Hi Sweet Friends,
I’ve been blessed with many teachers throughout my life and they’ve come in all shapes and sizes. My grandmother. Dear friends. My husband. Books. Cancer. Healers. Doctors. The list goes on. Some teachers have been kind, some tough, and others have been a little off their rockers (in the best possible way).
But what I’ve noticed over the years is that my most powerful teachers walk on all fours.
A dairy cow who lived across the street from my childhood home. My soul-kitty Crystal (who I dedicated my second book to). Lately, I’ve been lucky enough to share my home with two wise, silly beings because of our choice to embrace animal adoption and animal rescue.
Most of you know Lola (#lolarocks). She’s part catahoula, part pitbull. Folks think she’s a hilarious hyena. We agree! You’ve probably also met Buddy by now (#gobuddygo). When we found him in the woods and he was a starving and emaciated shell of a dog with a resilient sweet soul. His journey back to health has taught me so much more about healing. It’s a Divine honor to watch him blossom and be part of his life.
That’s why I made this video for you. Often, people think that animal adoption and rescue are selfless acts—a one-way street. They don’t realize that by saving an animal, you could also be saving yourself. The love, companionship, and bond created with these loyal and innocent beings is truly unique and life-changing.
Watch the video above to meet my kids and to learn why my new guy is one of my greatest teachers (and if you want to learn about Lola’s adoption story, watch this video).
I’ve also added some resources for finding a fur-buddy of your own and how to take the best care of them. Check out my infographic for some jaw-dropping stats on adoptable animals in the US today.
Animal Adoption Resources
Where to adopt:
Want to adopt an animal, but don’t know where to start? Use these websites to search for an adoptable animal in your area. Also, you’re awesome!
Helpful adoption tips:
It’s helpful to get educated before bringing a furry new family member into your life. Take some time to read up on the responsibility and preparation that comes along with adopting a pet.
- Questions to ask yourself before adopting
- Adopt-a-Pet’s cat adoption articles
- Adopt-a-Pet’s dog adoption articles
- Tips for the first 30 days of dog adoption
- Tips for the first 30 days of cat adoption
Animal Care Resources
Holistic Veterinarians
You may not have known that holistic veterinarians even existed! They’re the Integrative MDs of the animal world. Your pet’s veterinarian should be able to help you create a diet that fits your animal’s needs. Want to find a holistic vet in your area? Check out these resources:
- American Holistic Veterinary Association
- Academy of Veterinary Homeopathy
- American Academy of Veterinary Acupuncture
- American Veterinary Chiropractic Association
- Veterinary Botanical Medicine Association
Spaying and Neutering
There are numerous reasons to spay/neuter your pet (check out HSUS’s top ten reasons here), but one of the biggest reasons is overpopulation. As you can see in my infographic, 6-8 million animals enter shelters each year and only half of them are adopted on average. If money is a factor in your decision, check out this low-cost spay/neuter directory to find an affordable option. This is one of the most effective ways to reduce the number of homeless animals today!
Putting an end to puppy mills
Lastly, I want to bring your attention to puppy mills in the US. According to the ASPCA, “A puppy mill is a large-scale commercial dog breeding operation where profit is given priority over the well-being of the dogs. Unlike responsible breeders, who place the utmost importance on producing the healthiest puppies possible, breeding at puppy mills is performed without consideration of genetic quality. This results in generations of dogs with unchecked hereditary defects.”
It’s estimated that there are 2,000-3,000 USDA-certified puppy mills in the US, but that number could be as high as 10,000 based on the large number of breeders operating without a license. The number of dogs at these facilities ranges for ten to 1,000 breeding animals. The animals at these mills often live in unsanitary, overcrowded conditions without proper veterinary care or adequate food or water. And many of them are euthanized.
How can you help stop puppy mills?
- Choose to adopt from a shelter rather than buying an animal at a pet store or online.
- Take the ASPCA pledge to boycott pet stores that sell dogs from puppy mills.
- Flex your policy muscles by helping the ASPCA Advocacy Brigade push legislation that will crack down on puppy mills.
I hope that this blog inspires you to adopt an animal in need from a shelter and to research more holistic approaches to caring for your pet. Lola and Buddy have brought so much joy, love and comfort to us—they complete our little family! Adopting them has changed our lives and I know adoption could transform yours too.
Bonus: Blooper Reel
Your Turn: Encourage others to adopt by sharing this article and your story!
Peace & compassion,
Hi Kris, I have been following Buddy’s story since you found him and it really touches my heart.
On Friday I saw a post on a Facebook page I follow supporting and helping to adopt local animals. The post had picture of a dog they named Buddy, and showed a seriously thin hunting hound with bleeding paws. He needed an urgent bed for a few nights as he was too weak to travel anywhere, and his recuers already had their own dog, and Buddy was terrified of the dog and wouldn’t come near the house. I scrolled down the post and his location was just 15km from where I live. So I got in touch and now Buddy is recovering in my home. He is such a gentle sweet boy, but he is scarred of everything, and has clearly never been in a house before. He breaks my heart when I look at him, and see how sad he is. I have not fostered a dog before, but we are doing OK, he is realising that he can trust me, and that his bed is his own. I just wanted to share my Buddys story with you, as I am so familiar with your Buddys story, and they are such similar stories.
I love your work (and juices) and I hope Buddy is doing OK right now.
Jenna xx
What’s up to every body, it’s my first pay a visit of this blog; this website consists of amazing and
really excellent material for readers.
Hi Kris,
I was wondering if you have ever adapted your diet to dogs? My “Holly ” has Osteosarcoma and has been given a short time to live! Up until July 1st she was a healthy dog at 10 years of age! I have started feeding her the Omega 3 diet and adding wild venison. Please let me know if you have any feedback as time is of the essence.
Thank You Very Much,
Jennifer
I love this! Inspired me to adopt little dixie mae from the animal rescue foundation in Ontario, Canada. My summer is now all about puppy training and I couldn’t be more thrilled.
Dear Kris,
It is so wonderful to have someone like you put equal importance on our animal companions, as well as how we eat and live. I find that TOO many people focus only on health, or spirituality, or food, or, or, and forget our beautiful animal beings.
Thank you!
Thanks for the updates! Buddy is looking amazing!!
We have 6 rescued kids.. 2 cats (Daisy’s from the SPCA and Gobzilla accosted me in the forest)
Our 4 dogs all have sad stories.. Our big girl, Nellie, was living in a home where she was being fed drugs at parties.. When we took her 9 years ago, we promised her she’d never have to worry again. We brought her with us when we moved to Canada from New Zealand. Sam was dumped at the SPCA as a young dog.., he was difficult to say the least! How about every Cesar Millan show rolled into one!?? yeah.. Sam.. But we didn’t give up. He learned lots and grew into a good dog. The he got sick with a very rare disease leaving him with some neurological damage about a year after he came to be with us. Now he has aggressive seizures.. but we still haven’t given up on him.. I see his sweet soul, and that’s all that matters. Oscar was the product of a puppy mill, where when the current litter doesn’t sell, she drowns them. She had 2 more litters in the paper already, and Osc was the leftovers.. but not for long! And Finn, my most recent love story, originally from San Diego, this skinny, almost bald, sad thing broke my heart in a shelter nearby, he’s learnt to trust people, and love life. He had been badly abused, and was very afraid of hands, sticks, loud noises, falling objects.. he’s got a bit to go yet, but he’s taught me so much about trust and forgiveness.. If only us humans could be more like them. I’d be lost without them.
