Success Stories
My Recycled Love companions
by Gerald Gibson |
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I lost my wife over 4 years ago and then a year later lost my little companion dog who had been with us over 16 years. After sitting around the house for a year, I realized that I needed some company and did some research, and discovered the Recycled Love Animal Rescue web site and fell in love with a little chihuahua mixed dog. After reading how she lost her owner and that the family was unable to care for her, I thought we would be a perfect match. This was my first adoption through Recycled Love Animal Rescue.
Pepper looked perfect to me, but I could see in her eyes that she was hoping for Brad Pitt, and all she got was Jerry. It took her about 3 days to take over the house and about 2 weeks to completely win my heart and train me. During this time, I realized that she was deaf and so good at hiding it that her foster Mom didn't know because she had other animals around and old Pepper would just follow the crowd. I was happy to find this out because I thought she had just been ignoring me for the past 2 weeks. Anyway, with the use of a flashlight at night, and a lot of clapping and pointing and our own sign language we were able to communicate very well. She was a great little dog once you got by the passing of gas and snoring. Tolerated the grand children, liked short walks, riding in the car and was just an all out grand companion.
A year or so later, we decided we had room in our heart and home for another animal in need, so again we checked the Recycled Love Animal Rescue web site and found Star. Star's owner could no longer take care of her and she was exactly what we were looking for. She joined us in April and once again I could see in her eyes that she was looking for Brad Pitt and all she got was Jerry. It only took Star a day to realize that Pepper ran the house and once that was settled, she fit in perfectly. Star and Pepper would play for hours and Star is a pretty good watch dog, letting us know if anyone is in the neighborhood. She is just a nice old girl looking for love.
In August, poor Pepper was diagnosed with mast cell cancer and didn't survive the treatments. Star and I were crushed. We both moped around the house and I would catch Star looking around for her little friend and everytime I came home Star would come running up to see if I had brought Pepper home. This was a sad time until I started remembering all of the funny things Pepper used to do. How demanding she was and how glad she always was to see me. Remembering how much she gave back and how lucky I was to have been able to share her life. It was with those thoughts that while browsing the Recycled Love web site towards the end of October, I noticed a ragged little dog who looked like she could use a good home and adopted Ginger. Once again, she looked disappointed because I was not Brad Pitt and all she got was Jerry. Star and Ginger are still working out the pecking order, but play well with each other and Ginger is just the sweetest little thing. Likes short walks, car rides and belly rubs and seems to be very perceptive. She will be a perfect fit.
Anyway, to end my story, a funny thing happened just yesterday. I came home from the pet store, lugging in a case of their favorite food, and after watching me pull into the driveway from the back of the couch and then greeting me at the door, as I walked past them, I swear I heard them say "We are glad you are home....................................BRAD".
Pepper looked perfect to me, but I could see in her eyes that she was hoping for Brad Pitt, and all she got was Jerry. It took her about 3 days to take over the house and about 2 weeks to completely win my heart and train me. During this time, I realized that she was deaf and so good at hiding it that her foster Mom didn't know because she had other animals around and old Pepper would just follow the crowd. I was happy to find this out because I thought she had just been ignoring me for the past 2 weeks. Anyway, with the use of a flashlight at night, and a lot of clapping and pointing and our own sign language we were able to communicate very well. She was a great little dog once you got by the passing of gas and snoring. Tolerated the grand children, liked short walks, riding in the car and was just an all out grand companion.
A year or so later, we decided we had room in our heart and home for another animal in need, so again we checked the Recycled Love Animal Rescue web site and found Star. Star's owner could no longer take care of her and she was exactly what we were looking for. She joined us in April and once again I could see in her eyes that she was looking for Brad Pitt and all she got was Jerry. It only took Star a day to realize that Pepper ran the house and once that was settled, she fit in perfectly. Star and Pepper would play for hours and Star is a pretty good watch dog, letting us know if anyone is in the neighborhood. She is just a nice old girl looking for love.
In August, poor Pepper was diagnosed with mast cell cancer and didn't survive the treatments. Star and I were crushed. We both moped around the house and I would catch Star looking around for her little friend and everytime I came home Star would come running up to see if I had brought Pepper home. This was a sad time until I started remembering all of the funny things Pepper used to do. How demanding she was and how glad she always was to see me. Remembering how much she gave back and how lucky I was to have been able to share her life. It was with those thoughts that while browsing the Recycled Love web site towards the end of October, I noticed a ragged little dog who looked like she could use a good home and adopted Ginger. Once again, she looked disappointed because I was not Brad Pitt and all she got was Jerry. Star and Ginger are still working out the pecking order, but play well with each other and Ginger is just the sweetest little thing. Likes short walks, car rides and belly rubs and seems to be very perceptive. She will be a perfect fit.
