Author Archives: Bob Gordon

2022, Cats, Foster, fostering, kittens, Volunteer

Kitten fostering: You don’t need lots of space or time to save lives

Posted on by Bob Gordon
09
Sep

With kitten season still going strong in September, the need for fosters is as great as ever. The Aiken County Animal Shelter is about to be overloaded with feline babes who need temporary care and assistance from county citizens.

While the Shelter provides all the care it can – and dedicated staff members even take kittens to their own homes for fostering – the influx of orphaned kittens is too much to handle for any shelter facility.

“The value of socialization is huge because everyone wants a confident, friendly kitten,” said Hillary Clark-Kulis, the shelter’s adoption coordinator. “Even if you have just fifteen minutes in the morning and fifteen minutes in the evening to spend with the kittens, that’s three times more socialization than they’ll receive at the shelter.”

The one-on-one time kittens receive in loving foster homes is vital because it better ensures they are well-prepared for adoption. However, we ask fosters to care for kittens only until they are two pounds, which takes anywhere from two to four-weeks.

Desiree VanZanten says fostering kittens looks harder than it really is.

“I love being able to watch them grow and develop, and know that I’m helping out the shelter” said Desiree VanZanten, who has been fostering kittens with her wife, Gretchen, for seven years. “Bonding with them and watching their personalities develop is like planting seeds and watching them grow and bloom.”

Becoming a kitten foster is simple. Just come to the shelter at 333 Wire Road in Aiken and fill out a foster application. Once you’re approved, we’ll get you started and provide you with the needed resources and support.

“Fostering kittens is one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done in my life,” said Cherylece Wiggins, who took in her first litter four years ago. “It’s not difficult or labor intensive, but it’s so gratifying to help these babies get good homes. All you have to do is give them love!”

While fostering kittens might seem like a lot of work, it is usually just a matter of feeding them, petting and playing with them, and cleaning their kitty litter box. Unless they are bottle babies (four weeks old or younger), kittens don’t require hours of your time. You don’t need a big space either –even a blanket on the bathroom floor will do.

FOTAS Bookkeeper Carol Miller and her husband, Mike, have been fostering kittens for eight years with the help of their own dogs and cats. The dogs like to take them under their wing and clean them while their cats enjoy teaching the babies how to play.

Carol Miller has been fostering kittens for eight years and loves it.
Carol Miller has been fostering kittens for eight years and loves it.

“It’s a lot of fun to see the kittens progress and start having a blast running around and playing with each other,” Carol said. “When everything is so depressing with world events, inflation and other bad news, I find spending time with the foster kittens helps me relax and forget about all the negative stuff.”

For more information about fostering kittens and other shelter animals, please call (803) 642-1537, option 3 or send an email to info@fotasaiken.org.

Their lives are in our hands.

By Bob Gordon, FOTAS Communications Director

2022, Adoption, SOCIAL MEDIA, Volunteer

Share a Post, Save a Life!

Posted on by Bob Gordon
05
Aug

Every homeless pet has at least one person or family out there who is their perfect match. The person who will love and give that pet a wonderful life. The family that sees that homeless animal and instantly knows it is their pet of destiny.

The challenge for shelters, like ours, is finding and reaching those people, so we can effectively introduce them to their ideal pet. It is a difficult task. How can we get the faces and stories of these animals seen by the folks who want to adopt them? Well, luckily, we can achieve this goal through the power and tools of social media. But only with your help.

Every day we post photos and stories about the County Shelter’s adoptable dogs and cats on our FOTAS Facebook and Instagram pages, hoping to reach as many people as possible who are looking to add a furry friend to their home. But the number of people we reach with each post depends on how many people share it with their network of friends.

If everybody shared our Facebook and Instagram posts about adoptable pets, it would greatly expand our audience, helping us to reach more people who might be “the one” to adopt the pet being promoted.

Just one click can make all the difference — Share a Post, Save a Life

There is no better way than social media to promote the shelter’s adoptable pets to a vast yet targeted audience. Just one “like” or “share” can reach hundreds, if not thousands, of people in a way that grassroots promotion cannot. Last month on Facebook, our posts reached well over 300,000 people.

Thanks to our social media, people have come from all over the United States to adopt pets from the County Shelter. Folks have traveled from such regions as Texas, Chicago, Massachusetts and even Europe to pick up dogs and cats that they saw on our social media.

