Adoption Stories

Emily

A.k.A Coco

“We adopted Emily (under Project ADORE) from Animal Lovers League. Looking for a family pet, we were initially unsure of whether to buy a pet or adopt one from a local shelter. After visiting the shelter a few times for socialisations, it became clear to us that giving an abandoned pet a second chance would fit well with our personal values and beliefs. Yes, the process is a bit more cumbersome than buying a pet, but it's worth it a thousand times over. Emily has been a great addition to our family and has settled in very well. She has her own quirks (who doesn't) and keeps herself occupied during the day (doesn't do much to be honest, just sleeps). On the adoption process, Catheryn was very hands-on during the process and ensured everything was in order before Emily arrived. She goes far beyond what is required to ensure adopters are best prepared for the arrival. Go ahead, give a pet a second chance at life. “

Emily's Family

Sheeba

“Sheeba came to us after we looked out for a dog to adopt for a few months. For the first 2 to 3 months, we did have some teething problems and health scares with Sheeba. Fortunately, Catheryn and her adoption team followed up with us closely and guide us on how to handle/nourish Sheeba. They were always there when we had any questions or doubts.

Sheeba is now a happy, sweet and confident gal who is goofy in her own ways. We remembered we used to always tell people that Sheeba was not food motivated so she might not be easy to train/ bribe. Hahaha...but we are totally wrong. Once Sheeba is opened up, she is such a foodie and will always use her puppy's eyes to charm our hearts to give her more treats!

We are also grateful that through Project Adore, we are able to officially adopt Sheeba into our family since we are staying in a HDB unit.

We look forward to more wonderful days and years ahead with her!"

- Calvin and Lena

Silly

“I started entertaining the thought of adopting a dog, in order to get more active and shed some weight due to my middle-age sedentry lifestyle. It turns out well for the intention, and aboveall, I found my cherished furry companion for life.

Silly is considered a young and semi-active SS dog at 3 1/2 years old. He is well-behaved, gives way to others on the path, takes the lift calmly and no reactivity with human strangers when outside. He reacts well to training in Obedience class under Project Adore (HDB approved dog), and plays well upon socialising with his classmates. All said, he is also protective of me, especially at home when strangers come knocking!

Put in mundane terms, he integrates well to society, even after being in the shelter for most of his early life.

We have walked vast distances together in the outdoors, and I look forward to many more years of caring and enjoying his companionship!

I very much appreciate Animal Lover’s League, especially Catheryn, Aaron, Candice, Mohan and the team, for giving me, a first-time dog owner, a chance to meet my loyal best friend.”

Silly’s Buddy

Lao Lian

“Lao Lian is a senior dog from Animal Lovers League which I came across when I started volunteering at the shelter. I remembered vividly that she was the first dog I saw upon arrival for my orientation training.

What caught my eye was her demeanor and although I can tell she is of age, she is gentle and very independent. Despite bringing the dogs out for walks and having to pass by the common area where she resided, she did not react and kept her cool. Of course I find her coat unique and in good condition.

It didn’t take long and I gotten a call from the shelter and Ms. Catheryn who assisted me with my adoption application. She briefed me thoroughly on how the entire process is going to be like. There were a few dogs I was equally keen on but I settled on Lao Lian because instinctively I knew she would suit my household well.

After few visits taking her for walks at the shelter, she finally arrived at my place on 11 December 2020. My household which comprises of 2 other housemates also love dogs and they are also equally excited about her coming to be part of the family. Understanding that it was a period of trial to ensure everyone is fine with her. Time passes, everyone adapted well and vice versa.

I cannot find words to describe the joy of having her in my household. Everyone is very supportive by taking care of her, cleaning up when I was not home. Frequent walks is the norm and we both enjoy every moment of it. Some neighbor are also happy to meet her and find her “guai” or obedient in Mandarin and good demeanor.

For the past 4 over months, I have overcome certain challenges in her diet preference to ensure she gets the best nutrition and getting regular bowel movement and having enough water and fluids. Despite her age, she is never short of energy and let a feisty bark at the cat that goes near to her food. She loves to roll on her bed after a meal. She is healthy, and enjoys her walks a lot. She has brought life to the household again and we are all blessed to have her as a family.

Thank you Animal Lovers League (Catheryn, Mohan, Cathy, staff and volunteers) for taking good care of these voiceless animals!”

