Dusty (and HEA) say thanks!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! My name is Dusty. I'm a handsome boy, don't you think? I'm an Austrailian cattle dog, and my friends at Happily Ever After think I'm about 2 years old. The reason they don't know for sure is because I came to them from the Sage & Thyme Ranch - a not-very-nice place down in Cazenovia that had way too many animals that got way too little attention. So nobody knew too much about any of us.

I've been at HEA since May, and life was a LOT more fun there! However, even after being at a wonderful place like HEA for 6 months (and getting lots of love from the staff and volunteers), I am still pretty shy. So Amanda, the president, thought it would be good for me to spend some time in a real home to get me more used to living with a family. She said that would increase my chances of being adopted into the perfect family someday soon.

So on Nov. 14, I moved in with a really neat family in Lena. Amanda and Jeremy take super good care of me! They let me stay in my kennel most of the time, which is where I feel most comfortable, but I've come a long way in 12 days. I'm letting them scratch my belly, and I venture out more often to sniff them and let them pet me. I'm walking pretty good on a leash for them, too. I am also starting to become good buddies with their other dogs - especially Mordy, their German shepherd. You can see a few pictures of me in my new foster home above.

Since it's Thanksgiving Day, I wanted to say thanks to a whole bunch of people who have made a difference in my life this year. First, to the folks who rescued me and my friends from Sage & Thyme. Then of course to Amanda, Ken and the other AWESOME volunteers and caregivers at HEA. And now to Amanda and Jeremy for being such wonderful foster parents.

And Amanda asked me to pass along her appreciation to EVERYONE who helps and supports HEA day-in and day-out. Success stories like mine wouldn't be possible without you!

Have a great Turkey Day!

Love,

Dusty

Remembering Panda...

We have some sad news to share today. One of our beloved HEA alum, Panda, passed away last weekend after she was hit by a car.

Panda was a German shorthair pointer/pit/boxer mix. Born on Sept. 27, 2006, she came to Happily Ever After in March 2008 and was with us for only four months before being adopted to Ed and Renee Brown of Green Bay. Even though she was at the Sanctuary for a relatively short period of time, she definitely had the staff and volunteers wrapped around her little paw! Whatever Panda wanted, Panda got! We hear she was able to do the same thing with her beloved family.

Panda adored Ed, Renee, their daughter and their other dog. In turn, they adored her and never gave up on her. In fact, Panda died in Renee's arms as they frantically tried to reach the emergency vet after her accident.

Our hearts go out to Ed and Renee, but in the spirit of thanksgiving, we'd like to thank your family for showing sweet Panda what true love and family is! She will be watching over you this holiday and many others!

Another busy weekend for HEA!

Lots of news to share again today. First and foremost, thanks to all who helped out over this past weekend. We held our latest and greatest low-cost spay/neuter clinic on Saturday, Nov. 14 at both the Animal House in Green Bay and the Animal Hospital of De Pere. In total, 22 dogs and 36 cats were "fixed" in that one day by the fantastic vets at both clinics. Our hats are off to them - and the volunteers who registered and checked in all these animals! We are also grateful to the caring pet parents who brought their furry children in for this important procedure. (If you or someone you know could benefit from a low-cost spay/neuter clinic, please watch our web site for the next date. We'll post it as soon as we know it!)

But that wasn't all we did this weekend. No, sir! HEA also participated in PetSmart's Holiday Adoption event, which ran from 11-3 both Saturday and Sunday. Several animals - including those shown above: Spook the black cat and Dunkin the standard poodle - met their forever families at this event. Be sure to check out our Facebook page to see pics and learn more about other recent adoptees.

This upcoming weekend will be fun, too! HEA will participate in the Green Bay Holiday Parade on Saturday, Nov. 21. Come watch the parade in downtown Green Bay to cheer us on! Then on Sunday, consider coming out to the Sanctuary in Marion for dog spa day. We'll need lots of help to bathe, brush and walk the dogs. They also need their rooms cleaned! If you're interested, e-mail HEA's volunteer coordinator at erinelliott@hotmail.com.

Thanks, as always, for your interest and support!

Hiss & Howl 2009: In Pictures!

