Oregon Friends of Shelter Animals

I adopted a kitten from the Tansaborne Petco, I think in June. I wanted a male, not black. A female, tuxedo - picked me and made it clear - I wanted her. She has not stopped being pushy with her affection and desire to be near. She greets us as we come home and tells us all about her day, sleeps in our beds, she knows she is totally adorable, even dog tolerates her playing with his tail as he wags affectionately. She climbs into the shower with us, plays on the patio as we BBQ dinner - well, I am saying I have never adopted a kitten before, but I am so glad she choice us and convinced me she was right. We are wrapped around her little white paws and can't imagine not having her. Thanks for the good work you. The adoption fee was worth every penny.

I just thought I would send you an email to tell you we were thinking of you the other day. The girls (who we are now calling Ginger and Mia) are doing really well. They are growing up so fast, I can’t believe it! Although they are filling out and getting taller, they still retain their kitten like mischievous playfulness and are very busy exploring the house and noticing the outside world of birds! The other day we had a cedar tree full of goldfinches and pine siskins and the girls went crazy. It was so loud, there must have been 75 birds in our tree!

They are curious and stealthy, which sometimes results in a large CRASH of something flying off a table or being knocked over. Always makes Chris and I laugh as they really rule the house now. J They seem quite content and talk to us a lot. They just received the third shot of the series and have won everyone over at the Laurelhurst Vet Hospital. They are VERY social indeed.

Needless to say we are enjoying them immensely and feel so fortunate to have them in our lives. I thought you would like some photos and I will keep you updated in the next few months. I hope you are well and please pass this note on to your sister.

We adopted Sooner (then called “Ali”) from OFOSA in March 2009. She was a 10-month-old heeler/Great Pyrenees mix flown in from Oklahoma (thus the name we gave her). According to her paperwork, she had been kept tied up outside with little human companionship.

Unsurprisingly, Sooner was poorly socialized. Yuki Marsh, her foster mom, noted in her journal that Sooner would tuck her tail between her legs and hide at the approach of strangers. Once she became attached to Yuki, she became over-protective. She was an escape artist, didn’t know any basic commands, and had lots of “accidents” inside the house. Yuki’s goal was to get her housebroken and relaxed enough with the people she knew to be adoptable.

We knew of Sooner through pictures and correspondence with Yuki, but finally met her at an OFOSA adoption event. We were sure we wanted her, even though she was too timid to go for a walk with us and we had to carry her to our car. Once we got her home, she bonded with us and soaked up all the love we could give. The downside was that as soon as she felt at home, she began to display the protectiveness that Yuki had noted—she would lunge and bark at strangers and even at people she already knew.

We enrolled her in a class called “Off-leash reliability and maneuverability” given through Portland Community College. The trainer, Doug Duncan from “Doggy Business” in Portland, introduced us to positive reinforcement techniques. Sooner responded so well to that approach that we asked Doug to help us with her over-protectiveness. She had not bitten anyone, but we were nervous that she might.

After a short evaluation, Doug diagnosed “fear aggression.” He recommended reconditioning to reorient her feelings toward strangers, not just to control her behavior. Using pieces of cooked chicken, he demonstrated the technique by tossing these “high value” treats to her while ignoring her. Then he offered her treats from his hand while gently scratching her under the chin. He never looked at her or tried to “make friends.” He instructed us to have visitors do the same. Visitors were to be associated with treats from us or from them, without any demands. He told us to expect slow progress with an occasional backslide, but urged us to just stay with it. He said that with time and patience, it would pay off.

It worked. Sooner has become a confident and happy dog. She greets strangers calmly and has developed lots of human friends outside our family. She knows all her basic commands and hand signals. She loves to go hiking and swimming, to the beach and to the farmer’s market.

On December 17, Sooner passed the AKC “Canine Good Citizen” test—a milestone for a former un-socialized fear-barker. She starts foundation agility in January.

Thank you, OFOSA, for giving this fantastic dog a second chance. Thank you, Yuki, for doing the difficult early socialization and housebreaking. We love this dog more than words can say, and we can’t imagine life without her.

This is a great story and a wonderful family for adopting such a courageous dog. Neele was born 100% blind at birth.

Neele is a great addition to our family! We just wanted to let you know he has settled in just great, he loves to sit on the couch with us and has already visited Mt. Tabor and Laurelhurst, he does great on long walks too!

Thanks for all the hard work you do and for rescuing wonderful dogs like Neele!

