2024
If you would like to share your BCHS Alumni story please do!!
Sasha
Friendly Sasha, a Boxer Catahoula mix puppy, had been surrendered to Vandalia Animal Control along with the rest of her litter, unwanted by their owner. Bond County Humane Society rescued Sasha in August 2024 and soon discovered that her favorite activity was hanging out with people: shelter staff, office volunteers, vet clinic workers, strangers on the street and shoppers in Petco. She never ever saw them as a distraction from her puppy manners training; everybody and everything is valuable life practice and a chance to snuggle and give kisses. We placed her, still only 3 months old, into an excellent and caring new home as fast as September.
Her dad dashed off this great note:
Just wanted to share. Sasha is doing well and growing fast!”
— Billy Silva, October 27, 2024
Ranger (now Bennett)
When BCHS rescued Ranger—the 5 month old Australian Shepherd mix puppy—from Bond County Animal Control, the little unclaimed stray was dirty, underweight, and very recently treated for a major infestation of intestinal parasites. Within a day of arriving, Ranger was running a high temperature and our vet prescribed several medications. Within 48 hours, he was acting like nothing was wrong. A real trooper, he tolerated a bath, brushing, and fur mats removal very well. He loved being with people, getting petted, and playing with his favorite squeaky toy. What a turnaround for this smart, eye-catching guy! In March 2024, at 6 months old, he went home with his adoptive parents.
They tell us:
After many Adopt-A-Day events and endless talks and research, we agreed that our dream dog would be a Husky/Shepherd breed. We thought we may have found a Husky during one event but something was still missing, so we decided to wait. We met Rachel from BCHS and she told us about Ranger; how [sick and dirty] he was when he arrived at the shelter but he was healthy now! We set up an appointment to go meet him after he was neutered without complication and ended up bringing him home that day! [We renamed him] Bennett, [and he] never looks back on his first days as a pup! He is always full of energy, loves playing with squeaky toys, going to his favorite dog park, walks, shopping at the pet store and Lowes, getting treats, and of course he’s always ready to visit his ‘Granny’ and ‘Grumps’. He’ll play with anyone he sees and is happy to greet any animal. Anytime Bennett is out and about he is always told how gentle, well mannered, handsome and polite he is. We couldn’t have found a better addition to our family!”
— Rachel & Zach Leuenberger, Aug 1, 2024
Boomer
Two-year-old Pointer mix Boomer came into our care at the beginning of 2024. During his
initial bath, we noticed one of his ears was extremely dirty, unaware that this would lead to months of arduous
treatment. Boomer suffered from chronic ear infections. Multiple medications were prescribed, but the relief
was only temporary as Boomer continued to shake his head and scratch at his ear. Just when we were feeling
defeated the veterinarian commented that most ear infections are caused by allergies. Boomer was then prescribed
allergy medicine and a special hypoallergenic dog food. Boomer finally went a full month without an ear
infection, making him available for adoption.
Boomer was adopted on June 1, 2024. The adoption counselor informed the potential adopters of Boomer’s
allergies and the required special diet, to which they responded, “Well, that’s okay. I have
allergies too, and we’re vegetarians.” This seemed like the perfect fit for both Boomer
and his new family.
His adoptive family sent this great photo of Boomer happily taking a break from playtime:
— June 2024
Shimmer (now Rang-i)
Bond County Humane Society rescued Shimmer, a small classic swirled tabby kitten, along with her mother and siblings, from Bond County Animal Control. They’d been found as strays. All the kittens loved to tumble about in the BCHS cat shelter, play together, and challenge each other over toys. Shimmer liked chasing the bounciest balls the best. She was adopted in March 2024 at three months old.
Rang-i’s dad dashed off this great note:
So far, Rang-i (aka Shimmer) is doing well and she gets along with everyone, sleeping in my daughter’s bed or anywhere in the house during the day. She eats and drinks so quickly, we call her a vacuum. But I›ve bought a slow feeder bowl, and I am trying to monitor and regulate her eating, so hopefully she gets better. We are so happy with Rang-i! She’s very cute and lovable. Our adoption experience was excellent, too. Thank you, BCHS!”
— Bo-Kyung Perham, April 21, 2024
Rang-i is pronounced “Rahn-gee” and is just one syllable less than the word 호랑이 “ho-rang-i” which means Tiger in Korean.
2023
Daisy
An unclaimed stray sitting in an animal control facility in Tennessee, Daisy the 4 year old miniature Poodle mix, was rescued by Bond County Humane Society thanks to a pet transport program. Her initial dirty and scruffy appearance was no match for a bath and a visit to the groomer. At the vet, she was spayed and had serious dental work done. Her beauty always shone through as well as her sociable joy in long walks, squeaky toys, and splashing in the kiddie pool. BCHS’ shelter director knew the perfect couple to introduce to Daisy and they adopted her into their pack June 28, 2023.