It helps us reach even more people when FOTAS volunteers, like Martha Anne Tudor, already have thousands of Facebook friends and she posts or shares a post about one of our adoptable pets. Her posts have helped the shelter adopt out more than a thousand dogs and cats. She usually promotes the pets that need extra tender loving care, like a sad and badly neglected dog named Kai, whose post was shared nearly 70,000 times around the world. Or Wink, a one-eyed dog, who desperately needed a home and was adopted by a woman in Nantucket. She flew to Aiken and took him home, where he’s enjoying the good life. Then there was Dante, a puppy with a life-threatening birth defect. Her post about the sick pup helped to get him adopted and he’s now cured and doing great with his family in Aiken.

We would love it if you’d join us

So, if you follow the FOTAS Facebook and our Instagram pages, be sure to “like” and “share” our posts. It just takes one click with your finger and could save a shelter animal’s life. If you don’t follow our social media, please do so. We’d love to have you join us in our mission to find loving homes for all of the County Shelter’s adoptable pets.

Their lives are in our hands.

By Bob Gordon, FOTAS Communications Director

2022, Adoption, Cats, FIV positive felines

FIV positive cats can live long, happy lives

Posted on by Bob Gordon
FIV positive cat Tuxedo Bogartis hoping to be adopted soon.
22
Jul

The Aiken County Animal Shelter has two wonderful cats available for adoption – Bogart and Creampuff – who have been waiting way too long for their forever homes.

Cream Puff, FIV+, hoping to be adopted soon.Bogart is a 13-pound Tuxedo and Cream Puff is an 8-pound, orange and white Tabby. These felines arrived at the shelter as strays more than two months ago. Both are four years old, handsome and sweet. And both are FIV positive (FIV+).

FIV stands for Feline Immunodeficiency Virus, a condition that weakens a cat’s immune system. Misconceptions about the disease persist, but here are the facts:

  • FIV is not as highly contagious as experts once thought. It can only be transmitted through blood transfusions or deep bite wounds. Other cats cannot get FIV through casual contact with an FIV + cat. Saliva does not transmit FIV.
  • Most FIV+ cats live long, healthy lives, and many never show any symptoms of the virus. As long as they are not exposed to any other virus or bacteria that their weakened immune system can’t handle, they can live happy, normal lives. Cats with FIV just need to be kept indoors and fed a balanced, nutritionally complete diet. With proper vet care, most FIV+ cats live as long as their indoor counterparts (13-18 years), and much longer than cats who live outdoors (3-8 years).
  • FIV is a species-specific disease. It cannot be transmitted to humans or any other animal.

Despite these reassuring facts, FIV positive cats, like Bogart and Cream Puff, continue to be passed over by potential adopters. But please keep in mind that these terrific cats can bring immense joy and companionship to you and your family. They need love, too.

Empty the Shelter event continues through July 30
th

With the support of the BISSELL Pet Foundation, FOTAS and the Aiken County Animal Shelter are hosting a special “Empty the Shelter” event through this Saturday, July 30. The event features reduced adoption fees for pets (dogs/pups are $25, cats/kittens just $10) and fees for many dogs will even be waived during this promotion.

Their lives are in our hands.

By Bob Gordon, FOTAS Communications Director

2022, Adoption, Volunteer

The long, hot, busy dog days of Summer

Posted on by Bob Gordon
15
Jul

The summer months are nerve-wracking at the Aiken County Animal Shelter, and this summer is no exception. Dogs are doubled and tripled-up in the kennels due to extraordinarily high owner-surrenders. We recently heard a shelter in Georgia is euthanizing adoptable animals because they ran out of space. That is our constant nightmare, but FOTAS volunteers and shelter staff are working double-time to avoid that outcome in Aiken.

Last Saturday began at 9:00 a.m. with the monthly FOTAS-sponsored pet food assistance drive. Cars were already lined up before we opened, and by 10 a.m., FOTAS had supplied food for more than 100 pets whose owners simply needed a little help. No owner should ever have to surrender their pet to the shelter because they can’t afford food—not if we can help it.

At 10:00 a.m., our “Dog Ears Listening” event began, which FOTAS sponsors with the Aiken County Library. Young school-age children come to the shelter with their parents and read to the dogs in kennels. It’s amazing how quiet the dogs get as the children read to them. I’m not sure who enjoys the event more: the kids, the dogs, the parents, or the FOTAS volunteers who supervise the program.

