The SLM Pet Guide: The Pet Parade

Rudolph Yaber

Rudolph Yaber sprouted from unlikely soil; his mother was a stray, spayed after she gave birth to her litter, then released back into the wild. He was raised by volunteers at the Feral Kitten Rescue, and he chased his tail into our hearts. He can fetch and sit, and he’s almost got shake mastered. If you make a move toward his toy drawer, he will leap from anywhere in the house in expectation of playtime. If you’ve got tinsel on a stick, he will play until he pants and falls over. —Julie Dill

Ernie

Someone forgot to tell Ernie he’s a dog! His summer routine: Every morning, go out the back door, jump in the pool, swim around in circles, get out at the steps, shake off, peer—mesmerized—at the rippling water, then repeat the entire process over and over and over. Then, jump on the raft and float around like King Tut for hours! Any time kids are swimming, he’s right there with them, and when food’s around, he makes sure he’s well placed to be on the receiving end! —Susan Kerth

Jasper

Jasper has been in my life for seven years. He came into my life as a kitten at 10 weeks old, adopted from the APA. He was a bundle of energy. For the past seven years he has been my best friend and my top priority always. When I separated from my ex-husband in February 2004 he was my only friend here in St. Louis—it was the hardest point in my life. He became my one reason to get up in the morning. Jasper continues to be the best thing in my life. I love him. —Gina McGrew

Quentin

Quentin, the “Miracle Dog,” was supposed to die in August 2003. When the gas chamber door was opened, there stood Quentin on the corpses of seven less fortunate dogs. Now, in a stroke of the ultimate vengeance, he has eliminated the eliminator. In January 2005, the St. Louis City dog pound shut down its gas chamber due to fundraising and lobbying efforts by Quentin and his “dad,” Randy Grim, founder and director of Stray Rescue. With a stroke of Mayor Francis Slay’s pen, the City of St. Louis gas chamber has been dismantled, and the catalyst was a check for $14,000 raised and signed by Quentin. In yet another visit to the mayor’s office, Quentin watched the mayor change the city’s legal language from animal owner to the more humane “guardian.” —Randy Grim

Chloe

Chloe is an exceptional girl. She’s a five-year-old boxer/Great Dane—we call her a “Good Dane”—who came from the ’hood. I “passed the interview” with DeAngelo, the little boy who owned her and whose mother wouldn’t let him keep her, and was allowed to adopt her. Here in the ’burbs, Chloe serves as Canine Concierge at our high-rise condo. She loves everyone, from the delivery man to the children who play tag with her in the hall. She’s my continual companion at work, attending every meeting equipped with a special toy. Everyone in Clayton knows and loves Chloe! —Iris Salsman

Geneva

When I asked my oldest daughter, Alexandra, what she wanted for her 8th birthday last year, she immediately said a Bernese Mountain Dog. A large-bred dog, it has no breeders locally, so Dad enlisted the help of his wife, Catherine, to help find an AKC-certified breeder. Lake Port, Calif., had the best breeder, with the best owner. Alexandra asked me if she and her mother could fly out to California and bring back a 10-week-old, 19-pound puppy. How could I say no? She picked a female puppy and named her Geneva. She makes me proud, since this puppy make both my daughters smile daily at a time when everyone can use a smile. —Maurice E. Quiroga

T-Bone & Tofu

We adopted our fabulous cats, T-Bone and Tofu, while living in San Antonio. After visiting the shelter several times “interviewing” cats to adopt we came across two orange-and-white kittens whose mother was run over by a truck and another kitten who had been attacked by a dog, leaving the two orphans. The furry little 2-pound bundles have now maxed out at 12 and 15 pounds, respectively, and love their new home in St. Louis. They are our constant companions, and although they don’t really have any major talents except being cute and super-friendly, they are pretty perfect for us. —Kellie Briggs

