Everyday heroes helping pets in need

Kindness shows up in all kinds of ways when pets need help. These moments reveal just how far people will go for the animals they love — and even the ones they’ve never met.

If there are two things that brothers-in-law Tom Otto and Shaun Sears know well, it’s cats and trees. And often, it’s cats in trees. Tom and Shaun are arborists by profession, but they also run a nonprofit called Canopy Cat Rescue that helps kitties stuck in trees get safely back on the ground and back to their families. In 2025 alone, they used their tree-climbing skills to help hundreds of cats in western Washington where they live. The animal-loving duo will drive hours if it means helping a feline in need, and they don’t take any payment for their service. When a rescue ends with some purrs, some cuddles, and a family reunited, that’s all the payback they need.

It was Julie Nashawaty’s wedding anniversary, but her thoughts were focused on finding Ariel, a 17-year-old cat who belongs to an older man in Julie’s Boston neighborhood. Ariel had gotten out the night before when the wind blew open his door. Julie is known in her community as the person to call to help with missing and stray cats, and a friend had connected her with Ariel’s person. Julie went to his house to help search, but Ariel was nowhere to be seen.

Later that evening, both Julie and her husband couldn’t concentrate on their anniversary dinner. They got up with one goal: find Ariel. They went back to the spot where she’d been seen last and used their phone flashlights to sweep the area. And there she was, behind a tall fence on a neighbor’s property. With the help of the neighbor, Julie scooped up Ariel and reunited her with her person. The man was beyond grateful and even had the couple over for cookies a couple weeks later, and they shared stories about the special cats in their lives.

It was 2014 when Aaron Foster met Sadie. He found the brown-and-white dog lost in the middle of a Colorado snowstorm and took care of her in his home while the search for her family was underway. When her family couldn’t be found, a local shelter helped place Sadie in a new home. Fast-forward 12 years and Aaron got a call from a different animal shelter saying they had his dog. Sadie had been found outside with no collar or tags, but her microchip from all those years ago still had Aaron’s contact information. No one had come forward for her, so Aaron knew what he had to do: “I’m on my way, sweet girl.” Aaron was there for Sadie in the beginning during that snowstorm, and now he wants to make her golden years the best years of her life.

After Tibby the kitten was hit by a car, staff and students at a Kentucky school took her into their care. The veterinarian who teaches in the school’s veterinary program immediately started to stabilize the kitten. Tibby got the care she needed and regained her spunk. But her back end remained paralyzed, so the school’s engineering class stepped up to create a custom wheelchair for Tibby. They experimented with different models, focusing both on Tibby’s comfort and her mobility, before landing on one that allowed her to zip around with ease. As soon as she was fitted with her new wheels, there was no stopping her as she chased a toy across the floor. While the students prepared for their own futures, their kindness helped one tiny kitten have a second chance at a bright future of her own.

When our pets are sick or injured, paying for the vet bill is a worry no one needs. That’s why a kind person, who wished to remain anonymous, chose to visit an animal hospital just outside of Denver and hand out envelopes containing money to help pay for people’s vet bills. The good Samaritan covered costs for at least 10 people who were there with their pets and left more envelopes for people who might need the help later. Some people graciously gave the money to someone who needed it more, while others broke down in tears because they didn’t know how they were going to afford treatment for their pets. The donor also contributed to the animal hospital’s charity fund for future pets in need — providing life-changing generosity to help keep pets healthy and with the people who love them.

This article was originally published in the May/June 2026 issue of Best Friends magazine. Want more good news? Become a member and get stories like this six times a year.

Our goal at Best Friends is to support all animal shelters in the U.S. in reaching no-kill. No-kill means saving every dog and cat in a shelter who can be saved, accounting for community safety and good quality of life for pets. 

Shelter staff can’t do it alone. Saving animals in shelters is everyone’s responsibility, and it takes support and participation from the community. No-kill is possible when we work together thoughtfully, honestly, and collaboratively.