National Dog Day

We thought we would take a moment and honor all of our sweet rescue dogs on National Dog Day. So many times when a family is growing their family by four paws and one heartbeat. They often have a breed that they have desired. So many pass up the rescues and shelters overlooking so many great animals ready for their forever home.

Meet Marley,

The newest addition to our family. As she looks like she does not have much of a story besides being loved by our family, enjoys long belly rubs, and an excessive amount of treats for being potty trained.

We rescued Marley from a local shelter here in the DFW area. After learning about her story, not sure if she was going to survive we kept checking on this sweet little bear of a pup. Turns out the local rescue came across a home that had 20 plus dogs on the property. They then came across this mama dog that had a litter of 10 puppies. They paid the people to save them. Yes paid them to take them out of harm’s way. To only find out that all of the puppies had Parvo. A litter of 10 puppies was soon a litter of two puppies. One of those happened to be Marley. Fighting for her life. With a Mama that had a series of issues of her own, covered in masses head to toe. She was sent off to surgery to have a leg amputation, to only find out that she had several pellets in her. It appeared that she was used as a target practice. My heart broke for our now pup Marley, as she has already been scared with so much trauma.

We knew as soon as we had seen her for the first time that she was going to come home with us that day, no matter the cost. She was skittish, she yelped at the slightest touch, she did not want to be around humans.

Then came my son Carter. She latched onto him as he was the only person in this world that she would feel whole with. Through their bond, she loves each and everyone of us, she protects us, she is playful, she is meant to be in our hearts and our home.

Meet Molly,

Oh Molly, our baby girl, came into our life at just the right time. I had been working one day and happened to have the door open to get fresh air in the building. My kids Britt and my son Bryan had been visiting me at the time. As we were all sitting there having lunch talking, this little white scraggly haired dog walked by the door and stared at us, and kept on wondering.

We all ran to the door to see if she was all alone. We could not find her owners. We walked around the shopping complex to make sure no one had been missing a dog. Walked to the nearby stores checking with the employees. My son Bryan ran to the nearest store and picked up some food. She looked as if she had been wandering the streets for a few days. That night we posted pictures of her and put her on Facebook to see if anyone claimed her, many shared the post. No tags, no chip, and we posted once again, and by now a couple of weeks had passed by and our family was getting so attached to her. A few days later our kids were called away to Texas to start their new jobs. They were only given a two day notice, they had to pack up and start their drive to Texas all within six hours. My heart was broken. My best friend, my daughter, who was 20 years old at the time and my son 19 had left home together. I was devastated for weeks. I cried all the time passing their bedrooms, and while at the store I would just find myself breaking down at their favorite snacks. We tried once again to find the owner of Molly and had no luck. At that time we were not looking for any more dogs. But Molly was the only thing mending my broken heart. So not only did we rescue her but in the long run she rescued me. She helped me get back on track. She is the sweetest little companion and the perfect addition to our family. My husband and I just fell in love with her. She travels everywhere with us and her and JoJo are best buds. – Linda

Meet JoJo,

JoJo, an inherited rescue dog. A dog that filled the void of the passing of my Grandmother’s late husband Papa Joe, who JoJo was named after. I remember it like it was yesterday when we were at a Thanksgiving Parade in Lake Isabella, CA. The same parade that I have attended since I was born, and the first one my Grandmother Donna had been to since the passing of my Papa Joe. Here passes this float filled with rescue animals, with a sign for the local animal shelter as a fundraiser.

Out of nowhere my 70 Year old grandmother takes off running after that truck and trailer saying “STOP THAT’S MY DOG, STOP THAT’S MY DOG”. No that wasn’t her dog, but she knew it was about to. She chased that float down until that float finally stopped and she talked with them. All of a sudden she comes walking back with this sweet skittish puppy, and she said to the family
“Everyone Meet JoJo”. One of the sweetest moments I have ever seen. To top it off, after getting everything signed after the parade, it turns out that the puppy that was in my Grandmother’s arms was born on my Papa’s Birthday. If that doesn’t give you goosebumps, I don’t know what will.

That dog went everywhere with my Grandmother, when my Grandmother fell ill she stayed there at her feet till the last day. She had always taken a liking to my dad, and only my dad who happens to be named Joe after his late father. Since my Grandmother’s passing in 2021 JoJo is loved by my Father Joe, and Mother for the rest of her life and along with all the rest of us. As she holds so many sweet core memories, and so many more to come.

Our entire family loves each and every one of our pets that we have had throughout the years. There are so many more that have made such a large impact on our lives, and will forever hold a piece of our hearts.

If you love your rescue dogs, share their story, educate the public on the beauty of adoption on this National Dog Day and tag us at #SSM or #SimplySouthernMama