Dogs for Adoption

Cats for Adoption

Special Animals

Stories

Information

Hi Julia,
Just wanted to give you an update on Abner. He is doing really well, and is fitting in quite nicely. He now weighs 53 lbs, which the vet said is is ideal weight. When he's not able to go for a walk, his favorite activity is sleeping. His "grandpa" built him a stand for his bed, which is the same height as the window, so he can sleep and look out the window. He loves his pink blanket (we think it's a good thing he's color blind), though it's barely a blanket with all the holes in it. At first he didn't know how to play with toys much, but he seems to be getting the hang of it. He also is starting to "cuddle" more with us.

We are also finding that he has a fascination with all things cardboard - we've come home to find wax paper boxes, cards, cereal boxes, and other items torn to shreds from our recycle box, or from places we thought he couldn't reach.

A while back he got to meet his "aunt" Libby, an 11 year old beagle. You'll see her in some of the pics. I think he wanted to play with her a lot more than she wanted to play with him, but she tolerated him nicely, even if he did take over her bed.

Anyway, hope all is going well with you and your family. Have you fostered anymore dogs since Abner?

Take care,
-- Jeni

Donate to help support adoption the activities of
The Heart of America Humane Society.

Dear HAHS,
Thank you so much for finding us such a fun home! Our new names are Jake & Elwood and we just love living with the Lyons family. There's a 5 1/2 year old girl who is just so nice to us. She feeds us every day when she gets home from school and is so great with the cuddles. AND they have a Jack Russell Terrier and a big black cat for us to play with. Dottie, the dog, thinks she's a cat and helps us run up and down the stairs and then gives us baths. Shady, the cat, didn't really like us at first and he used to hide anytime we came near him. But now that we've been here for awhile, he at least tolerates us. He won't like that I tell you this, but he lets us curl up next to him when he's sleeping!

The house that we're living in is awesome! There are two sets of stairs and we've definitely been getting a work out running up and down them ... especially really early in the morning. There's also a three story cat condo in the living room. Sometimes we both sleep up there, but soon I bet we'll be too big to both fit. We also got a ton of new cat toys, though sometimes we play with the dog's toys just for fun.

We are so spoiled by these people, it's just great. They let us sleep on their bed even though the pets now out-number the people two to one! We try to behave, but we're kittens and have found just about every place to get into. Jake's favorite was trying to get into the pantry and Elwood likes to get into the dollhouse.

So, thank you to everyone at HAHS. We had a great foster mom who found us the best forever family we could have hoped for.

Happy & Healthy,
--Jake & Elwood Lyons

Donate to help support adoption the activities of
The Heart of America Humane Society.

Hello Foster mom Jenna.
I just wanted to send a message to tell you about my new home; Courtney said it was OK to use her computer as long as I stop walking on the keys. It is really NEAT here! I have a whole room all to myself with all kinds of neat things, and places to hide and explore! Courtney took lots! of pictures, and I'm sure she will share them with you. I was even being such a good kitty, that they blocked off the whole upstairs, and let me sleep with them! They said you did a good job litter box training me, because I went and used it right away. And I am proud to say, I have not had any misses or made too much of a mess with my litter.... yet.

The Bryan guy is pretty cool too. He stayed up all night playing computer games. He said it was his day off, I don't know what that means, but I like it. I got to sit in his lap while he played, and then he let me sit on his shoulder. I purred and purred and purred. He even threw a ball of paper for me, and I ran after it. It was a really fun game!

Well, Courtney wants to use her computer now, so I should wrap this up. Thanks for giving me a home when I needed one. My new people say that it must have been a great home to make me such a great kitty. Give Courtney a call if you want to come visit me and my new home. Thanks again for taking such good care of me!

Purrrrrrr,
Vega

Donate to help support adoption the activities of
The Heart of America Humane Society.

My fiancé Mike and I adopted Sugar in October 2008. We had been talking about getting a dog for a couple of months and searched Petfinder regularly to try and find our perfect match. I saw Sugar and immediately emailed Candy to see if we could meet her. We met Sugar and instantly fell in love. Thinking back, it’s hard to believe that we’ve had her over a year now. Sugar fits into our family perfectly, is stubborn just like Mom and Dad, and a wonderful girl. Our friends and family love her as well and are jealous we ended up with such a great dog. It’s difficult to imagine our lives without her. We bring Sugar to PetSmart to visit with Candy and Mark and earlier this year, I decided to start volunteering at adoptions and have taken in a couple of foster dogs. Sugar has fun with them but enjoys having Mom and Dad to herself once they leave. I am thankful for HAHS bringing us Sugar and for what the organization does for other dogs.

Donate to help support adoption the activities of
The Heart of America Humane Society.

