Pet of the Month

Congratulations to our January 2024 Pet of the Month Luly, Rodas!

Lully was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico on June 21, 2011. Her original owner moved to FL in 2015, soon after hurricane Maria, but couldn’t care for her as well as 2 other dogs. Our family had not considered adopting any other pets following a sad loss of our 18-year-old dog Sasha, and 21-year-old cat Simba, however Lully stole our hearts.

We had met Lully once in PR when she was a tiny, shy puppy. In PR, Lully had overcome a pregnancy when she almost died and lost both puppies. She had been bullied by larger dogs hence was very timid – wouldn’t bark, slept most of the time, and didn’t play at all, to a point we thought she had some sort of genetic or medical condition. However, after a few weeks with our family (children, grandchildren, large dogs in our family, and frequent family gatherings), Lully is now the queen of the house.

She’s very happy, loves to cuddle with anyone who can provide warm arms and affection, and she’s very protective – our children’s 80-pound dogs Labradors won’t mess with this little 4-pound chihuahua. Lully is a tough little dog – she had may of her teeth pulled, which required a 2-day trip to a university vet hospital in Gainesville. Not long ago, an ear infection kept her from keeping her balance for 2 months, but is much better now following several treatments. Now she’s happy and healthy – during the day she loves to park herself in her bed in papa’s office; in the evenings she loves her spot on the sofa in the living room. She loves long rides in the car and has visited Apalachicola, Georgia mountains, and South Florida.

Lully brings joy and happiness to our family – our children and grandchildren love her and always care for her. We’re blessed to have such a wonderful 4-paw family member in our lives.

Congratulations to our December 2023 Pet of the Month Paisley, Sullivan!

Growing up, I always wanted a cat; however, my parents are “dog” people, and I was not allowed to have one (I’m also slightly allergic, but I didn’t care).  When my now husband and I started dating nearly seventeen years ago, he suggested we look at kittens. We saw our tiny girl, Paisley, at a local adopt-a-thon, and I knew she was perfect.

Being my first cat, I wasn’t sure what to expect from Paisley.  We had two dogs, but she held her own. I found her nocturnal habits fascinating, and for having such short little legs, boy, could she jump! There was also the night she escaped and pushed through the screen of our condo, and the next morning, I found her perched on the third storey balcony of a neighbor! As a kitten, she definitely kept me on my toes!

Compared to some of our other pets with chronic issues, Paisley has been relatively easy. There was a bout of vertigo when she was six, which scared us because who knew cats could get vertigo??? Since moving to the Tuscawilla area years ago, I have always felt that Paisley’s well being has been of utmost importance to the team at TOAH. They have been kind, gentle, and patient with not only Paisley, but me as well, and to be honest, I use Google for any and all issues that arise, so you can imagine the list of potential ailments I would rattle off to the techs and doctors as soon as they entered the room. Most recently, we have worked with TOAH to provide the best care for kidney issues that have developed. Earlier this year, Paisley also had a recurrence of vertigo, and the front desk fit me in right away. Dr. McPherson was her usual calm, rational self, and within weeks Paisley was back up and running. Speaking of running, Paisley has also developed arthritis recently, and because of her kidney issues, we were unsure if a newly successful medication could be given. Dr. McPherson once again took the time and researched the drug to make sure that it would not interfere with Paisley’s current issues.

Over the years, we have added more dogs and cats to our family, but I like to think our sweet Paisley is what guided me to becoming what I so proudly call myself these days – a crazy cat lady.

Congratulation to our November 2023 Pet of the Month, Lester Moffitt!

Lester:  16 years old

Lester is too handsome and too irresistible. It was love at first sight!

Lester is a show dog. When he goes to shows, people flock to take his picture and Lester poses for them. He is such a little ham!

People ask me what do you like best about Lester? Well, where do I start… He aims to please. He always keeps me company while I work and makes sure I stay on task.

How spoiled is your pet?  Very!! The baby is very spoiled and does not know he is a dog. I believe that Lester thinks that every day is a fun day and that he is the show.

He makes me laugh on a daily basis!

Congratulations to our September 2023 Pet of the Month, Rocco Bambace!

Meet Rocco!

Rocco is only 15 and half years old. Which I hear for a big dog is pretty old, but don’t tell him that. He’s a goofy sweet boy, and he is basically the perfect dog.

When Rocco was just a little pup, he found himself in “Mini Aussie Rescue” in Georgia. After some phone calls and finagling, he flew on a private jet via “Pilots for Paws” to meet his new family in sunny Florida. Once he settled in, he began growing, and growing, and growing some more…  it became apparent that he’s not a miniature anything, but according to his DNA test he is in fact 100% Aussie, just not a miniature one.

When Rocco was younger, his favorite hobbies were swimming, fetching balls, or wrestling with one of his favorite doggie friends. Now that he is older, he still loves to play, but he doesn’t run as hard as he used to, and he spends a bit more time relaxing on the couch. He still gets spunky at least once a day and plays doggie games with his little sister. He also stays fit with a couple short walks every day.

Rocco went through some hard times a few years back when he lost his best friend and big sister, Lilly, to degenerative myelopathy. We were all heart broken, but he was particularly depressed after losing her. After taking time to grieve, we opened our hearts to a new family member, a sheltie puppy named Penny. This new little friend bonded with Rocco right away. She keeps him playful and young!

