“At 12 years old, everything shifted. My life as I knew it changed forever. Our family physician called us late one night when he saw the test results. ‘I just don’t know what to make of this.’ Even the lightest touch of a cotton ball could bring me to tears. My foot was drastically changing colors and temperatures.”
“I’ve held her while I’ve cried, and I’ve talked to her about my problems. She started spiraling quickly. She held onto my finger tightly as soft music played. The vet said, ‘There’s a risk, but I have to do this NOW.’”
“Against my doctor’s orders, I requested to go back to full duty. I was no longer the same smiling, positive person I once was. I had constant headaches. Everything was foggy, and the world became so loud I was always nauseated. Everything and everyone irritated me, including my husband. When we found out we were expecting, I was filled with fear.”
“My husband and I have been married for 6 years, and everything we have gone through from the moment we met just feels like such a tangled web of fate and destiny. I was born and raised in southwest Florida, and my husband, Josh, is from Ontario, Canada. Growing up, we made countless trips to …
“My husband and I ever-so-reluctantly agreed to foster a dog. And foster we meant! Then, we got the call. ‘Can you bring Layla to meet her new mom tomorrow?’ New mom? Tomorrow? I did not like the sound of either of those things. She still belonged to my family.”
“One of our little goats was attacked by a dog. This goat kept getting out of the pasture, no matter how many times we put her back. Well, Saturday night, we weren’t fast enough.”
“She looked like an alien creature. She stunk, she couldn’t see, and she bled all over our couch. We held our breath for the next 36 hours until our vet opened—we were afraid Lainey would succumb to her infections. She never had a chance to be a puppy.”
“Within 2 weeks, she passed away in my arms. Even though I know my sweet Peanut girl got her wings that day, I was completely devastated. There are some pain days I want to kiss this little slice of earth behind, but I just can’t.”
“I saw a dog galloping down the center of the opposite lane of travel. It was below freezing, snowing, windy, and rapidly getting dark. I’m a dog owner and lover. My heart ached. 15 minutes later a black SUV came SCREAMING toward the small group of people around me so fast.”
“He was abandoned by his adoptive parents at 11, with no explanation. His trauma will not disappear just because he has love, a father, stability, and a family. Memories like that can’t be erased. I realized the missing piece to our family, and for Anthony, was a companion. A ‘furry’ one.”