At the beginning of this semester, I learned that my beloved horse, which I have had since I was 13 years old, had to be put down. I was far away from home and he passed without me being there or being able to say goodbye. As my sadness over this began to lessen, I more seriously considered my long harbored desire to adopt a dog as a way to give another deserving animal the love, affection, and devoted home that I was once able to give my Kori. As soon as I began searching for animals up for adoption in the area, I stumbled upon a trio of sisters who seemed to fit my desires and steal my heart with their loving and expressive eyes. One of those sisters was Kennedy, who I took home in late September but who has settled in so splendidly that I could swear it has been longer! I was amazed at how involved and invested her foster family was and as I communicated with them about my possible adoption I began falling in love because of the care and affection that had already been put into all the puppies early in life. Kennedy is sweeter, smarter, and more loving than I hoped in my wildest dreams. From falling asleep with her at night, waking up to her loving face in the morning, even the simple act of taking her for walks or watching her at the dog park is practically cathartic and more than I could have asked for. I can't believe how fortunate I am to have her and couldn't be more thankful to Candy and Mark for uniting me with this little angel. I look forward to Kennedy being there as I continue my life as a young adult, start a family, and am so grateful that she will always be there as a loving and unconditionally faithful friend for me.
--Virginia

Donate to help support adoption the activities of
The Heart of America Humane Society.

Andrea,
I wanted to send you some photos of Charlie and an update. It's fun to compare these pictures to the ones when he was younger. His eyes are still the same: loving. As you can see from the photos, he's getting really big! He weighs about 30 pounds now. The vet thinks he'll only be around 50-60 pounds, though. He's definitely smaller than my sister-inlaw's lab and the other dogs in his puppy class. He's doing really well in puppy training classes. He knows how to sit, stay, come, down, settle, shake, leave it, and we're working on roll over and loose leash walking. He's still very calm and still wants to sit in our laps. He loves to play outside, he loves to chew on his toys, and he loves his treats! He listens really well too! I'm not sure what Luke and I did to get such a great dog, but we are definitely spoiled. So, thank you! Everyone he meets tells us how lucky we are to have such a great dog and we have you to thank for that.

I hope you enjoy the holiday season!

--Jessica

Donate to help support adoption the activities of
The Heart of America Humane Society.

Our wonderful foster mom, Candy, requested I write our “success” story. I’m not sure I agree “success” is the correct word – it’s not strong enough for adding the perfect member to your family, but I’ll use it for now as no other words occur to me that adequately describe what my family and I have experienced the past few weeks.

Up until the first part of October, my family included a different four-legged member, an 80 lb golden retriever named Sage. He was extremely aggressive and destructive from the moment we brought him home and seemed to want nothing to do with us. He started developing even more odd behavior traits and was eventually diagnosed with neurological damage as all litter mates also exhibit his same behavior. he had what the vet called a “psychotic episode” and attacked me in our home for no known reason. I amazingly managed to escape with only my shirt torn and a few marks on my arm, but we decided that we had to surrender him to the vet at that time as the risk was finally too great.

We found Georgia after a few days of searching. We had immediately decided we were going to be very, very selective this time in what dog we invited to be a part of our family. I cannot tell you how much my whole family appreciates the idea of fostering. It allowed us to already know her temperament, how she got along with other animals, and especially how she got along with other humans. I emailed Candy our application along with our story (as you can tell by now, I’m kind of wordy, so it was a long email!) since I had to explain about our surrendering our Sage. She immediately emailed and called back saying she believed Georgia was the perfect addition to our family. She went above and beyond to make sure we were the family lucky enough to adopt Georgia, and for that, she will be in our thoughts and prayers for the rest of our lives.

Now, since I’m a proud new mama, I have to brag! Our whole family, extended members included, agrees that Georgia is the absolute perfect addition to our family. She already had Cassie and I wrapped around her little paw before we even met her due to all the wonderful information Candy was able to provide about her, and she won over Daddy immediately, too. Dave, who I have always known as a “I want a big dog” kind of guy but who agreed we needed a smaller dog due to our previous experience, fell totally in love with her immediately.

Our favorite is when Georgia goes “nuts” and starts running around the house and jumping on our bed and tackling whomever is there. Dave is greeted with a smile and laughter by his whole family every night, which is such a change from the anxiety that was there before. The other night, Georgia was running around the house, and Cassie ran to the bed to be tackled. She started laughing so hard, and Dave looked at me and said “I haven’t heard her laugh that hard in the house in years.” We take her any place we can because she is family and should be with us everywhere we go. She agrees. I cannot describe the feeling of peace I now have in my house and also the feeling of joy. It is overwhelming at times to think of the anxiety we had - I didn’t realize it at the time, but Georgia has taken all that away and replaced it with all the love and joy her little heart can hold.

