These pets are home and loving it

No matter how big or small, young or old, it’s a magical moment when a pet in a shelter goes home and has a family to love. The wagging tails, rumbling purrs, and smiling faces are all the proof we need of that. Our goal at Best Friends Animal Society is for all shelters across the country to reach no-kill in 2025, and part of that means placing pets in new homes.

Every adoption is a cause for celebration (and maybe a few happy tears). And because that joy is worth sharing, here are just a few of the dogs and cats who have recently settled in with their new favorite people in homes of their own.

You might recognize these human faces since they appeared in the March/April Best Friends magazine issue for adopting a cat named Hamburglar. Well, they’re back because they adopted another kitty. Mariano had a lot of medical challenges that took time to overcome, but now he’s home at last and has a kitty buddy to boot.

Heath’s adoption was so exciting that the Best Friends team was excited to celebrate with him and his new family, Zoie and Brighton. Heath had been in and out of Best Friends’ care for about a year, not landing just the right situation for him. But he was just right for Zoie and Brighton, who fostered Heath for a while and decided to bring him home for good.

When Amber started fostering Duke, she simply wanted to help a dog in need. But a few weeks in, she knew he was destined to be her permanent sidekick. Amber says, “Duke is the most easygoing boy. Super sweet and all about cuddles. He’s up for adventures at the beach or content to lounge on the couch.”

A shy, sensitive girl when Sarah started fostering her, Chloe just needed some time to open up. After a few weeks of love and patience, Chloe’s true personality started to emerge, and Sarah was smitten. Every day, Chloe’s zest for life grows, and Sarah is happy she decided to make it official.

When Malt first entered our program, he was very sick with an upper respiratory infection. He didn’t want to eat and had to get daily nebulizer treatments and medications. When he started feeling better, though, he showed his true personality, including lots of happy dancing. He danced his way into adopter Mackenzie’s heart, which needed a little mending because she recently lost her dog of 16 years. Giving a home to another pet in need is a beautiful way to honor her pup.

Lucky Charm is a senior dog who came to Best Friends from Animal Care Centers of NYC. John and his wife had been visiting him for months at the shelter, waiting for the right time to adopt. When Lucky Charm left for Best Friends, they didn’t know where he had gone, but as soon as they found out, they came to adopt him.

Most cats who come to the Best Friends Lifesaving Center in New York City go home within days. Not Irving. It took about three months for him to be adopted, and in that time, with his crinkly ear and quirky personality, he became a staff favorite. Irving is sweet and will ask to be petted, but he can change his mind quickly. Those grumpy cat antics didn’t bother Vaughn, who took one look at him and knew he was the one.

Jax and Joy aren’t biological siblings, but they became family when they were adopted together. Their adopters say: “Joy picked our youngest daughter when she crawled into her lap and wouldn’t leave. We knew right then that she needed to come home with us. Jax is the softest, silliest kitty and so curious. Even though they were from different litters and weren’t so sure about each other at first, Jax and Joy are best friends now and can usually be found cuddling or playing together.”

This article was originally published in the May/June 2024 issue of Best Friends magazine. Want more good news? Become a member and get stories like this six times a year.

Our goal at Best Friends is to support all animal shelters in the U.S. in reaching no-kill by 2025. No-kill means saving every dog and cat in a shelter who can be saved, accounting for community safety and good quality of life for pets. 

Shelter staff can’t do it alone. Saving animals in shelters is everyone’s responsibility, and it takes support and participation from the community. No-kill is possible when we work together thoughtfully, honestly, and collaboratively.