Apr 29, 2017
Adopted by Deborah W & Pietro R – Hillsborough, CA – Feb 7 , 2015
Teddy, aka, Cinnamon came into our lives in February, a few days after arriving in California. Since then he has made huge adjustments to his new home. He has accepted his little sister, a 10lb. Coton, like the gentleman he has turned out to be. He now rides in the car without a care, he walks on the leash like a pro, and most of all, gives kisses whenever asked.
We ask ourselves often how we got so lucky to have him with us! From having no boundaries, I once found him on top of my kitchen table, to a dog who seems to adjust to all we ask!
We have spent the last month, vacationing at the beach and he moved in without missing a beat! Days spent at the beach, walking along the beach, lunching, and just hanging out, Teddy is one happy dog! We are working with Teddy to get him more comfortable with other dogs while he is on leash. We will be taking him to obedience school for us all to become more comfortable in his new life with us. He has made such big strides, made many admirers, and made our life so much better!
When Teddy came to us, we had lost our beloved dog of 13 yrs. And the hole in our heart was huge, we didn’t know how huge until this homeless, big, hairy dog from across the world filled it! Thank you Daniela and John, his foster parents, and Vafa team who nursed this beautiful, sweet dog back from the brink of death!
Apr 29, 2017
Adopted by Stacey & James Holley – May 2014 – Citrus Heights, CA
Hello, First I need to give a deep sincere thank you to all of you that helped me on my journey. I started out as a rambunctious puppy with an attitude that created a challenge to correct, but with the patients of my mom and dad my attitude changed dramatically.
I really enjoy long walks or jogs with my dad, it’s always an adventure. We work on obedience training during these excursions along with the physical exercise. Here is a surprise. Car rides are awesome!!! I sit in the front seat with my dad sometimes and enjoy the breeze. Other times I just sit in the back and relax to the music.
I also enjoy wrestling and playing fetch with my brothers and sisters. If my brothers and I get to rough wrestling, my sister steps in to get us to tone it down. She is the fun police and helps to keep us in line.
I still have my moments of acting out. So when I do act out I get put on “time out”. I’m young and still learning. I eat very well, it’s a raw chicken, cooked rice and green bean diet that help my coat, teeth and overall health keep in peak condition. In conclusion, my dad and mom love me and I truly appreciate the opportunity to join their family due to you (those who helped rescue me). Thank you for your love and effort to find me my forever home.
Peace be with you,
Bello
Apr 29, 2017
Adopted by Mohammadi Family – June 25, 2014 – Goteborg, Sweden
Our girl, Shalizar, has now been with us for about eight months here in Sweden. It’s not an easy task to describe the love you have for your first pet but we’ll try. The story began in September 2013 when my parents visited Vafa. The gates opened and a dog ran towards them faster than a lightning bolt. Shalizar is honestly one of the fastest running dogs that we have ever seen. It was love at first sight. Right there and then my mom and dad decided that they wanted to bring her back home to Sweden.
It was a long process with all the paper work that the Swedish government required for bringing in a pet from outside of the EU, but in June 2014 – she arrived!
Miss Shalizar also known as; Shali, dokhtaram (my girl) and khoshgel khanom (pretty lady), has now after eight months gotten her own routines and habits which is such a joy to watch and she even knows our different routines.
She loves going for walks. When we are about 20 meters from our house we take off her leash and she runs to the house as fast as she can and plays in the yard. She loves to play around in the snow.
She loves her marrow bones, her toys, her little squeaky pig and she goes absolutely nuts for the chicken that we make for her as a treat.
The entire neighborhood knows her and every single person that has seen her and heard her story is astonished by her beauty and behavior.
When another dog barks at her she just looks at them with a look that says: “I’m from Hashtgerd- I’ve lived amongst hundreds of dogs and your barking doesn’t even bother me”.
She is the kindest, the smartest, most well-behaved, most wonderful dog ever and words cannot describe how much we love her. It warms our hearts to see how happy she gets when we come home from school or work. She jumps on us and licks our faces and hands. It’s nothing but pure love.
The Vafa Animal Shelter is a little bit of paradise. The sense of compassion that the volunteers have is amazing and we couldn’t have managed bringing Shalizar here without their help.
Thank you to the entire Vafa team for helping us and showing so much support!
We also want to thank Farah Ravon for always being there for us, answering our questions, helping us and even paying us a lovely visit when she was in Sweden.
A special shout-out to Ms. Azari for all the time and effort she put in to Shalizar’s paper work and veterinary visits. We truly thank you from the bottom from our hearts!
Much love,
Hamid, Zahra, Shirin, Niyousha and of course Miss.Shalizar
Apr 29, 2017
PatooAdopted Feb 2012 – Ravon Family – San Jose, CA
Hi! My name is Patoo, and I am a very special dog! I am not only beautiful, but smart enough to make the best of the opportunities that life put on my path. I had it all planned out. After getting lucky to leave my birth land, and the safety of Vafa Shelter for an even better future in US, I picked the best home that a dog could ever ask for. One look at now my guardian, Farah Ravon, and I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her.
