Sweetie
Melissa’s experience with Animal League America began when she was 13 and adopted a puppy, Snookums, whom she loved dearly. Twenty-six years later, Melissa attended an event at our Adoption Center so she could find her new best friend. She went in planning to adopt another puppy. Melissa recalls, “By the time I got through the line and into the shelter, all the puppies were gone. I was so disappointed, I wanted to leave. My friend encouraged me to take another look around. I saw a cage with the saddest dog with a little pink bow on her head. When I put my hand by her, she turned her face away.” The volunteer shared that despite the dog’s tiny size, she was a senior who was recently rescued from a puppy mill. “Once I heard about the lives of these dogs at the puppy mill,” Melissa remembers, “I knew I wanted to show Sweetie some love. The first few weeks were not easy. I was used to the affectionate, playful love of a puppy and she was different. She didn’t want me to pet her and looked for the darkest corner to hide.” Melissa was patient. She began holding Sweetie in her lap for just 10 minutes a day, giving gentle pets. Eventually Sweetie ended up running to Melissa for snuggles. Now Melissa reports, “Sweetie has been my companion for the past six years and comes with me everywhere. Sweetie is just like her name: a sweet-tempered, quiet, queen of a dog!”
