Pet Care

Pet Care  » Rescued Animals: They Often Make the Best Pets

Rescued Animals: They Often Make the Best Pets

I've always had pets ever since I was a child - both cats and

dogs, usually at the same time. I've had purebred pets and mixed

breeds - a few purchased from pet stores and breeders, while

most of the others were rescued from local animal shelters and

humane societies. And I have to say overall that in my

experience, the best pets we've had are the ones we've rescued.

Kayla is the latest addition to our family. When we found her,

she was an overweight, wiggly, two-year-old pure Yellow Lab who

proved to be too much for her previous owners (which is very

common with popular large purebreds - see note at end of

article*). We took one look into her amber eyes and knew she was

our dog, meant to become part of our family, which already

included an elderly Siamese cat and a Shepherd/Husky mix, also

rescued from a shelter. So we brought Kayla home and immediately

got to work.

Our first job was to make sure she got along with our other two

pets, Dugan and Sheba. Dugan, the cat, hates all dogs in general

(or pretends he does) so we worked on making sure Kayla knew

that he wasn't a new furry chew toy, and that Dugan was able to

escape should she get too boisterous while attempting to play

with him. Sheba, our older Shepherd/Husky, met Kayla on neutral

ground, at the Humane Society, where it was determined by the

staff that they would get along fine. When they met, Kayla

submitted immediately to Sheba by lying down, bearing her

throat, and licking Sheba's muzzle.

Our next job, my favorite, was to lavish her with love and let

her know that whatever had happened previously in her life, she

had found her true home. Being a Lab, she figured that out right

away and attached herself to us, literally, following us

everywhere we went and sticking close to our sides. In fact

whenever we sat down, once she figured out that we thought she

was too big get up in our laps, she'd lie on the floor near our

feet, leaning into our legs. Needless to say we tripped over

Kayla quite a bit in those early days (and still do somewhat)!

Next we needed to teach her some simple discipline. Kayla had

not been trained at all, as far as we could tell, and she was

out of control - which wasn't good for her and was destructive

for us. At 97 pounds, she all but tore our arms off when we

walked her, and she tried to knock anyone over who came to visit

us. So we worked diligently to teach her simple commands of sit,

lie down, and stay, as well as not to jump on people who came

into our home, and how to heal on the leash while walking. It

took time, effort, and patience - but it paid off. We still had

our exuberant, joyful, playful Lab, but we could control her

more easily, which was better for us and safer for her.

During that time we also worked hard to get the weight off.

She'd been overfed and under exercised by her previous owner,

and was diagnosed with a thyroid problem. Within four months of

our bringing her home she'd lost 22 pounds and was at a much

healthier weight of 75 pounds (though she always acts food

deprived when anyone is around who might believe her to try to

get some extra chow). In addition, after the weight came off,

her thyroid problem cleared up.

We've now had Kayla for over four years, and she is the love of

Today's Popular Articles

• Help Keep The Pet Population Under Control, And Your Cat Healthy - Neuter Your Kitten

• Fish Make The Greatest Pets

my life. She's my best friend who loves me unconditionally, is

happy to see me whenever I reappear in her life, and follows me

everywhere. She licks my face when I cry, nips my heels when I

dance (she doesn't appear to approve of dancing) and fills my

life with great joy.

I realize that non-rescued/purebred animals bring the same joy

to pet owners - really, I do know that. But maybe it's because

we rescued her from an unhappy life and she's grateful to us, or

maybe it's just Kayla's nature. Whatever it is, she's the best

dog we have ever had and she brings us more joy than we ever

imagined possible - which, now that I mention it, our other

rescued dog, Sheba, did also.

*Just got to have a purebred? I understand - Yellow Labs are

my favorite breed, and I can't imagine having any other kind now

that I've had Kayla for four years. But you don't have to spend

hundreds of dollars to a breeder for a purebred lab, especially

if you aren't going to show it or breed it. You can usually find

young ones at local shelters, because once they grow from cute

puppies to clumsy adolescents, many people find they can't

handle them, as was the case with Kayla. And there are rescue

organizations for just about every breed there is. So check them

out before you head off to a breeder or pet store if you are

interested in rescuing an animal from a shelter.

About the author:

Susan Ryder is an animal lover and author. This article has been

submitted in affiliation with http://www.PetLovers.Com/ which is

a site for Pet Forums.