MY HELPERS
Becca
Fun Police, Doomsday Prophet, Reluctant Model.
My muse! I had been working in an animal shelter for years when Becca arrived, but I’d never been especially tempted to adopt one of the dogs. I was a cat person. My partner Graham and I had even fostered several dogs and puppies, but had never seriously considered keeping any of them. Even so, somehow I knew she was my dog, the minute I laid eyes on her that first morning, as she cowered in her kennel.
She had been surrendered the day before, with her 2 day old puppy and she was absolutely terrified in the shelter. I brought her and her puppy, “Grublet” home to “foster”, but I knew there was no way I was taking her back. We would have liked to keep Grubby as well, but once he grew up, Becca really didn’t have much tolerance for him, so we allowed him to be adopted into a wonderful home.
It just happened that right around that time, I downloaded a new social media app, called “Instagram”. I quickly became addicted, and of course, I was sharing lots of photos of Becca and Grubby. Within a year, people were starting to ask about buying prints of my work - in fact, an iphone photo of Becca with some artistic effects was one of the first prints I ever sold to someone who wasn’t a friend or family member!
Becca is my velcro dog, glued to my side at all times…unless she sees a deer - then she’s gone. We call her the “fun police”, because if any of the other pets appear to be having a good time, Becca will put a stop to it, immediately.
Sadly, Becca crossed the Rainbow Bridge in 2022, but she is still the love of my life and I use the lessons she taught me every day.
After a couple of years, our pug mix Becca had come a long way with her reactivity towards other dogs, and we felt that it was time to start fostering again. We didn’t have any small dogs requiring foster at the shelter at that time, so I reached out to Speaking of Dogs Rescue. I was already volunteering for them, doing adoption photos and fundraisers, so I filled out their foster application and began watching their website for a good fit.
Almost immediately, Delgado came up. I fell head over heels in love with his photos, but he was already in a foster home, he needed a forever home. We pondered that for a day or so and then decided that we wanted to meet him anyway. That is the power of having awesome adoption photos! We were so smitten already that we didn’t even care when he tried to bite us repeatedly. He was respectful with Becca, and that was all that really mattered to us.
This little clown won us over immediately, with his hilarious antics and larger than life attitude. He turned out to be just what we needed, because less than 2 weeks after adding him to our home, one of our senior cats crossed the Rainbow Bridge unexpectedly. It was hard to stay sad for long with Delgado around, and many years later, he is still making us laugh every day.
After 6 years, Delgado finally reached his goal weight of 5.1 lbs, down from 8.5 when he first arrived at the rescue!
Delgado
Comic Relief, Supermodel, Security Guard, Tyrant.
Stompin’ Tom
Millipede Exterminator, Masseuse, Head Warmer.
“No more cats”. That was what we said on Thursday, when we put the second of our senior cats to sleep because of kidney failure. The following Sunday, I brought Stompy home from the shelter where I worked.
I thought I was safe, because I worked with the dogs 95% of the time, so there was little chance I’d get attached to one of the cats. Then Stompy got a bit of a cold (common for cats in shelters) and was moved to the first cage in the sick cat room…right across the hall from the area where I prepared the food and medications for the dogs every morning and evening. He’d watch me from his cage, purring and stomping his feet the whole time. Of course, I had to pop in and say “hi” to him. He kept it up every day, and by the time he was over his cold and ready to go home, I knew it had to be my home.
Stompy is just an all around awesome cat. So laid back that you can hear him purring in his crate on long car trips. He doesn’t require a lot of attention, he’s still perfectly happy to watch us from across the room, purring and stomping his feet. It feels good that it makes someone so happy, just looking at you! In the winter, he sleeps on our heads, like a fuzzy Russian hat.
It’s easy to be fooled into thinking he’s lazy and not too bright, then suddenly he’ll jump up and catch a fly in mid air, or figure out how to stick his paw up inside the timed feeder and make it dispense more kibble ahead of schedule.
