Al & Barbara Pet Sitting (aka) Camp Cooper

11/19/2024

11/16/2024

💡🔍

11/14/2024

11/13/2024

11/13/2024

I am absolutely heart broken. Last night my finace and I had to put down our lab. His name was Ash. I found Ash about 8 years ago, roaming around a neighborhood. I pulled over to see if he had a collar on, and he did not. So I opened my truck door, and asked if he wanted in. He jumped right into my truck. I drove the neighborhood for hours trying to find his owners. I posted him all over Social media, and no one ever claimed him. He also wasn’t chipped. So I decided to keep him. I noticed immediately he had severe separation anxiety. My ex and I lived in an apt at the time, and one day our neighbors offered to watch him for us while we worked because he would whine so much. I made a promise to him that day that I would never leave him, and I would be there with him until the end. Well apparently the last 8 years flew by, and the end abruptly came last night. Yesterday morning he was playing fetch, running around, being happy as could be. By 9:45pm he was couldn’t walk, and was very lathargic. We rushed him to the emergency Vet. A tumor was surrounding his heart, and it tore open causing him bleed internally and putting pressure on his heart. They said these things are extremely hard to find, and it’s almost always too late. I still feel in such shock. He was the best friend I ever had. He was there by my side through me losing my house, my business, my divorce, and pretty much having to start my life over. He will always mean the world to me. I love you Ashy boy ❤️

By Koleton Nielsen

11/13/2024

I went to a shelter to get a dog and I saw this brindle laying on the hard ground. I made eye contact with him and he got up and he brought a tennis ball over. I asked to see him and I was told he was returned two times because he was too wild and cried all the time. When he was brought back to his cage he cried. It broke my heart. I told the man I wanted him. He told me I'd be sorry. When we got home I worked with him and changed things so he'd be comfortable. He has bad separation anxiety. Everything worked out. He's my pal. We play catch with tennis balls daily. His name is Popeye. 🤗❤

11/13/2024

Step out of line, y’all.

11/13/2024

“She was 18. Her people, who loved her whole life, took her, a vaccination booklet, a leash, a collar and her belongings and took her to the Baldwin Park shelter. They said they were tired of fighting with an older dog, signed papers and left, without even looking at her.
When she was picked up by a volunteer at the shelter, she leaned on him probably wishing it was all just an ugly dream.
The moment was immortalized by photographer John Hwang, who was in the shelter at the time.
Unfortunately, dogs love sincerely, with all their heart, with all their soul and are unable to understand that human 'love forever' most often has an expiration date.. - to annual, to moving, to illness, to old age...
Dogs definitely deserve better people!”

- Stuart James

11/05/2024

11/05/2024

One frigid February morning, my co-worker asked if I would take a cat that needed a home. I already had two and told her I could not. But she told me that the cat had been locked in a basement for months, and then thrown out after it killed the owners ‘pet’ toad, also kept in the basement.

She said the kitten kept trying to get into the nearby church on Sunday mornings, trying to get someone’s attention for help. I was incredulous that not one of of these church goers ever did help this helpless kitten.

After hearing this story I agreed to get the kitten, but I would not be able to drive to the location for three days. My co-worker called the kitten’s owner, who said the cat would be kept on the back porch until I could come. Naturally I assumed that by back porch she meant an enclosed heated shelter. I could not believe what I saw when I came three days later.

On a freezing February morning with howling winds in southern Michigan, there was this tiny terrified kitten on an outside concrete porch step in a tiny wire cage. This kitten had to survive like this for three days, exposed to the cold and wind with no protection. When I opened the cage, the kitten climbed to the top of my shoulder, desperate for help.

I did not attempt to confront the owner because I was so angry I did not know what I might do. So I grabbed the cat and left. She is sweet and quirky and still has multiple issues from her early dismal treatment. But she is safe and loved furever now.

11/05/2024

Inside a locked crate alongside Route 80 in New Jersey, animal control officers found an "abandoned, disabled, and completely helpless" chihuahua.

Stanley, as he was later named, weighed 21 pounds, over double the normal weight, and was unable to walk. The 8-year-old dog was rescued by The Ramapo-Bergen Animal Refuge after they heard his heartbreaking story.

"All four of his legs are so badly deformed that Stanley is unable to walk," wrote the rescue. Stanley is experiencing love, possibly the first time in his life, and he cannot stop smiling. An experienced and loving foster mom took him in and "makes sure he gets to see the sun and feel the grass every day."

The sweet and affectionate dog is loving life and enjoys his daily walks in a stroller. Thanks to a low-fat diet and veterinary care, Stanley has already lost weight. He has a temporary device that allows him to move, but once he reaches a normal weight, which should be around 10 pounds, he will be fitted for a wheelchair.

"His story is hard to tell and even harder to imagine," posted the rescue. "Stanley lives for today, but our minds can’t help but wander to Stanley’s past. In our moments of despair, we imagine Stanley trapped on the side of the highway, watching cars speed by, scared, confused and hoping for his people to return."

While most cruelty cases involve malnourished and emaciated dogs, the rescue says that Stanley's story is a reminder that animal abuse comes in many forms.

Stanley has not let his past get him down and is an inspiration to us all. The rescue recently posted an update that said, "Despite his limitations, Stanley is loving life. He is enjoying the beautiful weather and improving every day."

Thanks to kindhearted people, Stanley is in a loving foster home and will eventually be put up for adoption. The rescue thanks all their supporters for their help with Stanley's case. "His glowing smile is a reminder that we all didn’t just quit on little Stanley, right when he thought humanity had."

11/05/2024

There was a homeless man who 'camped' in the covered garage where my office was located. You'd see him huddle down for the night, along with his little dog, a small scruffy little terrier mix. When I walked thru the garage on my way to lunch, I would often check to see where he was and then bring him a burger and drink. He always tore the sandwich in half, ate one half and gave the other to his dog. I started bringing him a bag of dry dog food every month and he took great pains to keep it dry. His little dog rode in the child's seat in the grocery cart wherever he went.
One especially cold winter morning, I noticed his dog was missing and he seemed utterly forlorn. I bought him some coffee and he explained how the city rounded up the homeless and took them to the shelter because it was bitterly cold and they took his dog away from him. They took her to the local shelter (no license, no tags, no rabies vaccination). I was appalled.
I took the morning off, picked him up from the garage & drove him to the shelter where we asked to look for his 'lost' dog. When we found her, she put up such a racket of pure joy upon seeing him: yipping, yelping, wiggling uncontrollably. Paws squeezed between chain link trying to touch her master and his fingers stroking her little face.
I paid for her license, basic shots and retrieval fee and he rode back in silence hugging her so tight, I thought he would break her. When we got out, I told him to keep her safe. He hugged me, made Sasha give me a smooch of thanks, and hurried off to where he'd hidden his cart.
I understand the need to keep these souls safe but taking his one undeniable friend -- while legally founded -- was gut wrenchingly wrong on so many other levels.
Any act of kindness can change lives….no matter how great or small.

11/05/2024

OMG. My wife and I found these three on a hiking trip tied up to a pole with wire so short, they couldn't lay down and with no food or water, not that they could reach it even if there was. We knocked on the door, but there was no answer, so we took them. The white one collapsed on the way to the car, so I had to carry her the rest of the way. Animal cruelty should be a Class C Felony with a mandatory 10-year prison term.