you can change a homeless animals luck by thinking of adoption first. If you are looking for a new pet, be sure to check with your local shelter and rescue groups, you will be saving a life!

Furry Friday!

ASPCA

April 10th is ASPCA Day. This means that you can help support the great work they are doing on behalf of our animal friends by "going orange".  NYC buildings, as well as other cities across the nation, will be lighting up with orange lights. People and pets can join the fun by wearing orange, or even lighting their homes with orange lights (I know we have some orange lights from Halloween we can put out).

Click here for more fun ways to "go orange" in support of the day. Be sure to take photos of your orange creations, then bring them on over to the  Flickr group I created for ASPCA Day.

Furry Friday!

A rescue story.

This story comes from Elizabeth, thank you so much for sharing. It's always wonderful to see what can be done.

"I first heard about J.R., Goldie, Mama Calico, Abby, and Marisol when a person from the congregation where I am an intern minister told me that they were going to be euthanized. It was a Sunday in January, and they were scheduled to be caught on Thursday and taken to a shelter where they would be put to sleep. A woman from our congregation had left town rather quickly and not managed to make arrangements for her five cats to come with her or to find a new home for them. They were left outside about October, after many years of human companionship, and by January it was bitterly cold out and friends of the woman who abandoned them didn't know what else to do with them but to take them to a shelter (where they most certainly would have been put to sleep due to their serious health care needs).

Because they were so scared and traumatized, they came across as somewhat feral, although we later found out that all were as sweet as can be. Mama Calico was at least 12, and her two sons, J.R. and Goldie, were not much younger. It turns out that Marisol had been abused as a kitten, and was thus very aggressive - she scratched and bit when you tried to touch her, and growled if you even got close. Only Abby was considered very adoptable - although at six, she was already getting older than many people will consider.

It took a week and a half to catch all five - they were scared, cold, and, as it turns out, also very sick. Goldie had frostbite, and Goldie, J.R. and Abby all had infected gums and needed teeth pulled. They all had fleas and earmites, matted hair, weak immune systems, and poor Goldie was allergic to fleas and so he also had scabs and sores all over him.

Through the generous help of members of the Unitarian Universalist organization for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (www.uua.org/ufeta/) who I emailed, some other generous folks who heard about the kitties through my blog (www.elizabethslittleblog.com), and two shelters in the Greater Boston area (Second Chance Shelter http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/MA77.html and Animal Umbrella http://www.animalumbrella.org/) we raised over $700 to get the kitties all the shots, tests, and treatment that they needed (deeply discounted care was offered by Animed Pet Hospital, Dedham, MA). We discovered that Mama Calico, J.R. and Goldie were very attached to each other and yowled and cried if they were separated very long, so we hoped against hope that we could find all three over age 10 cats a home together, along with a home for Marisol who, even though she clearly had a very good heart, was somewhat of an attack cat.

The first night we had Goldie, before we were able to catch Mama Calico and J.R., he was so upset all night that I eventually went in and slept on the floor next to him in order to comfort him. As soon as we brought Mama Calico and J.R. the next day (we were extra motivated to catch them after Goldie was soooo upset) Goldie immediately licked them, purred, and was as happy as could be to have his family back.

After just a month and a half, all five cats have loving homes - and Mama Calico, J.R., and Goldie have one together! A kind couple decided that they had the patience and love to work with Marisol to try to deal with some of her aggression and anger issues, and a young college student looking for a chill, well-adjusted cat gave Abby a home.

It took lots of love, lots of generosity, and lots of patience to find homes for these sweeties, but we did it - and couldn't have done it without so many organizations and individuals coming together to help them. Some people, even well-meaning animal lovers, initially suggested that the most humane thing to do would be to put them to sleep, and I'm so glad we decided to be patient and have hope because it paid off. Three families have lovely companion animals and five kitties have many happy years ahead of them."

Furry Friday!

Don't forget to enter the contest before it's too late!

DNA to the rescue!

