  
We were looking to save a dog from the pound for a long time……….we looked at many dogs and spent every Saturday going to the local pounds to see if there was a dog for us. I was starting to lose all hope of ever finding a dog that both me and my partner would like, after years of hard work convincing him that we should get a dog. One day while at work I received a phone call from one of my animal-loving friends to say that she had found another pound website with gorgeous photos of the dogs they had available. I immediately checked it out; it was the website for AAPS. The photos were so cute and I fell in love with every dog featured, but was especially taken with one particular dog. His name was Starsky, he was a cocker spaniel x dachshund and was just beautiful. His description said he was full of life and was perfect for anyone looking for lots of laughs. I emailed the link to my partner and waited eagerly for his response. I hadn’t mentioned Starsky specifically, but he was the one my partner picked out as the dog for us.
When we went to see little Starsky he acted so nice and normal….quite excited to see us but not crazy or anything. He had a bout of kennel cough and had been bullied by a bigger dog at his previous home, but he was still an amazingly happy dog. We didn’t realise that we would be able to take him home on that first day and had nothing organised at our house to accommodate a dog. The lady in the office gave us an old lead because we had nothing! We had to stop at the supermarket to buy food etc on the way home. But the fun was only just beginning.
The first night with Starsky was crazy, he transformed into this hyperactive superdog……running laps of our house over and over again! He did not sleep at all that night! This was a Friday night and we were both supposed to work on Saturday morning, by 4am we realised that this dog was not going to be able to stay home alone. At 5am we rang a friend and convinced him to come and dog-sit for the morning.
Starsky has since calmed down a little, although he is still the most hyperactive dog I have ever met! He had two walks a day to try and wear him out and on at least one of these a day someone will stop and pat him, telling him how cute he is! He loves people and goes bananas whenever another person is in sight! He as springs in his tiny legs, and is able to jump incredibly high, he can jump up and lick my nose! I am yet to meet someone who hasn’t fallen in love with our beautiful boy, especially after they see some of his tricks. He has learnt to sit, shake hands and lie down. If he does something naughty he immediately sits because he thinks this makes him a good dog! After learning to shake hands he would walk around the house with one paw up, hoping to get treats! And when he’s really excited and can’t focus on what trick you are asking him to do, he will run through all of them because one has to be right!
His other favourite activities include chasing possums, birds or anything that moves! And chasing his tail……this he will do anywhere, on the bed, on his beanbag, while on the lead….just about anywhere.
We are so happy with our fur-baby Starsky and couldn’t imagine life without him now. We love him so much and are glad we kept searching for that special dog instead of merely compromising on something else! Thank you AAPS for having such a great website and for helping us find such a one of a kind dog.
Dannielle Wilkinson | 
Just wanted to let you know how grateful we are for our two beautiful cats we adopted from the shelter. Ringo was only 8 weeks when he was welcomed into our home and then 9 months later along came George, who was 1. Who would have known these two little boys would instantly bond and become great mates? They love nothing better than sleeping together at night and play fighting during the day. We are very happy with our two little friends.