On September 5, 2012, volunteers from RESCUE, an Arizona organization working to save animals from euthanasia, was sent to one of the local high-kill shelters to save a few animals from the kill list. While there, they ventured on a horrific site. A terrified Soft Coated Wheaton was covered in her own diarrhea and filth, cowering in her kennel.
They immediately took the sweet little dog, Amelia, and cleaned her up a bit. It took three more baths and a shaving to remove all of the grime and stench from her! After she was cleaned up, it was also obvious that she was emaciated in addition to filthy. After inquiring, RESCUE learned that Amelia had an owner who died and no one else had been left to take care of her, so she had been taken to the shelter.
After being saved from the local shelter’s kill list, Amelia still had quite the road ahead of her. She was not spayed, needed dental work and had a bad cold due to lack of care. Additionally, as soon as she was placed into a foster home, even more crucial medical concerns became apparent. She had a false negative case of Valley Fever and an infection in her uterus, both of which were life threatening.
Treatment of the Valley Fever was the most urgent and so everyone had to just hope that the infection in her uterus would not progress while the Valley Fever was being treated. Thankfully, she pulled through the Valley Fever and was quickly able to go in to surgery for her infection and to be spayed. They also were able to address her dental issues.
Amelia was a trooper through it all and remained upbeat despite the multiple medical treatments. Her spirit was strong and she came through with flying colors. Thanks to her foster home, Amelia received loving care and began to put on some much needed weight.
Once her body had healed, the next challenge came from Amelia not being socialized properly. She was afraid of men and would always run from them, and loud noises scared her as well. Her foster dad was very patient and she made great strides in his care.
After a bit of time, Amelia was ready for adoption. Since she is such a pretty gal, Amelia had no shortage of people wanting to adopt. However, not just any home would do. Amelia needed a specific environment due to her shy nature and it would be worth waiting for a family that would be gentle and patient with her.
Finally, her foster mom realized that she had fallen in love with Amelia back when RESCUE had saved her from dying and that Amelia seemed more comfortable with her than anyone. Amelia would always wag her little tail when her foster mom (now forever mom) would come to take her out. Now she tells Amelia every day how much she loves her and that she is never going to let her go.
Amelia also loves her cat siblings-two brothers and one sister- and does not even realize that they are not dogs too. Amelia especially loves her sister Spivey, though she is cautious around Yaz. Amelia eats really well, being fed home cooked meals by her loving mom and takes three or four walks a day with her. At the end of her day, Amelia curls up with her cat siblings and her foster family and they all go to sleep in their big be
d.
It has been a very long journey for Amelia but she is now settling in and has been transformed by the love everyone has shown her and, ultimately, by finding her forever home.
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RESCUE is a registered non-profit, volunteer driven, no-kill animal rescue organization located in Maricopa County. They have no central facility but focus on euthanasia list rescue from county shelters. Their motto is “for every animal adopted, we are back to rescue another” and they have done exactly this, rescuing over 10,000 animals since 1995. At any one time RESCUE has between 20-30 dogs and 30-40 cats in their system, the majority of which reside in foster homes, while a few are in leased boarding facilities.