I could go on and on with many more Georgia stories, but I just realized how long this is already! I’m not a good writer, and I apologize for that, but I don’t believe anyone could adequately describe the love, joy, and peace our family and home now have because of Georgia. Please know that I thank everyone that was in any way remotely responsible for bringing Georgia in to our lives. My daughter will now know what it is like to love and enjoy a four-legged family member every day. She is already talking about wanting to be an “animal rescuer” when she grows up. We are eternally grateful and owe everyone so much. We are also making it our mission in life to make sure Georgia is just as grateful every day of her life. I hope we succeed.
--Barb, Dave, Cassie, and Georgia
For the complete Georgia Story

Donate to help support adoption the activities of
The Heart of America Humane Society.

Tina,
It was one year ago today that my world changed. As I look out the window with several inches of snow on the ground, I can't help but think that a year ago today it was 70°. I was at home and had been thinking of adopting a cat. I decided it was such a nice day that I would take a drive all the way out to Ward Parkway. As I looked at all the wonderful cats you had that day, there wasn't any that caught my eye. I was about to leave and you asked, "is there someone you want to look at?" Charlie had her back to me the whole time and I had not seen her face. You took Charlie out and that was the end of it for me. Funny, I told myself before I set out, "I am just going to look." Whatever. I was going through a divorce and started crying as I held her. I knew she was the one for me.

One year later, my place is constantly covered in cat hair. I have to put my black pants on last and still lint roll before I get out the door. I now vacuum my place once a week and de-hair my couch every month or before company comes over. But, I come home about 5:15 pm and Charlie is at the door greeting me with a meow. I live on the second floor and she loves to go out on the balcony and watch the world.. When my alarm goes off at 6:00 am, I know that Charlie is at the end of my bed waiting for me to give her morning love. She sleeps at my feet and knows when I am half asleep or ready to get up and then she comes and sits on my chest then rolls over with her feet in the air as I rub her belly watching the morning news. I think she has doubled in size since I got her. I know when I took her to my vet a couple weeks after I got her she weighed 8 lbs and even then I think she gained a couple in those 3 weeks. Now she weighs just over 11 lbs. And she knows how to put all 11 lbs on one leg when she is standing on me.

Her new favorite toy is Smacky, her teddy bear (along with my hair bungees). She now has her own set of bungees which end up under the fridge or stove. Funny, all her toys do. She will throw her toys in the air, across the place, jump all over. It cracks me up. She has another flat mouse named Slappy. It has become a routine now that Slappy ends up under the fridge or stove and I have to fish him out with the hanger. I get on my hands and knees with my face to the floor and my rear in the air and try to fish him out. She then stands in front of me with her head looking under as well like, “oooo, he is there, I can see him, right there.”

In the morning, for some reason when I put my mascara on she starts to just MAWR up a storm. So I turn around and she takes off with me chasing behind. It has become a game and morning routine. Sometimes I get in such a rush that she will lie in the middle of the floor and reach out with her paw at my leg and then the chase is on again. She is such a wonderful and tame cat that I have not had to do much training with her. Whomever had her must have really hated to give her up. I often look at her and think that someone else must miss her dearly. But she has a wonderful home here as well. Thank you so much. I think what you do is a wonderful thing. I often go to the new PetSmart by my place and look at the kitties and hope they all end up in wonderful homes as well and think of you, and everyone else like you, who has the heart to care for them so much until they find their special home.
--Jennifer

Donate to help support adoption the activities of
The Heart of America Humane Society.

Within Heart of America we celebrate every adoption. There is nothing quite like the feeling you get when your foster dog or cat finds a wonderful forever home. However, it seems that everyone comes together in a special way when your foster is pregnant. The foster experience includes caring for the pregnant mom, whelping the puppies, ensuring that they grow into strong, healthy puppies then placing them in other foster homes prior to adoption. One such foster dog was Hazel, a beautiful lax/mix, who gave birth to 10 beautiful puppies at Patty O’Guin’s house. The following story is a celebration of Hazel and her babies and letters from the adopters of three of her puppies.

