How These Pets Found Their Fur-ever Homes

Throughout this year, we have witnessed the needs in our community become highlighted and have people reach out to help one another. One need in particular that I have personally seen is the increase of social media posts for rescued pets and animals put up for adoptions. Curious as to how these pets get found, we reached out to two pet owners who recently rescued and adopted their furkids, and one who rescued animals for others to adopt. Let’s hear what they say!

1. Pet Owner – Lekha

Were you planning on getting a pet/new pet?

After the passing of my family dog early this year, my parents and I had decided to not adopt any pets for at least a year so that we could get over the pain from losing our dog of 13 years. That was the plan, but as unpredictable 2020 has been, our plan has been sabotaged by two cats

Pet Owner – Lekha

Jimmy in his cage (credit: Lekha)

Onyx (credit: Lekha)

How did you meet your new furkid(s)?

The first one, Jimmy, was one of the strays that we’d feed in our housing area. One day we found him heavily injured with a deep wound on his leg. We rushed him to the veterinary clinic where he had to go through surgery to stitch up his wounds. After that, for about a month we had to keep him enclosed in a cage so that his wounds could heal and not get infected and from that he slowly got into our hearts. Our other cat, Onyx, was born in my house. Her mom was another cat we were feeding, and she decided to bless us by giving birth to 4 kittens in my porch. The other kittens have been taken by some people, and Onyx was the one we couldn’t part with.

Did you guys bond right away or did they take some time before warming up you?

For Jimmy, I’d say he bonded to me right away. Not my parents in the beginning but to me he was always by my side, always meowing at me for attention. Sometimes I think he knew that I was going through the loss of my dog so he in his way comforted me whenever I was sad. Onyx however was a very, very shy kitten. She was a mama’s girl, never leaving her mums side but once her siblings had been adopted and her mum left to another area, she became the most clingy little kitten you could ever see. She would demand to be in the house all the time, she wanted all the attention and love on her, and she’s the complete opposite from the shy kitten she once was.

How long have you had them so far?

Jimmy since May, so it’s been about 7 months. Onyx was born in July, so it’s been 5 months.

How would you describe the cost of taking care of your pet?

There’s definitely great cost and responsibility when it comes to taking care of a pet. From vaccinations, to neutering, to food and other essentials. *

Have they changed, personality-wise, since you adopted them?

They definitely have changed/grown into their natural personality I’d say. Onyx is the most curious kitty ever! She would sit in the kitchen and watch my mom cook, or she’ll sit by the garden and watch us do gardening. She just wants to be part of everything we do. Jimmy is more of the “I just want to laze and sleep all day” cat. He goes around the neighborhood doing his cat rounds, and he comes back and just wants to be pampered and laze around. They’re both softies.

What about you, would you say that you’ve changed since you’ve adopted your fur kid?

Definitely! Losing our dog was very painful, and losing her when the initial lockdown had started, where we had to grieve at home without being able to go out the house. So having these kitties come into our lives by chance, having them just brighten us up with their antics. They definitely have changed us for the better

2. Pet Owner – Mithila

Were you planning on getting a pet?

No, I wasn’t planning on getting any pets larger than a hamster. In fact, I had just bought myself a pair of Roborovski dwarf hamsters 3 weeks before I got Trixie.

Mithila with one of the kittens she rescued and later adopted – Trixie (credit: Mithila)

Trixie (credit: Mithila)

Students trying to help Trixie stuck in the bonnet of a car in BAC PJ Campus. (credit: Mithila)

Firemen came to the rescue! (credit: Mithila)

Katappa (credit: Mithila)

Ellie, with Trixie in the background (credit: Mithila)

How did you meet your new furkid?

Trixie was stuck in the engine of a car parked at the BAC PJ campus. I had received a call from my colleagues at the front desk saying that there was a kitten stuck in the engine and they needed my help to get her out. It was a pretty heartwarming story, actually. So many BAC students and staff were trying to help this tiny little kitten. We couldn’t see her but we could hear her piteous cries for help. Finally, we managed to trace the owner of the car and get her out.

Katappa was rescued by my cousin from an abandoned construction site in Cheras. She was looking for a home for him and I took him in.

Ellie was thrown away and my friend and I took her in with the full intention of only temporarily fostering her until her back legs were strong enough for her to be adopted. But now, she’s bonded with Trixie and it’s no longer possible to separate them.

Did you guys bond right away or did they take some time before warming up you?

Trixie was terrified at first. Who wouldn’t be, after being stuck in a car engine for nearly 6 hours in the searing heat? But she imprinted on me straight away, although she took some time to warm up to the rest of the household. Katappa fell in love with Trixie before he bonded with me. Ellie loves people so it was really easy to bond with her.

How long have you had them so far?

I’ve had Trixie since March 10th, Katappa since July 4th, and Ellie on December 4th.

How would you describe the cost of taking care of your pet? Initially, it’s quite expensive because you need to get them vaccinated, dewormed, and deloused. But otherwise, they’re really low maintenance.

Have they changed, personality-wise, since you adopted them?

Oh gosh, yes! Trixie was a very scared cat, she would run and hide at the slightest sound or unexpected movement. Now, she’s queen of the house and the alpha cat. Katappa is a very warm, friendly, and loving cat but he now loves food more than he loves people and the other cats. Ellie loves people but hates other cats.

What about you, would you say that you’ve changed since you’ve adopted your furkid?

I’ve always had pets since I was a baby, so I don’t think I’ve changed very much – except for the fact that now, I have to make sure I’m home in time to feed them and play with them.

3. Animal Rescuer – Ahnu

Having adopted the family dog, Pablo, from a foster home in Klang, Ahnu is no stranger to the concept of fostering (i.e. temporarily housing pets until they find their fur-ever home). And this year, Ahnu and her family stepped up- into a new role as foster family to some adorable puppies!

Ahnu with Donna, one of the rescued dogs. (credit: Ahnu)

Leo and Mikey (credit: Ahnu)

Ahnu with Donna (left) and her brother Anant with Pablo (right). (credit: Ahnu)

Can you tell us a little about the pups- how did you find them?

We found them at the back of our house, the parents are strays in our neighbourhood. They started getting hurt and the mom abandoned them, so we housed them with the help from our neighbours.

What steps did you take to facilitate their adoption?

We spread the word on MIAR (Malaysian Independent Animal Rescue) and social media, and Whatsapp groups. They were adopted quickly after. However, they had caught a virus, and 2 families who adopted them didn’t really care for this puppies when we informed they might have parvovirus. One of them (Mikey) got dumped- but thankfully, we found him again, and he’s now been adopted by a great family.

We learned a lot from this process to properly screen the people who adopt this beautiful babies.

What moved you to foster the puppies in the first place?

I would never foster or take in stray pups before having Pablo (her dog), I became more compassionate to animals and my views about dogs have changed for the better after adopting him.

How did Pablo react to the puppies?

Mildly confused- He wasn’t violent or anything, but he didn’t play with them as he was so used to being our only puppy.

After hearing their stories of how they found their pets and helped others, you must be pretty inspired to help an animal out! If you would like to donate to a shelter, donate to SPCA Kajang on our fundraising page here: https://www.giveback.my/campaigns/operation-santa-paws-feed-our-furry-friends/

If you would like to adopt, check out SPCA at https://www.spca.org.my/
You can also check out Pawtarian on Instagram (@pawtarian) at https://www.instagram.com/pawtarian/ and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pawtarian/. You can also check out Furrykids Safehaven at Seremban, Negeri Sembilan https://www.furrykids.org/