Hi, I'm Waylon Kennedy (formerly of the “N” pups).

I think I'm a black lab mixed with a Catahoula, but I'm not entirely convinced - I mean, I have no idea what my ears are trying to do. Anyway, I wanted to give Lost Dog Rescue an update on how I'm doing. My new place is awesome, there are couches and treats and lots of toys and I can pretty much do whatever I want. I've been here about two months with my mom and dad, they're great, they hug and kiss and snuggle me a LOT (sometimes its annoying). We go on two walks a day which is fun, but the dog park is a blast, there are big dogs and little dogs and puppies like me and we all go crazy together.

Afterwards I have to get a bath though, but I don't mind because after the bath I get to lay by my fireplace. I've already started to learn to make my mom and dad do tricks. I Sit and Stay or even Roll Over or Beg and they give me treats - I've got them eating out of my paw. (Mom's favorite is "Wave.") I love it here, I do miss my brothers and sisters, but I'm sure they're all doing well. If you ever want to come over and hang out I love to play - I mean I REALLY love it - sometimes I'll get "hungover" from playing so hard and I'll be tired for two days straight. Alright, I've got to go and sprawl out on the couch like I own it (oh wait, I do).

Thanks Lost Dog for hooking me up with such cool parents!

Hi, On December 20, our family adopted Ginger a 4 year old cocker. We absolutely love her and are so happy we could bring her to our family!!! Thank you,

Hi, I'm Sheila and I just wanted to let everyone at Log Dog and Cat Rescue that Frazier(now Jake), is happy in his forever home. After a rough start, our older fur son, Chesdin didn't care much for Jake and his puppy ways. There was a big fight, during which my husband was bitten by Jake(not Jake's fault, husband tried to stop a dog fight), at that point I thought my husband might want to take him back to you guys, but he admitted it was his fault. Jake is a dear sweet funny guy and a gentle soul, my husband and my children all love him, as for myself I can't imagine a day without Jake. Our cat, Max didn't think too highly of the fast moving dynamo, but they have worked it out and if not best friends, at least good enemies. Thanks for taking care of him until we found him and made him part of our family. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

LDCR,

I had to write and rave about our baby, Happy. We saw Happy's photo on the website, and his description was perfect. My fiance, Russ, sent around the picture before we had even met Happy, "This is Happy, we might adopt him this weekend!" Just from the picture we knew he would be perfect for us!

We had a packed weekend May 10th 2008, including my two brothers as house guests... We arrive at the adoption day at Petsmart on route 50 and see Happy, calm in his crate waiting to be let out to meet everyone. He was ADORABLE. He was sweet, perfectly sized and unlike many of the dogs, he was relaxed and cheery, never making a sound other than his tail wagging. We knew he was perfect for us. We filled out the paperwork and they said we could take Happy home that day.... TODAY?! I completed the paperwork while Russ ran around petsmart getting the necessities, a crate, a leash, dog food, and of course a kong.

On our way home, Happy and I sat in the back of the car together, he was so scared! He didn't make a peep and trying to get him out of the car was heart breaking! When we finally got him out, he jumped into our TRUNK! I don't know how he managed that. We set up his crate and he settled in. I ran around to the airport and train stations to pick up my brothers, and we worked on Happy warming up to us. What a lot to take in for him! For two days he barely ate, made NO sounds, wouldn't even open his mouth, even on his walk.

But at the end of the second day, with our back door open, Happy came out on his own, sniffed around, and tried to crawl into my lap. It was so sweet. By the third day, he responded to his name, and he made his first sound, a very very faint wimper when we went to bed and he was alone downstairs. We moved the crate to our room and he settled in to sleep.

We have a lot of visitors, and at first, Happy would run up to his crate and hide whenever people came over. After about three weeks, he came out of his shell. Now Happy loves to have visitors and will sit right next to them to soak up attention... He also loves going on car rides to visit others, especially his grandparents, they love their grand-dog!

Gradually he has stolen EVERYONE's hearts. People stop me on the street to comment on how cute he is and how happy he is! He snuggles in our bed with us, follows directions and loves to please.

A dog is a huge responsibility, especially for two young professionals who work full time, but Happy could not be more perfect for us. We can't imagine who would have left him as a chained puppy in his home state of Tennessee. Crate trained, house trained, and trained for sweetness, we are so lucky to have found him and are forever grateful to LDCR for caring for him until we could find our perfect dog.

