We had just lost our Border Collie, Ringo. He was 11 years old, and we said we were going to adopt a senior dog. But every time we looked, there were no senior dogs…and then we saw the Love Train coming from Tennessee, and Hemi (aka Ruby) melted our hearts. Ruby now Hemi
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My fiancé and I went to HSHV every weekend for a year. We knew exactly what we were looking for. A grey and white pitbull, about two years old. We came across many incredible pitbulls but my heart was set on a grey and white color. One day we got a text from a volunteer (Shelley Troxell Tessmer) who said you have to come and meet this sweet girl. She’s perfect for you guys. We came in and she was so quiet (as a mouse) completely grey with white on her chest and her feet. We came back three times
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This sweet boy was adopted as a puppy in June 2014 from HSHV. Now he happily lives with his family and 3 cat sisters. He loves car rides, visits to the ice cream shop, walks and naps on the couch.
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In June 2017, 2 weeks after moving into our first house, we decided to adopt a little puppy from the HSHV Love Train. We say “decided” lightly because it wasn’t really a decision, it was a given. It wasn’t the greatest timing, we had a LOT going on, but as soon as we met Josie (formerly Catwoman) we just knew she was a part of our family, and she instantly wiggled her way into our hearts – -where she will forever stay. She had a bit of a rough start. She was spayed when we adopted her, and she ended
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I had been looking for a dog for a couple of months after moving into my first house and had been visiting HSHV frequently. One Saturday afternoon in April 2017, after a hike, a friend and I stopped by HSHV just to look around. Lottie’s was the second to last kennel we walked by, and her eyes drew me in. I instantly fell in love with her. I took Lottie home two days later and we have been inseparable ever since. The day I brought Lottie home, she walked into my house and climbed right onto the couch. She made
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Dudley was a puppy mill rescue who ran away from another rescue (reportedly). An HSHV volunteer found him (fortunately). The “rescue” decided to leave him with HSHV (thankfully!). I fostered him for a year where he formed a tight bond with my Westie, Isabelle. Dudley would never be able to be adopted as, along with other behavioral problems, he barely even let me pick him up. So, he became “a foster failure.” Isabelle passed three years ago and though he missed her, he finally started bonding with me. I got another rescue, Teddy, who is very lovable. Dudley finally decided he
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We instantly fell in love with Bernie (formally Manuel) when we met him one Sunday morning. He put his little paw under the cage, and I had a feeling in my stomach that he was the one. We had been toying with the idea of getting a puppy since we now are homeowners with a big fenced in yard and lake nearby. He had a rough start, stray puppy, Parvo, and a possible injury to his nasal passages — but since we’ve brought him home, he’s flourished! Our four-year-old daughter and Bernie love to cuddle, go for walks, and play
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We became “Foster failures” (or is it Foster successes?) on our first foster Misty. She had “happy tail” (a condition that happens when they wag their tail, and it slaps against a hard surface again and again), and it was infected. Her tail ended up getting lopped off and now she has a “happy nub.” She came to us in a time when Maggie (at the bridge now) needed her. Now, she is a big sister to Mayzie. Misty is a keeper! Misty
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My Australian Cattle dog passed away unexpectedly in October 2017, and I mentioned it to one of the HSHV staff soon after. I talked about how I’d lost her as well as my Jack Russell a few years before that. So one day while I was cat comforting (I’m a volunteer at HSHV), staff member Chris comes in and says, “I’m pretty sure there’s a Jack Russell in the back where the dogs up for adoption are housed.” Now, normally, I don’t go back to where the dogs are because making eye contact with homeless dogs makes me way too
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Nine years ago we decided to get another dog after a previous bad experience with our first dog (our young son was attacked/bitten but OK). Our son was still anxious about another dog so we wanted to get a puppy this time, one with a hopefully a more calm and submissive temperament. We saw Max/Ollie and his sister together at the shelter; they were just a few months old. The female was very rambunctious, climbing all over her brother, nipping him and the cage, etc. We decided to visit with her brother “Max” since he was was very calm, especially
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