She’s a stray that turned up at my barn as a kitten. She’s incredibly friendly and affectionate, which was evident pretty much the moment she arrived. When we took her into the vet’s for her 1st appointment the vet tech was entranced by her. We asked for name suggestions and she said “Princess Sparkle Fluffypants”. So her name is Fluff.
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There are so many beautiful animals in need of homes, all of our dogs and cats have been from shelters or rescues.
We take our time finding the right pet for our family. As a family we visit many different shelters over a period a few months, sometimes circling back to the same shelters. When we find the right animal, all of us know. We have adopted 4 cats and 3 dogs like this.
When I was a child we got my first pet from my grandfather when he needed to move and couldn’t keep his dog. My grandfather had gotten him when he went to his local tavern one night and a friend of his was there with a box full of puppies and was giving them away. That was in the late 1960’s. I don’t know if there were shelters back then. Probably only the city pound.
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Of the ten cats we have owned over the last thirty years, seven were strays we adopted off the streets, one was born to a pregnant stray we adopted, one was my parents’ cat that we took in when they both died, and one we adopted from a local shelter. Last summer we lucked into adopting an eight week old stray Lynx Point Siamese kitten. Our son’s then-girlfriend found her on the streets near her home, but couldn’t adopt her because her parents are dog people who don’t like cats much. She’s a beautiful, playful cat with a lot of personality. We’re glad we adopted her. My wife and I also choose not to support breeders when there are so many strays that need homes.
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I just adopted a small (18’) dog from a crowded county shelter a couple of hours drive from me…I found him on petfinder. I’ve long wanted a border collie-ish dog but know that that is too much dog for me, and at my age I wanted a dog I know I can lift and carry if need be. I’ve never been successful at posting photos on this site so I’m delighted to see your muddy dog, @LeastComplicated. My Jack looks so much like a tiny version of yours, with a little more white on his chest and body (sans the mud! ). I’m planning to have him DNA tested to see what, exactly he is.
I also have a wirey 13-year-old bichon/dachshund/terrier mix and I’m happy to say she and Jack became friends in about two minutes flat. Jack can be a bit much for her but in the whole she has brightened up and become more playful. I also have three shelter rescue cats (two were pandemic kittens we got soon after schools shut down and my D, a high school junior and only child, was so sad). Jack mostly just ignores the cats!
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If we’re sharing pictures, then:
Our current half-Dalmation rescue that looks like a lab:
And at this very instant in time next to me on the couch:
Our “lab mix” mutt on the day we had to put her down:
and one Halloween:
And my first pound puppy (who was nearing her teens in this pic):
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All cute, but I adore that first picture!
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I love this.
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Rescues. Why? Because they needed us.
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cat (long ago deceased) - showed up in our yard and told us we were his. We took him when we moved to our next house.
dog - Humane Society shelter. They admitted he had been previously adopted and returned after three weeks, but by an older woman who couldn’t handle an active dog whereas we had three teenage boys. Super, super stubborn, demanding and smart, he’s lucky he’s so cute. And now that we have an empty nest he’s H and my primary topic of conversation! “Wait until you hear what he did now…”
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Cats will do this. God bless them. 
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