Petfinder.com has over 12,500 shelters and rescue groups that list their adoptable pets on PetFinder’s website. And, whilst most of those organizations will only allow local adoptions, there are a few that allow long distance adoptions.

However, Sparky’s adoption is the longest, long distance adoption in the history of PetFinder.com!

Rose and Chris Rasmussen were browsing the adoption website looking for a special cat to join their family in Britain, when they came across Sparky’s profile. The Rasmussen’s instantly fell in love with Sparky, a black and white cat, and knew that he would make the perfect addition to their family. The only problem was that Sparky was living at the Clare County Animal Shelter in Harrison, Michigan, as their unofficial mascot. Sparky had been living at the Animal Shelter since August of 200.

After contacting the Clare County Animal Shelter and filling out an adoption application online, Dave Gendregske, Clare County Animal Control Director, approved the Rasmussen’s application and then proceeded to complete mountains of paperwork to allow Sparky to be adopted.

Sparky had to be micro chipped, vaccinated against Rabies, quarantined for 6 months and have a blood test done to make sure that Sparky was immune to the disease before the Rasmussen’s were able to travel to Harrison, Michigan, to collect their new cat.

Although the Rasmussen’s could have had Sparky shipped to their home in London, they decided to fly 7 hours and almost 6400 miles across the Atlantic Ocean to him instead, making an adventure out of their US visit by also visiting Detroit and Chicago before picking up their newly adopted pet. Once in the UK, Sparky will have to undergo another 6 month quarantine before being allowed to move into his new home with the Rasmussen’s in the suburban home in London.

According to an article in The Morning Sun of Mount Pleasant, Rose Rasmussen was quoted as saying: “He took me here on the other side of the Atlantic. I thought they would say ‘you guys are completely mad.’ “

A volunteer at the Clare County Animal Shelter, Betty Beadle, told the newspaper that Sparky is fond of exploring and has twice destroyed Christmas trees during his almost nine month stay at the animal shelter. All the volunteers at the Animal Shelter say that they will all miss Sparky once he leaves for his trip across the Atlantic Ocean to the UK.

“They all have to come to England to visit him,” Rasmussen said.

Dave Gendregske explained that: “A lot of people would ask, ‘Why come from England?’ When people meet Sparky, find he has a dynamic personality, they fall in love with him.”

Chris Rasmussen said that “There’s no turning back,” even if the couple has second thoughts about adopting Sparky.

Sparky’s adoption case is obviously a case of love at first sight! Although, any true pet lover will tell you that when you see the one’, they will do whatever it takes to bring him or her home, no matter the cost or travel requirements.

What is truly amazing is that prior to the launch of the PetFinder.com website, pets that were available for adoption were only able to be seen inside the animal shelters in which they lived. Now, thanks to PetFinder, 8 month old Sparky (who to most people does not seem that much different from any of the other 3000 tuxedo cats that are waiting for adoption) is now living happily with his new pet parents in London.

Photo Credit: Telegraph.co.uk