I want to thank you so much for rescuing me and keeping me safe in a foster home so that I could live and find a new human mom and dad. My name is Snow and on August 25th I was united with my new human family.
I live with them in Portland, OR in a home with a nice fenced yard. I get to go out side when ever I want; all I have to do is ask. My mom is a hair dresser and hospice nursing assistant and works outside of our home, but I get to see her every day and we spend lots of time together learning, playing and snuggling. My dad is retired and home most of the time so I don’t have to be alone a very much, which I like.
My mom takes me for walks every morning and my dad takes me every afternoon, sometimes all three of us go in the evening. My parents want to be the best dog parents they can be so they are taking some classes from the dog whisperer on line and reading some books. They are both very patient and kind, I am learning a lot. My mom tells dad that I am teaching her too.
I love them both very much and especially my mom. I follow her around all the time. My mom and dad have no human kids at home but they do have grown ones with kids of there own. I really like them and enjoy when they come and visit.
I have my own room but only spend time in there when mom and dad are gone, which is not very much, and if I want to go in there and relax I do. I am so happy here at my new home and am adjusting quickly to my new environment. Things are really different and they feel really good.
I have attached some pictures for you to see how well and happy I am doing, aren’t my parents beautiful….. Just like me. Well I guess that is all I wanted to say. I really just wanted to thank you for rescuing me and thank Angie for being a foster mom so that doggies like me have a nice place to stay until we find new human parents.

HI Linda!

It was so nice of your husband to meet us on Saturday with William.
We really appreciate it and all of your time, energy, advice, and care you gave William.
He is the best cat ever! He has been so sweet....very cuddly and loves to play. He is also really well-behaved for a kitten. We are just loving having him. Thank you so much for all you do.

Thanks!
Vanessa

Just wanted to let you know that we all made it home safely. He traveled very well, eating, purring, and sleeping all the way in the back seat with Irina.

We were driving back thinking of names, and I was thinking how great this return trip was, and thought .......'This feels like coming home from a winning trip to Las Vegas', and thus, the name "VEGAS" was added to our list and ultimately chosen. Literally translated it means 'meadows', and was given for the golden brown sand and sagebrush of that area, which matches his color, and the energy & fun in his character.

It's fun to have a kitten back in the house and one remembers all the important details of having a young cat around like...'Protect Your Toes While You Are Sleeping' since any slight movement prompts a quick pounce onto anything moving.

Thank you so much for introducing us to this super cool little guy, and also for what you do for all of them.

Kindest Regards,
Steve, Irina, & Vegas

Hello Yuki, Trish, and Shirley,

I want to thank you all for helping us to adopt Rocko. I've attached a photo of him with our kids. He has been with us almost a month now and he fits our family great. He is so good with our children and they just love him. He's playful with them but also is amazingly patient. He's even been on vacation with us, flying in a small plane and riding on a boat. I can't say he enjoyed the plane and the boat but like with a car he sat patiently until it was all over! He's been so good in our house
too. We are working on "come" when he's outside off-leash but that's really our only thing to work on.

You and your volunteers are amazing and I'm so grateful that folks like you are willing to give a dog from Pasco a chance to find his way to our family. What a blessing he has been.

Sincerely,

Paula, Brian, Alex, Rachel, Elissa & Rocko Brown

Dear OFOSA volunteers,

Recently, in November, we adopted a little dog we call Joey. He is a wonderful and trainable sweetheart that we love dearly. We want to thank you all for the great work you do. We only had the privilege to speak to a few of you on the phone, Jeanette Houston, Cathy ( president of OFOSA), and Carol (at the time of our adoption helped us sign the papers for Joe) When we adopted him, then Jacque, he was very thin. We are happy to say he has gained four pounds and filled out in his little body. He is also star in his dog obedience class. We cherish our little boy and wanted to tell you how well things are working out. Attached is a picture, three months later after his adoption. We also hope to become involved in your activities when we have more free time to enjoy the events and possibly make a contribution.

Whenever anyone asks where I got such a adorable dog, I use this as an opportunity to tell them about OFOSA and the visible contribution you have made in the life of animals. We are spreading the word.

Thank you for all that you do!
We would also like to purchase a tee shirt if you have them to wear your name and alert attention.

Susan and Craig Siegel

Dear OFOSA,

I decided it was time to e-mail Chalupa's picture since it's been a year since we adopted her! (Her name was bubbles)

She's been a sweet little baby to us. She loves to play, sleep with mommy, and sometimes digging the carpet... We are so happy to have her. Just wanted to let you know she is been healthy and in a good care.

Hopefully more people are willing to help dogs and cats which need new homes.

Thank you,
Aoi

Rusty, to you, 'BC' to us, is taking to the house and his environs like
'gangbusters'. We did manage to get home today for a few hours to 'meet'
him. He is great. He's very playful and has really taken to our grandson,
Joey. I'm attaching a picture that I took today. He is the 'lankiest'
Siamese we've ever had. He's built more like a 'real' Siamese. You can see
my wife's hand holding a piece of bread so he would look up. He was more
interested in eating.

Once again, thank you so much for your help. We were getting a little
dispirited in our search. You made it easy.

Mike & Pat Parke

Dear momma Marilyn and daddy Steve,

Thank you for giving me to my new mom and dad! Life as a Roth is so fun! I was given time to sniff, run, play, climb and do all the things you guys let me do! They give me food and the same fun snack that momma gave me every night. They also have lots of fun toys to play with and wow....I have a big sister too...Maggie. She didn't seem to like me too much the first day, but she is getting to be a good pal. She helped me clean my head this afternoon and she is making sure I stay out of trouble. She plays with me a little now and has even let me stay with her for nap time on the "big bed" during the day. I seem to have found my way around and every night I have a nice new condo to sleep in where I can see all around the room from the penthouse bed! I sometimes get lost and don't know where I am, but my new mom and dad just call me by that same name that momma Marilyn gave me. My new mom says she likes it because I am "sweet like a gingersnap"...whatever that means! Well, I have to get back to my playtime. Tell Jet I will miss him, but I know that he will have just as much fun in his new home.

