A Forever Home Rescue Foundation

 Our family adopted our sweet dog, Maeko, from A Forever Home 8 years ago.  He was 8 years old at the time, and had had a difficult life.  He was very shy at first, not even lifting his tail to wag for the first two weeks.  His gait was stooped, and he would walk as if he didn’t want anyone to see him.  I knew he knew how to play, because he came with a soft, stuffed toy.   Around the third week, I tried throwing the toy to see if he would get it.  He suddenly jumped up, ran to get it, tossed it in the air with his teeth, whirled around, ran back to his bed, and gave a happy bark!  He looked as startled as I did after he did that, and didn’t seem to know where the bark came from!  I was curious to find out “who else was in there.”  He continued to progress, beginning to lift up his tail and wag it as he walked.  Over the following years, Maeko grew more and more social, would approach strangers to sniff them when they came in the door, would let my music students who came to my house pet him, and he loved to be carried around and pampered.  He kept some of his independent streak, but overall, became a “lap-pooch.”  He had such a sweet disposition.   At the beginning of March 2022, he became very sick.  This was not the first time as he was beginning to age.  He passed away at the age of 16.  Our family was blessed by his presence and saw him as a gift from God to be enjoyed for a season.  We are thankful that we were given the opportunity to have this sweet pup as part of our family.

In March 2007 my Daughter and I adopted our 10 week old puppy, named Hailey from AFH. We chose her first name, “Olive” Hailey. The cute pup was alone. Held back and separated from her four WV litter-sibs due to a mild illness. AFH described her as a Blue Merle Aussie Shepherd. This baby was meant for our home. The tiny dog with oversized ears, grew to be a Pembrooke Cardigan Corgi! Olive, incredibly smart, was often described by others as a “person, not a dog!” Olive loved to run with her herding instincts. From the start, Olive hid her treats to savor them at a later time. Olive loved training sessions with toy rewards. She trained in her younger years to run “Agility” for fun. Her favorite game that delighted everyone was “hide-and-go-seek” with her toys. We would hide a toy, she waited, on command, would go find her toy! Olive loved hiking and her most favorite activity was swimming to retrieve her favorite bright green floating ring. She would bark and swim with excitement, not stopping, till Mom made her rest. Olive was a water dog and even loved her baths especially the towel dry, followed by towel bundling in her dog bed. Olive was trained in Good Citizenship with AKC. She listened patiently to children reading. Olive traveled many places with Mom by car and flying, in-cabin, to share love with relatives with disabilities and health issues. Olive shared love and joy with so many people. She will always be loved by myself and her family. Olive is my “girl”, my “baby”. I miss her many communicative nudges, such as, to remind me to fill an empty water bowl, her bark of excitement or alert, her eye contact to signal her needs, her kisses, her snuggles, her play, my hiking partner, my bed buddy, my steadfast love. I miss Olive. Olive passed at 14 ½ years. I thank AFH for saving my Olive Hailey and allowing me to have her in my life. Olive will forever be in my heart.

Hudson said his final goodbyes to us on February 3, 2022. He was just over 15 years old and we considered him to be our first child. My wife and I found Hudson at a puppy adoption event in 2007. He quickly adapted to his new home and made us part of his pack. Even when we accidentally left the door open after leaving the house, Hudson knew it was his job to wait patiently for our return—even if that meant waiting in the middle of the driveway for a few hours. Who’s a good boy??!! 

Our first “human” child, a boy, came in March of 2008. Hudson wasn’t sure what this new cry-y thing meant to his house, but he quickly took on the role of protector: sleeping by whatever chair his boy was sleeping and his crib at night. They also had a bit of sibling rivalry to get into one of the parent’s laps or even when Hudson hip checked his learning to walk toddler. Ultimately, the child was admitted to the pack but clearly the pecking order was still up for debate.

When Hudson was almost 8, his second human sibling arrived. No one in the house was more excited when we brought her home. All four paws leapt off the ground trying to get a sniff when we first carried her in. He again took on the role of protector.

Hudson was the most gentle creature. He could have the most juicy bone in his mouth, but if you put your hand on it, he would let it go. He knew when you were sad and would come put his head on your lap. Only two times in his life did I hear Hudson give such a snarl, such a growl, such a bark that even I was taken aback: both were when he thought some other dog was threatening one of his kids. He was fiercely loyal.

He was a rare lab that didn’t gobble down all of his food, eating only when he was hungry. If a bowl was empty, he would paw at it to let you know to fill it so that he could sniff it and walk away. He learned to ring a bell to go outside and he loved to play fetch and adored running in the snow. It was running in the snow when he first tore his ACL. He didn’t like the “cone of shame” after the surgery, but he recovered well, but was a little more cautious in the snow after that. It was a snow storm a year ago that signaled his decline. He injured that leg once again at the age of 14 and a year later, at 15 and with arthritis, his health ultimately declined.

He was our first child. He was a lovely soul. He will always be in our hearts.