This is a great use of modern forensics on the behalf of our animal friends. The use of DNA is helping people track elephant poachers. Yes, ivory is beautiful, but so are elephants. This is hopefully a step in the right direction to stop poaching of elephants for ivory. Here is a story about it with a lot more detail.

Speaking of elephants, come visit my shop and buy an Ellie product to help spread the word!

K.C. The African Grey

This story illustrates why rescue groups are so important, and why you should always be sure that your home is well suited for a pet before you buy.

"K.C. had a breakthrough today. It made me so happy I cried...

K.C. is a little Congo African Grey who came to live at The Oasis about two years ago. His story was a true rescue situation. A couple came upon him in a home where the teenaged boys were beating him and his cage. K.C. was terrified and although the couple knew nothing about birds, they recognized the seriousness of his situation and bought him from the owners."

Click the link to find out what his breakthrough was!

Those crazy sharks!

Every so often I learn something about our animal friends that just shocks and surprises me. Animals are truly amazing creatures, and I think that we are just starting to scratch the surface.

Anyway, did you know that whale sharks can push their stomachs out of their bodies. They do it so they can wash their stomachs, then they pull them back in once they are clean. Wild!

Recycle, for animals.

The harvest mouse was losing suitable housing, so the clever folks from The Wildlife Trust in Avon, Glamorgan and Northumberland came up with a great way to give them a home, while at the same time finding a use for used tennis balls. See the full story here. Way to go!

Another Contest!

This time around, there will be 9 winners. Each of the winners will recieve one Wildlife Warrior wristband.

If you aren't familiar with the cause behind the wristband, here is what the website has to say about them:

"Show your support for the protection of injured, threatened or endangered wildlife with this commemorative wristband. Help in the fight to raise awareness of wildlife issues, educate the public and support biological research.

Wildlife Warrior programs include:

• Australian Wildlife Hospital


• Species and Habitat Conservation (Asia)


• Crocodile Rescue and Research (International)


• Community Education (International)


• Emergency Wildlife Response (including Tsunami project)


• And more!

Share and support the dream of our favorite, beloved mate, Steve Irwin."

So, be sure to leave a comment (and email so I can contact you if you win) for your chance to have a wristband of your own! If you want to get an extra entry in the contest, all you have do do is write a quick post on your blog about this blog, or submit an animal story to be shared on this blog. :) The contest will end on March 17th, with the winners announced on the 18th. Good luck!

Say no to dog fur!

It amazes me that people would do this, but some of the big name designers are actually using dog fur in their clothing lines. The worst part, the dogs are usually skinned alive (as proven by hidden camera footage) and it's often passed as "faux fur".

There is something you can do if you think this is wrong.  Help pass the Dog and Cat fur prohibition act by clicking the link and then contacting your represenatives.

Furry Friday!

Wordless Wednesday- swallowtail butterfly

Spay Day USA

Spay (and neuter) day is February 27th. This event is hosted nation wide by the Humane Society of America. There are many things that you can do to help, including spreading the word, raising funds, hosting an event, or helping at an event in your area. This is a great cause in the fight for homeless pets, so please click the link or logo to find out more.

Happy New Year

I'm a bit late with this, but I just wanted to wish everyone a happy new year. It's the year of the pig! Scroll down to learn more about what that means.



The Chinese new year follows the lunar calendar, and the actual new year celebration was yesterday. However, most people celebrate for a full week leading up to the day. The pig is associated with ferility, and it is considered very lucky to bear a child in the year of the pig. People born under the sign of the pig are known to be honest, shy, and happy.

Dolphin gets artificial fin!

A dolphin in Japan recieved the worlds first artificial fin. This video shows the dolphin in action, using the new fin like it was her own. The fin was made by the tire company, Bridgestone, and was donated to the dolphin.

With a little help from my friends!

