Tag Archives: Adoption

Hilde: One Special Shelter Dog Who Finally Found Her Dream Home

In the seven years since the new Aiken County Animal Shelter opened, thousands and thousands of dogs have passed through its doors. Dogs of every shape, size, age, condition, breed, and mix of breeds—we’ve seen them all. So, it’s unusual for a particular dog to be indelibly imprinted into my mind (other than my own […]

Christmas Miracle: Fate Brings Family and Dogs Together

Sometimes things happen that cannot be explained. My wife, Jennifer, and I recently experienced such an event. About 15 months ago we adopted Meadow, a white Pitbull mix, from the Aiken County Animal Shelter. We had just lost our favorite dog and wanted to honor him by adopting a dog from the shelter that nobody […]

Stray Dog Toby Escapes Hard-Knock Life to Become Cherished Family Member

Dogs living in animal shelters remind me of the iconic Broadway play, “Annie”. Early in the show, Annie and the other orphans sing, “It’s a hard-knock life.” With lyrics like “instead of kisses, we get kicked” you quickly learn that these girls, like shelter dogs, have experienced bad things in their lives but they still […]

Maggie’s Wagging Tail and Furry Face Are a Balm for Difficult Times

If it’s true miracles happen when they’re least expected, maybe it’s not so surprising what happened to a Pointer-mix named Maggie. How, with the whole world hijacked by the COVID crisis, she was rescued off the streets and brought into the Aiken County Animal Shelter. How she was then adopted by a 49-year-old fitness guru […]

Bonded Dog and Cat Saved After Owner Goes into Assisted Living

Everything fell apart for Fergus and George when their owner’s health deteriorated, forcing him to move into an assisted living facility. Broken-hearted, Robert Toole brought Fergus, a 2-year-old, tan Chihuahua, and George, an 11-year-old cream-colored cat, to the Aiken County Animal Shelter on Jan. 8 and tearfully said goodbye to his sweet pets. Since Robert […]

A FOTAS Love Story: Fate and the Redemptive Power of Love

This week’s story is one about serendipity—a series of coincidental and seemingly unrelated events and encounters that resulted in happy good fortune for a scared, abandoned dog and a man stricken by grief. Bryce Lingo, a resident of Delaware, is a frequent winter visitor in Aiken. An accomplished equestrian, Bryce travels from his farm in […]

County Shelter Emergency: Transfers Cancelled Due to COVID-19

As the coronavirus spreads throughout the United States, the ways in which our daily lives are affected become more apparent with each passing day. Shortages in household goods, widespread closing of public places, self-quarantine, and social distancing are becoming the norm in a world stricken by the pandemic. Now is the time to focus on […]

No More Tears: Hamilton’s a Happy Dog and Facebook Star

This is a story that began with a dog crying real tears when he was surrendered to the Aiken County Animal Shelter nearly a year ago. FOTAS Programs Coordinator Kathy Jacobs described the dog, Hank, and his reaction to being separated from his owner in this weekly column space on Feb. 24, 2019. “I saw […]

The Dog I Didn’t Want Might Just Be My Favorite

The oldest of our three dogs, Yoda, died in August from cancer. My wife, Jennifer, wanted to honor Yoda’s memory by adopting another dog from the shelter. I was against the idea. Our other two dogs (Beethoven and Buster) are great dogs, best buddies with established routines, and our pet ownership experience was on autopilot. […]

To Love and Be Loved by a Shelter Dog

Maggie wakes me up every morning. First, she nudges me with a paw—poke, pause, poke, pause. I groan, pull the covers over my face. She is resolute. Poke, poke, pause. She stretches her long, muscular body next to mine, licks my hand, sniffs the sheet over my face, nibbles my hair. I wave her away. […]