I've attached a photo of Happy from our Christmas card this year.

Thank you so much for our wonderful Happy dog!

Hi LDCRF,

I wanted to give you an update on Salty (formerly Ron). I adopted him May 24 at FairLakes and the past 7 months have been wonderful. I was lucky enough to bring home a dog that was already house broken (not a single accident ever!) and crate trained. We've taken an obedience class and will hopefully do a K-9 Good Citizen class soon.

He is a funny, happy, goofy guy with energy coming out of his ears! Luckily I have a fenced-in back yard and a great dog park to take him to where he loves nothing more to RUN and chase his doggie friends. But he really is happiest getting his belly rubbed or attempting to sit on my lap (even though he's a LOT too big to be a lap dog!).

Thanks again for all you do and for bringing Salty in to my life!

Dear Lost Dog and Cat Rescue friends --

"Margaret" Mahoney and her family want to wish you all a very happy holiday season.

Margaret was adopted as "Siren" in September of this year, and re-named in honor of 17th-century animal rights defender Margaret Cavendish, as described in the recent book "For the Love of Animals." (See http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/07/18/ST2008071802522.html).

Attached is a photo of Margaret on her kitty sill.

Keep up the great work and stay in touch!

Margaret and the gang....

Oona the wonder dog went from junk pile to fashion model.

In September of 2005 I was looking for a dog. Oona (formerly known as Celia) was looking for a home. She was a miniature version of my brother's dog and I just had to see her in person. Traffic on I-66 was bad that night and I arrived at the adoption event twenty minutes before Petsmart closed.

I took one look at her, decided to take the leap and spent the next few minutes scrambling to get everything necessary. Oona observed it all and was utterly calm in the face of chaos. When we got home I looked at her pound intake form and realized that she had been picked up at a local dump. After the junkyard anything must seem relaxing. Everyone laughs when I say that she was a junkyard dog because she is so fastidious now.

Her serenity came in handy recently when she was picked to be a fashion model. I knit and Stitch DC's proprietor, Marie Connolly, recently released a pattern book called The Expectant Knitter. It mostly has patterns for babies but when a baby comes into the household everyone should "remember the dog too!" Oona modeled the dog sweater and recently took great joy (not really) in paw-print autographing.

She was found in a junkyard and now I could go into virtually any bookstore and find a picture of my dog. I think that's amazing. Thank you so much for my little furry friend. Without Lost Dog she would have been put to sleep for having kennel cough. I love her and her eccentricities too. How many other dogs give the garbage collector’s truck a nervous glance when they hear the back-up beep beep beep noise? Just my Oona!

And Oona? She's excited because with Christmas coming up she gets to see some other family pups. She'll get to see my brother's dog (center) and they'll continue the pseudo mamma love-fest. Too cute! She might even get to see her buddy Gatsby. They were both posing at the Bay of Fundy and notice how perfectly my junkyard pup placed her paws to get nary a toenail dirty.

Dear LDCRF,

On August 9, 2008, my life changed completely! My foster parents brought me to the adoption day at the request of my mommy. I was missing hair and was a bit thinner. It took just one look at each other to realize that we were a match! Mommy took me home that day and my life has never been better.

Since then, my mommy has bought a townhouse for us to romp around in. It even has a backyard just for me!! I love to sit outside and sun bath. My mommy is very loving to me and is my best friend. When I first came to live with her, I was terrified of people, but she has worked with me, and now I'm not terrified of people anymore! She takes me everywhere she can. I love going to my Grammy's house and my Aunt and Uncle's houses. They all have huge backyards and more people to play with (and I get TONS of treats from them!!) I also love to go for long walks. Sometimes as a treat, mommy takes me to Manassas Battlefield Park, Burke Lake Park, or a park just for us dogs!! She really spoils me but says it's ok because she says I had a rough life before living with her. I am definitely a mamma's boy because I'm always right by her side. I have a doggie best friend named Luscious. She's a pug. We have tons of fun together but we sometimes get into trouble. At first, I had to tell her who was boss, but now we share tons and I even let her snuggle with me on my bed.

Thanks LDCRF and my fosters for taking me in and working with me. And for letting my mommy adopt me. I am so happy and love my life. I couldn't have asked for a better family and friends!