This is beautiful! Thank you for being a leader on this issue, Kris. My kitty is a rescue as well. Keep up the good work, sis. xoxoxo
You are amazing, Kris. You inspires not just by your personal story but also by the things that you had done and are doing.
I love dogs. They always seem to have the canny ability to detect our emotions and be there for us when we are down. It is heart breaking to see so many of them landing in shelter homes due to abandonment of their owners. How can people abandon their family member is something that I can never comprehend.
Thank you for sharing the video and bringing this awareness to us.
What an amazing thing you did Kris, taking Buddy in 🙂 Animals are such blessings x
Your story about Buddy made my morning! He looks exactly like my rescue hound. I am so amazed on how animals help heal. We had a home invasion/robbery with 7 rescue dogs inside. I happened to come home to find the majority of the older dogs outside, except Halle our hound who was traumatized and shaking like a leaf in the bathroom. I suspect they used a tazor gun. We of course rushed her and my 3 legged dog to the vet and to our relief, no broken bones were found. Halle has finally come out of her shell after 3 years. These rescue dogs are angels in fur, and you can’t hug or kiss them enough. As for me, she helped heal me through my trauma of the invasion. God Bless you on promoting animal rescues.
Hi Kris,
Just wanted to say that I read up a lot on you after I was diagnosed with breast cancer in autumn 2011. As a British writer and journalist, aged 44, living in France and being treated (very efficiently and speedily) here, I was desperate to read about someone else like me who wanted to get back in control and not just leave it to the doctors (marvellous as they were). I struggled to find much in the way of inspiration but your tips and energy and sheer refusal to accept your fate were just what I was searching for. I wrote my own book (as I couldn’t work much during treatment) and have just published Breathing Out about my journey. Like you, I’ve learned a lot, I’ve laughed (and cried) and tried to pass on the tips and advice that kept me going. Although I never, ever thought I would say this, I feel like cancer has changed me for the better. I’ve just had my two year control check and tout va bien, as we say down here, so I just want to say thanks, well done and keep up the good work.
Just love love love this video,Kris!!!! <3 Thank you!
Just tried the Asian sesame wraps and we love them! So tasty. Yum yum yum!
And when our avocados ripen, we will make that delicious looking chocolate mousse with sea salt…OMG
thanks!xo
This was awesome!! and super cute 🙂 love you all!
Hi Kris,
I just wanted to take the opportunity to let you know how much your writing and work touches and helps me. I am not a cancer warrior. I have a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a result of abuse in my childhood. Almost 50 years old now, my condition was not adequately diagnosed or treated until late last year. As a result, I’ve been “white knuckling” it to deal with symptoms throughout my life and this has been difficult. Now, I’m taking a time-out from my work in a demanding professional role to focus on myself and my health. I find that your nutrition, health, spiritual guidance and encouragement is valuable and uplifting for me; the body-mind connection is fundamental to mental health as well as to physical health. I’ve also appreciated the sharing and insights you’ve provided about your rescue dogs. I love your re-telling of Buddy’s healing journey and the lessons you’ve gleaned from his healing strategies. Buddy has been a good teacher to me, too.
Thank you Kris, for all of the good that you do. This good is not only in the words that you share, but also it’s in the light of your “you-ness”.
All of the best to you in your healing journey!
P.S. – Is there any chance you might at some point find time in your busy schedule to travel to Ontario, Canada?
I love that you are bringing more awareness to these 2 very important issues. I live in a very small town of about 15,000 people. I am part of a non-profit group that maintains the local dog park (very large and beautiful) and we also raise money to help low-income local residents with spay and neutering of their pets.
We have been so successful that they have actually had to go to other shelters to bring dogs and cats to our local town shelter to place up for adoption. This is so rewarding.
I have 4 rescue dogs myself. I am always wearing important message t-shirts that support spay and neuter, adoption, and therapy dogs. I figure that I’ll get the message across in one way or another.
Keep up the great work and for touching on something like pet adoption that is so close to my heart and I know the heart of millions of others.
Christine
Dearest Kris! What a beautiful post! Your kids are gorgeous (but you know that already!).
It really resonated with me and reminded me of my wonderful fur balls, who were all strays & unfortunately are no longer with us.
My family moved to the Philippines when I was just 9months old, where I spent the majority of my childhood and where all of of adopted bundles of joy came from. When I was 6, our beautiful dog Angel turned up at one of my parents friends house, covered in bruises and cuts. She had run away because she was being constantly beaten. She was less than a year old. My mum offered to take her straight away and she became the first new edition to the Vokes family!
Then just a few months later, my dad was walking Angel around our block and Angie smelt something + heard some terrible “meow-ing” from the bottom of a huge rain drain (as we used to call them!) in the road. It was a tiny kitten. We all waited a while to make sure his mum wasn’t coming back, and when we realized she wasn’t dad managed to get him out with a long dust pan! Welcome Dipsey (yes named by my 4yr old sister and my 6yr old self after the teletubby!) the second edition. Angie and Dipsey got on insane well (although for the first few months Angie was pretty terrified of this tiny kitten that always wanted to chase her round the house!). But she had found him, and I think they always had that bond.
Fast forward 7 years, Ange and Dips and travelled with us to Nepal and back, and we had just moved back into a new house in the Philippines. There was a HUGE mango tree outside the front gate, and in it were 3 beautiful kittens (Oh how desperately me and my sister wanted to adopt all of them!)! But we waited, and their mother did come back. Unfortunately, we realised a couple of days later, that one had been left behind. So Tenzing (he loved to climb things, so we called him Tenzing after Tenzing Norgay Sherpa, who climbed Mt Everest with Sir Edmund Hilary) was brought into our family too. Our parents told us that when we moved again, we wouldn’t be able to afford to take Tenzing with us as well, and when that time came 4yrs later I was heart broken. We found him a good home, but having to leave him behind- honestly the hardest thing I have EVER had to do.
Dipsey and Angel came with us to Sri Lanka, where they are now buried.
I miss all 3 of them terribly. Life doesn’t quite seem complete without kind & faithful animals around. They taught me an awful lot too, and I feel I was a better person with them around. Can’t wait for the day when I can afford to take in or adopt another needy animal, who I know will teach me new lessons all over again.
Thanks for your post Kris. It was really therapeutic for me to think and write about the fury members who were such a fundamental part of our family.
