Karley’s story, as told by Peggy to Animal Beat via email:
Karley
and her sibling were "given away" at PetSmart in Murrieta, California.
The puppies came from a backyard breeder, who I loathe.
BettyAnn with Animal Rescue Kompany (ARK) happens to hold adoption days at that PetSmart.
The
woman who took the two puppies took them immediately to the vet in the
PetSmart for shots and a check-up. This is where the vet told the lady
about Karley’s severe heart murmur.
BettyAnn
intervened when she heard the lady saying she could not afford
Karley’s medical care, and was going to take her to the local
shelter. Because of her ailment, the shelter would have put her to
sleep ASAP, no doubt about it!
Peggy agreed to foster Karley for Ark Rescue, but it wasn’t long before she sent this email that traveled through the BrightHaven rescue network:
Karley
has found her forever home! Due to the fact that Kirk and I are total
pushovers, and she is a total dolly, not to mention best-est friends
with Buffy [one of the couple’s other pets], we are adopting
her!!!!
She has turned into an exceptional puppy, and
so well-behaved, that we just cannot let her go!!! A puppy who lets you
sleep is a puppy to keep! She is very, very happy here, and such a fast
learner. We are really happy with our decision.
Peggy and Kirk have fostered nearly 1,000 dogs in four years:
We
have fostered 988 doggies/puppies in a four-year period, and only kept
four. Not bad. That does not include the nine mommies that had 4 to 12
puppies.
Usually newborns stay here for up to 3.5
months, especially since they are little. In that time, I cook up a
very healthy "mush,” and they start eating at 5 weeks, while
still nursing.
Plus, they are piddle pad trained at the
same time. By the time they "go home" they are well-behaved, potty
trained, and healthy to boot. Very sweet dispositions. Not to mention
socialized with our four doggies.
Peggy and Kirk accept challenges:
We
fostered a Rottweiler (my passion). He was stuck in the shelter, and
was begging to go home with someone. My husband was there for licensing
renewal. Prince put his paw on the kennel door and looked right into
Kirk's eyes. That was it.
BettyAnn arranged for us to
foster him. A real love bug. Prince was older and had major health
issues. He lived the life of Riley for several months, then he had to
be put down.
We will continue to foster... forever. I
have a super support team—my honey, Kirk who is just as obsessed
with animals as I am. Thank God!!
Would you like to foster and help deserving dogs get over the hump of homelessness?
Your local shelter and rescue groups need you!
Katerina Lorenzatos Makris is the author of 17 novels for
publishers including Avon, E.P. Dutton, and Simon & Schuster, and
hundreds of articles for publications such as National Geographic
Traveler, San Francisco Chronicle, and Veggie Life. She wrote a
teleplay for CBS and short fiction for The Bark magazine. With coauthor
Shelley Frost, she wrote Your Adopted Dog
(The Lyons Press). Holding a B.A. in Environmental Science Studies and
a lifelong interest in animal issues, she spends a lot of her time
battling a severe addiction to dogs.
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