If you know of a good story, organization, or anything animal/wildlife related that needs to get some exposure, let me know and I will make a post about it here. I do this work because of my passion for animals, but I sure could use the help from other animal lovers! :)

This blog is actually the companion blog for my animal rescue site. The newly designed site is (fingers crossed) launching in the summer, but if you are interested in seeing the old site it can be found here.

The purpose of my work is to help rescue groups gain traffic in hopes that more animals will find forever homes. I also have a love for wildlife, so you will find posts related to pets as well as wildlife here on my blog, although the actual website is mainly aimed at pets.

So, if you have any animal related stories please send them my way! Let's get the word out together.

Kaos needs a home

One thing that I am more than happy to do here is to help get the word out about pets seeking forever homes. Here is a great story about a dog who is in need of a foster, or even better, a forever home. Please visit the link and consider Kaos for your pet if you are looking.

Furry Friday!

 See more Furry Friday photos here! Remember to post your animal photos for Furry Friday, you can post on your blog, and/or, join the Flickr group.

2007, Year of the Dolphin

Someone has declared that 2007 is the year of the dolphin. This is something that was already taking place at my house (dolphin calendars, dolphin themed trips I want to plan). However, after reading the awful news that the white dolphin is now extinct, I think it's great to declare a year focused on these amazing animals.

So, what can you do to help dolphins? Visit the site above and you can adopt a dolphin. There are also some amazing trips that you can take through Earthwatch that involve dolphin research. Or take a trip to a local aquarium or someplace like Sea World, support their research and breeding efforts.

Here is my favorite movie about dolphins, it features music by Sting.

Valentines Day

It was three years ago for Valentines Day that a cute little pup came to play. She has filled all our lives with happiness and joy, here she is with her favorite toy! Happy Valentines Day!

Valentine Doggie-mail

Click here to see a fun Valentines message, and create your own too! What could be better than doggie-mail?!

A Monday morning laugh

I just saw a funny post about mind tricks dogs can play on their human. There are many funny "tricks" such as drying off on the bed instead of letting your human use a towel after a bath, and being sure to take forever when your human is waiting for your to do your business outside. Click the link for the full list of funnies!

Wildlife gardening

Want to do something to help wildlife and make your yard look good at the same time? Why not plan a backyard habitat?

We have a lot of wildlife, mainly various birds, that come and visit our yard. I plan to make our yard more friendly towards them this coming spring by setting aside a space just for native plants and such. There is more information about making a wildlife friendly garden here, you can even certify your garden area as a backyard habitat.

Furry Friday and a winner!

I would also like to thank everyone who entered the contest and for helping spread the word about this blog!

Thanks to the ever popular hat draw we have a winner. Congrats go to Chelle who will be recieving a horse calendar pack! There will be more contests here in the future, it was just too much fun not to do it again. :)

Make your shopping count.

There is a great way to shop, and help animals at the same time, the Animal Rescue Site Store! For each purchase you make you fund food for animals living in sanctuaries and shelters. They have a lot of fun items, like the cute good luck pig at the top of this post! They also offer a lot of handmade and fair trade goods as well. It's a great place to find Valentines gifts too, they have a lot of special items for the holiday.

So, next time you are looking for something a little more unique, be sure to check the Animal Resuce Site store first. :)

Wordless Wednesday

This wasn't staged, she looks at herself in the mirror all the time. We just got lucky enough to capture it with the camera.

Orangutans in danger.

 

This article says that orangutans are in great danger from illegal logging practices. This is truly bad news, and it makes me wonder what can be done. Orangutans are beautiful animals, and already in danger due to other factors.

One thing that I think we can do is to better use our resources. Money talks, so use your buying power to buy from ethical companies. Also, since this is a problem because of timber demands, consider other building methods such as buying an existing home instead of building new, using bamboo or cork flooring, and using recycled items. I believe that it's possible to create a beautiful home for us while maintaining habitat for animals. It would be truly sad if the world lost Orangutans.

The lost and found.

I remember going to the lost and found in my school as a kid. It was always reassuring to know that there was one last place to look when something got lost. Well, someone very smart made a lost and found website!