Love love, puppy love! xxx
Thanks for sharing your story on pet adoption. We found e
ELLA our brown labrador abandoned as a three to five day old puppy in a box at a grocery store shopping cart. We took her home and nursed and bottle feed her. The vet didn’t expect her to survive, but she did. Ella turned into a srtong and beautyful brown Lab we all love. She is our bebe. (-;
Blessings on all who care about these beautiful creatures large and small.
Hi Kris,
I loved your post. I wonder if you’ve ever heard of these guys. Animal lovers come in all shapes and sizes.
Some of your readers in New York may be interested in what they do.
http://www.rescueink.org/mission.html
Blessings
Dan
OMG, so cute! I was cracking up at a few things: Lola looked like she was ready for a nap, the longer you kept petting her… like “Ohh… so soothing!!!” Then Buddy’s thinking, “Mom – mom, I smell something.. dinner or something…I gotta go…” I laughed out loud at your comment about “Buddy – this is the money part”. Your story warms my heart. I adopted my boy, Sampson, 6 years ago. Love of my life. And my fur baby. I saw a sticker someplace that said something along the lines of “My dog adopted me”. So true. So wonderful to see Buddy thriving. He’s a lucky boy. Thanks for this great video and infographic! Very inspiring and heart warming.
Hi Kris,
My husband and I have a dog named Sophie that we rescued 5 years ago this month! She was only 3 years old at the time and had already been in four different homes. She’s an Aussie Shepherd/Border Collie mix and completely deaf. Maybe that’s why other people didn’t want her -but we saw that as an opportunity to make a difference in her sweet little life. At 8 years old now, Sophie is a young-spirited, playful, loving, and sweet dog. She is a true blessing in our lives. We love being her forever home and her human parents.
Thank you for sharing your adoption journey with us – it’s a true inspiration. I visited some of the adoption websites after watching the video because we’ve been talking about adopting another fur-baby. So thank you for being there and doing all that you do.
I hope that I get to meet you one day!
Namaste,
Kathleen
You are awesome Kathleen!
Would you mind sharing what kind of shoes you are wearing in this video? Thanks! And I can’t imagine life without my cats & puppy!
I love that you posted about this, my family could imagine life with our furry family member.
Hi Kris and Team Crazy Sexy!
Thanks for your article this week on pets! We were “Rescued” by our dog “Jazz” this past August at a shelter in the Dallas area called Operation Kindness. They are absolutely awesome! It is by far the BEST shelter we’d ever been to. Clean, humane and all of the volunteers there are the BEST! Super kind and very helpful in choosing the best dog for our family. I’d recommend anyone who’s looking for the right four legged animal…cats or dogs, to take a walk around Operation Kindness.
Thanks again for your sweet article!
Lori
Great blog topic and I agree! We have six rescued dogs, a cat and a Koi pond and all bring me peace, love, joy and healing. It’s a labor of love and all worth it!
I adopted Ginger when she was six weeks old (and i was only 9), from a shelter in Israel, she had just gotten there two hours before we arrived. she was so sweet and so so small, as i looked around the shelter for my new dog she approached me licking my hand enthusiastically, so happy to have a new friend. from that moment on i could not resist her, she got me, i was hers as much as she was mine.
she lived 16 very happy year with us and had just recently passed away, i cant really imagine my life without her, bringing happiness, joy, smiles and smells in to our home.
I recommend it with all my hear. Thank you kris for the opportunity to share xxx
*heart
LOVE LOVE LOVE this! We just adopted beautiful Phoebe, a 5 month old shelter puppy, and I am learning
so much from her. She is shy and skittish, requiring lots of patience. Our other adopted dog, Lucy, is
slowly adjusting to her new companion. Dogs teach us so much, and add a special non verbal element
to our lives. We are also working with a dog trainer, which I highly recommend. My goal is to help
Phoebe grow into a confident dog, and train her as a pet therapy companion for my nursing home
clients.
You are such a sweet mom! This story warms my heart!
Kris- I’ve been following you for 2 years now and keep tuning in to get your intellect and spirit- the healing aspect of this really hit home- I have an adorable wheaten terrier who changed my life and brought me through my cancer journey- sometimes not sure if I am over the trauma of it all. Maggy keeps me grounded and your message brought a soothing new layer of awareness on my journey to heal COMPLETELY!
love you — see you in Ft lauderdale.
Maureen
My daughter & I are in the process of adopting 2 cats we met at the weekend.
When I got up this morning, I sat on the sofa with my cuppa and had a little wibble about whether I’m doing the right thing, committing to homing the cats.
I turned on my laptop and there is the confirmation in the form of your video to just go for it…
Thank you for the message…
It makes me laugh sometimes how the Universe supports us!
I’m now looking forward to bringing more love into our home! 🙂
Oh I LOVE your dogs!!! I am such a dog person myself (I have 2 as well) and I think you are doing fantastic work.
I had to laugh out loud a couple of times when Buddy wanted to leave and what you told him so that he would stay… like “we are asking now for the money” hahaha
Wonderful video! And thanks for caring for these beautiful and loving creatures that make our lives so rich and happy! 🙂
Marina
You are such a BEAUTIFUL BEing…period. I love all that you do…and THIS particular video really, really, REAALLLLy touched me down to my core. WOW. I’ve adopted two dogs over my lifetime. Hannibal and Angel both lived out full, healthy lives. Angel passed last September…September 6th…after 13 years. I know that I will adopt again in the not to distant future. Thank you again, Kris for blessing us with your gifts of LOVE, INSPIRATION, HEALING & PEACE.
Thank you for the wonderful video on your fur babies and your support of adoption, spay/neuter and helping your local shelter. I met you in Denver and was sad not to hear the update on Buddy so loved this blog. The listing of the animals each week helps keep animal adoption in the forefront of people’s minds and thanks for using your space to not only help us two-legged folks but the wonderful four-legged folks in the world also. I have been lucky to work in the animal welfare field for 21 years and have seen many good changes but we have a long way to go. I am off to pick up a mom and 4 puppies from New Mexico tomorrow to head to Boulder to be adopted and get a good chance at a better life. Every life is worth being given a chance to survive and thrive. Thanks to Buddy and Lola for being such good representatives for the wonders of adoption and rescue. And especially to you, Kris, for taking up the animals’ cause.
While I was waiting for my oil to be changed yesterday, there was the most beautiful part lab, part german shepherd doggie also waiting inside with his dad. He was rescued at 6 months of age and his dad said he’s the smartest dog he’s ever had. He was so beautiful, listened perfectly and was affectionate with all the strangers who wanted to pet him on the head (and that was ALOT). What a shame it would have been if that magnificent animal had never found his furever home. I have a kitty that showed up on my doorstep one day all beat and battered. She saved ME that day. I now have something to care for rather than dwell on myself and my “problems”. Thank you Kitty for coming into my life.