Lucky

Lucky, our poochon (poodle and bichon frisé mix), was born this past Halloween. She is special because everywhere we go she serves as a conversation piece. People constantly stop and comment on how cute Lucky is, and she absolutely adores people. She gets so excited and her little tail wags so fast. Our groomer even showed Lucky off to his neighbors. Each member of our family looks forward to returning home each evening because Lucky always greets us with kisses. Lucky bites us sometimes, but it is impossible to stay angry at this adorable fluff ball so full of love. —Melanie Riley

Gino

Gino is so very special for several reasons. First and most important is how he came into my life: He was abandoned in the middle of a very rural area of Missouri and wandering around at about 6 weeks old. No one around claimed him or wanted him, so he became mine. Not knowing what breed or age he was or what or health issues he had, I took him to the vet and was told, surprisingly, that my little guy was healthy and hungry. Since that day, he does all he can to never leave my side, which is the second reason he is so special. As I’m sending this, he is cuddled up on my feet under the desk. He comes to work with me almost every day and will lie on my bed looking out the window watching to see when I come home. He always greets me with a wagging tail and kisses/nipping because he is so excited. Each morning he stretches across and puts his paws on my chest and will not move until he gets a few scratches behind his ears. He is a very loyal and loving pet who has brought amazing joy to my life. —Nick Maynes

Briony

Just wanted to submit a pet photo of my dog Briony, who I think is the cutest dog in the world. (Yes, I’m a little biased.) She’s a 2-year-old Brussels Griffon/Yorkie mix who I spotted on Petfinder and adopted from a rescue organization out of Memphis. She was badly neglected, left outside all year long (even on cold days) in a yard with pit bulls. It just breaks my heart to think what she must have gone through. I adopted her about a year ago. She’s been such a perfect little dog, despite her harsh past. She’s also proof that you can find absolutely fabulous dogs from rescue organizations instead of breeders. —Melanie Moon

Ringo and Bailey

Ringo and Bailey happened by accident. I only wanted one dog. Had appointment to see Bailey, the puggle, on a Saturday. Stopped by the county shelter over lunch Friday. Ringo was there—recently the subject of a Bill McClellan Post-Dispatch column, little did I know. I fell in love. Bailey came over Saturday, she and Ringo got along, and the rest became history. They fight and cuddle like brother and sister. They also remind me of Danny DeVito and Arnold Schwarzenegger from the movie Twins. —Rhonda Sciarra

Cash

The best attribute of my 11-month-old golden retriever, Cash, is his innate ability to make everyone smile. Whenever he’s on a walk and sees a stranger approaching, he wags his tail so hard that his entire back half sways back and forth. As they get closer, he lies down as if to politely ask for attention. He never fails to charm everyone he meets, and it’s a joy to take him on walks, just to see him make others smile. —Casey Dean

Emmitt

What can you say about a little wiener dog named Emmitt? At first, when we brought all 3 pounds of him home, whimpering all the way, we wondered if he would miss his mom and grow to love us. Now three years, a couple of Wiener Dog Races, and a baby later, we have no doubts. He is always happy to see you when you get home, quick to cuddle on your lap the minute you sit down, with a scratch of his paw to let you know he wants under the covers, and he even sleeps with his head on our pillows at night! —Molly Barnes

Squiggy

While staying with my dad at St. Anthony’s de Greeff Hospice House, we met a wonderful lady from the Open Door Animal Sanctuary. We told her that we were thinking about a kitten. She suggested we come out and visit “Kitty City.” So one cold Saturday morning in January, we took a trip out there, and that’s where it all began. This adorable golden tabby kept stretching his paw out of the cage, reaching out for me. I took him out of the cage and he almost melted in my arms. I had decided that if I got a kitten I was going to try to toilet-train him. Well, as you can see, it has been successful! Squiggy has no litter box and uses the toilet instead. We have really enjoyed his playfulness and he has brought more laughter into our home than we could have ever imagined. —Amy Thompson