Stompy crossed the Rainbow Bridge in 2022.
For years, we were happy with our little furry family of 3, and had no intention of adding any more. When Trillian showed up at the shelter I worked at in Toronto, I already knew I’d be leaving in a few months. We had purchased a house in New Brunswick and planned to move there permanently in the Spring. It was so uncommon to see a hairless cat in the shelter (our best guess is that she is a Sphynx/Rex mix or a Peterbald), and I knew it would likely be my last chance to get one without going to a breeder. She came in with another cat, who appeared to be a purebred Sphynx, and at first I had my eye on him, but he did not like other cats, and I knew it would be unfair to Stompy and stressful to both of them to bring him home. Now, I couldn’t be happier with how it all turned out and can’t imagine life without her!
When I was considering adopting her, someone warned me that a Sphynx is like a cross between a monkey, a dog, a toddler and a cat. Boy, was she ever right! Trillian is into everything; incredibly smart and curious, dexterous, agile (except when she’s falling off of things), and demands constant attention. During the colder months, she can usually be found inside my sweater, and if she’s not there, you’d better watch where you sit, because she is probably under that blanket or pillow.
Trillian has been a great playmate for Delgado, who has always wanted a friend and has suffered near constant rejection from Becca and Stompy. The two of them have epic wrestling matches…until Becca has enough and breaks it up.
Trillian broke our hearts when she crossed the Rainbow Bridge in 2023, at only 6 years old. She had a congenital heart condition that no amount of love or money could fix. She always made her presence known, so her absence left a huge hole in all of our lives.
Trillian
Heating Pad, Dirt Magnet, Delgado’s Personal Trainer.
Shazam! came to us through the People For Animal Wellbeing “Barn Buddies” program, which helps find placements for feral cats. We had seen a weasel in the barn, and were worried about our chickens.
For the first couple of months, we only saw him on the motion sensor camera in the barn. He sure has come a long way! Now, he is the biggest suck ever and will try to climb us if we don’t pick him up for cuddles right away! He is excellent at his job of rodent control, and seems to understand that the chickens are off limits. Even when there are tiny baby chicks running around the yard, he leaves them alone.
Shazam! loves all the other animals, even though his feelings are not always reciprocated. He could often be found snuggling with Trillian, and he cried and looked for her for weeks after she was gone.
We often refer to him as our “best-behaved dog”. He always comes when called, and he loves to join us on walks.
Shazam!
Livestock Guardian Cat, Pest Control, Professional Cuddler
Iris came into our lives unexpectedly through a friend of a friend who needed to rehome her. At the time, we weren’t looking for another dog, but thought “what’s one more?”
Well, actually Iris is … a lot, but we love her anyway. Her training has been a challenge, but I can honestly say I’ve learned more from her than from my other dogs put together. In fact, I’ve probably learned more about working with nervous, fearful dogs than I did in years of working in vet clinics.
Unlike Delgado, Iris doesn’t have a mean or aggressive bone in her body, but she is terrified of many common, everyday things, including going outside, having a harness or collar and leash put on or taken off, bugs landing on her, certain foods, phone charging cords, anything you might be holding in your hand … the list goes on and on (and often includes ME!).
At other times, she can be bold to a fault and loves to play-fight and cuddle. She is an enigma, we never know which Iris we will see today, what she will be afraid of that she was fine with yesterday (or vice versa).
Iris
Naked Squirrel, Professional Worrier, Treat Catcher
Graham
Lovely Assistant, Pet Wrangler, VAS (Voice Activated Light Stand), Lens Caddy, Wildlife Spotter, Travel Companion, Gardener, Head Groundskeeper, Contractor, Gentle Giant, Personal Chef, Handyman, Partner in Crime, Love of Life, etc.
The dogs we work with all know Graham as “Treat Guy”, and often try to climb in the car with him at the end of their sessions!