- Peter

Horchata

A.k.A BOLT

Fun fact: Bolt was renamed Horchata, after the drink, as his fur colour resembles the colour of the drink!

“When I decided to stay in Singapore longer after finishing High School, my family and I decided to get a pet dog. We looked on the internet for animal shelters that were open to adoption during COVID 19. Going to the different websites, we asked around, but none of the dogs available was just right. Eventually, though, one shelter did reach out to us. An animal shelter called Animal Lovers League contacted my mom through Facebook and informed her of a small dog of approximately 7 years of age. We were a bit worried about his age, but we decided to set up a meeting to see him. When we got to the facilities, a volunteer showed us the other dogs. She then took us to see our soon-to-be dog, Bolt, later known as Horchata. We were introduced to him and were informed that Horchata hadn’t been neutered yet. We then walked him for about an hour before we took him back to his quarters and scheduled a second meet up. The moment I met Horchata, I knew he was the one. It didn’t matter that he kept trying to hump my arm, as that’s something that can be fixed. What mattered was that we chose each other. It was great that the shelter gave us the space to be able to bond and be able to see if we’re compatible.

The next weekend when we returned, we walked Horchata around for a while, and just connected with him. Because of our rapid bonding and very quick friendship the shelter founders figured that the visit was successful. Due to COVID 19, they couldn’t do a home visit so we sent in a video of our home for the volunteers and founders to make sure that it was safe for Horchata. Once they were satisfied that the house was dog friendly, we visited Horchata one more time before the day he would begin to stay with us. We were then given a list of items that we needed to buy for Horchata for him to be more comfortable and adjusted.

Finally, Horchata was brought, with some volunteers, to our house. I was so excited to finally have him, and immediately Horchata felt at home. The volunteers were great, they were very friendly and chatted and loved on Horchata. We walked him so that he could become accustomed to the new smells of our neighbourhood. Horchata was excited about all the new smells and wanted to mark his territory everywhere. He was very easy going. The first two weeks was a homestay period with Horchata to make sure he was a good fit. My parents signed a few documents stating that we were taking care of him.

During those two weeks, we cared for Horchata and sent lots of pictures to the volunteers who helped us during the whole process. They were in constant communication, in case something went wrong or to provide us with information on his health needs and appointment for his neutering. The volunteers were still extremely caring of Horchata and went beyond what was just their job.

Once the two weeks were over the volunteers returned, and we signed the adoption papers making Horchata officially part of the family. Since then, we have been loving and caring for him. We have taken him to the vet once and have an appointment in September for him to be neutered. The process of getting him was smooth and easy, and the volunteers still text just to see how he is doing. Horchata is loved and has very much found his forever home.

Thank you Animal Lovers League for your obvious love and care of Horchata and for providing us with a healthy and helpful process to ensure that we were suitable for each other. We highly commend and recommend you.”

Sincerely, the Louw Family

Kodi

"Kodi was adopted by our neighbour from Animal Lovers League. However, due to some personal issues, he decided to put Kodi up for adoption. When the neighbour told me that they couldn’t take care of Kodi anymore, I felt really sad as Kodi got along really well with our small dog during their daily playtime at the park. Catherine from Animal Lovers League rehoming Team was informed and we went through the adoption process.

As my family all knew Kodi, we decided to try out the homestay to see if he gets along with us as well as our small dog, Toto.

We got Kodi on 19 November 2019. Initially, Toto didn’t get along with him which made us a little worried. But after a week or so, they became best buddies. Right now, they are inseparable. Even when going for walks, Kodi will frequently turn his head to wait for Toto. Toto will not walk if Kodi is not in front! Even at home, the two dogs will play as if there’s no tomorrow. And unlike his size and looks, Kodi is more timid than Toto!

Adopting Kodi was really the right choice that we never regret. He is gentle, obedient, and also very protective of our family. He loves sticking close to people too! He would also lay close to us when we are watching TV. Kodi has made us change our point of view of a Singapore special. He is a joy to our family and we really love him!"

Teo Kodi’s Family

Socks

“My younger daughter Clara, wanted a cat as a pet for the longest time. During CNY in 2017, my cousin offered for us to adopt one of the 2 cats. But when we went to look at the cat, she was afraid of human contact and we could not even get to look at her. We decided the cat was not suitable for her. My daughter then went online to see if we could adopt one. Thats when my elder daughter come to know about ALL.

