Gotcha Day: a book about your rescue, from the day they came home
Gift
Gotcha Day is the anniversary of the day an adopted animal came home. Some owners mark it the way others mark a birthday, sometimes because the real birthday is not known.
Where the word comes from
The term comes from child adoption, where families began celebrating the day in the early 2000s. Some adoptees criticise it, because “gotcha” leaves out the loss that comes before an adoption. For pets, the day is also called Adoption Day or Homecoming Day.
How owners mark it
A Moonpig survey reported by Dogs Today in 2025 found that 64% of UK pet owners celebrate their pet's birthday or adoption anniversary every year.
A book that starts on the day they came home
A rescue's story with you begins on the day they arrived: the first spot they chose, the first thing that frightened them. The first page asks how they came to you, with a line for how it went. The questions ask about what came after: how the day starts, where they really sleep, what they are terrified of, who they let near. For the breed, type what the shelter wrote down.
Example: Mo, from the shelter
Mo is a long-haired tabby, “says shelter”, born in 2022. At a quarter past six he sits on the bedroom window sill and taps the glass with one claw until Sanne turns over. Once he dragged an acacia branch twice his length as far as the cat flap and no further. Mo is an example, not a customer.
How Jesse named him
Jesse calls Mo 'the fox', and it is because of the tail: reddish at the tip, twice as thick as the rest of him. Jesse saw him from behind in the garden once and thought, for a moment, that Sanne had a fox out there. The name stuck, and Jesse is still the only one Mo lets pick him up.
Mo21
From behind, in the garden, he really does look like a fox. Mo22
As a gift on the day
For a friend's Gotcha Day, buy the gift for €34.99 and have it emailed at eight in the morning on the adoption date. They make the book about their own animal, and the hardcover with shipping is included.
When the day is hard
If the animal has died, the adoption date can bring the loss back. Blue Cross names a pet's birthday and the day they arrived as dates that can trigger grief.
Questions
What is Gotcha Day?
The anniversary of the day an adopted pet joined its family.
Can I use the adoption date instead of a birth year?
Yes. The first page has a line for the years; type what you know, such as “adopted 2022”.
Does it work for a rescue cat or rabbit?
Yes. Mo is a rescue cat.
What if I know little about their life before?
The book is about life with you. The questions are about habits now, not about the past.
Give it on their Gotcha Day
They make the book about their rescue, starting from the day it came home.
Give the giftGift €34.99. The eBook and the hardcover, shipping included. Or the eBook alone for €6.99. The recipient makes the book themselves. Valid 3 years.
Make the book about your rescue.
Make one for your peteBook €6.99, hardcover €29.99 on top, shipping included. You pay after the questions.