Love at first picture
Wiley is a special case because we are his fourth home. He was found as a stray by Friends with Four Paws Rescue in Oklahoma, was fostered there until he was sent to Brooklyn, where he was fostered again. Then, he was adopted out to a family in Yonkers, who, after a year, had to give him up because of “allergies.” (This dog’s journey is one of the sad realities that pets in animal shelters wish you knew.) We had filled in applications for other pooches, and a Chi Mix was not one of the breeds I was falling in love with through their photos. After I met with one of the rescue’s other adoptable pets and wrote an email about how I didn’t feel the connection but would love to keep trying, the animal rescue’s president, Leah, gave me a call, and we struck up an instant bond. The next day, she texted me and told me they had a rare, emergency situation: They had a “return.” She sent me Wiley’s picture, and I just had that feeling. I took it as a sign. So, we went to pick him up from his old home and bring him to ours without meeting him first. He was nervous in the car and left a little present outside the building after the car ride, but he adjusted phenomenally, like he was still a puppy and we were his first set of parents. It was like he instantly imprinted on me. We signed the adoption papers two days later. I believe Wiley and I understand each other in a special way because we both had it pretty rough during our early, formative years, and we are both very resilient. We came together at a time when we both finally felt safe in the world. He knows we’re a family and that I’m not going anywhere. Writing about him in my memoir, After 9/11, helped me realize just how similar rescue dogs and rescued humans really are…and made me a stronger-than-ever advocate for the rescue community as a whole. Keep reading for a glimpse into more amazing stories of dogs who were rescued from tough lives and brought to a new beginning by humans who cared enough to say, “Your little life matters just as much as mine.”
from Reader's Digest http://ift.tt/2xfNQru
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