3rd Annual Spring Rummage Sale Was A Winner!

During previous Rummage Sales, Furry Kids volunteers made a mad dash to gather donations, set up tables, price items and make sure everything is organized and ready to go for the Saturday morning opening. But this time, we decided to extend our hours and the time we had to set up - and it was an extremely good idea!

We set everything up on Wednesday and Thursday, which made plenty of time for us to make sure everything was ready to go. Connie had picked up donations from many supporters before the sale and many more brought their donations directly to the VFW hall. We had a lot of great stuff to sell! From clothes to furniture to holiday decorations to hardware, there was something for everyone!

By Friday evening, we had already sold over $1000 worth of items! We were amazed and grateful and hoped the weekend would bring even more shoppers. It did. At times there was a line at the check out table! We even had people who remembered Brenda's chocolate and peanut butter fudge - it was gone in no time flat as were Connie's homemade breads! We cleared house better than we ever had done before. To ensure everything goes to good use, the items that were not sold were donated to the Federation for the Blind.

Thank you to all of you who donated and supported this event. Our Rummage Sales are crucial to raising funds to help pay our veterinary expenses - which exceed $5000 every month, sometimes exceeding $7000. We have had some major expenditures on a few dogs lately: Isabella with her broken leg, Lucy with her bilateral ACL repair surgery, Darla with urinary problems, and the numerous heartworm treatments we have done so far this year. These add up quickly and this Rummage Sale helped tremendously as the economy is slow which means fewer adoptions and not as many donations coming in. What a perfect fundraiser for tough times like these!

Check out the great Lee's Summit Journal article about the event!

Again, thank you so very much to everyone who donated, supported and shopped this year's Spring Rummage Sale!!

A New Beginning For A Special Girl, And A Special Family

This may sound odd but when I first saw Cady Lynn and discovered she was to be my foster, I thought of the 1991 film classic, Thelma and Louise, Thelma, in particular, played by Geena Davis, because of her strawberry blonde hair.  Why would I make that comparison??? I remembered that these two women were running from an unhappy past – finding solace in each other’s company.  Cady Lynn , a 2 year old Yorkie/Maltese mix, was rescued by, of course, Furry Kids Refuge, from a past filled with no socialization, malnourished, and matted and covered with fleas.  This is the past she was escaping and unlike the film, with its tragic ending, her story now has a new beginning.  I had the good fortune to discover a ruby hiding beneath that exterior.  At first, she was very scared, even of her own shadow, but only of humans - the foster parent’s dogs immediately accepted that she needed special attention from both her foster mom and them.  Over a period of weeks, she finally began to eat, a little at first but then eagerly looked forward to meal time.  She even took to begging while we were eating and even though she would not take food from my hand, she gobbled it up when I laid it on the floor.

Baby Steps yes, but forward steps.  Her next accomplishment was coming in the bedroom at night and sleeping on a pillow by me cuddled up with Gordie, another foster.  Yeah!!!!!

Then she took to running through the house with toys in her mouth.  Yeah!!!! Yeah!!!! Also, beginning to walk on a leash and progressing with her potty training.

We figured she was close to being available for adoption to just the right family.

Voila – here comes two angels who have previously adopted two senior Furry Kids one of which had just gone to the Rainbow Bridge leaving the other Maltese to grieve.  They see her picture on the Furry Kids site and the idea was born to adopt Cady Lynn.  Truly a match made in Heaven.  I cannot even begin to tell you how it makes you feel to see the chrysalis become a Butterfly – That is you Cady Lynn – I love you!!!!!

And now from the Cady's new mom and dad, the Stanfields...

In March, 2007, we began searching for a new little “furry kid” after our little Coco passed away at the age of 16.  We knew our new little friend would have to be quite special in order to replace Coco.   When I looked on the Furry Kids Refuge website I found a sweet little girl named Mama Mia (right), who greatly resembled Coco.  Of course, I kept looking at all the precious homeless dogs on the site, and found two others that I was interested in as well.  They were all three “seniors”, but that was OK with us as we had had a wonderful senior for a very long time (and we are pretty senior ourselves!). 

Within a couple days, all three were brought to our home – and it was so hard to choose!  We knew we wanted Mama Mia, but there was L’il Diamond (left) who also stole our hearts.  I had really only planned on one, but Diamond was so beautiful (tiny white Maltese who has very few teeth left after breeding for years!).  To make a long story short, we adopted Mama Mia, age 10, and L’il Diamond, age 8.  They have been the joy of our life for the past two years.  In February our little Mama Mia left us, and is waiting with Coco for us in Heaven.  Diamond has literally mourned Mama, as they were such close buddies.