Pictures from last month's Hiss & Howl Halloween Hullabaloo are now posted to the HEA website. Click here to relive the day. Enjoy!

More adoptions!!

It's a beautiful day here at Happily Ever After - and it's not just the warm weather that has us smiling. Several more critters found forever homes in the last few days.

Two sweet cats, Lulu and Abbott, got adopted by the same family! (Lulu is the gray and white cat seen walking the halls above; Abbott is the striped guy looking out at you from his perch.) They are now living with a nice couple in Green Bay.

HEA volunteer Tammi Kitzman, husband Kurt and daughter McKenna are the lucky folks who added Elvis the dog to their family! We hear he's adjusting well - and you can tell he already LOVES Tammi!

And a happy ending for our Baby the black cat! Her family had to surrender her more than a year ago when she was being attached by one of their other cats. But when the other kitty recently passed away due to health problems, they were able to bring Baby back home. Yay!

Don't you just love happily ever afters like these?! We do! Happy Monday, everyone...

Welcome Athena, Shep, Zoko, Mia and Shandi!

Yesterday we told you about 12 faces that left Happily Ever After in the past couple weeks to go to their forever homes. Today, we'll tell you about 5 new faces to the Sanctuary. Meet Athena, Shep, Zoko, Mia and Shandi.

Athena (top picture) is a beautiful girl! She's a wonderful mix of American bulldog, boxer and pit bull terrier. She came to HEA from a shelter in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Shep, a shepherd mix that's shown below Athena, has already gotten rave reviews from folks at the Sanctuary. This boy came from Cedar Rapids, too.

Zoko is a Doberman Pinscher mix (pictured below Shep) who was a stray in Iowa. He was in a shelter for 94 days. His time was nearly up, but his lucky day came when HEA came to get him!

Mia (pictured below Zoko) is a lab mix, surrendered to HEA and said to have a fear of strangers and dogs. But since she's been here, she LOVES people and plays with 10 other dogs every day. Clearly we don't see these issues!

Last but not least is Shandi, a pitbull terrier who was a stray from Cedar Rapids before spendng time in a foster home. But when her foster mom began having health issues, she had to surrender her to a shelter. When it looked like she might be put down, HEA saved the day.

Come out and say hi to these great dogs! They'd sure love to go home with you. :)

More Happy Tails...recent adoptees!

We certainly have had a busy couple of weeks at Happily Ever After! Of course, our Hiss & Howl event was just 10 days ago (pics coming soon!), but we've had lots of critters go home to their forever families lately, too. Chenielle, the beautiful short-hair cat perched above, was adopted by a retired couple who just moved to Green Bay from out-of-state. She'll certainly help them feel at home and welcome in our area! Rocky the rottweiler is now happy at home with a very nice man who lives in Veroqua. Molly, a husky mix, was adopted by a young couple from Clintonville. And sweet Suzie - who looks to be leaping up at you in the picture above! - has an adventurous life ahead of her with a photographer couple who live part-time in both Wisconsin and Florida...but travel to all different states for dog and horse shows! Suzie will go along, of course. :)

We couldn't fit any more pictures in this post, but please read on to learn about 8 more animals who've become HEA alumni. And then visit our Facebook page to see pics of ALL these guys!

We were very happy to see Diamond (she's the cat in the fuzzy close-up shot) and Salem (the black cat lounging in a cat house) go home to a couple in Green Bay. Diamond and Salem are brother and sister and about 15 years old.

And five animals went home as a result of our special Howl-a-Ween adoption event last Saturday. Sandy, the little French poodle, was scooped up by a retired couple from Green Bay. We hear Rosie, the little black dog, is adjusting quite well to her new home with a woman in Appleton (who first fell in love with her at the Hiss & Howl event!). Bea, the little white dog, is now living in Oconto with a woman and her dad. Dogee - pictured playing with a ball - went home to Howard with a very nice family. And Terry the cat (no picture available...) was adopted by a young family in Pulaski whose three kids who all want to hold Terry all the time!!

Also, Cleo - the gorgeous little French bulldog - is loving life with Jamie, a dog trainer at the Animal House Groom & Board.

Congrats to all these lucky dogs, cats and people!!