Love,

Ginger

Just wanted to thank you again for the work you do. We have had Finnegan for 1 1/2 years now and love him so much. He just passed his certification for HOPE Crisis Response Animal Assisted Therapy and will now be able to go on call outs to situations similar to Hurricane Katrina situations, where you saved him.

He has had his Animal Assisted Activities certification through Dove Lewis for the past year and has been doing Read to the Dogs at our Wilsonville
Library, so this new certification takes him one step further.

Again, thank you for a wonderful, incredible dog who is now able to give back to people in crisis situations because of your rescue of him in his time of crisis! Finnegan is definitely one of your success stories. Attached is a picture of him and my niece.

Jill Mohr

Wanted you to know that Cali has settled in and is totally comfortable with everyone. She is not shy at all anymore and goes to anyone that walks in the door. She jumps up on the couch and walks onto anyone sittings lap to say hello, give them a few kisses, but ends up on Chasen’s to stay. She loves her Chasen. She does not have any temper anymore, except when she is shaking one of her toys :>). She will let Chasen take anything out of her mouth (yes she picks up the strangest things and walked around with them in her mouth). She takes turns sleeping with me and Chasen, just crawls under the cover and snoozes away. She spends her days with the other dogs running in and out of the dog door (she learned to use it in one day because she wanted to be with the other dogs). She loves to chase shadows around the walls, too cute.

We love her and she has brought us lots of joy and laughter.

Thanks,

Alisa Berkland

Hi,

Just a quick note to let you all know that Benny is doing fabulous!
He is such an amazingly special, loving, and well-mannered dog. He became quickly attached to my daughter, and he stays by her side all day and even cuddles with her in bed at night (his choice). They're adorable to watch together. My husband and I also adore him and can't believe how quickly he's fit into the family. We took him for his vet visit today, and he's healing well from his "snipping" and appears healthy.

Thank you for rescuing him for us.

-Phoebe O'Leary

I'm 99% sure that Emmett is the best dog in the universe. I could not love him more. Since the day I took him home, he has been nothing but polite, sweet, gentle, and heart wrenchingly cute to everyone he meets. At home he is calm and quiet, and friendly to the cats, sometimes even deferential to them--I have even seen them boss him away from his food bowl so they can snack from it, and he just steps back and watches. Every day we take a walk; he's great on leash and likes to romp with the neighborhood dogs in Arbor Lodge park down the street from my house. We also usually go out to a dog park or other open space (the Sandy River, Kelly Point Park, etc.) with his dog friends--my friends and I have altogether a pack of 5 or 6 dogs, and Emmett loves playing with everyone. He is so happy bounding through the fields, whether chasing or just for the pure joy of it, with a huge smile on his face and his tongue hanging out. We also spend time pretty much every day hanging out with his best dog friend Tobey, a German Wirehaired Pointer.
They like to lie around and chew bones together, and fall asleep curled up.

I took Emmett to obedience class at Happy-Go-Lucky in October, and he passed with flying colors. He's still a little slow to get in the car, but he has overcome his fear of them, and now the only thing that seems to consistently concern him is when the heat comes on. He gets a very worried look on his face when the vents start blowing that hot air.

He has graduated from his crate, though he still likes to hang out in it, and can be home alone now. He also now gets to jump up and sleep in the bed with me--he tends to curl up next to me with his head on the pillow, and likes to roll over for a morning belly scratch when we wake up.

Anyway, I just love him to death, and I want thank you for giving him such a good start and for giving me me the little nudge I needed to give him a chance. He's curled up next to me on the couch with his head resting on my arm as I write this. I'm just going to assume he would like to say hi and thanks to you as well.

Best regards and Happy New Year,

Just a quick note to let you know things are going very well. As you can see, Holly and Hogan are becoming fast friends; this was taken 24 hours after arrival! She is exploring a little more each day, but loves the safety of the bathroom – home base. We got her a fuzzy tunnel which has a hole in the middle and she snuggles in that for her naps, but the carrier is her secure place when needed. She is starting to show her “other” personality, especially in the evening – boy can she move! I have noticed that when I stand up and come after her (like when she’s on the kitchen table) she seems frightened and runs to her safe place. Do you suspect she was chased a lot? It’s becoming less of a problem daily so I guess I won’t be concerned.

Happy New Year,

Kathy King

Spencer was a scared 11wk. old puppy that you rescued during Hurricane Katrina and brought to Portland. I adopted him the week before Christmas, 2005. He is the absolute joy in my life and I wanted you to see a few pictures of him as he celebrated his first birthday!

Thanks for all you do!

Pamela Maxwell

I just wanted to let you know that we couldn't be happier with Oslo. He is a perfect match for our family. He has been very respectful of our cat and keeping our little Fifa delirious with play! What a great snuggler too! We are already in love. Thank you for helping to build our happy home.

Jen & Neil