As I work on a couple of commissions and a new piece for eBay, I thought I'd share a few photos of the other loves of my life (aside from the obvious human ones, that is)...
Queen of the household (and she thinks the universe), Cheetah is our very tiny, 16 year old former feral. She has the same heart condition for which John recently underwent surgery, and weighs just over 5 lbs. She gets a bit confused sometimes, waking us at 2 or 3 AM, howling loudly (sounds just like a siamese!) and won't rest until we give her attention no matter what the hour. Is that a sweet face or what?!
Next we have the brothers, Merlin and Arthur. Adopted from CatWorks adoption in Reading PA, they were born on or very near Halloween, and abandoned at a local shelter with their brothers and sisters at five weeks old.
They're big, beautiful boys now, although no more impressed with having their picture taken than they are with strangers visiting. Some of our friends actually question their existance because they hide under the bed the minute strange voices are heard.
This beautiful girl is Cadie. We adopted her from Aussie Rescue four years ago, driving to Ohio to pick her up. Everyone in the world is Cadie's best friend. She's happy, happy, happy all the time, and just LOVES to give kisses.
And this is Cosmo, also adopted from Aussie Rescue. Cosmo is a sweetie but has issues....thunder, trash trucks, airplanes and helicopters, fireworks....even cicadas in the trees make him think the sky is falling. He's very protective of me, and very skittish around strangers. But he has a heart of gold for his people, and that's good enough for us. :)
How about you?! Is there a special rescue in your life? If so, please do share....and if there's not, please consider opening your heart and home to a rescue animal! The kennels are bursting at the seams now, and so many need loving homes...
I'l leave you with that thought, and with this piece, forwarded to me by a collector friend and fellow animal lover (you may need a kleenex):
I Rescued a Human Today
Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor peering apprehensively into the kennels. I felt her need instantly and knew I had to help her. I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she wouldn't be afraid.
As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view from a little accident I had in the back of my cage. I didn't want her to know that I hadn't been walked today. Sometimes the shelter keepers get too busy and I didn't want her to think poorly of them.
As she read my kennel card I hoped that she wouldn't feel sad about my past. I only have the future to look forward to and want to make a difference in someone's life.
She got down on her knees and made little kissy sounds at me. I shoved my shoulder and side of my head up against the bars to comfort her. Gentle fingertips caressed my neck; she was desperate for companionship.
A tear fell down her cheek and I raised my paw to assure her that all would be well. Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright that I instantly jumped into her arms. I would promise to keep her safe. I would promise to always be by her side. I would promise to do everything I could to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her eyes. I was so fortunate that she came down my corridor. So many more are out there who haven't walked the corridors. So many more to be saved. At least I could save one.
I rescued a human today.
Until next time,
~ Carolee
21 comments:
What a wonderful family of cats and dogs you have! They are so beautiful!! By the way, my husband and I were rescued by feral cats, lots of them. :)
Better have a whole box of tissues here for all the visitors that will need them after reading your heartfelt and touching post Carolee. What beautiful "children" you have there! =o)
Miss ya!
*Lori
oh, you made me sniffle! When I lost my old dog 5 years ago, I rang all our local rescue homes, determined to give a home to an older dog, and not one would let us have a dog as we had small children. I can see that they fear legal repercussions should a child get bitten, but really, it was so sad to think they must be turning people away.
Still, I found Magpie, one of 9 from an accidental litter, and couldn't ask for a better friend! being only a couple of weeks younger than my son, they think they are siblings, and both have issues about wether they are dogs or people sometimes.
Loved looking at your rescues! Our cats have all been rescues/foundlings/abandoned cases in need that my husband has brought home. Of course as soon as they make it thru our door, I fall in love with them, and they are ours forever!
Loved the poem. Have it posted in both my cats groups.
Over the course of 30 years, we've been adopted many times by both cats and dogs. In fact, all our furry friends, including our horses adopted us. Our current human rescuer is a tiny grey and white kitty named Olivia, found on the gas line by one of our friends. She was no bigger than the palm of my hand. Now, she's a very busy lady who is into everything. We thought she was an 8-10 week old kitten but it turns out that she's at least 7 months old. Just a petite cutie who weighs just over 4.75 pounds! We just love her!