I love this I am so grateful you shared this. I have been in your community and am a survivor of cervical cancer and also completely dedicated to creating a No-Kill Nation for shelter animals. I donate proceeds from my book sales to help animal rescue I have an online radio show and I would love for you to be a guest. I would also love to be a guest blogger on your blog to share this message of hope. I truly believe as a dog trainer that dogs are our greatest spiritual teachers. I train animals that have been abused and I am a survivor of domestic abuse and connect with animals to help share their message with the world. WHAT IF every human on the planet got these lessons the animals teach us to be unconditional, forgiving, live in the moment and just spread joy. I live my life this way and I am so GRATEFUL you do too. Let’s work together and accomplish twice as much I have a wonderful community of followers that can be a new audience for you and I would love you to be a guest blogger on my blog. I am creating a Google Hangout to share spiritual life lessons learned from our pets. I would love you to be a part of this too. My facebook is http://www.facebook.com/puppyloverevolution I have a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing environmental education, animal advocacy, mindfulness, and compassion to public schools as part of curriculum. My second book is “The Secret to Puppy Love” A spiritual Approach to dog training and life. I look forward to hearing from you soon so we can do great things together to help lots of animals and children. Blessings to you and yours!!!!!
This is a wonderful video! I currently have two rescue dogs, one of whom looks like a mini-Buddy! When he’s not chewing on a shoe, he brings much happiness to my life. Wish I could have more, although I do help a rescue group, and have saved 8 dogs over the past year.
You’re an inspiration of goodness and love. Thanks for sharing this – I needed a smile today.
Dear Kris,
I was so blessed to meet you when I attended the I can do it seminar in San Jose. Without me telling you anymore than what I’m going through, stage 4 lung canSer, you wanted me to have the name of Dr. Keith Block. I just completed day 1 of my treatment with the Block Center. I feel as though I owe my health and my life to you! Thank you from every healthy cell in my body. You will always be at the very top of my hero list. You rock, crazy sexy girl!
Love,
DJ.
Fellow Crazy Sexy Survivor
What an awesome video! My adoption story features my beautiful shelter-kitty Abigail.
At the beginning of the year my partner and I moved from the city to a country town – and this meant we could finally have a pet! So we went to the local shelter to find a little soul, and I was drawn to the adult cats. The kittens were very cute but most of them are adopted- here in Australia 80% of adult cats in shelters are euthanised. I’ve never had a cat and was a little shy of them, but Abigail came straight up and smooched me. She wasn’t the prettiest kitty there, but she was so sweet and kept smooching me ’til we left with her!
When we were doing the paperwork we were told that she was 5 and had been surrendered because her owner had died. It was the day before our 5th anniversary – so we took it as a sign that she was meant for us 🙂
She is such a wonderful addition to our family – she makes our house a home! And her original owner must have treated her very well – she is perfectly behaved, nothing has been destroyed, she just wants to snuggle and follow us around. I don’t think I would have known how to raise a kitten this well and we’ve given a little soul a home 🙂
Hi Kris,
I just love you!! Thank you for helping the cats and dogs…all the sentient beings need us more than
ever! Let’s definitely spay and neuter and stop the overbreeding of all animals, including horses.
Thank you for all you do to bring awareness to their plight!
The university where I work has a large wooded area and people will dump unwanted animals. Because of this, we have a large feral cat community. We were able to successfully do a spay and release program! Several kittens had gotten away from thier mother and fell down an air conditioning shaft. We were able to rescue them and I fostered them until they were old enough to find homes. I found homes for two but wasn’t able to find a home for the third who became my baby Elvis – a black and white lovable bundle of mischief. But I felt he needed a friend. Another one of the feral cats was very friendly and was able to be adopted. He was being fostered and I was able to take him on a trial basis to make sure they got along. They did and Max Weber became my new baby. Max is a grey long haired Maine coone. Elvis and Max quickly become as close as litter mates. It took him a little longer to warm up to me. :). But we are a happy family now. :). I’d post a picture but I can’t see how.
Hi Kris,
Love LOVE your video PSA on pet adoption! I hope that it encourages others to rescue animals in need of loving forever homes. We rescued Lyla (or actually she rescued me), formally known as Marlie, from a family breeding her for boxer puppies. She was so small and fragile but ridiculously sweet. The first time we saw her face we were smitten.
When we the adoption took place and we brought her home, we knew there would be an adjustment period since we were her 3rd home. You can’t explain to your new fur children what had happened with the original family, but she felt like she had to be on her best behavior. The first night I fed her, she made a huge mess with her food all over the floor. I walked in the room, looked at the crime scene and told her “I’m not the maid around her, you need to clean up this mess.” I swear, she licked the floor clean! I was in absolute shock but then decided perhaps I could get her to wash dishes too (just kidding).
I quickly realized that Lyla must have lived in a remote area because large trucks and fire engines were new to her. She didn’t even bark for the first month we had her, probably wanting to stay on her best behavior. I quickly realized it was important for me to learn more about animal behavior and took her to a trainer for 2 weeks. Sharon the trainer taught me how to read her body language and how she behaved in a pact. This is valuable information for any new parent. Now when I take her to the animal park and she goes into Alpha mode, I know she is not “aggressive” but trying to keep order in the pact. It’s a lot of work for an animal to be Alpha (like a CEO trying to keep order with the staff) and I am able to tell when she has had enough of her job and ready to go home. It took years for our cat Shorty to warm up to his sister, but now they curl up together and sleep. It just warms my heart each morning to see the two of them snuggling…
Like you, we do not have 2-legged children but our fur babies are absolutely spoiled rotten, in a good way. They both continue to teach us valuable life lessons. How valuable it is to take time out of the day for play (free therapy), eating at regular times (this is such a great lesson for everyone), and of course, unconditional love. They are magical and loving, our world tends to revolve around them. And I wouldn’t change that at all!
I hope others will realize the energetic shift that takes place when you rescue an animal. We love that we have given Lyla a better home than she had previously. I know she recognizes that she lives the good life and truly is the BEST doggie ever.
Thank you for encouraging other to follow in your footsteps and stressing the health benefits you receive from having pets as a valuable part of the family!
Lyla and Shorty are on my instagram page @ newtrition.
Blessings of continued optimal health & abundant joy… Jennifer
This warms my heart! <3 I rescued my first shelter pup Sophie 20 years and haven't looked back since. She inspired me to volunteer and foster, and after her transition, I left my corporate job and created a pet business after her called Luxepets, creating inspired products for people and their furry family members. I am passionate about being a bridge for people and their pets. Thank you for being huge a huge advocate on behalf of the animals and the tremendous healing that can take place. Buddy is living proof! woof woof!
You are AWESOME. Simple as that…and so are your babies 🙂
Love love love your dogs! My rescue kitties agree – having a furry friend is good for your health and happiness!
Kris,
You are such a beautiful person, inside and out! Your LOVE for animals is such a light for these innocent babies! I have heard you speak in person about your “kids” and all I can think about is that your cancer will not grow in such LOVE! Thank you for YOU!