Rocco’s life used to be “dog party all day all night”, but now that his humans have babies, he has to share the attention some! The good news is that Rocco doesn’t seem to mind a bit, and takes his nanny-dog duties very seriously.

About a year ago we found out that Rocco had a tumor on his spleen which was life-threatening. We were scared we might lose him. Dr. McPherson at TOAH performed a splenectomy and fixed him right up! The recovery was hard, but he took it like a champ!

We might be biased, but we feel like Rocco really is one of the best dogs you’ll ever meet. We are grateful for every day we have with him and it’s been an honor to watch him grow from goofy puppy to distinguished older gentleman.

Congratulations to our August 2023 Pet of the Month, Skip Jack Waltensperger!

Hi! My name is Skip Jack, but most people call me “Skip.” It’s a good name. It fits. I’m an Oriental shorthair, born in Ft. Worth, Texas during COVID and had to flown from there to Atlanta and then to Orlando as a kitten, to meet my new friends who are also Oriental shorthairs – Wally and Zep, as well as my new humans. Even as a young kitten, in a new home, I didn’t back down and have totally integrated myself into the family. I went from being treated as an outcast to one of the three “peas-in-a-pod.” I love to play, especially chasing other felines and squirrels outside the screen, hide and seek, racing up the stairs, and then sliding on my back down the stairs!  I also love to greet my humans at the door when they come home; I am very vocal; I love to show off how well I can climb and love to sleep under the covers at night with my humans.  Lastly, I can’t forget feeding time. I’m first to let you know when it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinnertime. I park myself on the kitchen stool and gently demand to be served.  I especially love visiting my friends at TOAH and showing off my friendliness to a great staff!

Congratulations to our July 2023 Pet of the Month, Messi Saracco!

Congratulations to our June 2023 Pet of the Month, Negan Buerk!

Hi, my name is Negan.  My mom told me I am named after a charismatic villain from “The Walking Dead” graphic novels/TV show.  She tells me that my name suits me perfectly, as I can be quite affectionate and charming when I want to be, but I am also a bit shady and will smack any dog that steps out of line.   I am a dashing 7-year-old black cat with a small white blaze on my chest and a couple of white toes.

I had a bit of a rough start to my life.  A kind lady saw me get thrown out of a car window when I was only 6 weeks old.  This kind lady brought me to a local vet clinic in the sandhills of North Carolina.  As luck would have it this is where I met my future family, as my human mom worked at this vet hospital.  It was discovered that I had a broken hind leg and would need surgery to repair it.  My mom fixed me right up.  I was such a trooper and was good as new in no time.

I now call Florida home, with my human mom, my human brother, and 2 rather daft dogs.  I am an expert bug hunter, and I enjoy chattering at the birds that frequent our yard.  I love laying on warm freshly folded laundry, assisting mom with jigsaw puzzles, and I make sure my mom feeds me right on time (I start gently reminding her that food is needed in about 1 hour – and I will remind her every 2 minutes after that).  Patience is overrated in my opinion.

I take full advantage of my ink-black color, as I will sneak attack my dog siblings with a well-timed smack.  I am far superior to them, but they are family, and I will provide them with affectionate head boops when they are not feeling well or if we are somewhere a little scary (TOAH vets and staff are amazing, but it is a little scary to my canine sibling – so I make sure they are ok whenever we have to visit).  Thank you TOAH staff for nominating me as Pet of the Month – I humbly accept this great honor.

Congratulations to our May 2023 Pet of the Month, Benjamin Velasquez!

Benjamin (Benny) came to be our love out of deep sorrow over the loss of two of our dogs, just 12 days
apart. We didn’t think we could love another dog the way we loved those two. But of course, we were
wrong!
Benny was born in Connecticut in July of 2019 and we brought him home to FL at 8 weeks old. He is a
high-energy bird dog who needs a lot of exercise every day to keep his mischievousness at bay. Oh, the
things he has broken or chewed up! We placed him in Puppy Preschool almost immediately after
bringing him home and socialized him with doggie daycare after that. We are so glad that we did. To
meet him is to see that he is a gentle giant. During a walk, he will not seem to understand it when we
come across another dog that barks, growls or pulls to get at him. He just seems to be thinking, “Why
are you acting like that? I’m just Benny! Aren’t all dogs supposed to be friends?!”
Benny loves to be bear-hugged and kissed – and his favorite place to be is under the covers in the bed.
But we can’t tell you about Benny without mentioning his real favorite thing – and that is his “little
brother”, Franklin – a Brittany born in 2020. They are just 7 months apart. They have been joined at the
hip from the moment we introduced Benny to his new playmate. During playtime, Benny has always
“pulled his punches”, when he could have been too rough due to his size. He seems to understand that
he has been given the gift of a small friend. We are so happy that they have each other every day for
companionship and exercise. Sometimes a bit too much “exercise” and romping occur – but it’s all part
of the journey. It is messy, crazy and chaotic most days – but we know the days spent with them will
never be regretted or forgotten!

Congratulations to our April 2023 Pet of the Month, Kiki Niles!