In our next trip to ALL. I noticed an enclosure belonging to an owner of a group of about 20 cats. We saw that they were of the same breed. The cats were - black and seal point. The bluish eyes of the seal point cats caught my attention and I asked permission to see them.

There were so many of them. Some were friendly and other just ignored us. Initially, we spotted a very friendly cat that we liked. However this cat seemed to have a problem with her skin. We were worried that we might not be able to handle her as this will be the first time the family is having a four legged pet.

That was when we picked socks. Strangely, after we picked Socks, the other cat that was friendly did not come close to us anymore. I think its pure cat instinct, the cat knew she was chosen for her new home. Socks was "quarantined" at ALL for a week or so. That’s when they cleaned her up and trimmed her fur. During the same period, we got our flat ready by putting up the mesh.

On 13 Apr 2017, we brought Socks home. I remember when Socks had her first meal, she pooed in my living room. That was the first time we got to clean her. We got to know her behaviour slowly, and managed to get her to pee in her litter box.

After 2 years, the family grew very fond of her. Socks has a very mild character. She is very inquisitive, if we are doing something like packing or unpacking, she always want to participate. Socks loves visitors in the house, she is not afraid of human and is sociable. She allows the visitors to pet her and would not hide from them. But Socks would not allow anyone to carry her.

Socks loves to play. When she wants our attention, she will grab one of her toys, come near us, place it on the floor and start meowing in a particular tone. This happens even in the middle of the night. Socks is a member of our family now.”

Moshi Moshi

“We visited ALL's shelter in May 2019. Catheryn was very helpful and thorough in introducing all the dogs to us. After a few weeks of interacting with a few dogs, we finally selected the dog that connected with us most, and she is Moshi.

We had several bonding sessions with Moshi at the shelter before bringing her back for a home trial in June. And finally in July, after completing all the paperwork, we officially adopted Moshi under Project Adore.

We live in a HDB flat and we can adopt Moshi because of Project Adore. Project Adore allows HDB dwellers to adopt medium size Singapore specials and giving these dogs a home. The scheme may seem stringent and process is long, but these are necessary steps to ensure that the potential adopters and dogs are properly matched, and first time dog owners like us are trained to handle our new family member.

6 months have passed, we are loving Moshi more and more.

We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to Animal Lovers League. Catheryn and her team have been very patient and have supported us in so many ways. As Moshi is our first dog, we know close to nothing about keeping a dog at home. They taught about us about feeding, dog handling, medication and more.
Thank you Mohan, Catheryn, and all at Animal Lovers League.”

From Kuan's Family

Sonia

"This was Sonia when we first met her at her foster home (first picture). She has gone from strength to strength since! Such a happy confident dog who is so loved.

Unfortunately about 5 months ago we found a small lump on her shoulder so we brought her to the vet where they found its stage 3 sarcoma which was growing aggressively. We operated twice to remove the cancer but it’s unfortunately moved at speed so we can’t operate on her further but she isn’t in any pain and it’s not impacting her life at all.

Hopefully we still have a few more months with her. We renamed her to Zen and she is so loved by myself and my husband.

We were told by her Rescuer that she lived at ALL's shelter for a few years. We adopted her 1.5 years ago. Thank you for caring for her for so many years! We didn’t know much of her history when we took her but we could tell she had been loved as she was so happy to be around people."

Laura and Suresh

Hershey

"My family has always wanted to adopt a new cat to be a friend with our lonely ragamuffin, Snowy. Finally on 16 June 2019, was the day we met Hershey. I knew he was the one when I first laid my eyes on him. He is long hair tuxedo cat with lime green eyes. I immediately informed Cathy that I was interested in adopting him.

After a few days, My family and I got to know more about Hershey's behaviour. He is an adventurous cat which was something my family wasn't used to since Snowy was always a lazy cat. We even got to know that he has a certain problem of not going to the toilet properly, however we still decided to give it a go and see how everything falls in place when we get to keep him.

6 July 2019 was the first day he entered our house. He was very frightful at first since it was a new environment to him. Even though he was afraid, he was still a humble and sweet cat when we approached him to pet him. After introducing Snowy to him, Snowy got furious and the 2 cats did not get along very easily at first.