Hi Kris, Lola and Buddy! Have to say I love, love, love the way Buddy runs! He is jubilant! And they both look so healthy and happy!!! Beautiful fur kids! I have always had shelter adopted or rescued pets. My current beloved, Georgia was at the Manhattan ACC. She and her 5 puppies were picked up by animal control in Nov. (brand new babies outside in the freezing temps) as strays. A rescue group pulled them to save them from euthanasia. Puppies grew up and all 5 were adopted! Yay! Casey (her rescue moniker) was left behind. I saw a picture of her and the pups on my FB feed early on. At that time my beloved Jack, was still living. I showed her to him and said ” if we had $300. burning a hole in my pocket (the deposit my building charges for each pet) I would go get her in a hot minute!” Sadly, 3 weeks later my 12 year old Jackson Brownie had a stroke due to complications of congestive heart failure. I was devastated! I wasn’t really ready to adopt but was looking at the adoptable dogs at the New Haven animal shelter. Their adoptable pets are posted on Petfinder.com. So while I was there I did a search and guess who came up? Georgie! What are the odds? So, I called and headed down to the Bronx and the rest is history! I miss Jack every day but I know he would have wanted me to save another life. Georgie was a hot mess when she came to me but today, over a year later she is a very healthy, happy and spayed little girl! I would love to post her picture but I can’t figure out how… Anyway, thanks for the opportunity to talk about my girl, Georgie. And thanks for bringing up the need to spay and neuter pets. It’s the only way we are going to stop the needless killing of companion animals! That and shutting down puppy mills and backyard breeders! And for every thing you do for every one, I thank you!
Love the outreach and adoption support! We have a shelter dog, an 80 retriever mix who is the LOVE OF OUR LIVES! Thank you for supporting these great teachers!
PS. I live in San Diego County near a store which features your cookbook (where I got it) called BEAMING. I keep hoping you will make a guest appearance. This store and your book have changed my life – the way I eat, juice, approach many things. Please keep up all the wonderful work you are doing and think about coming to SoCal!
Best!
I found your video on a day I needed some love in my life…and even though I’m not in a position to take in a baby I took joy from this story….thank you
Kris, You are such an inspiration from your non-preachy and inviting approach to a healthy lifestyle to your quirky, honest and radiant personality to your love of animals and advocacy of adoption. As a Health Coach, you are a paradigm of the kind of Healthy Lifestyle Expert I strive to be 🙂 But about those yummy animals!
Your fur-babies are so adorable and seeing ya’ll play brought tears of joy to my eyes. I have rescue cats. Two of them came from People for Animals, a foster group in Northwest NJ. Coco, my first born, chose me 10 years ago. Why at 2 yrs old was I his 4th home, I cannot tell you. He’s a precious white, blue-eyed beauty with hearing, is very squeaky, plays volleyball and has splayed feet that makes him look like a rabbit when he hops (and 6 feet high at that!). He’s delicious and my heart explodes with rainbows and sparkles when I see him. His brother, Griffin, was adopted 4 months later at 8 mos old and is a big, strong, Mama’s boy. Or, the “boyfriend cat” as we like to call him. He also drags toys to me to play with (fishing pole or black shoelace are faves). When I moved to Los Angeles 6 years ago, of course my boys came with me. It was a traumatic experience going through security at Newark airport, and people wondered why I bothered? Seriously?!? Well, my now California cats LOVE being able to roll around on our terrace and bask in the sun. It makes me so happy to be able to provide that experience for them.
In 2011, the financial and housing crisis caused too many people to lose their homes and give up their pets–especially the seniors. This had me in tears every single day. Although we had our own financial crisis and had two cats and a 1 bedroom apartment that I now shared with my boyfriend, I knew I had to do something. I reached out to Cat Connection and found a sweet 10 yr. old “talkative” Tiffany (who looked like a cross between my boys), affectionately called by us “Squish-O.” My boys had been together for 8 years and I added a senior girl to our tiny home. But, I felt that my family was now complete (and there was officially no more room on the bed). Tiffany actually would park herself between our pillows 🙂
Unfortunately, Tiffany developed labored breathing and on Christmas Eve 2012, Tiffany’s lab results indicated carcinoma. Despite taking her to 5 doctors and round the clock TLC, Tiffany’s cancer progressed too quickly and she passed away on Jan. 11, 2013. She was ours for only 1.5 years but we loved her like she was our little baby. In fact, we have a digital photo frame displaying Tiffany Squish in all her glory. I do not regret rescuing a senior cat because I know we gave her the best year and a half of her life. She grew younger and became such an amazing purrsonality the longer she was with us. It was tragic and I miss her dearly. We will likely rescue another senior girl as soon as we get into a little bit of a bigger home. Great tip about the Adopt-a-Pet widget, I will add! Thanks for reading and rocking so hard!! Love your work!! 🙂
Kris – you’re the best. I so enjoyed hearing you talk from the heart with your babies sitting next to you. I made my husband watch it too. Both our animals came off the streets. Rico we found in Puerto Rico while on vacation and Maddie the cat was a stray in my neighborhood. I couldn’t get more lovin anywhere else. I’ve read all your books. Keep it coming!!
Thanks, Kris. (good Mama)
Thanks, Lola. (good sister)
Thanks, Buddy! (good family find, Buddy)
be well, one and All
(-;
We adopted our sweet pug Elsa when her previous owner passed away. I had always wanted a puppy, so I didn’t want her in the beginning. But the moment I saw her, my heart melted and I knew we were meant for each other! Elsa was already 5 years old when we got her, and it has been difficult having to take her to various vet visits and to get her health back on track (she wasn’t treated all that well before), but like Buddy, she’s been such a great teacher. She’s taught me how to love with my whole heart, to relax, the importance of taking care of myself, and to find joy every day. And here’s a pic of my little Elsa, taken just a couple of days ago: https://scontent-b-sjc.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/t1.0-9/10171221_10151898812470876_1576118879_n.jpg
I love you Kris Carr for so many reasons!!!
My hubby and I believe in giving our pets the best and boy oh boy I can see you are an angel on earth with the love and care you give!! One day on a very hot day 8yrs ago, my husband found a cat who was so very skinny – better yet, she found him through our now past on Emmie the cat who was sitting in the window. This little cat was given food and water and figured she would move on since she probably was owned by some other folks but she decided to put down her roots with our home – so we kept her and a few weeks later, the little lady started to show more was on the way!! No owners ever showed up, the shelters would have put her down at this time, so we kept her – 5 babies later (born by our bedside) we kept all of them indoors – we shudder to see how many cats are let out and wind up dead! We do not even know what life could have been without Emmie, Mama and her 5 babies. So we completely support your vision of taking pets from shelters and giving them the chance for a better life with more love than they can handle!! Good Job Kris!!!!! God Bless!!
I didn’t think I could love you any more. This takes me into the dangerous obsession zone. Seriously, thank you so much for this video and for all you do to promote pet adoption. xxoo
“healing comes in all seasons and we can’t rush that”
wow – amazing how some words just hit home and encapsulate something that I haven’t been able to articulate in that special way, thank you <3
I loved that video Kris! Such an important topic, with information that I also believe people need to know. I have a zoo of fur-babies myself (2 dogs and 3 cats – all rescues) and I love them all to bits! There is no question that they make my life richer and happier. Having done some work in animal rescue, I find so many people to be uninformed, so thanks for helping to get the word out!!
