In Memory

If you have a pet, show them some love in honor of Sammy. Sammy was the best dog I could have ever asked for. From 4th grade through grad school he had been with me and my family- through SO much. He loved to play hard (frequently running into things, especially with one of his favorite toys- a green frog half his size) and nap hard. He requested dinner early relentlessly. He always did circles in excitement and gave you a snarled smile while wiggling his whole body when you came home. I will miss him so much. May he rest in peace, the best boy.

I just made a donation in memory of our sweet Tinkerbell. That is her on the right. Pete, her brother dachshund, is still with us. Both came from A Forever Home Rescue.  She basically taught Pete how to be a dog. When we adopted her, she had been a stray in West Va and was going through a “false pregnancy”. She would get two of my son’s doggie stuffed animals and try to nest with them.  So cute, but sad in a way. Two years later, we then got Pete to give her some company.  He was rescued from the 2,000+ puppy mill In West Va. (national news) He had been in a crate for 1.5 years with his two brothers…neglected and ignored.  They would throw food in to eat off the floor. He was a bit of a social, doggie mess. He would cower from a touch and not even “sniff” when we went on walks. But Tink helped him be a dog and the love we All shared helped him grow into the loving (albeit still quirky) dog we love so much. We miss Tink terribly.

Hi, My name is Hanna Rose and I adopted sweet Sam 11 years ago in 2010 from A Forever Home. They all called him “Smiley” because he would smile so much all the time. He has been with me through middle school, high school, throughout college in Texas, and for the past two years in New York City! He traveled all over (Washington DC, Florida, Nantucket, Dallas, Waco, and so many more!) with our family. He was loved by so many and was one of the most loyal and sweetest souls I have ever seen in a pet! He tragically and suddenly passed away this Fourth of July weekend, but I wanted to let you know that he was my rock from age 14 to 24 and I will never forget him. I’ve attached some photos (I have so many!) Thanks again for giving me the best friend and companion I could ever ask for. 

Dear Forever Home, This is such a hard note to write and I have put it off for months as my heart is absolutely broken. Last summer my beloved Ben who I adopted from you in June 2008, when he was 4 month old, had his spleen rupture. He underwent emergency surgery and I received the devastating news that he had Hemangiosarcoma. He underwent two months of chemo to no avail and I had to make the most awful decision to let him go. This is not how I ever imagined our journey together would end. Ben was the light of my life for 12 and a half years from the minute I met him at an adoption event. He captured my heart and held it in his paw every day since. He was wicked smart in addition to being so very handsome and big personality that captivated anyone who met him. He was my constant companion, my confidante, the one who I treasured to walk, wag, bark, and run thru life with. He is missed every minute of every day. I know it saddens you to hear news like this, but also let it be known that Ben had a wonderful full life full of love and adventures that would not have been possible with out your organization from the start with Patricia McIntyre fostering him and letting me become his forever mommy. Barb

Good Afternoon, I am writing to notify you that our pet, Hercules Gwin, has passed away.  We adopted him from you while living in Springfield VA in 2007.  About 5 years ago he developed diabetes and quickly went blind, but he remained an active, loving part of our family with the help of another rescue dog we added to the family, until this past Sunday.  His mobility was severely limited and the diabetes finally took its’ toll on our sweet boy.  Thank you for the chance to add this precious dog to our family.  He will be missed deeply, and will be in our hearts forever.

Sincerely, Kelly

June 1st would have been our dear, sweet, goofy Miles’s 15th birthday. He crossed the rainbow bridge on August 31, 2020 after a valiant battle with heart disease. It has taken us a long time to process his passing which explains the delay in writing this memorial.

We adopted Miles from A Forever Home on August 4, 2006 when he was only 8 weeks old. He was the smallest of the “Millie” litter (we decided to keep the name from his foster family) and looked microscopic next to his siblings. I still remember my parents skeptically asking me, “Are you sure that’s the one you want?” But as soon as I picked him up, I knew he was destined to be a member of our family.

Miles brought life to our household amid difficult times. Even if we had nothing to say to each other, we could talk about him for hours. The sounds of his paws click-clacking on the hardwood floors, his disproportionately booming bark from a 20-pound body, and the nonsensical conversations between him and us echoed throughout our house all day long (except during nap time, of course!)

From day one, we could tell that Miles was highly intelligent, but also extremely stubborn. This trait showed the most when we received his congestive heart failure diagnosis. The cardiologist prognosed that he had about six months left but our headstrong boy made it through a full one and a half years. Even the day before we put him to sleep he was galloping around refusing to give up the croissant he snatched from our grocery bag.