I worked very hard to gain this great life that I live now. I picked a foster home that had a handsome blonde Golden Retriver named Orso, I knew at first sight he was going to be my “boyfriend” and so I played the innocent, fragile , shy girl from Iran and it worked out just great. He fell in love with me and in matter of weeks Orso and his humans ( Daniela and John) were wrapped around my paw. I ended up living with them from November 2011 to February 2012. During that time, Farah and my foster mom Daniela organized a fundraiser for me to raise money to get me the much needed TPLO surgery. Many people got together and chipped in money for me. I was so happy and grateful, they raised enough to cover my surgery and to help other dogs as well.
After that it was time for me to choose a fur-ever home, Because of my unusual beauty I had many suitors. But none of them could handle my insecurities and inability to trust people. Every time I was adopted or was sent to a foster home, I barked at them so much and avoided being the cuddly dog they wanted to have that they returned me to Farah. After a few unsuccessful attempts to find me a home she finally gave up and succumbed to keeping me. In time, once I found permanency at her house, I allowed myself to trust her more and more every day.
Now after over two years, we are so bonded. I am happy. I eat like a queen. We go on walks and hikes and long rides in the car to visit other dogs all the time. And I even let her pet me.
Living happily ever after,
Patoo
Apr 29, 2017
Adopted by Danielle Loustalot and Daniel Beagley, adopted October 9th, 2014 in Bakersfield, California
On the day of our meet & greet with Lady (then “Tootak”), we brought my dog Blaze so they could become acquainted with one another. He doesn’t connect with all dogs, and I wanted to be sure as I was basically adopting a second to be his sister. They hit it off on our walk together, as well as later at my home – running around the backyard, playing, the usual.
She was very calm, which surprised me for a puppy but was just what I was looking for. I decided that day to adopt her, signed the papers, and waited two days until I could pick her up and take her home.
Turns out… the day we met her, she had been given medicine to help her ride in the car without being queasy, and it had not yet worn off – hence the calmness. We soon found out that she was ALL PUPPY. The chewing, the playing, the digging, everything!! It was very hard at times, as I have a new home and a beautiful backyard my parents and I landscaped and she just dug everything up, ate my plants and then tracked the dirt into my home. I had my doubts, but she was so darn sweet and Blaze loved her so much, I couldn’t even bring myself to think about returning her.
We have spent a lot of time working with Lady on training and behavior, and I’m proud to say she has improved significantly.
Training her was so enjoyable, as I was so surprised to find how intelligent she is.
She is much more enjoyable as a pet and only digs and chews when left unsupervised and ignored for long periods of time. And with time, she has become much sweeter – if it was even possible! Lady loves to cuddle on the bed, lay right at your feet and even give foot massages with her tongue.
She loves playing and wrestling with Blaze, chasing the soccer ball, all of her toys and especially… dinner time! Most of all, Lady is happiest at the dog park where she chases and plays with any dog – large or small – she loves every single one and they love her.
Our “Lady-bug” brings so much joy to our lives, and we are SO happy to have her in our home.
Apr 29, 2017
Adopted by Dan & Margarida – July 15, 2014 – San Jose, CA
Hello, I’m Dan. My partner Margarida and I have had a rescue dog, Dragon, for three years. Recently we adopted s beautiful blind husky through VAFA. Dragon decided that he wanted to tell the story about our new dog, Haleh:
My name is Dragon. I am an AmStaff/Bulldog mix who was rescued by my family three years ago from the killing shelter in Fresno. I have thoroughly enjoyed getting comfortable in my surroundings, taking walks in the hills above San Jose, going to the beach, and generally taking over control of the household. l especially enjoyed cleaning the dishes after a meal. Then, in an instant it all changed!
About three months ago, my family brought a big, shy, skinny, weird-acting, snow white dog into the house. They said she was a husky but she looked more like a small polar bear. I threw my weight around for a couple of days but she wouldn’t play and in fact, bit me. I was shocked but I figured she wouldn’t be here for long so I tolerated her. After a few days, I realized that she was blind so I picked on her even stronger and she retaliated even more. But I succeeded in bringing her out of her shell.
I came to find out that she was flown here from the killing streets of Iran, by VAFA, to see an eye specialist and my family was simply fostering her while she saw the specialist.
It turned out that the eye doctor wasn’t able to do anything for her and my family decided to keep her. They named her Haleh (halo). I don’t have much privacy any more since she can hear my every move and smell me wherever I try to hide but we have gotten to be best friends and she plays with me all the time now. Over time, I have been teaching her the rules of the house even though I have to share the dishes with her.
The only thing is I’m not allowed to beg for food but she is always lying underfoot in hopes of catching falling scraps. That used to be my privilege so now sometimes I get a little peeved and desperate not to lose out on goodies. Also, I had to teach her to respect my food bowl and only eat out of her own.
She has put on nearly ten pounds and looks absolutely beautiful. It is amazing to watch her negotiate the curves around furniture. My family purchased a new sofa and she bumped her head a couple of times before memorizing a map of the house. She is very happy and we even snuggle together although she takes up a lot of space. We go for many walks together and I am proud to be her seeing-eye pit bull and I’m proud to be seen in public with her.
I’m really happy to have my new companion and I thank VAFA and my other new buddy, Farah Ravon, for bringing her here. I hope that they are able to continue the good work and bring other deserving dogs to new homes.
Sincerely,
Dragon