Thanks so much for the privilege of reading your emails and seeing your cute adorable self photo and hearing your fun tales! You are such a joy! I don’t know how to attach or upload a photo here to you, but I’ve been a rescuer ever since I was a toddler, once having rescued two mommy cats who gave birth to 14 babies who slept in my bed at age 9 and how they didn’t get squished I do not know! After college I had two dog friends whose mom was a champion german shorthair pointer who refused to mate with her own kind but fell in love on a Vermont morgan horse farm’s huge black lab stud champion and in minutes, well, there you have it. They
provided endless hours of fun and company. Then we rescued a cat who had been through hell by age two, and he didn’t even know how to meow or prrrrr or snuggle or climb, but slowly learned how to all those things and lasted 16 more years giving us so much love and fun. Thanks for all the joy and beauty and freshness you give to us all and all the furry creatures of this world!
Barbara from Santa Barbara CA
Hi Kris, love, love your “kids”. Life would be so empty without our fur babies. Your genuine, inspiring videos always hit home. You have truly found your calling, to help guide people to a better place.
Watching you run around with your dogs and giving them lots of kisses reminds me so much of how I am with my dog, Maggie. It’s interesting how people can have a lot of strong opinions about pets and how we treat them too much like humans by giving them a lot of affection or connecting with their emotions. Although humans and dogs experience the world quite differently, I believe our emotions are still able to communicate across boundaries… body language, eyes, sounds… these are things that, if we listen, will teach us a lot about our furry children 🙂 And many well respected biologists who for years have studied human and non-human animal emotional communication can attest to that statement. I once had a family member tell me not to display too much affection toward my dog (a.k.a. baby talk and kisses, he he) in front of another family member because said family member has strong values about how dogs should be treated and how people should be treated. Basically, children and adults are suffering all over the world, and so why should a dog receive special treatment? My response to that is yes, people are suffering all over the world – here and abroad – and it’s sad as hell. But at the same time, I’m not superwoman. I can’t change the lives of each individual. I try to do my best in my community and when I’m at home, with my boyfriend and my puppy, Maggie, it’s love all the way. I believe that compassion is compassion – every being deserves it – whether you are a person or a furry friend. Hec, I have a little spider friend who lives in the soil of one of my house plants, and why would I end his life when he’s just doing his spidee thing? Even though his existence is totally different from mine doesn’t not mean he’s life is worth less. That’s crazy talk! Thanks Kris 🙂 You Rock.
So my answer to the family member was: Sorry, not gonna happen 🙂
Peace!
Amen Julie!
Lola and Buddy are very sweet! <3
There's a long way to go still, but thank you for using your voice to help us get there sooner 🙂
All of my beloved children have been rescues. Its the only responsible option. My husband and I live with 4 precious felines. Wouldn’t “do” life without them. 🙂
I’m a radio show host on Transformation Talk Radio in Seattle and I’m going to be starting my own show in May, called “Money Made Easy with Mary Jane Allen”. I’ll be plugging adoption or spay/neuter at the end of each of my shows. 🙂 Kind of a Bob Barker type statement. 🙂 Great opportunity. 🙂
Love to you, Lola, and Buddy from MJ, MacKenz, Ozzie, Norm and Charlotte. 🙂 xoxo
Kris, You are just the brightest light! So genuine, warm and funny. And, oh, the synchronicity of this video showing up in my inbox today. I have loved dogs all of my life but since I moved to NYC over ten years ago I have held back (don’t know why) from adopting a dog. I joke that one of these days there will be one waiting outside my apartment door holding a tag in its mouth with my name on it! 🙂 Just yesterday I was telling someone that I had a dream that I was in a car with another person and a dog when the car plunged into the ocean. I was frantically trying to save the dog. More likely, the dog would probably have saved me. 🙂 This video just might be the tipping point. I’ll keep you posted! 🙂
Hi Kris! Thank you so much for sharing your fur-babies with us! They’re adorable! I too am a HUGE advocate for adoption both of my boys are adopted.
Duke, my 7 year old Border Collie/Pit mix, we got 5 years ago. He was found in GA as a stray and a resuce here in IL pulled him from a high kill shelter where he was on the euthanization list because he had heartworm. He was such a scared, sweet beautiful boy! I’m so grateful that they snuck him on that transport to Chicago. We raised $ for the heartworm treatments and about 5 months after he was brought to IL, he was mine! Duke was very scared and timid, but LOVED to be cuddled and his belly rubbed. We knew there was a playful little boy waiting to come out so we decided to get a puppy. 🙂
A year and a half after we adopted Duke, we adopted Roscoe who was a 3 month old Pit/Lab mix. Roscoe’s mother was brought in to Chicago ACC pregnant. They didn’t have room for puppies so they were going to abort the litter. Within, a few hours of a planned abortion It’s A Pittie Rescue stepped in and found a foster home for mom and babies. They saved them!
My boys have grown to love, enjoy and respect each other and with Roscoe’s help, Duke has DEFINITELY come out of his shell. Roscoe is Mr. Fearless and shows Duke what confidence looks like. At the same time, Duke shows him what respect looks like. They’re not perfect and we have our training issues, but they’re so loved and we know they love us. They are my children and I wouldn’t trade them for anything in the world!
We also fostered one of the best dogs I have ever had the pleasure of knowing a few years ago. He was found locked in a crate with another dog in the woods in Gary, IN. We stepped up to give him a home and we had him for 6 months before our friend adopted him. Unfortunately, he lost a very quick and sudden battle with an aggressive lymphoma and his parents had to put him down just a week ago Sunday. He was only 4 and I have been devistated over it. He didn’t deserve to go like he did. But with everything he went through, I’m glad his last couple years were filled with love and fun. His parents spoiled him and loved him like none other I’ve ever seen before. Cinco was made for his parents. It’s such a shame that a bond like that was cut short.
Fun! Beautiful! Engaging! Love! Thank you, Kris and happy healing, everyone!
You’re such a great mentor for us! Thank you for your love lessons – I’m sharing your crazy sexy diet with everyone of my family and friends – hugs to your furry friends xoxo
Great question…who is adopting whom? They are amazing healers and lovers 🙂
I love this video, Kris! Thanks from my heart for sharing. I myself adopted a Chihuahua puppy, Philine, who had water on her lungs & was supposed to be put to sleep. Well, today she is 8 years old, super healthy & silly as can be. I am so deeply grateful for my furry soul sister, as she was one of my main guides on my spiritual journey, re-connecting me with nature. I owe her the world. And yep, an entire chapter of my soon to be published book belongs to Philine, my personal guru. I am so looking forward to be working with you soon, Kris – right after B-School is done ;))
Love, hugs & unicorns… <3
Kris,
Watching your segment brought (good) tears to my eyes. I just adopted a rescue dog to add to my pair of mini doxies and love him. Winston never leaves my side. The part in your video where you talked about giving yourself time to heal and boundaries hit home and was just what I needed to hear today. I have been dealing with chronic migraine for a year and half now and am frustrated I am not improving more quickly. I want to be healed and move on with my life which now has been quite limited. Your reminder that everything has its seasons and to allow myself time to heal helped. I need to be a little more patient even though I am sick of being a patient!