The past nine months have been incredibly tough. The house seems empty now without Miles’s “tippy-taps” or “kurkures” (the sound of him digging furiously on our furniture), especially during the pandemic. He truly was my best friend and companion who grew up and stayed by my side from coast-to-coast. We will be forever grateful to Miles for the 14 years he spent on Earth with us and will cherish every single memory he gifted to our family. Thank you, Miles, especially for giving me a reason to get out of bed each morning.

We adopted her as Carla on 2/29/2008 and named her Marley.  Her estimated date of birth was given to us as 1/1/2008.  She was a labrador/boxer mix born with brothers and sisters but we chose her because we loved her shiny black coat and kind eyes. We had her when we were a year married and then had 2 kids so Marley has been with us from the beginning.  She always loved to eat and run around and always had her tail wagging.  The last few days were hard to see because she could not walk as well due to her battle with arthritic legs and sarcoma.  It made us so sad seeing her not being able to eat when she was the best eater with her tail down between her legs which was nothing we ever saw her do.  We had to put her to sleep on 4/25/2021 with such heavy hearts.  Our whole family misses her very much.  We are so thankful for A Forever Home for giving us the wonderful gift of having Marley.

To A Forever Home – 

In 2007, I adopted a puppy that I named Isis (her original name was Gumdrop). For 14 wonderful years, Isis was my constant companion. We walked for two hours or more per day! 

Isis was part beagle, part whippet, so she loved to sniff and loved to sprint. She obsessively chased squirrels and frequently asked for snacks. She provided our family with lots of love and cuddles. 

Isis was sweet and gentle to the end. We said goodbye to her on April 2, 2021, but she will remain in our hearts forever. Thank you for giving us this wonderful gift!

Kathy

We adopted Annabelle (originally Roxy) back in the fall of 2006.  She was with us through the birth of our three children, and was a wonderful companion for our family as it grew.  As toddlers our kids gave her the nickname “Abo” as they had a hard time saying her full name.  She was always very gentle with our kids, who she viewed as an excellent source of supplemental food from vacuuming up the floor around them.  She was wonderful with all of our extended family’s dogs, especially her best friend Stella.  She was a great friend on numerous walks around the neighborhood, hikes through the wilderness, and road trips to the beach.  It was a truly sad day for our family when we had to put Annabelle down this past February after nearly 15 years.  We miss her so much!

The Reichert Family 

Dear A Forever Home Staff, 15 years ago we adopted the sweetest little puppy from A Forever Home. “Cooper” a beagle spaniel mix was in our eyes our first baby and through the years he was the most wonderful little companion we could have asked for. He grew up with our family including our son “Sam” and always held a special place in our hearts. On the last day of August 2019 we had to say goodbye to our dear old friend. Personally, it was the hardest day of my life but he still makes me smile when I look at pictures of him.
Although I swore we could never go through the pain of saying goodbye to another dog ever again, something has been truly missing in our house ever since. It just hasn’t been the same without the pitter patter of paws and happy dog kisses….I attached some pics of “Cooper” that we took over the years. Just figured you’d like to see how that fateful day truly changed our lives.

All the Best, Rob

Our loving companion is gone… but his memory lives on! 

We signed ourselves up 12 years ago for this guaranteed heartbreak without comprehending that it’s in exchange for the deepest, most magical, unadulterated form of unconditional love. Shep, we love you and miss you dearly. You have left your paw prints all over our hearts and you will be there forever. 

– Kaushik, Paromita, Soham, Prisha, Ganen, Dolly & Archana. 

We are sad to announce that Myles (AFH name Charlie) passed away on Saturday, March 27th. We adopted Myles when he was three months old. We attended an adoption event and instantly fell in love with him. From camping trips, outdoor adventures, watching nieces and nephews grow and welcoming our first baby, Myles has been a part of every aspect of our lives. We can’t imagine our days without him but we hope he is at rest and with us in spirit.

Best, Emerald & Kenneth 

We adopted Oscar in 2010 and he has been a joy to the end. He made it well
beyond what he should have. Many surgeries for mast cell and finally 6
months of chemo. Every day was a gift A donation has been made in his honor
via pay pal. Thank you for allowing us to have this wonderful boy. When the
pain subsides–we’ll be back. Be on the lookout for boxer puppies. 🙂 Tammy
and Hal

I woke up this morning to intense sadness. My walking partner of 13 years was not here. I calculated that we went well over 5,000 walks together. Our little buddy who everyone thought was part fox. The sweetest, Best dog ever. Just heartbroken. But we thank God for the light you brought to us. Rest dear Riley. We love you so much!