Daisy sent us this note (with some help!):
Mom and Dad lost their precious dog Zoe to complications of Cushing disease in May. They soon saw my picture and it was love at first sight. I immediately acclimated myself to my new home and have been a joy to everyone I meet. I love to cuddle and spend the night on the people bed. My favorite pastimes are looking for squirrels in my yard and playing with my squeaky toys. My bro-fur Toby and I love to do zoomies around the house, too. I am ever so happy that I found my forever home and wish that every dog and kitty will find their forever home as well.”
— Daisy Mae, Jan & Tom Hoffman, Nov. 30, 2023
Sabrina
Brought in to Bond County Humane Society with her four kittens, two year old Sabrina was an unclaimed stray, an elegant Domestic Shorthair kitty with soft black fur. Shelter volunteers liked her friendly and affectionate nature, but although her kittens found loving homes fairly quickly, Sabrina remained un-adopted for five years! Granted, she was rather shy, preferring to play by herself or with other kitties in the community room than with visitors she didn’t know very well. But at last, in August 2023, we had the chance to approve an application for Sabrina!
Her adoptive parents have written two notes:
[Right away] Sabrina is doing better than we expected. She has been exploring the room each night and is using the litter box plus eating and drinking. While she does not want to leave a cubby of the cat tree during the day, she has taken to us pretty fast and loves when we pet her. We have not introduced her to the other cat yet. We are already in love with her and soon she’ll be exploring the whole house.
— August 21, 2023
Hi! We adopted a black cat named Sabrina a few months ago. Just wanted to update you guys on how she is doing. We absolutely love her! She has seriously blown us away. She is very cuddly and is constantly following us around being nosy! She gets along great with our other cat. She also even comes out to visit when company is over. Sabrina always is playing with some sort of toy too! She was the perfect addition to our home, thank you for everything!”
— David Payne & Lexi Martin, November 4, 2023
Lulu (now Elly)
Bond County Humane Society rescued Lulu, an 11 month old Chihuahua mix, from Bond County Animal Control in December 2022 after she’d been found as an unclaimed stray, running at large. She was scared in the shelter at first, but warmed up quickly; now no one is a stranger! Lulu is happiest when she’s sitting on someone’s lap; as soon as someone sits down, she takes it as her cue. She’s also very fast, zooming through doors, even able to climb a chain link fence! We were pleased to send Lulu off to her forever home in January 2023.
Elly’s family writes:
We adopted Lulu/Elly. I just wanted to let you know she’s doing great! She’s been to the beach and the lake. She took her first boat ride last weekend. We love her so much! Thank you for letting us adopt her.”
— MaryAnn Mierzejewski, June 28, 2023
Another Update on Elly!
Elly has been a wonderful addition to
our family. No matter what we are doing or where we are going, she is ready to join us. Her day starts with a daily
walk with mom and mom’s buddies. Elly has boundless energy. She enjoys running in the yard and hops half as high
as the fence. She loves chasing rabbits and enjoys seeing the deer in the common ground. When the neighbor’s dogs
are out Elly runs to visit with them.
“Inside, when Elly is not amusing herself with her stuffed animal (ducky), or playing with her ball, she can be
found chewing on her bone, and later hiding it. Elly will stop whatever she is doing though if mom is on the move.
Best of all, Elly loves it when mom takes a break and retires to the couch. She loves sitting and sleeping as
close to mom as she can.
“When it comes to television, Elly is mesmerized when she sees another dog on TV and her favorite movie is
Despicable Me. Elly is also a traveler and enjoys riding in our car. She has been to the Lake of the Ozarks and
several times to Florida. Elly enjoys lake life and the sandy beaches of St. Augustine.
“At 9p.m. Elly heads to the bedroom joined by mom. Dad to follows later. Elly has been a spark in our lives
keeping us active and young. We wouldn’t have life any other way. Thank You!!!”
— MaryAnn Mierzejewski, August 1, 2024
Peaches
Surrendered to Bond County Humane Society by the farmer who found Peaches near his grain trucks during harvest time (November 2022), we placed this orange tabby into a foster home. She was a quiet and shy gal, getting along well with the other cats in the house, playing with them until they got too rough, taking a break, then returning later to rejoin the games. Peaches loved playing with toy mice and climbing up the cat trees. She wasn’t a big fan of people reaching for her, but when a person sat down, she’d come up for attention. Peaches went to her forever home in May 2023.
Peaches (now Frankie)’s dad writes:
Frankie hid a lot at first but now she’s comfortable and running all over the place. In the beginning, she didn’t get along at all with our other cat. They hissed at each other constantly. But now they are starting to get along much better. I wouldn’t say they are best friends, but it’s better... Frankie’s living the life! We love having her! She is definitely a good girl!! ❤️❤️ BCHS was very friendly and easy to work with during the adoption of Frankie.”