You can search for any item that you may have lost, inlcuding your lost pets. It's free to use, and you can search worldwide. What a great idea! Be sure to check it out!

Contest Time!

In honor of launching this new blog I thought it would be fun to hold a contest! The winner will receive a 2007 calendar pack with a horse theme. There is a big calendar, a planner, and a mini-calendar. I realize that it's already February, but these are brand new calendars that still have a ton of life left in them! :)

To enter, leave a comment here and make a small post about the contest on your blog as well (to help promote this site). The winner will be picked and announced on Friday February 9th, 2007.

A turkey rescue!

I came across this wonderful set of photos about a turkey that was rescued when it was just a baby. Truly a must see!

Loon

It's always hard when you are doing work on behalf of animals because you are bound to come across the very ugly side of humans now and then. This story about a loon that was shot six times is one example of a person having "fun" at the expense of an animal. Loons are protected by law, and this is a sad case of an animal who shouldn't have been killed.

Get out of your shell...

Turtles need homes too! Did you know that there are rescue groups dedicated to turtles? There are. They not only help find new homes for turtles, they also give turtles a place to live out their lives if they can't be adopted out.

TGIFurry Friday!

Come join the Furry Friday Flickr group and have even more fun with Furry Fridays! If you participate in Furry Fridays please leave a message here so everyone can visit your site.

Bunnies need homes too!

It's not just dogs and cats that need to find forever homes, all sorts of pets, including bunnies, need homes! There is a great rescue in California that is working hard on behalf of bunnies, The Bunny Bunch. They serve the southern part of California, so if you are in that area and looking for a bunny as a pet, please check there first.

They even have a "bunny dating service" just in time for Valentines day!

Wolves

Today I read that there was good news, wolves are now making a comeback and are no longer endangered! This means that the government has taken away their endangered status.

However, this good news comes at a very bad time for the wolves that live in Idaho. According to Defenders for Wildlife Action Fund, "last week, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission even set a price for the tag to kill wolves -- $26.50 for in-state residents and $256 dollars for out-of-state people". This couldn't be happening if the wolves were still considered endangered.

It should be very interesting to see how things play out, there is a movement in the works to get wolves back on the endangered species list. I hope that these beautiful animals will get a chance to keep their amazing come back going strong!

Valentines day gifts.

Is your sweetheart a pet lover? The Humane Society has a lot of great ideas for Valentines day gifts. I think that the following things are really fun (and there are plenty more fun things too, this is just a small sample).



So, if you are looking for gifts that are unique, you should check out their shop. The animal lover in your life is bound to be happy, and you will be helping a great cause with your purchase.

Smallest Primate

How cute is this? The world's smallest primate!

Read more about the slender loris, and why people are working hard to protect them and other rare mammals!

Good news for pigs!

A lot of people don't realize that pigs are very intelligent animals. Sure, they like a good roll in the mud, but that doesn't mean they aren't smart! The good news is, these smart animals are finally going to be getting a bit of a break.

Voters in Florida and Arizona have made a big difference in how pigs are treated in pig farms. They voted to do away with the abusive practice of using gestastion crates. To qoute the article:

"Gestation crates are 2-foot by 7-foot metal cages that house breeding pigs. The sows have a gestation period of four months, and are in the crates for nearly their entire pregnancy. After giving birth, they are re-impregnated and placed back in the crates, enduring perhaps eight or 10 successive pregnancies in the crates before the animals are reproductively "spent." The crates are so restrictive that the animals can't even turn around for months on end."

Doing away with this practice is a move in the right direction. Just because they will eventually be used for food in the future doesn't mean they don't deserve a good life.

Free endangerd animal ringtones

The Center for Biological Diversity has free ringtones that feature endangered animal sounds. You can choose from the sounds of rare owls, tropical birds, frogs, and even whales or Orcas!

What a great way to personalize your phone!

Why we need rescue groups.