Simultaneously, in the outside yards, staff and volunteers were managing play groups of selected dogs as part of our “Dogs Playing for Life” program. Dogs are social animals, and this play time is critical for their physical and mental health, and a happy, relaxed dog is a more attractive adoption prospect.

After play groups wrapped up, the obedience training began, where volunteers, under the guidance of trainer Jennifer Jotblad, teach the dogs basic commands to make them more adoptable. Dogs who have been at the shelter the longest get the most attention. One such dog, Lady, has become a star. Volunteer Malia Koelker takes Lady in her car for doggie-day outings, taking her to Hopeland Gardens and treating her to chicken nuggets at McDonalds. Lady loves the car and next week, if she is not adopted, will go to an offsite adoption event at Dover Saddlery.

At 11:00 the shelter doors officially open for adoptions. The shelter is participating in the “Pick Me” South Carolina adoption event, where shelters across the state waive or reduce adoption fees. I was pleased to see potential adopters come through the door. It also made my day to see a new foster pick up a dog—we always need more fosters.

Then a good Samaritan pulled up with two dogs he found on the street. Both dogs were microchipped, and the kind gentleman agreed to drive the dogs to home. Love those happy endings!

I then had the pleasure of catching up with volunteer Joanne Goble. Joanne had moved to Maryland in 2020 to be close to her family. Although she loved Maryland, she loved volunteering for FOTAS even more. She recently moved back to Aiken and has resumed her volunteer duties at the shelter. How cool is that?

FOTAS and the county staff are working overtime during these hot days to make sure no adoptable animal must be euthanized on our watch, but we need your help. Please adopt, volunteer, foster, and donate.
Their lives are in our hands.

By Jennifer Miller, FOTAS President

2022, Adoption, Dogs

We found our new best friend at the Aiken County Shelter

Posted on by Bob Gordon
07
Jul

Last May, I received a diagnosis that would require either arthroscopic or replacement surgery to correct. I knew it in my heart when I had to give up jogging due to the pain, but now it was named and clouds of gloom filled the not-so-distant future. I reluctantly forfeited my other sports and bitterly sold my riding horse and trailer. When my retired senior horse had to be put down, my bruised heart felt the loss even more keenly when stacked upon all the others. 

My sweet and supportive fiancé Jeremy suggested that we not wait for joy to find us, but hunt the elusive spirit down. What about getting a dog?


Well… I would be working from home more. We did have a fine fenced backyard. Our cats would adjust, wouldn’t they?

It was never a question: we would adopt. The shelters and rescues are overwhelmed with unwanted animals. Both of us had fond memories of family dogs in our homes when we were kids, but neither of us had owned or trained a dog as an adult. We would be ill equipped to handle a dog with significant emotional or physical health problems, but we trusted the staff at the Aiken County Shelter to guide us.

We were drawn to Jeter because of his friendly doggy grin and direct gaze at the camera in his photo on their website. He was clearly part Pit Bull with his beautiful brindle color and boxy head. He was two years old, an ideal age for us because he was housebroken and trained to walk on a leash, but still had youthful puppy-like energy.

When we met him at the shelter, Jeter leapt into Jeremy’s lap like he was a long-lost friend. I knew we had found “our” dog. No way could we send him back to his kennel! He was coming home with us, and his enthusiasm was a balm for my beleaguered spirit.

Once home, he took on the job of looking after us both, following Jeremy from room to room and then dashing off to quickly check on my whereabouts if I wasn’t in his line of sight. He was very affectionate, hardly barked, and happily slept in a crate. He snuggled endearingly with both of us, a 66-pound lapdog.

Our big concern was how he and our two cats would coexist. The shelter sent us home with instructions for introducing new dogs to resident cats. We followed them very carefully and so far have been successful with controlled interactions with minimal stress.

“Jeter” has a new name, Atticus, and we have a house that’s a little messier, but our hearts are more joyful. While horses and cats have always been our main companions, “Atti” has been teaching us the wisdom of the saying, “Dogs are man’s best friend,” and it’s clear how much we needed each other.

Written by Kendra DeKay with Jeremy McCoy

FOTAS note: The shelter is over capacity and there are so many more wonderful dogs at the County Shelter who desperately need loving homes. Like Jeter, they just need a chance to prove what great companions they can be. All this week – through Saturday, July 17 – we will be participating in a statewide adoption event called Pick Me! SC. During this period, the shelter will offer significant discounts and, in many instances, waive adoption fees.

