It is intriguing how folks end up rescuing their pets. Oft times it is from their own family when a relative passes, or a child heads off to college.
In Chris and Clarence’s case, they inherited their dog, sweet Sallie-Sue, a soft, white, furry Schnauzer/Poodle after their son’s apartment complex was destroyed by fire. He fled with his dog and the clothes on his back, had to find new lodging, but found it difficult to locate another rental that would accept a dog. He was afraid he would lose the dog and did not want to relinquish it to a shelter, so his parents came to mind. He flew Sallie-Sue 1,000 miles to their home to briefly
care for her while he regained financial footing.
“We bought him clothes and offered to keep the dog until he was ready for her,” said Chris. “It did not take long before everyone realized she had become our dog. Obviously, she is still with us.”
The couple may have inherited the dog, but a stray cat with a big heart adopted them all.
“Everyone wants a cat with all the best traits, but they are hard to find,” said Chris. “Ours found us! Clarence had built shelves on the corner of our enclosed patio for the feral cats to safely nest at night. The patio has two cat doors for them to come and go. One morning, Clarence went to put out their food and water and there was this new gorgeous black cat. The elegant long-haired feline looked at Clarence, dashed away, stopped, turned, and observed Clarence.”
“Hey ‘Buddy’, do you want to come back in?” invited Clarence. “To my surprise the cat did! I held out my hand for him to sniff, but instead he crawled up into my arms. ‘Wait until my wife sees you!’ I thought.”
When Chris arrived in the kitchen, she saw her husband wearing a big smile and a huge, black, Maine Coon cat!
“I reached for the cat, and he let me hold him like a baby,” said Chris. “Then he did the most amazing thing! He put his head on my shoulder, took his soft paw and turned my face towards him, looked deeply into my eyes, and licked my nose. Making Budd’s adoption officially complete!”
The couple was baffled as to where the cat had materialized from as none of their neighbors had a black kitty.
“While I held him, I knew in my heart, it was meant to be. He would be our inside cat,” confesses Chris. “We had Sallie-Sue and did not know how this would work out, but I had a flash of intuition that she and her new Buddy would. In no time at all our two pets were laying side by side grooming each other.”
Within two days, Budd had the food routine down pat. He watched the first day, and on the second, as Clarence sat down to give Sallie her treat, Budd lined up beside her.
The couple works from home and like most offices the staff joins in for coffee breaks, “When we take our coffee breaks, our animals think it is snack time and appear out of nowhere for their treats,” laughs Chris. “We have a gas fireplace and they both vie for the best warm spot. They lay side by side, their noses facing each other, their bodies in a V shape. It is cute watching them flip in unison, like pancakes to warm their other sides.”