Jake

Jake’s a 4-year-old, 100-pound Rhodesian Ridgeback who makes friends wherever he goes. I’ve often heard people say, “He’s the best dog ever. He’s so sweet.” Jake loves trips to Home Depot and Lowe’s, where he’s become a well-known regular. Residents at my grandfather’s Alzheimer’s home enjoy his frequent visits. When we walk South City, Jake is always ready to greet our neighbors, young and old. I am most proud of Jake for his ability to win over just about any reticent person or dog. He’s so patient to give nervous children a chance to pet him. He has a truly human-like personality and is both sensitive and independent. —Sara Levin

Coco

We rescued our chocolate lab mix, Coco, last year from the St. Francois Society, which brings adoptable pets to the PetSmart in Brentwood Promenade on the weekends. He was a great puppy and wonderful companion to our border collie mix, Guinness—although they did become partners in crime when we would leave the house. So it was no surprise when we came home from my daughter’s soccer game one afternoon in January to find empty packages of potato chips and snack foods that they found in an overnight bag in my daughter’s room. We later found out they had also eaten about 12 ounces of raisins. I didn’t discover until 24 hours later, when they both began vomiting, that raisins and grapes are extremely toxic. Of course, I quickly called the vet, and after running blood tests, they found Coco must have eaten the majority of the raisins, as his kidneys had begun to shut down. Guinness, in the meantime, was fine and able to come home. After three days of hospitalization, IV fluids and medications, Creve Coeur Animal Hospital called to make a decision . . . to euthanize dying Coco or drive him to the only place within reasonable distance that performs animal peritoneal dialysis, The Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital at the University of Missouri–Columbia.

We were on the road to Columbia the next morning. There, we met the two people who would be caring for Coco during the next three weeks: third-year med student Kelly Hogan and Dr. Marie Kerl, associate teaching professor. Coco was admitted to the ICU with dangerously high potassium levels that could stop his heart at any time and impending neurological issues. They began intense peritoneal dialysis, which involves a tube inserted into the abdomen and hourly insertion and removal of IV fluid to perform the functions of the kidneys. After ups and downs during the next few weeks, Coco came home on February 18, once his kidneys began functioning on their own again. He’s still recovering, with hopes of a full kidney recovery. —Jennifer Lyons

Cinco

Cinco rescued my elderly neighbor Dottie during a severe thunderstorm a few years back. En route to a downed limb, Dottie slipped on the wet pavement and was unable to get back up. The windows were open due to loss of power. Cinco heard Dottie’s cries for help and kept barking, so I went to see what was going on, since Cinco never barks for no reason. I then heard Dottie’s cries and went outside to help. With the aid of two other neighbors and Cinco, we were able to help Dottie up and get her inside. —Dede Dierkes

Sinclair & Solomon

Shortly after moving to St. Louis, my husband, Walter, and I decided to get a friend for our dog, Solomon (a black Shih-Poo). We went to Posh Puppies Rescue in St. Louis to adopt a puppy and fell in love with Sinclair (a white Malti-Poo). He was the cutest white ball of fur and had the sweetest demeanor. Unfortunately, we only had Sinclair for a short 6 1/2 months. We were heartbroken when we had to put our sweet pup down in March after he suffered multiple seizures. The disorder came on very suddenly for an unknown reason, and we grieved over the loss of our dearest friend. Through Sinclair’s life we learned to value life and to love our animals well. We are amazed at the amount of unconditional love Sinclair showed us! Who knew a little puppy could teach you so much about life? We are grateful for the time we had with our sweet Sinclair. —Laura Stiffler

Walter

No one at City Academy calls Walter a “mascot.” We prefer the term “school dog,” which better suits his versatile role at our private independent elementary school in North City. Walter’s daily duties include serving as an audience for young readers, chasing tennis balls, inspiring good behavior, and delivering unconditional affection. He also helps his companions—especially those without pets at home—learn how to take care of animals. It’s true that Walter sometimes forgets his manners (there was an unfortunate incident with the principal’s sandwich). However, our school dog never forgets to greet his 128 “best friends” with slobbery enthusiasm! —Braden Welborn

Compiled by Jarrett Medlin