2022, Adoption, Doggie Day Out, Volunteer

Doggie daters needed now more than ever at the County Shelter

Posted on by Bob Gordon
02
Jul

When the County shelter is full, as it has been most of this spring and early summer, the stress level for the dogs rises considerably. The adoption floor is louder with barks and howls, and the dogs become amped up, needing to relieve their anxiety by going on more walks, running in the play yard or spending quality quiet time on the couch with a volunteer.

But even these on-site activities don’t allow them to find complete relief from the pressure of living among so many other confused and scared homeless pets. They crave a brief escape. They need to get out of Dodge. See new sites. Meet new people.

How? By going on a date with a County resident.

Krysta Buchholz and her young son took seven-year-old, 60-pound mixed breed Gwyneth out on a date and took selfies and other photos to post on Facebook

Krysta Buchholz with Gwyneth during her Doggie Day Out.

“We had a fun doggie date!” Buchholz said. “She was promised snow cones but Pelican’s was way too busy, so we opted for a nature walk! It was a little difficult getting her in and out of the car, but overall she did well! “

Tiffany Stapleton and her young son, Brooks also enjoyed their separate dates with shelter dogs Scout and Lex.

“I read about FOTAS Doggie Days Out online and thought it would be great for the kids and a way to help out,” Stapleton said. “We took Lex out to Citizens Park and then to Chick-fil-A for lunch.” Early on, the six-year-old Retriever mix, hopped from the back seat to the front seat, excited but unsure of what to do in a car. But by the time they made their return to the shelter, Lex was more relaxed and cozied up to Brooks in the back seat.

“I think the program is very valuable to the dogs and teaches the kids responsibility and patience,” Stapleton added. “It also exposes the dogs to new experiences and social situations, which prepares them for their eventual home.”

The dogs always come back from their Doggie Dates happier and more relaxed. They often go back to their kennels exhausted and ready to get some much-needed sleep.

If you can help by taking a dog on a day out or even a sleepover, stop by the shelter, 333 Wire Road, or call 803.642.1537, option 3. It’s fun, easy and gives the dogs the break they need!

Their lives are in our hands.

– By Bob Gordon, FOTAS Communications Director

2022, Adoption, FOTAS, Have a Heart, Save a Heart, Heartworms

FOTAS heartworm treatment program saves shelter dog lives

Posted on by Bob Gordon
Heartworm positive dog Stevie Licks is loving her new home and family.
07
Apr

April is National Heartworm Awareness Month, a time to improve knowledge of heartworm disease and promote early diagnosis and treatment.

Heartworm is only contracted through the bite of an infected mosquito; therefore, an infected dog cannot transmit the disease to either people or other pets. However, because infected mosquitoes can come inside, be aware that indoor pets are also at risk.

Heartworm positive Gage and his new dad.

The FOTAS “Have a Heart, Save a Heart” program provides treatment for our adoptable dogs infected with heartworms. Since we launched the program, we have saved more than 1,000 dogs that tested positive for heartworms but were otherwise healthy and adoptable.

Unfortunately, heartworm infection is common in this area. The warmer weather makes dogs more susceptible to being bitten by mosquitos and the infection getting transferred into their bloodstream and heart. It is easily prevented with prescribed monthly chewable pills, but you only have to miss one month to make your dog vulnerable to infection. Heartworm disease is very curable but the medication for treating it is not cheap. That’s why giving your dog monthly heartworm preventative is so important.

Of course, when a dog is neglected or surviving on the streets as a stray, preventative isn’t available to the animal. So, many of the dogs that arrive at the Aiken County Animal Shelter are heartworm positive.

In the past, these wonderful dogs would have been euthanized because the County didn’t have the funds to treat them. However, thanks to our donors, FOTAS is able to pay for the treatment of every heartworm positive dog on the adoption floor.

So far this year, we have already adopted out 35 heartworm positive dogs. They are all doing well and should be heartworm free after completion of their treatment.

Here are just a few testimonials from recent adopters:

“We love Thatcher and he’s doing great,” said Erin Baird. “He’s getting along well with people and other dogs. He’s working hard on his manners and come really far. Very smart and eager to please. We are continuing his heartworm treatment and he is doing great healthwise.”

