Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Petlife.
4 for you, 16 for me
‘It’s so dark here…’ A painful ache filled the small child’s chest, a feeling her youthful innocence had hidden from her heart until now. As she stared out across the barred and broken wasteland, a junkyard for abandoned and repossessed pets, she feared for her safety and theirs. Countless cramped cages formed the dystopian landscape before her and she knew with a newborn weight to her soul that she could not save them all.
By Bree Beadman5 years ago in Petlife
Jake
I had three dogs, and I lost all three of them within a year’s time. A German Shepherd named Zeus, a Border Collie named Molly, and a Miniature Yorkie named Lizzie. They were the three musketeers. They all grew up together, and they were all beginning to show their age. Zeus and Molly both passed in their sleep, and little Lizzie had to eventually be put to rest. My heart was broken when I lost them all. I promised myself that I would not put myself through that again. My heart was empty, and I couldn’t find a way to fill it again. My husband suggested that I get another dog. I pondered the idea for a few weeks. Finally I decided that I would go to the shelter and take a look at what they had. This was my first time going to a shelter to find a new companion. At the shelter I was greeted by a friendly young lady that offered to show me around. I looked through a lot of glass doors at all the different dogs. She took me by the medical wing that had a few dogs that would be getting released soon. I walked by the first door, and I only seen a cot set up in there with no dog. I went in and sat down on the floor. After a few minutes, and a bit of coercing, he was slowly making his way out from under the cot. He came over and sniffed my hand, and sat down staring at me. After a few minutes of talking to him, he finally allowed me to pet him. When the door opened, he ran back under the cot. The young lady informed me that they had rescued him from an alley, and he was digging in the trash cans for food. When they evaluated him, they were certain that he had been abused by someone. I thought about it all the way home. I woke up the next morning, and told my husband that I was going to go and visit with him again before I made a decision. When I arrived, the same young lady approached me. She asked me if I wanted to see him again. She then lead me to where he was. When I walked up to the glass door, I saw his nose sticking out from beneath the cot. I crouched down until he could see me. All of a sudden he bolted out from beneath the cot, and started jumping around, barking and whining. She gasped in surprise and said that she had never seen him behave that way. We opened the door and I stepped inside. He was jumping all over me and crying. He had claimed me. How could I say no to him? I told her with tears in my eyes that I would take him to his forever home. I opened the car door, and he jumped right into the front seat. He sat there all the way home staring straight ahead as though he was a human being. We got home, and he went inside as though it had always been his home. He was shy around most people that came around for quite a while. He has become an amazing dog that stole my heart and filled it with happiness again. That was almost 5 years ago. He has overcome so much. I am so thankful that I walked in to that shelter that day. By the way…..his name is Jake.
By Holly Schrag5 years ago in Petlife
Stories From The Pack
Stories From The Pack Adventures Of A Spring Run It was a beautiful Spring day after a long, cold winter. It had been a while since the dogs had a good back road run. As soon as I grabbed their collars they knew they were going on an adventure and began getting excited. They couldn't wait to jump in the car. I loaded the dogs in the car and headed to a place where we rarely see other vehicles. It’s a field access road to a few fields north of town. The dogs can run free and I don’t have to worry about them, or so I thought.
By Shelley Peterson5 years ago in Petlife
Surprise! You're Now a Dog Mom!
It was summer 2006. I was twenty and on break from college. Getting a dog was the furthest thing from my mind as I hung out with a couple of friends on a Saturday evening. In fact, the only big thing on my mind was a Disney World internship offer I was considering for the next summer.
By Xennariel Revenlyr5 years ago in Petlife
Fiona's New Home
Growing up, I had all I needed and then some. The old man I lived with was the jolly type who would chat with me often. He talked to me about all kinds of things - mostly about how I was doing. He called me Fiona. His love, like our home, was warm and comfortable. I liked it there. These are now memories from a distant past. My life changed when one day, he didn’t return home.
By Ashley Gomez5 years ago in Petlife
Six Dinner Sid
My best friend Charlotte lives about 120 miles away from me, which means that throughout the pandemic I haven’t been able to see her. Not being able to catch up so easily has been sad, for sure, but we’ve managed to stay in-the-loop on the big stories in each other’s lives as much as possible.
