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Rescued Tails Animal Sanctuary
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The Rainbow Bridge Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge. When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable. All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.
They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green. You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart. Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together.... - Anonymous
Grieve not, ~Isla Paschal Richardson 
We are sad to say that we recently had to help Collette cross over the Rainbow Bridge. At over 19 years old, and after dealing with multiple health issues, she let us know that the good fight was over. Collette came to us from a local animal control in 2007 when she was just a year old. She did get adopted, but was returned shortly afterward and ended up spending the rest of her life in our care. When Collette was younger, she saw a lot of foster cats and dogs come and go over the years. She didn’t seem to mind all her temporary housemates, although she was pretty content just keeping to herself. As the years went on, Collette enjoyed being part of a small group of long-term foster animals and settled in nicely with everyone. She could often be found curled up on the bed with one of the other foster cats and would always make space for herself among any cat already on her foster mom’s lap. The dogs were just big things that were in her way, although she appreciated their large, soft beds.
Collette had her favorite spots to nap throughout the house and would move around to them as the day went on. At a certain time every morning, she would head out to the porch to wait for the sun to start shining through the window onto her cat bed, napping there until it was time to move again. While she was quiet and laid back, Collette knew what she wanted and didn’t hesitate to get it. When she couldn’t jump up on the bed anymore, she quickly learned how to use her new stairs. She loved a certain side of the bed and would instantly move into it as soon as the spot opened up. When Collette wanted attention, she
would force her head into your hand and get herself petted. She also had the uncanny ability to know the exact second her foster mom needed to stand up and would jump into her lap right before that. Getting up would then have to be delayed, of course, but it was worth it.
As she got older, Collette developed chronic pancreatitis, hyperthyroidism, kidney disease, arthritis and glaucoma. Collette took all her different meds like a trooper, although she was not a fan of fluid therapy and would run off whenever she saw the fluid bag come out. Because of all her health issues, Collette was a regular at the vet and she was always the perfect patient. Everyone there loved her and we are so grateful for all the wonderful care they gave her over the years.
So now the right side of the bed is always available, the sun shines through the windows with no one to bathe in it and the laps are empty. And a small, black cat is very missed.
April 2025 - Our hearts broke as we had to say goodbye to our sweet, old man, Quin. His neurological condition worsened to the point where he no longer had a good quality of life so we helped him peacefully cross over the Rainbow Bridge.
We had found Quin a few years ago after a huge snow storm. He was walking through the rubble of the old barn that had collapsed along with a little white cat (Simon). Quin was pretty thin and had a profound head tilt. He had difficulty climbing down from elevated heights and was not able to track/follow/chase a toy very well.
None of those things stopped Quin from enjoying his days here with us - basking in the sunshine, visiting other cats and becoming so comfortable with being held that he would fall asleep in our arms. We are so thankful that we were able to help Quin during the last few years of his life. It is always an honor and privilege to help these sweet, old souls when others have failed and abandoned them.
Say hi to all the others, Quin. Thank you for allowing us to be part of your life, trusting us and sharing the gifts and lessons you gave us.
We sadly had to say good-bye to our feline friend, Willie, after a battle with lymphoma. Willie came to us from animal control in 2007 as a 3-month old kitten, along with his brother, Waylon. They were a tightly bonded pair, and we did not want to separate them. The two loved to run around and play together, and could be found curled up napping with each other well into their golden years. Both Waylon and Willie were very leery of strangers, so adoption centers and adoption days were too hard on them. That made their chances of finding a home together all the more difficult, and they ended up becoming long-term foster cats.
Waylon was by far the more social one with his foster mom, Theresa, while Willie was more of a cats’ cat and seemed content to just hang out with his brother. They were pretty inseparable. When Waylon passed away three years ago, we weren’t sure how Willie would handle the loss. He eventually decided that Theresa wasn’t so scary after all, and he actually became quite the cuddler. Willie even befriended another long-term foster cat, Collette, curling up with her for naps and letting her give him a bath every now and then. Willie’s favorite things to do were to oversee the backyard high on his cat tree, nap in the sun spots on the carpet and run to the water dish whenever he heard it getting filled up. You could set a clock by Willie, and when it was time for meals and bedtime treats, he would be patiently waiting under the kitchen table. Willie would
notice where the other cats liked to nap and would soon be found sleeping in their favorite spots. Everyone liked Willie, so that was okay with the others, and often times they joined him in slumber.
Willie was very content with his quiet life and even up to his last day, he was soaking up the sun and watching the birds out the window. He left a huge hole in our hearts and will be deeply missed.
"The most difficult thing about having a dog is the goodbye"
Written by King's amazing foster mom, Theresa, of nearly 10 years:
We pulled King from MACC, a local animal control, back in 2014 when he was nine months old. He was surrendered by his family because they said they couldn’t keep him. King was super sweet, but had no training, so we put him in our Rush to Rescue prison program. Despite everyone’s best efforts, the environment was too stimulating for him and not a good fit, so he was removed and went into a foster home.
It was obvious that King needed some serious training. He would jump up on people, was mouthy, grabby, and didn’t like to be handled. King was hyper focused on any bedding (cat, dog, pillows), determined to destroy them, and any kind of correction made things worse. During walks, King constantly tried to chase vehicles and bicycles moving past him. With the help of some private training, as well as lots of practice and yummy treats, King developed manners and really thrived in his foster home.
King was the type of dog who loved everyone he met. When he went for his walks, which was his favorite thing to do, he assumed everyone outside was there solely to pet him. He had his favorites, especially Duane and the neighborhood kids, and always looked for them when he walked by their houses. He loved going to the vet because he knew he was going to get a lot of attention there.
King’s favorite snacks were cucumbers, watermelon and apples. When he heard the smoothie machine, he made sure he was in the kitchen to wait patiently for his dab of peanut butter. When he came in from being outside, King knew to either sit in front of the cupboard with treats or the closet with his food, depending upon the time of day. He loved napping on the couch, although it often took several spins and a bunched-up slipcover before he found the perfect position. The resident cat adored King and he was always extremely tolerant of her rubbing up against his face, licking his ears or curling up beside him.
There were few things in life King didn’t like, but on the top of that list were vacuum cleaners, weed whippers, windshield wipers and getting wet in the rain. King had been available for adoption since he was pulled from MACC almost ten years ago. He attended adoption events, fundraisers, and pet festivals and was always a huge hit with everyone he met. King received adoption applications and had meet and greets over the years, but for one reason or another, no one ever wanted to make the commitment to adopt and nothing ever materialized.
King waited for over nine years to find his forever home. Little did we know, he already had.
Rest easy, King. You were the best boy.
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