“Gage has acclimated very nicely & has become a great playmate with our goldens,” said David Tavernier. “We love him dearly.” 

“Penny, who we’ve renamed Stevie Licks, is settling in just great,” said Sarah Roudsari. “We adore her, and she is so wonderful with the kids. She’s lit a spark in our two older doggie boys, and the whole house is filled with a new energy!”

For more information on heartworm prevention, please email info@fotasaiken.org. You can also donate to the FOTAS “Have a Heart, Save a Heart” Fund at fotasaiken.org to help treat heartworm positive dogs at the County Animal Shelter.

Their lives are in our hands.

– By Bob Gordon, FOTAS Communications Director

2022, Adoption, Children, Donate, donations

FOTAS inspired by students’ enthusiasm to help homeless pets

Posted on by Bob Gordon
Adoptable dog Sophia enjoys a warm welcome from students at Gloverville Elementary School.
30
Mar

Our education programs are back! We are visiting schools, meeting students, parents and teachers. This is so important when you see the numbers of homeless pets that come to the Aiken County Animal Shelter each day. We need to educate more young people in our community about responsible pet ownership. They are our future leaders and animal advocates.

Starting with the youngest, we’ve been lucky enough to be included in programs at local preschools.

Aiken’s First Baptist Preschool invited us to meet with their students and bring an adoptable dog with us. The children loved having the furry visitor and held a month-long donation collection for the shelter pets. Their kindergarteners delivered the items to the shelter at the end of the month and brought along their reading books, too! They spent time reading to the shelter dogs and making it such a joyful day!

We also visited Trinity United Methodist Preschool with a shelter dog for Pet Week. Their sweet students gave us pet food donations and made a lovely picture for the shelter.

Our most recent school visits occurred on the same day and let me tell you, it was a memorable one.

Each year, the Gloverville Elementary School Beta Club holds a collection for items from our shelter’s Wish List. I was invited to bring a dog and meet with these students. The students had great questions and were all super respectful young people. The students will be coming to the shelter in May to read to the dogs. Such a treat for our homeless pets!

Byrd Elementary, which has always shown its support to the shelter, has been going through a difficult time. One of their beloved teachers, Dana Foster, was murdered on Feb. 16. The entire school felt an incredible loss. What did they do to honor her? They collected items to help shelter pets because their teacher and friend was a big supporter and loved four-legged friends. Shelter Manager Bobby Arthurs and I were invited to pick up the items and we were overcome by their generosity. We brought along adoptable Sophia who gave hugs to some of the students who just couldn’t hold back their tears that day.

Our older students have also been pretty amazing!

Tall Pines Stem Academy has sent many students over to read to dogs as well as take part in our Doggy Day Out program. Students and their families have been taking shelter dogs to the park, for car rides and visits to Starbucks.

Mead Hall students from their Interact Club invited me to come and speak with their group. They were such amazing young people who wanted to help! Some group members came and helped us with our Community Pet Food Drive-Thru just a couple of weeks ago.

We also have been lucky enough to be part of a program at the Aiken Scholars Academy on the last Friday of each month, Furry Friends Friday. Volunteers bring adoptable dogs to meet the students and they are welcomed with such love!

Hound mix Scooter (who’s since been adopted) visits Aiken Scholars Academy.
Hound mix Scooter (who’s since been adopted) visits Aiken Scholars Academy.

Sometimes we forget how powerful children are and how much they can change the world. Over the past few months. I have had the privilege of meeting incredible young people. Some have brought their families to the shelter to adopt dogs they have met at school; some ask how they can help; and others are just eager and ready to support us.

I am truly inspired by the students I have met and cannot wait until more schools allow us to visit and talk to their students about FOTAS and what they can do to help the shelter’s homeless pets.

Their lives are in our hands.

— By Kathy Jacobs, FOTAS Programs Coordinator

2022, adopter feedback, Adoption, Foster, fostering, FOTAS

Love to the Rescue

Posted on by Bob Gordon
21
Mar

Love to the Rescue

by Betty Ryberg, FOTAS Foster

Change of scenery? We certainly experienced the need for that in the last 2 1/2 years.

A day trip on a pretty day? A walk in a just discovered park, or a hike through the woods as the weather turns sunny?

Maybe an overnight? To a cabin, a lake house, a campground? Our walls close in, our life lacks color, our days seem drab.