— Matt Karlovsky, June 22, 2023
Churro
We rescued Churro, a four week old calico tabby kitten, from a nearby animal control facility. Since she wasn’t weaned, we placed her into an approved foster home where she was bottle fed. She was adopted in January along with another cat. But the adoption didn’t stick; a family member turned out to be quite allergic! Churro was a happy and purring kitty, so active with her toys and loved to play with other kittens and cats; she had also become friends with the foster’s Beagle mix. So we were thrilled to match her into another forever home with a dog in March 2023. By then she was still just five months old.
Churro (now Presley)’s mom shares:
Churro, now Presley, is making herself right at home! Ate first thing and is loving life. Here is a picture of my dog Sadi and my cat Paisley. Thanks again! She’s so sweet!... Very Happy kitty! She and my other cat, Paisley, are best friends and love to play together!”
— Jaime Harrison, March 16, 2023 & April 13, 2023
Penny
Bond County Humane Society rescued Penny, a calico kitten, and her five litter mates from Bond County Animal Control when they were about ten weeks old. She was crazy curious and loved her siblings. Penny would play with all the toys she could get her paws on. We matched this precious girl into a great home in late July 2022.
Penny’s mom sent us this note:
I adopted Penny in August of 2022. Since then, she has brightened our household with her sweet spunky personality. Her best friend is our dog Jed and they are always together. This picture was taken a week after I brought her home. Thank you for letting me adopt her!”
— Adria Denley, March 4, 2023
Fawn
Bond County Humane Society rescued Fawn, a long haired calico kitten, and her siblings from Bond County Animal Control when they were only four weeks old. She was a calm girl, always ready for a nice nap. Fawn’s favorite toys were little mice, but even more favorite was snuggling with people for a long session of petting. In December 2022, at just nine weeks old, she joined a household who has adopted several other long haired cats from BCHS!
Fawn (now Mitzi)’s mom shares:
Here’s a few pics of my new kitten Mitzi (formerly Fawn) and Harley. She loves to curl up in a trash basket I have sitting next to my chair! And on the leather furniture. Mitzi will also sleep in Harley’s basket, not wanting to get out, even when Harley comes to claim it back: you can barely see her paws and nose... They’re definitely friends though: togetherness.
“And here’s a good picture of Mitzi, who I adopted the middle of December 2022. And a few of her being her silly goofy self. She’s growing WAY too fast, I can hardly believe she’s the same cat from that cute little snot nose kitty!”
— Barb Dothage McClure, February 13, 2023 & May 31, 2023
Jake (now Stitch)
Bond County Humane Society rescued Jake, a 1 year old Chihuahua mix, and his littermate from Bond County Animal Control in September 2023 after they’d been surrendered by the family of a recently deceased over-the-road truck driver. In our dog shelter, he had tons of spirited energy and enjoyed playing with other small dogs. He loved his leash walks, smelling all the scents along the way. And of course Jake loved to ride in the car! We matched him into a forever home just about a month later.
Here’s what Stitch’s family writes:
Jake (now Stitch, on the left) fits in so perfectly with our family! We dressed him up for Halloween as Jake from State Farm Insurance in a red polo shirt.”
— Jessica Zerjal, January 28, 2023
Franklin & Simon
When a 3 month old orange and white tabby cat showed up at a house, their own cat bullied him badly so they surrendered him in 2013 to Bond County Humane Society. We named the unclaimed stray Franklin. Since then he’s been adopted and returned twice and is considered special needs due to his urinary issues and Rx food. Franklin was so affectionate, playful, loved cuddles and instructing the other cats in proper scratching technique. Simon’s owner could not care for the 2 month old buff orange kitten and so surrendered him to BCHS in 2018. He’s always been so gentle, shy, and reserved, keeping to himself. But then Simon finally made a best friend in his community room: Franklin. In September 2022, we were thrilled to send our Franklin home with a kindhearted couple who previously gave one of our senior girls (Buttons) the best cozy and easy life. A week later, Franklin’s new parents returned to the shelter to adopt Simon, too!
The pair’s mom and dad write:
Hello Rachel, Jane, and all! First of all, Franklin and Simon are doing very well! They continue to be partners in crime, and never stray far from one another. We are really glad that we made the decision to come back for Simon. We can’t imagine life without this pair! Franklin’s had very few issues with our other younger cats. And Simon has really come out of his shell. At first, if he ventured out and you moved, he’d run and hide, but now he comes out and lounges around. He’ll even let you pet him for a while as long as you have food ready to give him. He’s become very vocal at feeding time. He’s even gotten to the point where he’ll occasionally sleep at the foot of the bed at night with us. I doubt he’ll ever be a cat that cuddles, but then again we also didn’t expect him to let us pet him so you never know. Thank you for all you do!””
— Bob and Michelle Schaeg, Nov 9, 2022 & June 19, 2023
