Pets have one ‘flaw.’ They are never with us long enough.
When Joelene went to the Cape Breton SPCA and saw Frenny, she knew that was the cat for her family. Franny was almost 14 at the time of her adoption, and she and her new family only got six months together before Franny crossed the Rainbow Bridge.
The house was too quiet, and everyone felt the emptiness. When they were ready to welcome a new furry family member, Joelene went on the Nova Scotia SPCA adoption page.
“I saw Aero’s picture, and I loved him at first sight.” And after almost three months in the shelter, Aero went home.
Not too long after that came Tibraius, or Tibbie, or Tibbious Jones. It takes a bit for shelter pets to decompress in their new home and realize this might just be it. “The first little bit with both boys was rough, then one day they came out of their shells and settled,” Joelene said.
At around two years old, Tibraius still has that puppy energy. “Where to start with Tibbie?” Joelene laughed. “If you want a stage five clinger, Tibraius is your man. He is the sweetest little guy, he just melts my heart with all his love and loyalty, he’s my ride or die.” He loves his stuffies and playing with them, and Joelene loves to just watch him be himself.
“It’s the simple things in life,” she explained. 
On the other hand, an older and more senior dog, both in age and at heart, Aero loved the leisurely side of life. He could be down for an adventure, but being in bed was his favourite place to be. “He was a simple man,” his fur mom described him, “a mum’s boy who did what he wanted and did nothing he didn’t want to. He followed me everywhere and enjoyed lying next to me. When it was bedtime, around nine, if my daughter was in my room chatting with me, he would sigh or moan so she knew it was time to leave.”
A year and a half after he was adopted, Aero passed away next to his fur mom and Tibbie.
They both miss Aero very much, so Joelene and Tibraius’ bond became even stronger after going through the loss together. “The night we lost Aero, Tibbie stepped up and took his role of being my little buddy very seriously, not often does my truck leave the driveway without him in it. He is always just happy to participate in life wherever we go,” Joelene stated.
We truly don’t have enough time with our pets. But they teach us the greatest lessons about commitment, unconditional love, enjoying the simplest things in life, and how much the little moments count. Joelene and Tibbie are spending all the time they can together, reminding each other they are not alone, and they’re looking forward to spending many years together.
A piece of advice Joelene had for people looking to adopt a dog is to remember to be patient. “It’s so easy to react to things they do at first, but you just have to take a deep breath and know they will come out of their shells, they just need to feel love and safety, they’ve been through so much.”
If you are ready to welcome a furry friend into your life, visit the nearest shelter(s) to you to meet them and find your perfect companion or read a bit about them on our adoption page. And if you can’t adopt, but wish to help, you can make a donation and help pets on their journey to their happily ever after.