Take me away! A week away has restorative powers but often it’s those few hours or day trips or quick overnights that adds zest to our lives and brings a calm.

That is the highlight of doggie field trips or fostering.

Aiken County Animal Shelter dogs can come to your house, your yard, your park and it is their Disneyworld. Under your tree, playing with your pets or chewing on your toys is a wish-come-true mini vacation.

Aaah and catching a nap, sleeping late, and snuggling on a new rug – luxurious and QUIET. All the animals at the shelter are safe and well cared for-but it is not quiet. For a dog that is abandoned, oftentimes the barking of other dogs causes distress. Even one day or night away may feel like a much-needed spa.

Why don’t folks take dogs away for Doggie Day Out or foster? Is it because you may feel guilty returning them? Please don’t. A day or night away, a romp in your yard or a nap on your rug may be all that dog needs to restore his spirit and make him more adoptable when he returns to the shelter.

We have had sad, frightened dogs become their happy selves in two days. One dog slept for eight hours the first day he came to our home and then rolled and rolled in the grass for hours. 

If you can’t foster for more than two days, then an overnight or day out is a respite likened to a snow day experience we felt as kids. Yippee!!

We have kept dogs for two nights and puppies for two months. All have been adopted. We didn’t change our schedules We made a safe place to sleep and play. Our busy days continued and we marveled that an animal could show such immediate relief.

Any new parent, caregiver, student or overworked professional knows the phew moment of a babysitter, respite care, a snow day or a day off.

The animals return restored and much more adoptable. It is a picnic for them. How wonderful to know your home is a five-star resort to some!

Their lives are in our hands.

2022, Adoption, Dogs, FOTAS, surrendered pets

Old FOTAS friend adopts, brings happiness to senior dog

Posted on by Bob Gordon
27
Feb

When 14-year-old, 70-pound, Buster was brought in earlier this month, it was sad for all. Buster’s owner had health issues and could no longer care for him. No one was at fault here; just bad circumstances.

Buster was examined by the County Shelter’s vet staff and put into a kennel. I went to check on him and found his kennel soaking wet. He was so nervous, he was lapping up water as fast as he could and shaking in fear. It was so sad; we immediately took his picture and were going to reach out to the public to find help. I wasn’t super hopeful as most people don’t want senior dogs, especially large senior dogs.

Just as I was about to post his picture, I had a visit from an old friend.

I looked over my shoulder and there was John Berk.

John Berk at home with Buster, his newly adopted, 14-year-old canine companion.

John was a daily volunteer with FOTAS and a friend to us all. Just over three years ago, we were all shocked and surprised when John fell for Hobbes (then Milton). Hobbes was a senior dog with fur loss and little “cage appeal.” John started to take him out for overnight visits and doggie days out and realized that the poor old soul never had much happiness. John adopted Hobbes and gave him the absolute best life any dog could have. He was his constant companion. We saw John and Hobbes all over town, best buddies.

When John arrived for a visit, it didn’t take long to see the tears in his eyes. His friend had passed away at home the day before. John wore the pain on his sleeve and yet asked me if we had a senior dog that needed help. How unselfish is that?!

Ok…so these things don’t just happen! I am a big believer that God had his hand in this.

I told John that I had only just met this older lab named Buster less than an hour ago, but he needed help. John took the leash and walked him to his car. He said he wanted to give it a try. It was a little tough for Buster to get in the car, so John pulled out the steps that he had used to help Hobbes get up into the passenger seat.

John and his amazing wife, Sally, have cats and another small dog that they rescued recently, so I wasn’t completely sure this would work. But it just seemed to me there was a plan in play.
Two days later I received a text from John: “Sweet dog and starting to settle in.” Then I started getting pictures of Buster on the bed, at the dog park, in John’s car. It wasn’t a week that passed before John came to the shelter to make it official.

“We’ve made one dog very happy, thank you for picking him for me,” John said.

Some may think that a 14-year-old dog won’t adapt to a new owner or a new home. Some worry about adopting a senior and not having a long time with them. But think of what John does. He takes these older dogs that are scared and homeless, and he gives them friendship. He doesn’t think about how long he has; he thinks about how great the time will be.

This story just touches me more than most. To see Buster’s adoption unfold was inspirational.

In Memory of Hobbes.

Their lives are in our hands.

— By Kathy Jacobs, FOTAS Programs Coordinator