Maribel and Patti,

My best bud Schooner (AFH original name Donnie) who I adopted from your organization on March 16 2007, passed away unexpectedly on Sunday March 14. I am beyond heartbroken. He was my best friend and my co-pilot for the past 14 years. He always had the most amazing smile and truly had a zest for life. He was such a people person, everybody that met Schooner ended up having a new friend. Over the years we shared so many adventures together. Our favorite thing to do was run agility courses. We started doing dog agility when Schooner was two years old and we were running courses as a team for almost 12 years. Schooner loved doing anything at the beach! Always a week at Dewey Beach, DE every year. He totally enjoyed being in the sun, running on the beach with other dogs, and digging in the sand. Loved, going for car rides especially to his favorite store, Dog Gone Natural for a treat and to Starbucks for his puppuccino. Most of all he was my loyal companion and confidant, always at my side through thick and thin. I could talk to Schooner about anything, and he would sit there and listen attentively and nonjudgmentally. Schooner was my amazing guy with a heart of gold. I will miss him terribly, but he will live on in my heart forever. Thank you so much for bringing Schooner into my life. I knew immediately when he came up to me and looked up with that little head tilt, that he and I would be best friends forever….Thank you so much. Sincerely, Mary Ann

Thank you for giving us our girl, 13 years ago this March. She was named Shaundra when we were lucky enough to adopt her at 10 weeks. She became Haleakala (Halea for short) Shaundra. She was the joy of our lives…fun, feisty, mature for her age and the BEST on road trips. She left us on 2/8 just 2 weeks after turning 13. 

Thank you for bringing her into our lives.

Alissa 

It is with a broken heart that we must inform you that our beloved dog, Elmo, crossed the rainbow bridge peacefully this afternoon at the age of 14, surrounded by his loved ones. We brought Elmo home 14 years ago this month – an adorable beagle-boxer mix. He brought us so much joy and was much loved. Elmo successfully beat thyroid cancer in 2019 but was diagnosed with transitional cell carcinoma (bladder) about a year ago. He fought hard, but was unable to beat this one.

Tom, Jennifer, and Lexy

On January 4, I lost my best friend, Irwin, who has passed on after 14 amazing fun-filled years. I still remember the day we walked into the PetSmart and saw that “A Forever Home” was visiting. He was the last of Corona’s litter – the only merle puppy and he couldn’t have been cuter. With AFH, he was called “Bobby Blue”, but just a few months earlier in 2006, my favorite adventurous personality, Steve Irwin, died and I knew that by passing along the name Irwin, he would take on that adventurous spirit.

Irwin was our “permanent puppy” – cute-faced and goofy well into adulthood, at times dumber than a box or rocks, and unsure of the world and the people he was convinced would kill us. He was my shadow inside the house, always by my side (even my 5- and 3-year old know when playing hide-and-seek with Daddy, find the dog and you’ll find Daddy). He was an athletic freak, with limitless energy, speed, and jumping ability – often my faithful companion on long runs and trail hikes. If you’ve ever set foot in my house or within eyeshot of him or me, you’d know he took his role of loyal guardian seriously; God help the poor soul who would ever try to hurt me or my family if he was anywhere nearby.

But with my family, he was silly, lovable, soft, and the perfect companion. I can’t believe the day has finally come to say goodbye, but all good things come to an end. I love you, Irwin, and I’ll miss you forever. Thank you for bringing him into our lives, A Forever Home!

Our Golden Retriever, Stevie passed away in July 2020.  We adopted him from AFH in 2015.  He was the most loving, sweet, quiet, even tempered dog.  A true gentle giant!  Every person that met him fell in love and he loved all people, especially kids.  He was truly the best dog in the world… ask any person that met him, they’d agree!  He was a senior when we adopted him and we were lucky to get 5 years with this wonderful creature.  We miss him every day!…Amy S.

We said our final goodbyes to our beloved pup, Murphy, last week. We adopted Murphy (previously Digbey of the Fireworks litter) in July 2006, and we were so lucky to have had 14+ years with our boy. He was a loyal companion who loved his family and his treats. Murphy was as smart as he was handsome; he was a perfect example of why rescue dogs are the best. He left us with so many wonderful memories, including serving as the MOH (mutt of honor) in our wedding. We miss him terribly but find comfort in knowing he’s finally at peace.

Thank you so much, Lauren