Last month was one of my favorite times of the year. No, not the first day of summer. It was the Animal Rescue League of Iowa’s Annual Poorly Drawn Pet Fundraiser.

Say what you want about Twitter (I both love and hate it), I find interesting content there. In 2022, a tweet came across my feed advertising the ARL’s Poorly Drawn Pet Fundraiser. The ARL put the “fun” in fundraiser with this opportunity because for $25 you submit a photo of your pet and then they send you back a poorly drawn portrait of your pet.

Except …

Sometimes the artist drawing the portrait is quite good!

The luck of the draw is partly why I love this fundraiser so much. Either way, you get a drawing that’s going to make you smile.

Last year, I submitted this photo of Fergus:

Here’s what my ARL artist returned to me:

This year I submitted this photo of Annie:

How cute is this?

Of course, I shared this fundraiser with friends I thought would be interested. As I was scrolling ARL’s portfolio of all the “poorly drawn pet portraits” this year (you can see all the portraits drawn in the 2023 fundraiser here.), I came across this one:

I know that dog! Sure enough, Chloe’s human mom verified the portrait is in fact the Chloe I know and love.

I’m missing my Norfolk dogs A LOT these days. We’re currently taking care of a sweet and silly cat named Bella while here in Vancouver, Washington, and I’m enjoying her company. I love how she meows as soon as I get out of bed to let me know now is the time to open the door onto her balcony. She’s not very cuddly, yet, but I did make progress yesterday morning (you can see my legs on the right side of the photo).

Here’s my own poorly drawn portrait of Bella:

Heath took one look at my portrait and said, “Oh, she’s a potato.”

Perhaps I’ll volunteer with the ARL next June!