When Leeta (the small brown tabby in the photo) came home with us, she was a shy little girl. She spent the first few weeks with us hiding under the furniture, coming out for food and such. But oh, boy, has she come out of her shell! She is now very outgoing and the Queen Bee. Snuggly and sometimes playful with us, she likes to defend herself from the evil tail that keeps attacking her from behind. She and our other cat Jenkins have been defining their relationship, but she is fitting in just fine. Leelu now Leeta
Read More
Archives for Happy Tails
I found my soulmate!
I bought my own home Dec. 2018. It is the 1st time in my life I had ever lived alone (I’m 53 y.o.). I have had many pets over the years & had my mind set on a bully breed, even with the stereotypes and discrimination. I spent months looking through the internet, shelters and rescue groups and had not been able to find the dog I thought I wanted. My sister had visited HSHV many times over the years and recommended I do a pre-application for a Love Train puppy. I received emails and pictures weekly, which was incredible,
Read More
Sakura and Kinako Bring Joy and Mischief
Adopting during the height of a pandemic has been life changing. Every day we are grateful to have welcomed these two ladies into our lives. While they spent the first 48 hours at home hiding inside -not under- the couch, for the past two months we’ve woken up every morning to hungry meows, headbutts, purrs, and toys littering our bedroom floor. It took awhile to reflect on new names, ultimately settling on traditional varieties of Japanese mochi, with Sakura meaning cherry blossom and Kinako roasted soybean – a fitting name for a dilute calico. We inadvertently made a toy box
Read More
she found her father, mother, and brother
We have our 9 month old husky mix, Ozzi, from the 11/1/19 love train. Ozzi is very energetic and social, and we had been working hard to train him. I have always wanted two dogs, and adopting a puppy was on our to-do list. We heard that a Love Train was coming through, but when we hopped online to look at the puppies, we saw Mel. As soon as we saw her photo we knew she was coming home with us. We were told she had some behavioral problems, and we found out she had been returned to HSHV several
Read More
From Farm Truck to Forever Home
In 2012 I was an employee at HSHV. I worked in the surgical area and had helped to provide treatment for probably a thousand animals by that time. It was difficult to not adopt every animal that needed a home, but I was looking for the right one. I’d never had a dog of my own but when I interacted with Ellie, formerly Brownie, I knew she was my forever companion. She was brought to HSHV by a nice farmer in the bed of his truck. He said that he found her and another dog running through fields in the
Read More
Ozzi is a Hit!
We were looking for a friend for our ferret, Rosie, after she unfortunately lost her companion. I found Ozzi on Petfinder and immediately knew he needed to be part of the family. A few days later, we were on our way home with him to meet his new sister. They bonded right away and have been best buddies ever since! We couldn’t be happier with him! Thank you for allowing us to adopt such a sweet, loving and silly boy!
Read More
My New Home
Hi – My name is Scooter (when I lived at the shelter, I was called Garth). I have a new home now, and I’m settling in well. At first, I was kind of scared – I even hid behind the couch. But my new family helped me feel safe and comfortable. They take good care of me, including giving me yummy salmon treats. My dad even built this great climbing/lounging/scratching tower for me that you see in the picture. I like to sit on it and look out the window. My family tells me it’s a difficult and scary time
Read More
The Senior Pup that brought us together
Jake and I had started dating in high school and continued into college. Almost four years passed, and for a number of reasons, we broke up. As with many first loves, we still very much cared for each other and kept in contact. When Jake bought his first house that just happened to have a doggy door, I joked with him that he was then obligated to get a dog. After some time, he decided he did want a dog, and I suggested he adopt. During this time, feelings started to spark again, and I told him I would come
Read More
Azzy Found His Person
I, like so many others in the United States, suffer from depression and anxiety. With these struggles, a companion often helps. With the help of my family, and some searching online, I found Falstaff. He was 9 months old when I met him in December of 2019, and after meeting with him twice, he melted not only my heart, but the hearts of my family members. It was already a goal of mine to adopt a cat in need- one that had been at the shelter for a long time, an elderly cat, or a cat that needed extra love
Read More
A Very Good Boy!!
My partner and I have lived in Ann Arbor for the past 2 years for graduate school in a non dog-friendly apartment – the first time in either of our lives without a furry friend running around. We had been eagerly waiting to move so we could adopt our new family member! In April we finally were able to start searching for our perfect fit, which was complicated due to adoption limitations around COVID-19. We absolutely love HSHV with many friends having happy adoption stories, and had email alerts set to let us know about dogs since we were not
Read More