Verity's Fox and Cooper

Dear SPCA,
I have two adorable rabbits that I have adopted from the SPCA. Fox is a X-Lion Head with red eyes. I adopted him last year (2010) and I adopted Copper this year ( 2011 ). They are both such a joy to me! Foxy is adventurous and very curious about the house while Copper likes to hop about in the garden and munch on the grass. They enjoy the treats I give them and love to chase each other around.

They make me smile and laugh especially when Fox gets a bit too curious and sits on one of the plant pots and sniffs at the dirt. When it's raining, He loves to hide at the second shelf there to get away from the rain, He sits on the basket with a towel and waits for the rain to stop. I usually give him hay to munch on. Copper loves the rain, she sits in the garden to jump about but if it's raining real heavily, well, she hides in her box. I love them so much, They are really my Friends for life!

Verity Chow

Baxter - The Inspiring Rabbit

Dear SPCA,
It really only hits me when I received the Animal Adoption Form on the day my family and I received Baxter, the albino rabbit, home. It is a confirmation of the commitment we are giving to this little animal. It almost reminded me of the day when I received the Birth Certificate of my first born!

Baxter is our family's first pet. My son, who is 11 years old, has always wanted a pet. After much consideration, we decided that a bunny will be a good start to owning a family pet. But before we went on the adoption hunt, we read up a lot from the internet about the responsibilities of owning a pet rabbit, the kind of space it needs, the food, etc. Next we went on the internet to look at both the SPCA and HRSS adoption pages. We decided to go to SPCA to have a look at the bunnies.

We were greeted warmly at the SPCA. We were also allowed time to look around at the bunnies available for adoption. One, six-month old very curious little white rabbit caught my son's attention almost immediately. We stayed on for a little while more to allow my son to interact a little longer with the bunny. At the end of the session, both my helper and my son agreed spontaneously that Baxter is the one for us.

Before we could adopt Baxter, we were interviewed intensely by the SPCA staff, to make sure that we were not one of those families looking for a bunny just because it is the Year of the Rabbit. Of course my son could answer all the questions about care of rabbits and rabbits behaviour with flying colours because of our intensive research before adoption!

So on 8th February 2011, we took Baxter home.

However, after one week of interacting with Baxter, we found that there is something not quite right about his eye-sight. So SPCA told us to bring Baxter back for the vet to have a look. It was then confirmed that Baxter is partially blind, probably from birth. Our hearts went out to Baxter. Without hesitation, my son quickly picked up Baxter and put him back into the cage and took him home. My son's thinking was "If Baxter is blind, no one else will adopt him, we must look after him." I was so touched by this little young man's compassion and was almost in tears!

So, Baxter has been with us since. He is a very gentle and appreciative bunny. However, he has been spoilt by us and is now very fussy with the selection of his greens! His favourite treats are apples and pears! I am sure you can see how much we love Baxter from some of the photos here. Baxter is so charming, he can do little tricks and he is a hit with our visitors. We gave two of our young visitors a soft bunny toy that looks like Baxter because they are so fond of Baxter. They love the soft toys so much as they remind them of Baxter and they take the toys to bed with them every night!

Baxter has been such an inspiration to my son. In my son's latest school project work, he is required to share his thoughts with the world about something that can make a difference to the world. He has chosen to highlight to the world the plight of abandoned and abused animals. He wants people to be responsible pet owners and to adopt a pet rather than to buy one. You can see his work on the website: http://286983.edicypages.com/en

It is our hope that more people will adopt animals rather than to buy them; and be responsible pet owners. We share the same vision as SPCA! Thank you, SPCA!

Mrs Yap

Scooby-Doobeedoo!

Dear SPCA,
I would just like to thank you for letting us adopt Scooby last june 2010. He has just become such a joy in our family, it's beyond words. When we first saw Scooby's picture on your adoption gallery website, he was literally love at first sight.

We were warned that he would be a difficult dog to handle because of his energy levels. Being a first time dog owner, i was a bit weary. But surprisingly, scooby has been so easy to be with. We bring him almost everywhere we go, including sailing! My daily morning runs are never the same, he runs with me for my whole 10km route without complaining!!

My parents love scooby so much they keep attempting to "kidnap" him from us, almost like he's our son.

We also have a cat, Uss. They do not get along at all, but it all adds to the never ending entertainment at home. Never a dull moment! Of course, we try not to show favouritism.

Our lives have changed with Scooby. We feel so lucky to have him. Thank you SPCA!

Best,
Jennifer and Guz Wilkinson

Hiyo Milo

This is 'Max', although my new owners decided I was more of a 'Milo' after seeing my personality. I seem to like it - my ears perk up whenever they say my name. It was certainly better than 'Chairman Meow'.

I am adapting well to my new home, and pretty much have the run of the place. Although I'm still a little thin, I'm eating well and enjoy both wet and dry food. Both are a good idea for my digestion.

I never need to use my claws, and I love to be around everyone that lives here and comes to visit. I feel so calm and happy in my new home, and I can totally relax now. I like to play with my owners and my toys - I've become quite the athelete. I'm a real jumper, in fact.

I've attached a couple of pictures for you to see. One is showing my new chair that I've commandeered. Although I share it, it's pretty much mine now. The other is when I got into the act with one of my owner's Halloween shenanigans. I was disappointed I couldn't find any candy.

My owners are easy to train and I've got them wrapped around my little paw. We're all so very happy to have each other.

Thank you all for taking such good care of me when I was needing help. With your love and support, I was able to survive and find a new home!

Love, Milo
Thank you all again - we are so happy! Frank, Jennise and Sophia Marton

Pretty and Chelsea

We lost "Pretty" suddenly. She vomited and had diarrhoea at night. We rushed her to a veterinary at 2am but at about 8am the next morning Pretty had left us for good.

It was difficult to cope without her presence. No words could console or fill the vacuum within our home.

Pretty literally walked herself into our lives and was a source of joy to all of us at home.

I saw a poster that resembled Pretty at the SPCA. Thanks to the kind understanding and empathy extended to me by the staff, I managed to bring home one of the posters. This poster continues to take pride of place in our home.

Several weeks later, I received an unexpected call from SPCA. They asked if I was keen to adopt a young pup that was up for adoption at the SPCA.

Still carrying the pain of losing Pretty, we found ourselves unable to rush into saying yes. We however, decided to view the potential pup at least.

Honestly, what we saw of the Shih Tzu pup was that she looked like a small mop, almost a ball of fur.

There was something about her, perhaps her big eyes or her need for care and love captured our hearts immediately.

Perhaps Pretty's unconditional love and care for us made us want another to replace her in our home.

We took the pup home and named her "Chelsea".

Today, Chelsea is a happy, lively and lovable 10-year-old furry member of our family. She is very much a big part of our lives just like Pretty was. Chelsea's big eyes, demeanour and zest for life bring much joy to everyone at home.

Almost every night, Chelsea repeats her sprints after dinner as the rest of the family watches the television. This is likely a daily episode of a live programme at home.

Whilst we still continue to carry the fond memories of Pretty, we are most grateful to SPCA for introducing Chelsea into our lives.

Thank you SPCA for allowing us to adopt this special bundle of joy.

Of course, we cannot help but say "Thank you, Chelsea for your ability to show us the way to optimism, love, care, and the bundle of joy you are to us and for adopting us as your family."

There can never be any doubt that animals do bring that special joy, love and take a very special place in our home and hearts.

So, please adopt rather than buy!

M. Lukshumayeh