By Francesca Devon Heward5 years ago in Petlife
The Rescue of a King
On a cold spring morning in March of 2012, my family and I received a call. The landlord had finally made the decision to allow us to have a puppy. The search began looking online and in local newspapers. We called up several places that were holding dogs for rescue. One particular place stated that they had a few larger dogs, but we were looking for a medium-sized puppy and had to decline. The best opportunity came in the form of a call from Dakin Animal Shelter, in Springfield, MA. They made an appointment for us, and we went, with our son Jacob to see what puppies were available. Upon arrival on that Thursday morning, there was a line, outside, of people that were there to receive shots for their fur babies. The animal shelter provided a much-needed discount on shots and vaccination for many types of animals. We pushed through the line, and double doors and were politely greeted by a woman by the name of Carrie. She was excited to see us and to share the opportunity with us about owning a puppy. She explained the procedure of adoption, as she walked us to the kennel, to meet our potential new family member. The animal shelter was well kept, and well stocked with toys, animal foods, leashes, and items for purchase. I have to say, I was impressed with the organization and the atmosphere of the shelter. Upon entering the kennel, I asked our son Jacob, who was 9 years of age at the time, " are you excited to find a new puppy?". Jacob smiled and said, " yes!! finally!!", as it had taken a while for the landlord to approve us for taking in an animal. The kennel was loud, with the sounds of barking, and some whimpering from some of the more shy puppies. We looked down one side of the Kennel, and then as we rounded the corner, we saw an all-white puppy, with a few large spots on him. He was medium in size and was very excitable. The scars from a previous owner were evident, and he was considerably thin as if he was malnutrition. We requested to see the puppy and so they walked us into a large light green room, full of empty chairs around the perimeter. "King" was the puppies given name, and so we slowly approached the puppy, and pet his nose, and fur. Jacob took a liking to him right away, and he licked my hand to say hello. He was quite friendly, considering he had been abused, and starved by the previous owner. I could see his ribs and some scarring on his belly. He looked up at us with his big brown eyes, which were surrounded by black spots, and he just kept licking Jacob, and my husband, George. We were hooked!! Jacob said, " Yeah Mom!!, I want this one!!", and so we decided to take the puppy home. After a considerable amount of paperwork and the purchase of a few necessities, we drove "King" home to the house. We later decided to rename him " Spot", as it seemed a more appropriate name, Spot warmed up to us, and our other family members in no time. He started to gain weight, and within time, more spots appeared on his coat. We were told that he was a Jack Russel, but they explained that he may be mixed with another breed, perhaps Dalmatian. As he got older, and more spots appeared, we came to the conclusion that the shelter's assumption was correct. Spot has been with us for several years now, since 2012. He will be 9 years old this year, and such a great dog. He is well trained and very well-loved. We are so glad that we were able to rescue him from being put to sleep, and he has been a loving companion. We cannot imagine our lives without him. We did not just rescue Spot, he rescued us as well.
By Diane Proulx 5 years ago in Petlife
The Fight For Binky
This is Binky, also know as Bink, BinkBonk, Mr. Bonkerman, and Binkity Bonk. He's a nine year old American Ringtail who looks black, but a good ray of sun reveals brown tabby stripes. He's a menace with zero teeth, but claws that he uses to walk up furniture and your leg since jumping is just too hard a concept to grasp it seems. All he wants are kisses and to burrow under blankets with you. And this is the story of how we came to have this angel.
By Max Drew Geiger5 years ago in Petlife
Ghost's Arrival
I have always been a kind hearted soul, and believe the Universe put me on this Earth to help Mother Natures creatures from two wee kittens named Konni & Tatlow in 2012 then later Nootka, and Two Socks who found me in 2016 just skin and bone and then a year later Ghost who was an abused Rhodesdian Ridgeback/Pitbull mix pictured above. These were the pets, but I also rescued a Swansons Hawk that crashed into the side of a cabin and a Common Loon that was knocked out of the sky by a Bald Headed Eagle. As well as countless wee birdies from hummingbirds to barn swallows who found themselves trapped indoors.
By Wolf Spirit5 years ago in Petlife
Ms. Tinka
Has anyone had a smart-dumb dog? We all know them either by meeting them through friends or whoever you are dating that might have a dog in the home. For those who don't know what I mean let me break it down. A smart dumb dog knows when they are in trouble as you see in the photo above a dog can sense when they have messed up.
By GhostTheWriter5 years ago in Petlife