Sincerely,

Bear (with a little help from mommy)

Dear LDCR-

Who knew when my fiance Gabe and I walked into Petsmart on a cold Sunday in late January of this year, our lives would be so enriched! We adopted "Lilly" now Laney, who stole our hearts from the minute we laid eyes on her floppy ears, and white tipped tail. Now at 13 months old and 28 lbs she's an active, energetic, snugly love bug!

This past year has been a joy. She has turned into quite the city dog! She loves long walks in the neighborhood, especially playing on the lawn of the National Cathedral, and the dog park across from our neighborhood. She has been to the VA mountains, and to Virginia Beach- and has loved running through the fall eaves and trying the swimming pool this summer.

She's quite the socialite and has many friends in the complex, as well as at daycare. She hasn't met an adult, child or dog she doesn't like. She'll give you kisses all day if you let her, and very much enjoys belly rubs in return! Her favorite spot is in the comfy recliner chair that she quickly staked her claim on when we first adopted her. Oh and she is quite the football queen-- her favorite teams are the Redskins (like her mama) and the Florida Gators (for her papa).

Thank you LDCR for enriching our lives, and we look forward to many more years of fun, laughter and memories with Laney in our family!

Hi Lost Dog Rescue,

I wanted to give you a quick update on Dahlia. She was the adorable 12 week old boxer/hound mix I brought home at the end of April. I wasn't sure that I was up to the time commitment a puppy demands, but she convinced me that I was. Dahlia has 2 things on her agenda - wags and kisses. I rearranged my schedule so that I could spend more time with her to help her get acclimated.

She is such a hoot to be around. She loves to play and can entertain herself tossing a ball up in the air and chasing it. She is still getting used to her long legs and every so often they fly out from under her when she is running. Her favorite hobbies include playing with her cat siblings, playing keep away at the dog park, and sitting in my lap.

We've taken two obedience classes and will be taking an agility class in February. She loves to do tricks, especially rolling over.

She has brought so much happiness into my life. I'm so happy I got to take that little puppy with non-stop wagging tail home!

Thank you,

Lost Dog Rescue,

We had been casually looking for a dog to rescue for about 6 months with little luck. Since I work on Saturdays, I was not able to attend most adoption events. I had searched on-line, filling out applications and e-mailing inquiries left and right. A lot of rescues had policies about adopting out of their area, so I started to narrow my search to Loudoun County. As a previous Pit Bull owner, I was disappointed to hear that our local animal shelter euthanizes Pit Bulls and refuses to adopt out the breed. They referred me back to the rescues.

A few weeks later I was off on a Sunday and googled the date + dog adoption day. What pops up? An adoption day by the Lost Dog Rescue hosted by a PetSmart down the road!!! As soon as we walked up to the building, Sugar (formerly Blossom) was front and center. Sugar looks like a Pit Bull, American Bull Dog, Boxer mix at 40 lbs. My boyfriend, Scott, went right for her and she just leaned into him. After spending some time with her we found that she was a perfect match. I was prepared for the long application process and nervous that there may be a wait to take her home. I was very relieved to find that the application process was short, the people were wonderful, and we were able to take her home with us!

Sugar now lives with the 3 of us, and gets lots of love, attention, and training. She is very smart and eager to please so we would like to find a job for her. The only problem we have had was her first few stays in the kennel. We got a smaller kennel and use a stuffed kong as the vet told us too, and she is doing much better. Luckily all of us are able to take her to work with us (great for socialization), and someone is always home since we have different schedules. We couldn't be happier with our pup. She is a perfect work out buddy, wonderful to cuddle with, and well behaved where ever she goes! Sugar is very agile and loves to run in the park. She walks by my knee on the way to the park and then we switch to the 30 ft. leash to practice sit, stay, and come. We don't go home until shes warn out from sprinting! Needless to say she's found her furever home! Thank you Lost Dog Rescue!

Cheers,

Sugar's People

First of all, my son Aidan and I would like to thank you very, very much for all your help yesterday in selecting and learning to care for the newest member of our family, Abby. We really appreciated all the time you took to speak with us and help us through the adoption process. And for helping us get the right supplies to ease Abby's transition into our our household. You were so wonderful and, in fact, Aidan commented to me this morning how nice you were to us! So thanks so much!!!

We just wanted to give you a quick update on how Abby is doing so far . . .

