Amber was a senior thoroughbred that nobody wanted after her rescue, and Cody was a wild mustang that was beaten and went blind and needed a retirement home as well. After our Kentucky Derby pal Barbaro's accident, we knew we had to get involved and help horses. For the past several years Amber and Cody have been part of our family and we even bought them their own farm called Forever Amber Acres and forever will they live out their lives in peace with us - we hope to help others in need as well!

Bella was a mill baby for 5 1/2 years. When she came to us, she was like a zombie. It took 2 years for her to look us in the eye. Now she is our wonderful loving girl who fills our hearts with joy. So much so that we took another baby from the same organization. Cece was 1 1/2 yrs old when we received her. They are wonderful companions for each other and for us.

One day I took my dog to the vet and met this elderly lady pleading that someone take this Dachshund mix that had been found abandon in the woods with a litter of puppies. The dog was skinny and had lost much of her hair and part of her tail, but seemed special anyway. I took her home and it was one of the best decision I've ever made. Pennie has been a true blessing and a best friend and I love her dearly! I'm so happy that she's my dog and I can't imagine not having her. She's my special little Pennie. :)

We were coming home from grocery shopping one Sunday afternoon in November 2007 and as we rounded the curve just before the turnoff to our house we saw this little ball of fluff running frantically up and down the middle of the highway. We were right next to a commuter parking log, so we honked until he ran in there (fortunately the oncoming traffic stopped to allow this and let us turn in behind him).

We got out of the vehicle and tried to coax him to us, but he went under our truck and just barked at us. Finally we opened the doors and stepped back. He jumped right in and we jumped in after him and closed the doors.

We then drove to neighboring homes to see if he belonged to anyone (it's a rural area - not many people live right there). He was not a "local" and we were told many dogs get dumped at that parking lot.

He went home with us - fur matted, drooling madly (from fear), thin, and flea infested. He was thin, but his little red collar (no tags, of course) was getting too tight. At first we left him in our yard - not sure how our other four dogs would react. Within an hour he was inside with us, brushed, bathed, fed. And ours forever.

I adopted Sidney from the local animal shelter. He was microchipped, so I had to wait several weeks while the shelter tried to find his owner. In the car on the way home, he started making strange slurping noises. I didn't know what it was, but I thought he might just be nervous about the new situation. A few days later, I was talking about my new pet during a staff meeting. A co-worker told me a friend of hers had his cat given away by the shelter. I thought it couldn't possibly be the same cat, even though he was also a microchipped, declawed, brown tabby. Then she told me he had a peculiar trait....he chewed on his tongue!

We volunteer at our local animal shelter every Saturday. One particular Saturday I found a dirty little terrier mix sitting in between a pomeranian and a jack russell, and puppies in cages above him. He was the smelliest, dirtiest dog with matted, felt-like fur and spikey eyebrows. I took him out for his walk and he spent his time rolling in the grass. I could see he had some skin issues. I took him back to his cage when his time was up. A few moments later a lady brought him out and immediately sent him back when she seen how dirty and smelly he was. I knew this dog did not have a chance if he didn't get a bath and a grooming. He had already been there for two months.

That week he was on my mind constantly. I went back the next Saturday and adopted him. He was due for euthanization the following Monday! We cleaned him up, took him to the groomer and the vet, and named him Buddy. He has been our Buddy ever since. He does have a skin condition we are working on, but we got the best dog when we chose him. Under all that mess was a wonderful, loving, beautiful dog. Buddy reminds me daily that under the mess, there is hope. The same thing a lot of people need to realize about other people. I do believe that dogs are angels with invisible wings.

I saw Izzy on pet finder one day after I had clicked on the "click for food" There she was, smiling at me. She had been left tied up to a post outside a vet's office. We rescued her from a rescue group, and have loved having her as an addition to our family. She has three Maltese sisters now, and I must admit, it was different at first, but now we can't imagine the house without her.

Linda Raney

Memphis, TN.

When we adopted STyler he weighed a little less than a pound and was 5 weeks old. He had been brought to the veterinary hospital 10 days earlier, beat up and nearly dead. Our vet took him home, fed him round the clock and then called us because we had recently lost our dear cat and were really grieving. This tiny kitten healed our hearts as he grew bigger and stronger each day. Today he is a big, tall boy and the most lovable cat we've ever known. We can't imagine life without him.

Buster lived in the barn at the farm nextdoor to our house, he turned up one May morning looking pathetic. He was so cuddly & sweet we couldn't resist loving him up whenever he came around. Well after a month or two of visiting he decided it was time to move in & in he came, right through our doggy door. At first we tried to find him a home with some friends, but no one wanted him & we thank our lucky stars everyday that he chose us. Our vet tells us he is a gorgeous example of a purebred American Shorthair. He is without a doubt the sweetest, cuddliest cat you'll ever meet (except we're pretty sure he thinks he 's a dog).

Our catchphrase is "Everyone loves Buster", and that's everyone..even people who don't like cats. We can't imagine our home without him, he's a happy member of our 4 cat, 3 dog household & he shares the love with every last one of us. He's been a lifesaver to our very old orange tabby, when old Beau found grooming himself too hard Buster took over & when they curl up together in their little basket there's nothing more adorable!

We adopted Katie from Echo White German Shepherd Rescue. She was a pregnant stray in Georgia. Unfortunately, the pound that Echo rescued her from put all six of her puppies to sleep. Katie is a very energetic and outgoing Husky/Shepherd mix with one blue and one brown eye. She is one happy dog living with her two sisters (also rescued dogs) here in southern Florida. We just love her and thank Echo for saving her life.