Anyway, to end my story, a funny thing happened just yesterday. I came home from the pet store, lugging in a case of their favorite food, and after watching me pull into the driveway from the back of the couch and then greeting me at the door, as I walked past them, I swear I heard them say "We are glad you are home....................................BRAD".
Salute to YaYa
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We found Yaya on Recycled Love (courtesy of petfinder) in December of 08, she was advertised as a 9 year old "cuddlebug" chihuahua with epilepsy and a thyroid condition and she was, quite frankly, one of the most interesting-looking dogs either of us has ever seen (read- kind of ugly). Yaya was brown, with no tail and cropped ears, tiny little spider legs and a big chubby belly. We already have a chihuahua with epilepsy (Murray) and a whippet mix (Ginger), and we wanted to help a dog in need and provide an extra playmate to our own dogs. We thought with our knowledge of canine epilepsy we could really improve Yaya's life. We had absolutely no idea how entirely Yaya would enter our hearts and improve OUR lives. We got the okay to adopt Yaya in January, from Recycled Love, and we picked her up early in the month. It was instant love. She wore a little pink, rhinestoned collar that said "Princess Yaya" and she pranced around and let us hold and pet her from the very start. We also found that she has an intense like for sitting in laps in the car and a habit of trying to climb into my purses as if she wanted to go for a ride! We took her home and had some expected, easy to solve domestic disputes between Ginger and Yaya- even at 9 lbs Yaya wanted to be the ruler over 35lb Ginger! After about a month of caring for Yaya we also found out that she had a heart murmur, and started medicine for that. It didn't take long, though, for all 3 dogs to get along well and for the medicine to even her out.
The dogs would spend their time chewing on chewies, running around the backyard, (Ya never went very far, being tinier and older than the other 2), going for long walks with us, and their favorite- laying in the sunlight on the kitchen floor. Yaya, Ginger and Murray became awesome friends and Yaya worked her way completely into our hearts.
When Yaya died in September as a complication of her heart murmur, we were all absolutely devastated. Ginger and Murray slept in her bed and cried for her everyday for almost a month. Jaim and I cried for her and slept with her blanket. We will miss her forever. We will miss her tiny kisses on the tip of your nose, the way she would snatch a bite of apple right off the core- right out of your hand!- when you weren't watching, her tiny nub of a tail wagging at everything, her snores, her love of popcorn and her never ending affection. It is strange how much an animal can touch your life in 1 short year. We'll miss you princess yaya, lady yaya, old baby, grandma, scary eye.
Ginger Murray, boom boom! Yaya! (people who knew and loved her will get that!!)
The important part of this story is that we would have never had the opportunity to love and care fore Yaya had it not been for recycled love who took her in and loved her and let her be safe while she waited for someone to take her to her forever home. Sadly, forever was too short- but yaya got to live out her final year in a place with people who adored her, a warm bed, food and LOVE. Yaya's particular love had been recycled several times. She made frequent visits to her original Dad, Dennis, who had to give her up but couldn't stand to live without her . Support Recycled Love. The good they do is immeasurable, especially in the eyes of the animals they give a second chance . I thank them everyday both with my heart and with my money, for providing us the opportunity to love Yaya.
Miss you, Ya.
Jamie Miller
The dogs would spend their time chewing on chewies, running around the backyard, (Ya never went very far, being tinier and older than the other 2), going for long walks with us, and their favorite- laying in the sunlight on the kitchen floor. Yaya, Ginger and Murray became awesome friends and Yaya worked her way completely into our hearts.
When Yaya died in September as a complication of her heart murmur, we were all absolutely devastated. Ginger and Murray slept in her bed and cried for her everyday for almost a month. Jaim and I cried for her and slept with her blanket. We will miss her forever. We will miss her tiny kisses on the tip of your nose, the way she would snatch a bite of apple right off the core- right out of your hand!- when you weren't watching, her tiny nub of a tail wagging at everything, her snores, her love of popcorn and her never ending affection. It is strange how much an animal can touch your life in 1 short year. We'll miss you princess yaya, lady yaya, old baby, grandma, scary eye.
Ginger Murray, boom boom! Yaya! (people who knew and loved her will get that!!)
The important part of this story is that we would have never had the opportunity to love and care fore Yaya had it not been for recycled love who took her in and loved her and let her be safe while she waited for someone to take her to her forever home. Sadly, forever was too short- but yaya got to live out her final year in a place with people who adored her, a warm bed, food and LOVE. Yaya's particular love had been recycled several times. She made frequent visits to her original Dad, Dennis, who had to give her up but couldn't stand to live without her . Support Recycled Love. The good they do is immeasurable, especially in the eyes of the animals they give a second chance . I thank them everyday both with my heart and with my money, for providing us the opportunity to love Yaya.
Miss you, Ya.
Jamie Miller