Noelle:  A Story of Triumph Over Tragedy 

Sometimes we see the absolute worst of humanity but more often than not, we see the best.  When an Animal Services Officer brought Noelle to the shelter on the day before Christmas Eve she was starving, flea-bitten and had multiple scrapes and scratches all over her body.  But worse yet... someone had purposefully tied a shoestring around her leg and her leg had become infected. Noelle probably had to self-amputate part of her leg in order to stay alive. At only a little over four pounds, no one at the shelter was certain she would survive.  Noelle needed to be fattened up to be strong enough for surgery since her front leg required a full amputation.

Despite all of these physical hardships and despite experiencing the worst of people, Noelle remained a very loving and confident cat, almost demanding that people rub and pet her and give her attention. When Noelle was finally ready for her surgery last week, Asheville Humane Society friends pulled out all the stops and donated more than $1,000 in less than 24 hours to help offset the cost of the surgery! 

Noelle came through the surgery with flying colors and is now being fostered by our President and CEO Katherine Shenar.  Noelle sent out a "letter" to all of her financial "angels" and it said:

Dear Friends:

Today is a good day and everyone is coming in to Katherine's office to give me a

pat or a rub and some kisses. I'm getting stronger every day and thanks to you, I have a bright future!  I came through my surgery successfully and am doing very well. In spite of having my front right leg amputated at the shoulder, I am already up and about walking around with confidence. Of course, I'm on a lot of pain medication and still am a little wobbly.

I ate all of my dinner the first night after my surgery and had no problem asking

for more! I'm wearing the ever- stylish e-collar and hopefully will rest well tonight. My fur will grow back before we know it, and I'll be in my forever home soon.

Thank you all for your notes of concern and best wishes. I'm one lucky little girl.

And thank you especially for getting me ready not only for my surgery but for

the rest of my life!

Love,

Noelle

From Erin Montgomery

Hi, friends at the Humane Society,  I can't thank you all enough for the wonderful experience I had today while adopting little Vanessa.  Faith was so nice and funny at

the front desk and Susan could not have been more informative, caring and all around awesome.  Vanessa is cozied in-she is currently "hanging out" in my bathroom with her blanket and show box, toys, food and water, a few treats,  and litter.  I am trying to balance when I go in there, as not to disrupt her so much (I want to go in there every

5 minutes but stop myself).  When I sit on the floor, she cuddles up next to me purring.

I love her so much already!

Just wanted to give you all an update.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart for

all of the hard work you all do on a daily basis.  You have made this "Mamma" very happy!

One of us takes him for a vigorous walk/run around 6 am.  He goes with me to drive Luc to the bus stop where he sees plenty of kids and a few other dogs.  We head off to work and we have a dog walker that comes around 10:30 and 2:30 and they do a ½ hour walk down by Beaver Lake where he also meets plenty of people and dogs.  We take him for a walk when we get home and throughout the evening he gets lots of petting, playing and fun.  He and Luc like to play hide-and-seek.  I hold onto Senna, Luc hides somewhere in the house and then Senna goes running around room to room until he finds them and they share a bunch of hugs and tail-wagging. 

Senna has not touched one thing that does not belong to him, doesn't get on the furniture much and is extremely sweet, mild mannered and seems to appreciate any attention he gets.  Our previous lab was much wilder when she was young.  He is a complete doll-baby and we all love him to bits. 

This weekend we are taking him to our cabin where there is tons of hiking and places to explore.  It was our previous dogs favorite place in the world.  We think after he sees that he has a 2nd home in the mountains he is going to think to himself "goodbye old life, I am ready for my own reality show - this rocks!"

Thank you for making the process easy, we are so glad to have Senna and wanted to let you know how well he is doing.

Poor Addy, a beautiful four-year-old Weimeriner mix, was an emaciated 48 pounds when she arrived at the shelter a few days before Christmas.  Both of her ears were infected and she was in desperate need of some TLC.  We quickly placed her in foster care and when she was ready to be adopted in February, Addy had gained 14 pounds and a big smile on her face.  Cheryl Crisman saw Addy and it was love at first sight!  Today, Addy has a comfortable spot in her forever home and has a full belly every night!

From Jamie and Ryan Brazell

It seemed like fate when I first met Maggie. She was out with her previous foster parents and I was instantly drawn to her. There was something about this little puppy that reminded me of my recently deceased grandmother. My grandmother and I were very close and she always raised boxer puppies. Maggie is a mix of boxer and ?? (whatever it is, she's perfect).

So I went home and talked it over with my husband over the course of a few nights. As soon as he met Maggie in person, he was in love, too - and the rest is history!

We are extremely grateful to everyone who helped bring Maggie into our home. She just had her veterinary check-up and final round of shots. Her stitches from the spaying are healing well and she's totally full of energy and affection.

Black Dog Syndrome Exposed In Hopes Of Finding More Homes For Deserving Pets

Animal shelters across the country are filled with animals that patiently wait for their forever home; however, some of these cats and dogs will wait longer than others simply because their fur is brown, or black, or dark grey. Industry insiders call this 'Black Dog Syndrome' and many of these animals will wait much longer to be adopted than an animal with lighter-colored fur, weeks and sometimes months longer.

Urban legends about black dogs and cats abound, and many of these legends simply need to be put to rest. One that has been around forever and affects every shelter that provides compassionate care for these hard-to-adopt animals, is that black animals are mean. Often, the idea that "light is good and dark is evil" has been so ingrained in people's minds that when they see a black dog or cat, their initial response is to pass by the animal in favor of a lighter-colored one. But those having worked in the industry for a long time, believe the real issue is the limitation of photography.

"This is a phenomenon that many of us have combated for years," said Katherine Shenar, President/CEO of Asheville Humane Society. "Oftentimes adopters will visit our website and fall in love with a photo of an animal before meeting them in person. Black dogs and cats often do not photograph well and their facial features, especially the eyes, disappear into their dark fur. Many potential adopters connect with animals through eye-to-eye contact sometimes they are unable to see the dog's eyes clearly."

By putting darker animals in well-lit kennels, dressing them up with a bright bandana around their neck and offering special promotions for black cats, kittens, puppies and dogs, shelters hope to see more adopters linger a little longer over that black puppy or kitty. If all else fails, bring your children with you when you adopt your next pet - they will see beyond the color and find the perfect fit for your family. You can find the love of your life online at www.ashevillehumane.org/adoptions but most of all, please visit the Asheville Humane Society Adoption and Education Center at 14 Forever Friend Lane, located off of 191/Brevard and Pond Road.