Take a Bow (Wow)

Adopt-A-Pet has had the privilege of saving the lives of thousands of deserving animals, each one special in his or her own way. But over the years we've had some exciting "celebrity" adoptions that we think are extra cool stories that we'd like to share with you.

And even though all of our Little Orphans don�t become stars, each animal is just as precious and as much a *star* to their new loving families � all made possible by YOU, our loyal supporters!

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When she came upon the scruffy gray dog sitting out on the sidewalk in the rain, she went inside a nearby business to ask if the dog belonged to anyone there. She was told that the dog had been out there for the last 6 months - they had been feeding it scraps when it would come around begging. She approached the dog � it cowered and took two steps back. She went back inside the store and asked what they called the dog. She was told the dog had no name. How sad, she thought. But not one to walk away from an animal in need, she spent the next hour gaining the dog�s trust. Her mission: to get the dog into her car and to a safe, warm shelter.

When the dingy dog arrived in Adopt-A-Pet�s care he was scared, shivering, and quite ragged. After a good scrubbing in the tub, it turned out the dog wasn�t gray after all, but rather a beautiful rust color � and so the dog with no name hence became our �Rusty�.

Rusty at first was quite shy, but refusing to surrender to his broken spirit he slowly began to learn to trust. With lots of TLC, good food and grooming, Rusty�s appearance began to improve. Yet, months went by. Several potential adopters came to meet Rusty � but still, no takers. They just couldn�t see the potential that we saw deep inside of this beautiful creature.

Little by little, Rusty�s personality blossomed and he became healthy and strong. With his spirit on the mend, we decided it was time for Rusty to make his debut at an adoption show held at a local pet store. We brought him in and assigned Betsy, one of our wonderful volunteers, to handle Rusty for the day. Betsy and Rusty bonded instantly. At the end of the day, though, Rusty had still not gotten adopted -- but there was no way THIS dog was going back to the kennel! Betsy took Rusty home, where he began his new life.

As Rusty got comfortable in his new home, Betsy began to realize that this was no ORDINARY dog � this dog was STAR quality! Betsy, an up-and-coming young actress, had just landed a part in Drury Lane Oakbrook�s production of �Annie�. When auditions were held for Sandy the dog, Betsy brought Rusty � and the rest, as they say, is history. Rusty � once an orphan himself - got the part! After weeks of preparation under Betsy�s tutelage, Rusty stole the show and opened to rave reviews! The play runs through Dec. 31. Treat yourself to this superb production, perfect for the whole family, and see the results that YOU, our supporting cast, made possible. (take a bow!) And of course, don�t forget a little extra applause for our Rusty & Betsy!

Happy Holidays To You!	Who Stole My Makeup Brush?
Curtain Call

Tom Meehan, the original writer of the Broadway show in 1972, once described Annie as �the child of indomitable spirit, lost and wandering � a metaphor for courage, morality, innocence and optimism in the face of cynicism and pessimism.� Exactly how we think of our Rusty!

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What ever happened to �Jack�? As some of you may remember, Jack was a large, older orange male cat that we featured in last year�s newsletter as one of our neediest waifs. He had been with us at Adopt-A-Pet for quite some time, and despite his wonderful personality, he was somehow always overlooked when people were choosing cats to adopt.

A little background on �Jack�: �Jack� had been picked up as a stray by an animal warden in a village that Adopt-a-Pet did not have a relationship with, in fact, a village that did not have a relationship with any shelter. He remained unclaimed, and after his time was up he was scheduled to be euthanized. A kind policewoman, looking past his matted hair and bruises, noticed what a special personality this cat had and called Adopt-A-Pet to see if we would take him in and save his life. Unfortunately, we were totally full and had to turn her away. However, later that afternoon one of our cats got adopted, which opened up a spot for a new one, and so we called the policewoman back and accepted this new cat that we named �Jack�.

�Jack� came to us filthy dirty, crawling with fleas, with cuts and scrapes on his face and head, infected eyes, missing fur, not a very pretty sight. We cleaned him up, neutered him, gave him the medical attention he needed, and waited for his wounds to heal. Unfortunately, it was a while before he was �presentable� again and he kept getting passed over by potential adopters.

Fast forward ... So where is �Jack� now? Maybe he�s in Alabama acting as grand marshall of a parade. Or maybe he�s in Texas officiating at a cat show. Or maybe he�s in Los Angeles taping the Good Morning America show. Or maybe he�s in Chicago shooting a television commercial.

You see, �Jack� is no longer �Jack�. "Jack� is now the most famous cat in the world. �Jack� is now --- the new Morris !! After a nationwide search by the 9-Lives company to replace the retiring Morris II, �our Jack� was selected to be the new Morris III. He was adopted by his trainer who never leaves his side and travels with him everywhere, and now lives a pampered life with her three other cats in a wonderful home!

So now you know the rest of the story! And we couldn�t think of a happier ending!

Gloria and Jack, AKA Morris III

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Quianna, a canine-teddy bear mix, was adopted from us in August of 2004. She went on to win the 2004 Kodak Picture Award! (Check out the billboard!)

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