I loved watching the video with Buddy and Lola. Six years ago when my husband and I were volunteering at an animal sanctuary in NY state we showed up to volunteer one day and found that they had closed down a puppy mill in Virginia bringing back over 200 dogs and puppies, some moms giving birth on the way up. One of the employees of the sanctuary pointed us in the direction of a blind pug puppy. She was hoping that we would consider adopting him because we have experience with blind cats. When we went to see him he was in a cage with a chihuahua puppy the same age and we decided that we would adopt them together since they were already bonded. We named the pug Harley and the chihuahua Albie (after a little goat at Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary that we love). Harley turned out to have more issues than just blindness. First we took him to a specialist in the hopes that maybe his eyesight could be restored. We learned that there were so many problems, he didn’t even have optic nerves. Over time we learned that Harley also had structural problems (one example being that his jaw did not fuse and his tongue only comes out one side making eating a long, messy process) and neurological problems compared to autism in humans. We are so thankful that we adopted Harley and Albie together. They are the best of friends and Albie understands Harley and his issues completely. Harley is a perfect example of why puppies should never, ever be purchased from pet stores. There are so many wonderful dogs and cats needing loving homes, I hope that one day pets stores and thereby puppy mills will be a thing of the past. Kris, thank you so much for being a spokesperson for all the animals. Blessings.
Thank you for sharing Edie!
This is an awesome PSA for the animals Kris. Adoption is a two way street with animals teaching us lessons we never expected. 7 years ago we adopted a sick lab, Vegas, who was a mess of allergies and thyroid problems. My quest to help him heal demonstrated to me the powerful impact nutrition and a holistic approach to health can have on all of us. I learned so many lessons that led me to your book and this website when I was diagnosed with breast cancer 2 years ago. I am so grateful to my Vegas for opening my eyes to the power of nutrition and holistic healthcare and to you for leading me through my cancer journey. You are an inspiration. Thank you!
Really heartwarming post Kris, thanks so much for sharing xxx
Love love love your adoption story Kris!!! We have three doxies… Little Bit (the little black mini doxie) adopted us! She kept escaping from her owner’s home and would come to our home and wait at the front door until I picked her up… She was cold, wet from rain, and I opened the door and thought Santa had given me a little mini dachshund… We found the owner and she came back three more times and we finally asked the owner if we could have her and he said yes (he was going through a divorce)… We then found our special child Digger who we were told is a mini, but he is a full size double dapple dachshund. He is blind in one eye and doesn’t hear well. My third is a hyperactive mischievous mini doxie named Buster who I just adore. Last Christmas I went to Petsmart and the animal adoption center (BARC) had just brought in a beautiful long haired doxie because his elderly owner could no longer care for him. He was matted and just a mess… I grabbed him and brought him home and he was welcomed by his little siblings without reservation.. I rescued him a second time today after he fell in the pool this morning (he always sits waaayyyy to close to the pool) I knew it would happen eventually… So.. now I’m his hero AGAIN! Yay!!!! Love my little ones… BTW… I have a son who was diagnosed with Leukemia when he was three… he is now 31 years old… he is disabled and cannot work or drive… but he is alive and probably one of the happiest people you will ever meet… Cause… we are a happy family!
I love your fur babies. We have a cat that just came into our yard and we got her tamed where she is now our fur baby but lives outside. She loves the outdoors and does spend time with us inside or outside. I love just hearing her purr. 🙂 I love dogs as well both are great and we say spade your pet too. I hate seeing pets without an home or someone to love them.
Thanks for also saying that let your self heal and dont rush it and dont make your self wrong. I am doing some holistic detox to get my gut healed. My doctor is great and he knows his stuff . I just feel like hell sometimes and I forget to be with it and just support my body in what it is doing to heal. Thank you
I have two adoptees…Gracie a Boston Terrier and Buddy a Chihuahua. I love them both dearly and feel so luck everyday to have them be part of my family! I’ve done a lot of photography work for various pet rescues which is how both Gracie and Buddy came into my life.
Thanks Kris for sharing this enlightening information. My pets personally provide me such immense joy so I hope others will be able to share this same blessing if they aren’t already. One other piece of information to note, I am sure this varies state by state, but in CO, almost anyone can sell up to 2 litters or 24 dogs per year for profit without a breeder’s license, which I don’t think is okay for a multitude of obvious reasons. Just another reason to get your pets from shelters, reputable breeders and adoption organizations.
We experience miracles everyday here at NOAH.
Thank you for putting the spotlight on spay/neuter and adoption. We love that you post animals for adoption. Spay/Neuter is something we do everyday, including community cats (feral), for free. NOAH’s 500 volunteers make a difference to every life saved and every spay/neuter that is done. NOAH has done 60,000 spay/neuters and 29,000 adoption and we are going to do a lot more!!
Thank you for the support!!
sometimes I think when there is room in your heart, animals actually find you. I always wanted my own pet, then my husband came with a cat, philo. all three of us were a happy family and then George (husband) called me to tell me one day that someone had left a cat in a cat carrier outside our building entrance. I rushed home and we talked to all the neighbors, no one knew the cat. I called all the shelters, panicking, as we were leaving the next morning for CA. It was holiday season and i couldn’t get hold of anyone. I took her into the apartment and a small skinny black kitten jumped out of the carrier and into my arms. My husband came up with idea to leave her with my father in law, 89, who was already cat sitting for Philo while we were away. Meanwhile we put signs up everywhere, no response. We had to keep the cats isolated as we didn’t know her health status. We took her to the vet when we returned, got her tested for FIV, eventually had her spayed and then she came home with us. She is the sweetest, most gentle cat ever and even my husband adores her. My father in law, George Sr. named her Elvira. we call her elvie. The only one who is not happy about this is the former king of the household, philo. The cats have helped us through some rough times and even my own cancer experience. I decided to return the favor and I now volunteer at a local shelter. I can’t recommend it enough. As you said, we can learn so much from animals, and also from the way humans treat them. It is overwhelming how many animals are surrendered by their owners.Thank you for being such a great advocate for the animals, Kris:) so glad you went hiking that day!
Your fur babies are so cute! I adopted my own (an American Shorthair named Pouncer) four years ago from a rescue and I couldn’t imagine my life if I hadn’t!
Sooo lovely.
I remember meeting buddy soon after you got him.
So inspiring to see how strong and happy he’s become.
You guys are great parents.
And such a great reminder that we can’t rush recovery.
