Greetings from HAL!
We're as busy as ever but wanted to take a moment to share some stories and successes with all of our fabulous supporters. We've included "tails" of some animals who are in wonderful new homes, the inside scoop on one of our favorite foster homes, and lots of pictures. Enjoy! A Note on HAL's special missionAs you know, there are many animal welfare groups in the Bay Area which rescue dogs and cats from the local shelter. It's a good thing too! What makes Home At Last a bit different than most is that we often pull the "less than perfect" animals into our programs. That is, we're willing to take a chance on a dog or cat which might be kenneling very poorly or seem to have "issues" or not be the cutest, most appealing animal. It is our belief that these animals deserve a chance and we are pleased to see that the animals are often transformed when brought into a healthy, supportive environment. In line with the old adage that you can't judge a book by its cover, HAL tries not to judge an animal by its shelter behavior.
Samantha, her husband Mike, and their dogs are a foster family extraordinaire. All three of their fabulous dogs, Etta, Morris and Winston, are HAL alumni pooches. Samantha has created a heartwarming website www.morrisettawinny.com as "an homage to the loves of my life, my three rescued Pit Bull Terriers." Check it out, it's quite uplifting! In addition, Samantha and her family have taken in eight other dogs into foster for HAL. They seem to have a knack for finding good homes for their foster pooches and have had a string of successful adoptions including most recently, Boris. Etta, the Queen canine, rules the roost and teaches her foster brothers about being polite canine citizens. Each new dog gets his own dogster page filled with great pictures showing the pooch blooming from the attention and care he receives in his foster home. It is a wonderful sight to see these dogs removed from the stress of the shelter cavorting in the yard and looking relaxed.
Thanks so much to Samantha, Mike and their canine kids for all their hard work on behalf of HAL rescue dogs.
Picture right: Most recent foster Boris aka "Bob" now in a new home.
Above: Winston, Etta, Tico (HAL foster) and Morris
Pebbles reminds us of her namesake: she is cute, alert, warm-hearted, and playful. However, after living many months at the animal shelter her situation was fairly grim. Her skin condition became exacerbated by the stress of the kennel and the detergent used to clean her cement cell. Pebbles became frantic at times, desperate to get out for a walk. Once she was outside she settled down a bit and would reward her volunteer handler with kisses and enthusiasm. Fortunately, HAL was able to step up and rescue Pebbles at the last minute.
This sweet girl is now living in Northern California with her new family. Her guardian writes: "... I wanted to thank you for all your help. We absolutely love Pebbles! Though, we did change her name to HoneyBear... she sits like a bear. The weather has been great so we've been able to take her out on walks/hikes/runs at least twice a day, as well as play fetch and tug in the yard. She's adjusting perfectly! She sleeps with either Wendy and I, or our son... sleeps thru the night with no tossing or turning... WOW!"
The pictures of Pebbles/Honey Bear resting in the sun were posted on the BACS shelter bulletin board and they brought tears to the eyes of more than a few shelter volunteers.
Buster is one amazing dog and this is his story:
He lived chained up in a back yard until he ended up at the Berkeley Animal Shelter. Despite having a poor home life in the beginning, he is a very loving dog with a spunky personality. Buster is never in a bad mood! He has come a long way in learning to be a wonderful companion and great friend. Buster has been in foster care for a while now and he gets along well with most doggies.
Unfortunately, Buster had an accident and his leg was broken. Despite his pain, this sweet boy wagged his tail for the vet! Now the vet office staff is like his new family.
Home At Last Animal rescue and his foster mom are trying to raise money for Buster to have leg surgery since a cast alone did not work. If he does not have the surgery, then his leg will need to be amputated. Please consider donating to the surgery costs for this wonderful dog. Buster will be eternally grateful.
Meet Aretha -- This sweet girl has a little bit of extra weight on her but that makes her all the cuddlier. She also has some of the most luxurious, soft and silky fur in the world!
Aretha is the best of company... very sweet and responsive to human love and never pushy. Aretha is always the first to greet visitors. Then she plops down and rolls over on her back for a tummy rub. She is also very active and interactive and will make the best companion as an indoor cat only. She gets along with other cats (and dogs), and has also made friends with a parrot!
It's always particularly rewarding when we're able to find a great home for an older dog who has been dumped at the shelter. Such is the case with Coco. HAL received this note from Coco's new guardian:
"This is Jewel (formerly Coco). I gave her that name because she is a jewel of a dog! She is the sweetest, kindest, gentlest dog I have ever known. I had never even heard of an Australian Kelpie until I got a call from Jewel’s foster mom, Janis. If Jewel is representative of her breed’s disposition, I'll take a pack of them!
We got her on August 26, 2006 and so that is when we will celebrate her birthday going forward. My cat, Charlotte, was taken aback to see this canine suddenly in her midst. She hissed and left the room in disgust. On the other hand, Jewel hardly looked at her. This went on for several days and I swear that Charlotte seemed almost offended at Jewel’s disinterest! Slowly things settled down, though, and while I don’t expect any interspecies cuddling, Charlotte has accepted Jewel as a member of the family.
Jewel loves her back yard and walkies. I walk her every morning and every evening without fail and on weekends we go on special hikes in the mountains.
Jewel wasn't much for ball chasing or socializing with other dogs when we first got her, but she is doing both with a twinkle in her eye and big smile. Her favorite thing to do is to chase a ball and then play keep away with it. Despite her age she is quick and nimble! And again the twinkle in her eye says it all. She has a group of pals that congregate in the late afternoon at Cuesta Park and she likes to play referee (I think that’s her herding instinct kicking in) to the other dogs play. Or, as Mark says, "She's the RUFFeree".
It makes me very sad to think of her in a shelter and I thank HAL and Janis, her foster mom, everyday for rescuing her. She is my cuddle bug and constant companion. We cannot remember life without Jewel. Thank you, thank you, thank you! "
Read more success stories on the HAL website.
Home At Last rescues an amazing number of animals given our small size and limited resources. We are committed to helping our canine and feline friends. Please consider helping our efforts by donating to Home At Last. It will be much appreciated and allow us to focus on animal rescue without sweating the bills as much as we do. Thank you so much!
Home At Last Animal Rescue • PO Box 2261 • Berkeley, California 94702-0261
(510) 237-1625 | 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization | EIN #94-3338577