Read Oscar's Happy Tail in his adoptive mom's own words.
"Don't buy a dog when you can adopt one from the shelter," Amanda Burke told her mother, who was tempted by Dachshund puppies for sale at a flea market. Amanda's mom was ready to bring a new pet into the family after losing her dog a month earlier.Amanda decided to see what was available on Petfinder, so she went online, typed in Dachshund and up came Troy -- a Dachshund/Basset Hound mix -- at the Abingdon, VA, department of animal control's C.C. Porter Animal Shelter.
"I took the grandkids by to meet him since my mom had work that day," Amanda says, "and they fell in love with him." The next day, they took Mom to the shelter to meet Troy. She was quite taken with him, but a puppy had recently been brought into the facility as well, so she was torn: the cute little puppy or Troy, an adult dog.
For Amanda, the choice was clear. She
knew puppies get adopted quickly, but Troy might never find a home. Even a 1-year-old dog stands less chance of being adopted. Her mom adopted Troy.
"It was a great decision," Amanda says. "He is the sweetest
dog, loves the grandkids, and has already stolen Mom's heart. She
changed his name to Oscar Meyer, but we call him Oscar." Oscar has
found his forever home.
An added benefit to adopting an adult dog: Oscar was already house-trained. Anyone who has had a puppy knows that's a bonus!
Of course, for Oscar, the real bonus is a forever home.
Previous Happy Tails:
A seriously ill kitten is saved by her adopters' TLC
After her Pit Bull is killed, fate sends a new best friend
They almost sent him back, but patience -- and training -- paid off
A lonely cat is reunited with her foster home soul-mate
A rescued pit bull helps a daughter through a time of loss
A Pekingese poster child for senior-pet adoption
Two dogs - one with mange, one abused - come home
Saving a starved and scarred Pit Bull
An abandoned cat comes in from the cold
A puppy-mill Chihuahua learns to live outside a cage
Sacrificing to save an abused, overlooked pit bull
A sick, abandoned puppy's incredible before & after pics
Someone sees beauty under the scars
A 'wild' Chinese Crested puppy comes home
A dad with Alzheimer's gets a 'miracle dog'
The rock-star cat who looks like a polar bear
A senior Dalmatian loses weight, gains new life
Lovebirds go from hoarder to happy home
A former bait dog finds safety and love
A perfect match is worth waiting for
A deformed kitten gets a happy ending
The victim of a cruel prank finds happiness
A rescued Border Collie mends a broken heart
An added benefit to adopting an adult dog: Oscar was already house-trained. Anyone who has had a puppy knows that's a bonus!
Of course, for Oscar, the real bonus is a forever home.
Previous Happy Tails:
A seriously ill kitten is saved by her adopters' TLC
After her Pit Bull is killed, fate sends a new best friend
They almost sent him back, but patience -- and training -- paid off
A lonely cat is reunited with her foster home soul-mate
A rescued pit bull helps a daughter through a time of loss
A Pekingese poster child for senior-pet adoption
Two dogs - one with mange, one abused - come home
Saving a starved and scarred Pit Bull
An abandoned cat comes in from the cold
A puppy-mill Chihuahua learns to live outside a cage
Sacrificing to save an abused, overlooked pit bull
A sick, abandoned puppy's incredible before & after pics
Someone sees beauty under the scars
A 'wild' Chinese Crested puppy comes home
A dad with Alzheimer's gets a 'miracle dog'
The rock-star cat who looks like a polar bear
A senior Dalmatian loses weight, gains new life
Lovebirds go from hoarder to happy home
A former bait dog finds safety and love
A perfect match is worth waiting for
A deformed kitten gets a happy ending
The victim of a cruel prank finds happiness
A rescued Border Collie mends a broken heart
AMAZING STORY: My helpless chinese hairless crested went missing for 21 days. We searched and searched for weeks, sent out a mass call to everyone in the area, free classifieds, paid classified, etc. EVERYTHING we thought we could do. I was just about to give up, thinking that someone had him in their home and was he was living the high life with another family (or at least that's what I kept telling myself). I received a call from a paper carrier at 7 a.m., she saw my Benny running down the road about 5 miles from my home. She looked in the paper classifieds, called me and I immediately went to where she spotted Benny. NO LUCK. But it did get my hopes up. I went out posting more signs in the area while my husband just kept driving around. After 6 hours of searching the area, my husband saw him. He rammed the car in park, in the middle of the road (with the door open) and began chasing him. He was skin and bones, but we got him to a vet immediately and they put him on IV antibiotics and fluid and we picked him up the next day, gave him a bath, (full of ticks and fleas). Come to find out he was living in the WILD for 21 days straight. He lost 5 pounds, sunburned, tore up from other animal attacks. I nursed him back to health and he is now safe at home now. That was God. He knew I needed him. My father recently passed away and I cannot even begin to explain how Benny has been such good therapy to me. I thank God everyday for his safe return. It was a true Miracle!!!!
Some day when I am in the right position, I plan to go to our local animal control and bring home the 3 oldest dogs in the place. At this time, we have 2 huskies and 3 cats. But when my beloved animal friends are no longer with me, I WILL have some more buddies. I am heartbroken every time I look in the paper at the animal control section and see that they have 11 year and older dogs. I am quite sure their families just don't want them anymore and the pets who were once hopefully loved spend their final days waiting to be adopted or euthanized because of their owners.