Hi Laura.
I just wanted to wish you a Happy Mother’s Day and to let you know how well I am doing in my new home. Boy am I having fun! My new sister, Gracie, took a few days to get use to me but now we play and run and chase and have a great time. She taught me how to play tug of war – boy is that fun!
I am learning to only potty outside. They like when I do that. I get all sorts of hugs and kisses for pottying! I did have one accident but really – it was not my fault. My new mom brought out this big thing that picks up stuff off the floor and it makes a real loud noise and I thought it was going to suck me up! I really do not like loud noises…
I have a new brother and sister who like to take me on walks and play with me. I am so lucky! They do wear me out so sometimes I like to escape to sleep under the sofa. Mom says that will only last a few more weeks cuz I will not fit under there after that. I hope she is wrong cuz I really like it under there. I like to put my belly on the hard wood floor – it feels so good.
I am a good sleeper. Mom puts me in a kennel right by her bed so I can see her and I sleep there until she gets up in the morning. The first few nights I had to wake her up so I could go potty but I can make it all night now. I am so proud of myself. Oh – the really cool thing is – I don’t have to share my food! At first, I gobbled it down as fast as I could but now I know no one else is going to eat it so I like to “dine” and take my time.
I got to go visit the doctor so he could check me out. That was fun! He did have to give me some medicine because I had an infection where I had my surgery but it is all better now. Mom says I get to go again around the 15th to get more shots (OH NO!) and get my stitches out. When I went – my new sister, Gracie, got some shots and she did not cry so hopefully I can be as brave.
Well – since it is Mother’s Day, I wanted to thank you for being a good Mom to me and for finding me my new home. I just love it here! Much love,
--Bentlie (aka – Blondie)

Connie,
Max (we kept his name) is doing GREAT! He hasn't used his crate for a bathroom at all and he has gone outside to potty/poop EVERY time except for a little excitement tinkle. He cries in his kennel when he has to go. When we go out, he goes to the front door and sits while I put the leash on. We are working on sit and he does a good job of not storming the door to get out.
He's really a good little guy. He's found a few places that seem like nice places to chew, but I keep a close eye on him and make sure he has plenty of chew toys. We also discovered the ’Bitter Yuck’ spray—he hates it and never goes back to the places we spay.
Not long before he had his stitches removed he almost took one out himself. His little tooth got stuck in it, so I very carefully got it out of there without tearing it! Whew! Other than that, we haven't had any problems.
At first he was getting up once in the night to potty, cried for a little while and then went right back to sleep. Now he is sleeping through the night!
Overall, I must say we could not have asked for a better puppy, he's going to be such a good dog!
Thanks again so much, we love Max and he’s completely a part of our family!
--Stephanie

Connie,
We renamed Dax to Max. He's doing great. He's getting so big already! He now knows to pee and poop outside and not in his crate anymore. No poops inside yet either!!! He hasn't quite figured out NOT to pee inside, though, but we're still working on it. He's doing better and better every day. His only main issue right now is nipping. He only does it to play, but we're trying a couple techniques consistently now, so it's getting better.
He LOVES being outside, so we take him on walks 3-4 times per day. The first day with the leash was pretty humorous... Max did not like it very much. But since the second day, he walks really well on it; it doesn't seem to bother him at all. He's VERY curious and wants to smell/touch/play with everything he sees outside. We have a couple dogs in the neighborhood, and he does well meeting them. He also loves sticks now. He'll carry them around outside and chew on them quite often.
His green eyes are still green... I hope they stay that way! One of our friends has 2 kids (5 & 7 years), and they say Max has "people eyes." He rides in the car really well, and has figured out the stairs. He still is a little slower coming down, but he does well! We have been so happy with Max in our lives and can't believe how we ever survived without him!! Class and finals have been okay... Having Max actually keeps me from taking naps when I should be studying anyway. And I'm pretty sure I've lost about 3 pounds from all the walks we've been taking!!!!
We're hoping to get him down to the lake as much as possible this summer... I can't wait to see him in the water!!! The move will be next weekend, but luckily, Max is already used to the layout and the area we're in. Hopefully it goes smooth!!!
Thanks so much again. We love Max, and he's completely a part of our family!!!
--Julie

Donate to help support adoption the activities of
The Heart of America Humane Society.

Dear Billie:
Well, Lucy and I have been together for a month now and I must tell you what a sweet companion she is. I have been feeling so much happiness and contentment and thanks to you. She has brought so much joy back into my life.

I got her one of the passenger seats so she can ride along and look out the window and tell me where to turn or slow down. I am less of the couch potato and we walk a lot during the day. She is becoming quiet at home and even barks less at the golfers as they go by.

She is so smart and sits when I ask her and is now learning to give me her paw. Of course she sleeps with me and has her side of the bed, but most mornings I awake to a sleeping poodle under the covers on her back. What a sight; so completely relaxed. She patiently waits til I dress and out we go. She takes care of business quickly and back home we go for our breakfast and the morning news.

Thank you again and give my thanks to Bobbi at the Overland Park location. You have brought two lonely ladies together (I hope for a long time) Hope to see you and Tim when you make your visit to Branson.

Gratefully,
-- Gloria