Part of my inspiration for this website is my dog, Amber. I adopted her from a collie rescue in NJ. I went there to pick out a puppy from a litter of Australian Shepherd mixes that were rescued from West Virginia. As I was standing there, watching these puppies run around with all the energies of the earth, I kept feeling this cold, wet , nose nuzzling my hand. I looked down to see this adult looking dog with crystal blue eyes looking up at me. I assumed she was the rescue womans dog, gave her a pat and continued to watch these puppies, thinking how one of these wild puppies was going to change my life over the next year! She kept trying to get my attention and her persistence payed off. When I finally asked about the beautiful blue-eyed dog, the rescuer said,”Oh, she’s for adoption too. We’ve been calling her Honey because she’s so sweet.” I realized then that she was the dog I wanted.

   I took her home to Pennsylvania that day. My family was quite surprised to see a 10 month old dog instead of the 3 month old puppy waiting in the yard. She was definately kept outside all her life and was very nervous stepping in the house. She would hide under a table or our deck for the first couple of days. When she ate, she would take a mouthful of food and run away to eat it. I believe she was kept with a group of dogs and because she is of a submissive nature, did not want to fight for her food. She must have tried though because she has a scar on her head from another dogs bite. She also was shot at because she has shotgun pellets in her legs. They have long since healed over but can still be felt just under her skin.

     With time and patience, she has grown to be the most loving and sweetest dog I have ever had. She is still as sweet as honey(although my children changed her name). She loves to be petted! She will sit beside you until you pet her and if you stop, she will hit you with her paw and stare at you with her blues eyes as if to say,”Please don’t stop, ever!”

   Amber opened my eyes to the problems in rural areas like West Virginia where dogs are not part of the family and are kept outside on a chain and thrown an occasional scrap of food. Spaying and neutering are not the norm and there are far more dogs and puppies then the shelters can hold. Some rescue groups in the northeast arrange transports and with the help of a lot of volunteers, manage to get some of these dogs out but still, a lot do not make it.

     I now volunteer with a rescue group that helps dogs from WV as well as local shelters. You can help too by volunteering or maybe even fostering a dog until they find their forever home. There really are many wonderful dogs just waiting for someone to give them a second chance.

AMBER