In July 2009, my husband and I came into the San Francisco SPCA with our older dog, Maggie, to let her choose a companion; we ended up going home with Wrangler. For 3-1/2 years they enjoyed sunbathing in the dining room together, going on mountain hikes together, and digging up gophers at the dog park together. As Maggie’s vision and hearing deteriorated, Wrangler became her eyes and ears; if she saw him race to the front door she would immediately follow to greet us as we came home from work. If he ran into the kitchen she would come trotting along behind him to get her dinner.

Sadly, our beloved Maggie passed away this past December. We didn’t want Wrangler to be alone for long so a few days later we returned once again to the SF SPCA. This time Wrangler got to choose a friend and he chose Myra (now Mary).

Wrangler and Mary hit it off instantly and the fun hasn’t stopped since! They wrestle and play like crazy at home. During the rare moments when they’re just quietly laying around, Mary likes to stare lovingly at Wrangler and if he gets up to relocate to a different part of the house she’ll immediately follow. She acts like a girl with a huge crush on a boy, while Wrangler is more, “Gee, I’m flattered, but I just like you as a friend.”

They both enjoy running around at our local dog park every day with their doggie friends, chasing seagulls at Stinson beach, and visiting grandma (my mother-in-law) on Fridays because she spoils them with yummy Polish sausage from the deli.

Thank you, SF SPCA, for everything that you do! We will be forever grateful for Wrangler because he helped our shy Maggie come out of her shell, and for Mary because she made us laugh and smile again after Maggie’s passing.

best wishes,
Jasmine & Jacek (and Mary & Wrangler!)

Bitsy and Birdy are a bonded pair; they can’t do anything without each other. So far the thing they love the most is to be in the back yard and lay in the morning sun, like a couple of porch hound dogs. Of course they’re so little, they do need supervision, but it gives me a chance to relax also.

Here’s a photo of Bitsy and Birdy enjoying morning sun after breakfast just one day after their adoption, along with a more recent photo of them in bed, playing with their toy piggy.

- Kath Rendon

Our kid turned 2 on February 28th, so I thought I’d give you guys a shout out. THANK YOU!!!

A few years ago, my SF SPCA kitty of 20 years passed away and I spent a few years being sad. When I finally felt like I could be a good cat mom again, I took into consideration that my husband had never been a cat dad before (had only lived with other people’s cats) and he was a hard core dog person. So my plan was to adopt a male kitten, so my husband could imprint on him, and we could manhandle him (kidding!) so he would be used to being around and being held by people. Most of the guy cats I’ve met were pretty dude-like and not shy and feminine, like my previous girl.

I saw my kid’s picture on your website and I knew he was the one. I was fearful, because I had been trying at other SPCAs and was always too late behind mysterious faster people who came and snatched the kitties whose profiles I had looked at online before I even got to meet them. This time I got to the SPCA before you guys opened and STILL there was a line of people, but I trumped them by having my paperwork already filled out and I got to his room first. Then, another lady joined me, and I felt the fear of competition and cage fighting commencing inside of me and did not know what laid ahead for the two of us. The other lady nervously asked me if I was wanting our kid’s sister. I said no and we both breathed a sigh of relief.

Long story short, we were let into the room and we sat on the floor and our kid’s sister hid in her treehouse and my boy ran onto my lap and started to play with me. BOOM. Done deal.

He had a name that didn’t suit him. He was feisty and tiny and you could hold him in the palm of your hand. So we named him Nemo. Joke on us, Nemo is now about 16 pounds of fun. We think he might be part Maine-Coon; he is really tall and long. His tail is more than a foot long! When he stands on his hind legs, he can poke his head on our kitchen counters! Luckily, our house is pretty cat-safe.

Nemo’s hobbies include: soccer, tag, playing with big toys tied on strings, total domination over any and all boxes, Beautiful Katamari (he attacks the TV screen), talking, eating bugs, window-hunting critters, messing with our friends, messing with his dad and sleeping under comforter covers.

I think all three of us are pretty in love with each other.

Thank you for existing and being awesome SF SPCA! ~ from Ebooty, Cooper and Nemo xox

After the loss of my family’s Pit-bull mix, Sprout, we were all pretty sad. My mother was the most heartbroken because she was Sprout’s favorite. A little more than a year later, my mom offered the chance to adopt a cat. I was hesitant because I am more of a dog person, but I took the opportunity. I was at the SPCA and was looking for a cuddly kitten to take home. My dad was with me when we saw a room with four siblings. There were two cats in there we were considering, a rambunctious boy cat and a playful girl kitten. My dad was rooting for the boy, but I convinced him that the girl was the way to go. We ended up taking her home and she took to us immediately. She is now almost three years old and is a delight. Her name was Rutabaga, but we changed it to Zipper. We call her Nunus as a nickname. We were very fortunate to get such a great pet. She is quite the snuggler and is hilarious when she sprints around the house. All-in-all, thank you, SPCA, for taking care of her until she picked us:)

- Morgan

Three years ago in September my husband and I went to the San Francisco SPCA to adopt a small dog that could travel the world with us. I was looking for a Yorkie but this little guy part chihuahua/terrier/dachshund/? mix captured my heart. His name was Sparrow and he had been a resident of the SF SPCA for 5 months, transferred when he was about 4 months old from Santa Barbara. A volunteer at the shelter suggested adding Jack to his name and thus he became Jack Sparrow.

The first picture is Jack about a week after we got him. He was very shy, afraid of grey haired men (my husband has grey hair) and not quite sure about Mu, our very friendly, very big orange tabby kitty (also a rescue). Over time he became much more confident and recently we took him and his sister Lucy Lu, a Min Pin/Chihuahua (adopted) to Mexico. I think the second picture says it all.

Thank you so much for all the good work you do in uniting dogs and kitties with forever families. Even on my worst day at work I ALWAYS know I have Jack, Lucy and Mu who love me unconditionally just like I love them.

Warmest Wishes for a Wonderful New Year,
Sunny