Thanks for your post, it's a 3 tissue one!
Loved this post. Having furry children of my own I found it very touching.
I don't know if you do blog awards, but I gave you a fabulous blog award because your blog and art are just that--fabulous!!
Laurie
Lovely post! And your yellow cat looks like our cat, "Friendly."
Carolee your fur kids are SO sweet!
Thanks for sharing this wonderful post.
PS: Cadie is a HAM!
Chris :-)
Love your story! I have 3 rescue cats, that I rescued myself and one adopted cat. My bro just lost his dog and when the time comes for him to get another, I am going to encourage him to seek out a no kill shelter. I wish Bernie Berlin was closer, I would for him to have one of her dogs. Anyway, beautiful story about the dog rescuing a human.
Happy New Year and Artful Blessings,
Kathryn
We are right there with you, Carolee! The only way we would consider an addition to our family is if they needed to be rescued. Our Pixie rescued us three years ago.
♥, Susan
Isn't that the truth, and boy I need some human rescuing! I have never been "petless" and for the first time ever I don't have a 4 legged creature by my side. It's a strange existance which I hope to correct in 2009.
I love your menagerie! Hug them for me because I need a "fix" of unconditional love! Love, Christy
ALL so very sweet Carolee..... Good for you to have rescued so many 4-legged friends... They certainly bring a spark to the house that feels warm and fuzzy.... And I see you have a black cat too!..... How fitting considering our line of work.... I'm sure Merlin brings you as much inspiration as Jack does for me....
Thanks for the sweet pics and the dear note....
~ Johanna
Carolee, thank you for coming by my blog from Artful Blogging. Oh your cats and dog look wonderful. I have one cat, Lily, who came to us from my husbands brother. My sons have cats from rescue and litters that could have gone to rescue.
Your work is wonderful and I'll be back.
Hi Carolee, Those kitty's are so cute. I love your dogs eyes!!!
Thanks for the visit the other day. I feel bad I haven't gotten around to visiting all my blog friends. I will be stopping by more often in 2009, I promise.
Sweet post!!
Kim
OMG, you made me well up (seriously.)
I'm pushing back the tears right now. Thanks for letting us peek at all the beauties that own you!
Lori
All of your fur babies are adorable Carolee! We rescued our Siberian Husky (Sparky) from the local Husky rescue and he is such a wonderful & sweet guy - don't know what we'd do without him. That story still gets me a little Misty whenever I read it - LOL
One of these days I'll send you some pictures of my fur babies - take care- Jamie
So glad I stopped by to visit. This posting really touches my heart. Our family is mostly rescued (except husband and kids...). When we moved from CA to Oregon we where shocked at how many homeless pets there where here. We finally (just 2 months ago) had to say we cant take any more. with 8 cats, 5 dogs, 1 ferret, a turtle, a snake and 4 sweet goats. Our feed bills are out the door. All the cats are rescue pets. The rest, well, they just melted our hearts. So hurrah for you and all others who do take in all these wonderful animals. They all need us and somehow, we all need them. Thanks for sharing! Sorry for a long post... whew!
thanks so much for that post so beautiful!!
all of our human rescuers were adopted, an 18 year old diabetic, a 16 year old cutie and a 15 year old queen of the roost. we love them so much!
Your cats are adorable and Cosmo is very handsome!
We rescued a dog almost 2 years ago. He was one of nine puppies rescued from an abuse case and only four survived. He is a giant spoiled baby now and as I write this, he is snoozing on our couch! :)
There is nothing more beautiful than a rescued pet, I proudly share my home with 6 cats, 5 rescued from various orgs and 1 that just showed up in our yard and demanded to be part of the family (who am I to say no?). I really enjoyed the human rescue story - it did bring a tear (or maybe a bunch) to my eyes, it was so nice to find your blog today!
We adopted a set of twin boys who look a lot like your Merlin, and named them Fred and George Weasley. We also adopted their sister, a tortoiseshell (now the fattest cat EVER) who we named, obviously, Ginny Weasley. Sadly, Fred Weasley passed away shortly before the 7th HP book was published which, if you know the story.....
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