Life With My Two Latest Rescues

Wynand (left) and Cooper (right)

Written by Cara Smith

Photography by Shannon Fletcher

I’ve been fostering animals for years; it brings me more joy than anything else in this life.

As a consequence of fostering, I’ve had a few “foster fails”. There are many more I would have loved to keep, but with these two, the timing was right, the circumstances were right – and we were finally able to adopt them.

Wynand

Gotcha Day: 5 August 2021

I’m part of an SOS fostering group for PETS Empowerment in the Townships in the Western Cape. One day, they posted about a mama dog and her four pups – which I wasn’t quite geared up for at the time. Along with that, they shared a photo of what I thought was the dirtiest, not-the-prettiest little pup they’d found wandering alone.

And I thought: One. I can foster one!

A friend of mine was already on her way from Somerset West (all my friends know by now where fosters are collected before being brought to me), and she picked him up.

At the time, I was still working at the hardware store in Pringle Bay. She dropped him off – covered in his vomit from the trip.

I put him in a box… and he was the cutest little thing in the entire world.

My co-worker looked at him and said, “He looks like a Wynand.”

And that was it. The name stuck.

As he grew and his personality started to show, I knew he wasn’t going anywhere. At the time, I had my old Jack Russell (whom I “stole” from my ex-husband) and my Fred, whom I picked up in Lambert’s Bay. I just knew Wynand would complete our household.

He was anything but ordinary.

We continued fostering many other pups while Wynand was with us. Four of them found amazing homes during that time – but I was never ready to let Wynand go. Eventually, we stopped pretending. We made it official. Wynand was home. Oh, how our lives changed!

He’s a barker – at everything and nothing. He can’t be left outside, so from that day on, if we went anywhere, all the dogs had to stay inside. Pet sitters became a necessity, even if we were just out for a few hours.

He isn’t friendly on a lead, so our walking routes had to change – and so did many other things.

But he’s a blessing in this house.

I can’t imagine our lives without him.

He’s this mama’s boy.

Cooper

Where do I even start…

That little picture popped up on the same SOS group as Wynand. I was looking for a foster. He arrived – and he conquered!

He’s the goofiest, funniest dog we’ve had in a long time.

He’s clumsy.
He has no concept of personal space.
He’s boisterous.
Needy.
Scared of everything.
Has no manners.
Doesn’t listen.

And yet – he’s so deeply loved.

He’s our be-all and end-all. The one who has to be on top of you at all times. The one who knows nothing except loving you completely.

He’s the BEST foster brother we could ever have asked for. Since he arrived, he’s helped raise so many fosters. Patient in his own chaotic way. Loving in the biggest way possible.

We love him beyond words. We would never give him up for anything.

And that’s when we knew – he wasn’t going anywhere either.

Our Life with Rescue

My dogs are our lives.

My two sons are learning, through experience, that adoption is the only way. We’ve had well over 100 fosters come through this house. Most of our circle of friends and family have adopted from us.

Every single foster has found an incredible home. We’ve been unbelievably lucky.

We help where we can. We foster for local and surrounding rescues, and we hope to do even more in the future.

We will forever adopt.
Forever foster.
Forever help where we can.

We’re blessed with these dogs.

They don’t just live in our house – they make our house a home!