Ruff Ruff
Josh
Oh Kris, your video made me tear up at work! It is almost three months to the day that I brought home my first ever adoptee. I am a young twenty-something who moved out on my own for the first time at the beginning of December and I was missing my family dog and cat terribly. On a whim I was on the Toronto Cat Rescue website and within days a sweet little black cat came into my life. She was found wandering outside in the cold winter and after a few weeks of suffering in the animal shelter (she developed a URI and became anorexic) a wonderful foster family took her in. It was only about 7 days later that I brought her into her forever home. Having been found abandoned, she was nameless. What to call this sweet little girl? I decided on Prem – Hindi Sanskrit for “love”. She has taught me so much (and continues to!) about love and recovery, especially the patience part. What you said about Buddy coming into his own on his own terms really resonated on this journey with Prem. Oh how much she has taught me! I am so grateful to have her in my life.
Love it Kris! We have 2 cats that we adopted from a shelter that are the most fun, lovable, and adorbs companions! But we’d also like to get a dog someday too! I love the idea of adopting and saving an animal (or 2! or 3!). We saved a dog when I was little too and had him for almost 17 years. Animals give an amazing amount of love! You’re doing great work by getting the word out. xo
I couldn’t love you more if I tried! It is so amazing that you feature adoptable dogs, especially pit bulls in your blogs. I have 2 rescued pit bulls that were also rescued from a high kill shelter right before their kill dates…I originally fostered them but I couldn’t let them go <3 Sending love to your little monkeys!
My dream is to ban the sale of animals in pet store WORLDWIDE so that ALL animals in shelters can find a forever home. I know they a small town in British Columbia banned the sale of animals in pet store and it totally worked: shelters were EMPTY.
Your video warmed my heart Kris, thank you. I will share with everyone 🙂
Kris, you just keep getting better and better. So many animals need homes, so thank you for bringing this awareness into your (and our) lives!
Oh, beautiful lady, this video made me cry w/ joy! Bravo! You speaketh so genuinely from the heart! Question is: Who is luckier? You or the dogs? XXOOXXOO!!!!
Hey Kris, loved your video on adopting little furry family members! I am currently fostering for a local cat charity and as a result I had the pleasure in hosting 5 cats over the last year and more to come. Every single one of them taught and is still teaching me new things on a daily basis and I am forever grateful to being part of something so wonderful! The love that these little ones show us once rescued, is absolutely amazing and second to none. Hopefully we can make a difference in peoples’ lives and teach more and more people about how important it is to neuter and also adopt cats and dogs under any circumstances instead of going to a breeder. Thanks for sharing your story and being a role model! xx
LOVED watching the story of #gobuddygo unfold and shed a few tears along the way as well ♥ What a great story! And I agree, I’ve learned so much from my own adoption experience with Lucy. You know how it goes – can’t imagine life w/out ’em 🙂 pic.twitter.com/FRghhEQKF5
Seeing Buddy run with glee brought tears to my eyes! My best gal pal is your pet sitter, so I’ve gotten updates along the way. He looks amazing! And Lola always does…such a wonderfully happy ending for all of you! I’ve got 2 shelter dogs at home, and know deeply the joy and love they bring. Hooray for you!
Your friend in FL (even though we haven’t met =)) Kate
Yay Buddy and Lola!!! I remember seeing your pictures on Instagram when you first adopted him.. such a sad sight. But to see him bounding around playfully in your video is so heart warming 🙂 I absolutely agree that animals can teach us so much. My rescue greyhound Neve is my own personal furry guru. After a mental breakdown at 22, I quit my corporate job and adopted Neve. We built our new lives together, and have never looked back. She has taught me so much about healing, unconditional love, non judgement and being silly!!
You are such an inspiration to me on so many levels. That was the best animal adoption segment I’ve ever seen. I’ve been following you ever since you came on the scene, and share your books and name with everyone who needs you. The transformation in Buddy is so heart warming, and I hope he knows what a lucky pup he is to have you as a companion. Bless you for all you give back to such a needy world.
I love that you use your forum to advocate for adoption! And I adore your fur-babies, especially Lola. I run a Pit Bull Rescue in San Diego and am passionate about adoption and awareness. I don’t know how I missed the fact that that is a passion of yours as well. I guess I had just bucketed you into my health and nutrition bucket and not in my rescue and adoption bucket. Just another reason to love you. Thank you for sharing your video. I am going to share it on my FB page so everyone can see.
PLEASE SHARE THIS =Awesome Sharpei named Tonka… he has been in a kennel too long and needs someone to love him and give him a good home!!
Tonka (#499-14)
http://www.macspro.org/images/adoption/2014/Tonka1.jpg
Tonka, our gentle blind boy is scared in his new surroundings and misses having a family to be with. He really needs a foster or forever home.
http://www.macspro.org/adoptions.html#tonka
Love your story! Thank you for sharing the need for adoption with the world. We have adopted three pets (2 loving dogs and 1 loving cat!). They have changed our lives and expanded our hearts.
Beautiful Kris Carr! We are all connected, our Universe has so many great things at play and for me at this time, your video is a part of my dharma! My concise puppy tale is this:
My rescue Pitbull Terrier, Ruby, passed away due to an internally bleeding malignant tumor just two days after this past Christmas 🙁 Ruby was rescued by my love, Brian, who was volunteering for his local SPCA and was told she wouldn’t make it, just like you were told about your Buddy. Brian nursed our Ruby back to health and MORE until she became a gorgeous strong pup full of love and life and she lived 8 more years after that.
This winter has been the most difficult of my life, mourning our baby girl. Talk of rescuing another pup in need developed in our home, our depressingly quiet and dog-less home, this past Sunday. Welp, once we perused our local SPCA’s site, we found another Pitbull in need of rescuing that stole our hearts. Her name is Sky and she has been in the shelter for TWO YEARS!! She’s a 6 year old pup that people are reluctant to take home due to her age 🙁 We’re told people are interested in adopting puppies, not adult dogs. We saw her face online and immediately knew this was the best way to honor Ruby and do our duty as pup lovers and rescue another! We have met Sky in person and are completing the adoption process currently <3
I also thought you may like to read my FIRST EVER published article I submitted to Mind Body Green a few years ago entitled "12 Things I Learned From My Dog" that is ALL ABOUT RUBY! People can talk all day about feeling good adopting animals and I LOVE THAT but I loved even MORE that you mentioned what we can LEARN from our furry friends!! Ruby was my greatest teacher and in her honor I will mother many more animals in need <3 Here's my article below if any of you would like to give it a read 🙂
Sending LOVE and HUGS to all animal lovers on this thread and beyond!! Namaste <3
Thanks for giving Sky the chance she needed. She’s been waiting for her furever home and it seems like she’s found it in you. 🙂
“Senior” dogs are the best dogs. I am truly thankful for people who find the love for older dogs since they have just as much love to give as puppies (and are a whole lot less work)! My furbaby (also a pittie) was 5 when I brought her home. She’s 7 now and while her favorite thing to do is snuggle she can chase a tennis ball or a frisbee with the most energetic of puppies.
Alicia, I love that you brought up considering adopting an older dog. Our sweet pup was approximately 6 when we adopted her. She’s been with us for six years and is just a sweetie. We’re dealing with some older dog issues like stiffness and some deafness but we’ll be here for her as long as we can. Older dogs are wonderful companions too! <3