Nevertheless its been 4 weeks since we had him, and they are really good buddies now. At least once everyday they will be play catching and keeping each other entertained. We were always delightful to see Hershey and Snowy eating their breakfast and dinner together. Grooming Hershey was never a problem as well.

However, there were some days whereby, instead of doing his business in the litterbox he did it outside. To us it didn't seem like a big issue since it was only seldom times he did not use the litterbox correctly.

We are still trying our best to train him to use the litterbox in the right way. Having Hershey to be a part of our family was never a regret. My family is very lucky to have adopted a sweet and loving cat like Hershey."

All the best to our dear Hershey, ALL misses you and we love you forever! 😽

Tina

“We first saw Tina together with her other siblings during the shelter tour. All of them were very affectionate to us. Tina stood out as she was the one giving us paw constantly and wanted us to give her a belly rub!

After that day, we head down to the shelter on one of the weekends every week to bond with Tina. A month later, we proceeded to the Homestay for Tina and she adapted to our home very well.

The night when she arrived downstairs and I called out to her, she shook her tail in excitement when she saw me and wanting to run up to me. I was very touched as the bonding session was all worthwhile!

Her size is not HDB approved in the past but because of Project Adore, where slightly bigger dogs like Tina was given a second chance to find a home in HDB. After the Homestay, a SPCA personnel came down to our home to do a visit and subsequently doing the paper work for the license and Project Adore.

For Project Adore, the dog also needs to go through a basic training course by approved Trainers too. Everything was smooth and hassle free thanks to the amazing adoption team in ALL! Project Adore was also very well explained by the adoption team to let us understand better about it too!

Life with a dog has certainly brought colours to my family’s life and I hope to encourage others to adopt through Project Adore to give these dogs a new home.

Also, a small shoutout to Tina’s other siblings, who are still looking for their forever homes! Do give ALL’s shelter or their adoption drive a visit! I’m sure Tina’s siblings and the other dogs are excited for their new homes!”

From: Tina’s Happy Family! 
Insta: @TinatheBM

Nana

A.k.a montana

“Nana, or we used to refer her as the dog which always has its tail tucked between the legs, is the mongrel we adopted from ALL. We didn't fall in love with Nana at the first sight but she was one of those dogs we are looking to adopt. Every time we went to ALL we saw Nana curling herself up, laying quietly in her kennel, looking outside the bars. She could lay there for hours. To a point we felt there was no hope in her eyes. This is when we decided to bring her home to give her a home.

It had then been a significant change in Nana's life. We never know Nana can be this active and playful. She loves the daily walks so much that she will jump and run around on the grass patch. She enjoys the company of my two bunnies. Despite all the hassles during the adoption process (especially when we stay in hdb and must go through Project Adore) and the difficulties initially trying to build trust, seeing Nana now happily waging her tail proves that we did good, and every bitterness pays off.

Not all dogs are born equal. Mongrels tend to be given much lesser chances because they used to be stray dog wondering on the street. But they are dogs too. they can be very loving, loyal, and grateful when you give them a home. So anyone wishing the accompany of a dog can perhaps pause a minute, see if you can give our stray friends a chance as there are so many out there waiting for one.

P.s. Special thanks to ALL and their Rehoming Team have been very helpful aiding us through the adoption process. It takes a great deal of determination and a big heart to rescue, shelter and care for over 500 stray dogs and cats.

So much respect to Mohan, Cathy, Catheryn, and all the volunteers!”

From Nana's Happy Family😊

Bubbles & Pebbles

a.k.a FanDogh & Gerdoo

“In December 2018, our family met the lovely FanDogh and Gerdoo (Hazelnut and Walnut in Persian) and decided to take them home.

We’re grateful to the amazing support from the Rehoming Team at Animal Lovers League. They gave us lots of tips and pointers to ease our two companions into our home, and were very meticulous about the whole process.

We renamed them Bubbles and Pebbles we enjoy spending time with them. Both of them are really cuddly, and Bubbles knows lots of tricks, while Pebbles loves to play fetch. We are very fortunate to have found dogs with such lovely personalities.

If you ever think of getting a furpal, please consider adopting. There are lots of amazing dogs out there who need a loving home, and they will be sure to shower your home with lots more love in return. ❤”

Happy Family of Bubbles and Pebbles