I have a feeling Abby must have been part of a family with children at one time. She has acclimated so well to our household it is amazing! She spent some time yesterday under my son's bed. But by evening time, she was hanging out in the den by the fireplace just wanting to be scratched behind the ears. She has been wonderful with Aidan and lots of fun to play with. She likes to take naps under the sofa. And we were worried because it took a little bit of time for her to want to eat. But she is has eaten a couple of times today (we are leaving some food out for her until we get her a little more settled.)

She has a lovely, relaxed and fun-loving disposition! Today, we bought her a "diamond" elastic collar with a name tag. She looks just beautiful and healthy. (I also will be bringing her to the vet in the next few days for a check up to just make sure.)

So again, we wanted to thank you and the Lost Dog & Cat Rescue Foundation! We are looking forward to hopefully years of happy memories with our lovely little Abby.

Most sincerely,

Hello!

I just wanted to give you an update and let you know how Calvin is doing. My husband and I picked Calvin up on June 25th when he was 12 weeks old and he has been a complete joy. He is fabulous with our house bunny and loves the cat. They are all best friends and enjoy playing all over the house. Otherwise, Calvin is a star student and has been attending obedience classes, agility classes and knows many neat tricks.

He is also much bigger, weighing around 35 pounds at 8 months old. He loves swimming, going for hikes in the woods and getting his daily dog walk from his dog walking buddy. Overall...our lives are wonderful now that we have someone to steal part of the bed, wake us up at 6am to go potty and cry when we don't give him 100% of our attention all the time. :)

Dear LDRF,

Hello Friends! It's been five months since my mommy walked into a petsmart and adopted me! I'm throughly enjoying my new home. However, sometimes I can get myself into a bit of trouble. I'm slowly learning that walls and the deck are not for chewing on. When I first came home I was a pretty sick pup. Mom had to take me to the vet and emergency vet 3 times in my first 2 weeks here. I started getting better and gaining weight, thats when I showed off my hyper personality. I was then enrolled in a behavior class so Mom and Dad could learn some tools to help me. I'm learning how to kick back and relax with my parents at the end of the day. Mom and Dad dressed me up as devil dog for Halloween, it's one of my nicknames! Mom takes me out every weekend to play and meet new friends. I even got to go vote! Dad likes to take me for car rides, he says its the only time I really completely behave. Heheh.

Well friends, good luck to you all. Maybe we'll run into each other again!

Hello,

I just want to say “Thank You” to the Lost Dog & Cat Rescue Foundation. In October of last year I had to give my 3 year old Shih tzu away to the shih tzu rescue League because of a aggressive behavior “biting” problem that he had that was out of control His name was Edison and he was 12 weeks old when I purchased him. I have three daughters who adored Edison and he adored them just the same. Edison was a member of our family and putting him up for adoption was one of the worst thing that I’ve ever done in my life. We tried everything but his aggressive behavior toward young children and strangers was causing me a lot of legal trouble. When I contacted the shih tzu rescue league to pick him up my stomach was twisted in knots and I felt like I had given one of my children away. My daughters cried for hours and my youngest even cried for days, she is 11 years old and she became very depressed not even speaking to me for about 3 weeks along with my other two teenage daughters. I also was not able to cope....

I was out shopping a few months later when I stopped by a Pets Mart near my home in Fairfax, VA, I don’t know what made me go in there however when I went in I saw that there were a lot of people there with dogs on leashes. I asked one of the sales associates why were there so many dogs in the store today and she said that the Lost Dog & Cat Rescue Foundation was holding an adoption seminar for people looking for a new pet to adopt.... I then thought to myself.. “wow” I walked over “just to look at the many different breeds” and they all were absolutely adorable... me not thinking nor considering adopting another dog, was just browsing... when I suddenly saw a 12 week old puppy that was completely ADORABLE. I asked the foster parent if I could hold the dog and she said sure that’s when I picked the puppy up and it was a complete “rap”... the dogs name was Sushi and she was so cute and frail. She looked so helpless, I then thought that there was no way I could walk out of this store without taking her home.

I went through the entire process of adoption and she is and has been a member of my family every since. She is a complete blessing. When I took her home it was like someone added color to a Black and White Picture. My daughters went “Nuts” when they saw her. They were yelling and screaming and so happy.

She has been more than just a great, calm loveable dog, she is a very special family Member, we love her so much.