Happy Tales From The Trails

After losing our American Eskimo earlier this year, we finally decided it was time to start looking for a companion for us and for our dog, Joy, who had come from Homeward Trails in 2008. After contacting HT again, Sue Bell told us about Eli. We met him at the Pet Fiesta and fell in love. But someone else was looking at him and we had to wait through the weekend - a couple of the longest days we've had!

I lost two cats within 7 months in 2008-2009. My remaining cat, Brox, and I, were having a tough time coping. After losing two so close together, and spending a small fortune on vet bills, I was going to wait a while to adopt another cat. But Brox was lonely, depressed, and anxious. He started over grooming his belly, licking himself bald. I half-heartedly started browsing Homeward Trails' petfinder page. Then BAM! There she was. Skunk: a fluffy beautiful little black and white sweetheart. I was 99% sure after seeing her picture that she belonged with us, and after reading her description, I was 100% sure.

Walter came to us as a foster when a Homeward Trails plea for help went out and we agreed to foster a kitty-friendly dog. We went to pick him up and Walter was standing apart from the other dogs, terribly overweight and a bit sad looking. He had been adopted previously, but his owner didn't understand that beagles must follow their noses and he kept wandering off, so she gave him back to Homeward Trails. She also named him Nutmeg, a name to which he flat out refused to answer. He sauntered into our house, sniffed the cats and hopped up on the sofa, where he has been ever since. Unless he is out sniffing around in the park.

When I was looking for a dog, I really was not quite sure if I would be ready or not to get another dog, since I had to put my dog to sleep five months prior. But one Friday afternoon, I pulled up your website and I saw this sad looking puppy asking for a foster so this dog could heal in a home rather than a High Kill Shelter. Tyler had two dog bites on him that had gone down to the bone of his hips and shoulders and he was so thin and frail looking it just broke my HEART. I knew right then, that I HAD to have him.

We just want to say thank you for giving us Potter. He is a really sweet dog who gets better with every week. He has stopped jumping our fence for the most part. We'd like to think it's because he's realized how good he has it here.

We met little Susie Q in June of 2009. She came from a WV shelter and was only with her foster family for one week before we adopted her. She was 5 1/2 months old and was a bit shy at first, but soon adjusted to her new home.

I wasn't actively looking for a a puppy, but would check out PetFinder every once in a while just to browse. One day in July 2008, I was perusing the site when I saw the CUTEST photo of a little white puppy and his two brothers, who had been named Simon, Alvin, and Theodore by Homeward Trails. I immediately fell in love with Theodore, and sent out an email to his foster right away. She responded quickly and said that he was going to be at an adoption event in my neighborhood the very next day!

I bought my house back in October of 2009, and I knew I wanted a dog. I used to own a Boxer, so initially, I browsed adoption sites for Boxers. I was in contact with Homeward trails trying to find one. Then I got an email with a link to Dexter. He is a hound/pointer mix, but when I saw that face I knew he was mine.

My boyfriend and I were at a PetMAC adoption fair in 2007 and immediately fell in love with Mischa, a little grey and brown tabby girl. The minute we saw her, she reached through the cage and grabbed my hand and we were immediately charmed. She sealed the deal when the three of us went into the bathroom at the Arlington PetMAC to let her explore and she curled up on my chest and started purring!

We were beyond ecstatic when we received an application for Bunny's adoption, a feline leukemia (FeLV) positive Manx kitty.  Upon notifying our partner shelter in Wetzel County, West Virginia of this news, we learned that Bunny had a best friend and cage-mate, Freda, a lovely FeLV+ tuxedo kitty.  The thought of Freda alone in her cage was painful to fathom so we decided to bring her up to DC with Bunny to find a foster home for her.  Our initial excitement was quickly topped when Bunny's potential adopters suggested that they would consider adopting Freda as well!!  Freda, a fluffy purring machine, quickly won their hearts just as Bunny had, and these kind people were the proud parents of a…

I was just browsing the internet one night and somehow came upon the HT website. As I started to look, one photo caught my eye- a sad looking puppy staring through the cage bars. As I continued to read his details, at the very end it listed the shelter he was at and it also gave a euthanize date (only 4 days away).

I adopted Scout and Riley in August 2009, having first met them in July 2009 at an HT adoption event. My cat of 11 years had just died suddenly in June 2009, and I went to the adoption event to begin the process of thinking about getting another cat, but didn't think I was ready just yet. Thirty seconds after walking into the adoption event I saw a sweet little brown tabby cat named Ginger, who walked up to me through her cage and started purring. The HT volunteer was astounded; apparently Ginger was very scared at adoption events and never approached anyone. She walked right into my arms and I picked her up and she started purring right away.…

I have loved cats since my family adopted our first cat when I was 5. I grew up around them. When I was 7, I begged and pleaded for a cat of my own. Shortly after my 7th birthday, I got my wish and was allowed to adopt a kitten from a new born litter on my uncle's farm. Pokey was my life-long companion from that point on. He was with me when my parents divorced and was by my side through two custody changes. When I graduated high school and "changed custody" from my dad to my mom, he came with me again and immediately adopted her two kittens as his kids. When it came time for me to…

Jesse (formerly known as Bo) has been with us for 2 years now. Gone is the shy, tentative guy we carted home from DC that day. Today we have a confident, happy dog who thinks he's made it to dog heaven! He spends his week days lounging closeby while I work from home. Weekends he's with us on outings, family visits and leisurely car rides. His heart is big enough that he's "adopted" a few neighbors who recently lost their dogs. He tolerates their cuddles and coaches them on how to give doggie massage. He is very social - is wonderful with our grandchildren and accepting of visitors - human or canine.

When we adopted Peyton, his name was Boo Boo and he was in a foster home through Homeward Trails. We first met Peyton at an adoption fair set up at a Virginia pet store. He was full of energy and so friendly! Not much has changed since then! Our entire family, including our 13 year old chocolate lab Hershey, all love Peyton!