I just read a great story about a retired Greyhound. It reminded me of the many reasons why rescue groups are important, and it's not just about finding animals good homes. There is a secondary reason that people tend to forget about; sometimes a person just can't care for their pet (health, job relocation, and many other reasons). It's in situations like this that rescue groups come to the rescue! Sometimes the pet is placed in a new forever home, but other times they live their lives out with the rescue group in foster. This is great, a much better alternative to the pound where pets are killed.

If you ever have to give up a pet, please look into your local rescue groups first. Check out of state if you have to, a lot of rescues are able to help even if you aren't in the same state. Ask if the place you are taking your pet is no-kill, and it it isn't, find someplace that is. Placing a pet with a rescue group gives your beloved buddy a chance at a happy life, which is what all pet owners want for their pets.

You "otter" check this out!

Great news coming from the Monterey Bay Aquarium, two otter pups were born! They will be making their first public apperance in March at a special wild otter exhibit. You can see more photos, and even watch the pups in action by visiting the Monterey Bay Aquarium website.

First ever "Furry Friday"!

Furry Friday is a weekly meme that I will be hosting from this blog, and today is the very first one! All you have to do is share a photo of your pet (and all kinds of pets are welcome, fur or not). Come leave a comment if you have a Furry Friday photo on your blog so everyone can come visit! :)

Pet Adoption

There are a lot of pets for adoption that people rarely think about. It seems that when people think of animal rescue and adoption, the main focus is cats and dogs. Well, there are a whole bunch of rescue groups out there who are saving (and placing) some of the less thought of pets. You can find bunnies, rats, mice, ferrets, hamsters, birds, horses, snakes, and even turtles!

So, if you are thinking about adding other kinds of animals to your life, be sure you check for rescues first. You will find a great pet, a good deal, and save a life too!

Wordless Wednesday

Alex the African Grey

I first read about Alex on the Alex foundation website. They even have a clip of him counting blocks, telling the difference between two keys, and asking for the things he wants. Here is a great news story about how parrots are learning to communicate with humans, and it features Alex.

This is exciting!

I always get really excited when I see more people, especially when they have influence, getting involved in saving animals! It's great news for the animals and for those of us who are trying to help save them. :)

Animal Planet is running a program called ROAR (click the image to find out more). It's free, it's easy, and they have a photo of a frog on their main page! They are even holding sweepstakes right now. There is a wealth of great information on their site, it is worth visiting and joining your promise to the cause.

Steve Irwin

I don't know if you had a chance to watch the last adventure of this great conservationalist or not, but they had a special right after that was equally neat. The first show, "Oceans Deadliest", was amazing, but I think that the celebration, "Crikey, What an Adventure", was even better!

There is always something great to be learned from watching passionate people and learning about their lives. Steve is a great example of what one person can accomplish, and proof that one person really can make a difference! I had no idea that he was in constant pain, he never once let that stop him from doing the things that he wanted to do. His positive attitude is also an insipration, and will be missed.

The Discovery Channel is selling Wildlife Warrior wristbands in memory of Steve and to help his foundation. All of the proceeds from the wristbands will be donated, and $10.00 for 10 wristbands is a pretty good deal!

Welcome!

This is the new home of the Aimee's Animals Blog. I am in the middle of a major site re-do, and with that comes a new name to reflect the many changes that are going to be made to the site.

As you may know, the main focus of my original Aimee's Animals website was to help animal rescue groups gain exposure online so more animals can be rescued and placed in happy, forever homes. The new site has that same focus and beyond! Truly exciting things are going on, and I can't wait until it launches (hopefully summer 2007)! Until that time, feel free to visit the old site and find rescue groups.

This blog will focus on animals, rescue and otherwise.

Thanks!

Kat made a lovely post today about animal rescue and animal rescue blogs. Guess what? This blog was mentioned! Yay!

Interesting Pet Products

As I was surfing the net I came across a product called Poop Freeze. It freezes your pet's poop so you can more easily pick it up and dispose of it. Very interesting idea! Have you seen any interesting pet products??