We began searching the Furry Kids website again, thinking we might adopt again, but not sure if we would.  It is just so hard when you lose a precious pet you love.  We came across several little girls that interested us, but little Cady Lynn looked so special to us.  Cady had already been through two difficult years at a puppy mill, (just as Diamond had been for eight years), and we were told she was very scared, though very sweet.  We decided to take a chance on her as well.  We adopted little Cady Lynn on April 14th.  I just retired and decided I would like to spend the time and love to help this little “Morkie” become the puppy she has always wanted to be, but was never allowed.  She wouldn’t eat or drink when we got her home, so I bribed her with some meat – and she gobbled it right up.  She enjoys sitting on our laps, watching movies with Dad in the recliner, watching us Wii bowl, and sleeping in a soft, warm bed with humans who love her.  She is being leash trained now, but hopefully soon she will run and play with Diamond in the back yard while I garden.  I believe we will have a wonderful time together in the years to come.  Diamond is showing her the ropes of the household, so I know she will understand everything very soon.

Thank you Furry Kids for bringing such loving little girls into our lives.  We appreciate you so very much!

~Written by Foster Mom, Judy Devenport and Forever Mom, Pat Stanfield

Hal is a fantastic dog who is about one year young, and we added the Halloween because he was found abandoned on a country road on Halloween day. Hal has one of the best temperaments you will ever see in a dog. He loves all other dogs and would be a great furry kid to take to your local dog park. Hal has been with small children and would be great with a family either with or without kids. Hal weighs 90 pounds so he is definitely a good sized boy! He has a beautiful, shiny, thick, black/brown coat of fur with white tipped toes & white on his chest. Sweet, loving Hal will need some work on his leash walking skills but he is such a people pleaser that it shouldn't take long to teach him. We are working on housetraining with Hal and he's making great progress. He's crate trained already so mastering housetraining will come easily. Please consider Hal in your search for a new companion - you won't be disappointed!

Read more about Hal on his Petfinder page!

Marcel Marceau showed up at a good samaritan's house in the country - in need of rescue. We are sure he was dumped there. So she took him in and helped him learn to trust humans. This 4 year old boy has gorgeous markings and is just so quiet, you barely know he is there. He would make a great addition to your family!

Read more about Marcel on his Petfinder page!

Call us or come by an adoption event and we would be happy to microchip your pet with a 24PetWatch™ microchip for just $20. 

Registration is free and easy and easy to update from the internet!

A few months ago, our Youth Volunteer Team Leader, Tara, asked me if we were going to do the Pet Expo. We hadn't in past years only because we didn't have enough manpower to handle a booth for the whole weekend. She asked if she could take on the project of having a booth at this year's Pet Expo. Tara proved an excellent manager by coordinating volunteers to handle our booth for the entire weekend. So, for the first time, Furry Kids will have a booth at the Pet Expo! We are very excited and very grateful for Tara's efforts. She's an amazing girl and an extremely hard worker!

Please come down to the Pet Expo this weekend and have a ton of family fun. Visit their website for more information and directions!

Starting Wednesday, Jason's Deli Restaurants in Kansas City will start holding a food and supply drive for area shelters. The Lee's Summit restaurant will be donating all food and supplies to Furry Kids! WOW!
There will be a box for items donated at the front of the restaurant. So please go enjoy a fantastic meal and bring a goodie for the animals! Jason's Deli has the best salad bar in town :)

Saturdays from noon - 5pm at the Petco in Lee's Summit. Visit our website for up to date information!

Please visit our website and send us your story and pictures if you can and we’ll post them on our Happy Furry Kids Page!

Thank you to all who have sent their stories – it is so heartwarming to see our Furry Kids in their forever homes!

INTERESTED IN ADDING A FURRY KID TO YOUR FAMILY?

What if Furry Kids earned a penny every time you searched the Internet? Well, now we can! GoodSearch.com is a new search engine that donates half its revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. You use it just as you would any search engine, and it's powered by Yahoo!, so you get great results.Just go to goodsearch.com and be sure to enter Furry Kids Refuge as the charity you want to support.

He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog.
You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours,
faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it
to him to be worthy of such devotion.

A PET'S TEN COMMANDMENTS…

1)My life is likely to last 10-15 years. Any separation from you is likely to be painful.
2)Give me time to understand what you want of me.
3)Place your trust in me. It is crucial for my well-being.
4)Don't be angry with me for long and don't lock me up as punishment. You have your work, your friends, your entertainment, but I have only you.
5)Talk to me. Even if I don't understand your words, I do understand your voice when speaking to me.
6)Be aware that however you treat me, I will never forget it.
7)Before you hit me, before you strike me, remember that I could hurt you, and yet, I choose not to bite you.
8)Before you scold me for being lazy or uncooperative, ask yourself if something might be bothering me. Perhaps I'm not getting the right food, I have been in the sun too long, or my heart might be getting old or weak.
9)Please take care of me when I grow old. You too, will grow old.
10)On the ultimate difficult journey, go with me please. Never say you can't bear to watch. Don't make me face this alone. Everything is easier for me if you are there, because I love you so.