In Memory

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

This is probably  the hardest email I have ever sent.  We were fortunate enough to have adopted two very special friends from forever home.

Our Taz: Who would have thought that in a trip to Southern States for horse feed we would find such a treasure.   There he was and when he was picked up he wrapped his paws around my husband’s neck and that was it.  He was such a joy and we were so lucky to have such a wonderful  and devoted friend.  We lost him to bone cancer. He is deeply missed every day.

Our Bruiser: It was love at first site!  We saw him online and knew he belonged in our family.  No matter how bad of a day you had, when you drove into the driveway  and saw this beautiful face waiting for you it all went away.  Always full of love.  Bruiser passed in October and  is greatly missed.  Our hearts are  broken.

No longer by our side but forever in our hearts. With heavy heart, Sharon and Kenneth

We adopted our Cody (aka Steve from scamper pups) from a litter fostered by Forever Home in 2007. We put in our application, then were notified that he became very ill (likely with parvovirus) and might not make it. Your rescue group did not give up, and made sure he had the best possible treatment. Thanks to you, he did recover, we were able to bring him into our home and love him for 13 years. Sadly, he passed on December 14th. He was the best companion our family could have hoped for. He loved running outside, playing fetch, going for rides and just hanging with his people. We are grateful to the part you played in bringing him into our lives ❤️❤️ Stephanie

Our lovely Princess died on October 2, 2020–we are heartbroken.  She was Sarah from the S puppies, adopted in 2007.  She was fun, beautiful and always ready for a long walk.  We were lucky to have her for such a long time, but we will miss her very much.

Thank you for bringing her to us A Forever Home❤

Trish

This sweet ole girl, Holley, crossed the Rainbow Bridge the morning of September 25, 2020. She has been a part of our family since she was 6 weeks old, and turned 16 this summer. She was the best dog you could have… always happy to see anyone, loved potato chips, cheese, bologna, and loved playing Frisbee and in the snow. She was my Son, Zander’s, shadow and protector for many years and shared one last bologna lunchable with my 20 month old Rumor Jae just a couple nights before. She loved driving my Mom crazy by wanting let outside a million times an evening to see what she could find to eat in the yard. She was my Dad’s garage and late night dinner buddy and he was her best friend and favorite human. She will be terribly missed but I’m so thankful she had a great and very long doggy life. She deserved every bit of it. See you on the other side sweet girl. 😙🐶

Carmen – I just wanted to thank you and the team at A Forever Home. I adopted my pup Elvis from you in January of 2006. He passed this last week. I will be forever grateful for the last 15 years with the best boy in the world. Elvis traveled from the halls of Congress all over the country and then back to DC for his golden years. He was dubbed the “People’s Dog” long ago because he made friends everywhere he went. There is a big hole in my family’s heart I think we are all trying to fill but we would hole heartedly jump in again for another 15.

Thank you Carmen! Cara

We adopted Abigail from A Forever Home in 2003 and she was a wonderful member of our family for 16.5 years, until she finally stopped fighting her cancer in March.  We miss her so! 

Thanks, Craig

In 2009, on our way home from Chantilly, we saw an adoption event called “Howl-o-Ween” that AFH was participating in. I asked my husband to stop because I wanted to pet and say hello to the animals. It was nearing the end of the event and there was one puppy left and I knew he was my doggy soulmate. We adopted 5 month old Ozzie and kept the name because it fit him perfectly. Never having had a dog growing up, let alone a puppy, I read anything and everything I could about dogs and we participated in every dog-related activity we could. Obedience class (twice, lol), doggy playgroups, outings to dog-friendly restaurants. He soon became a socialized and well-mannered little boy. Ozzie was my best friend and got me through some very dark days such as losing a close relative, divorce, and even a temporary job-loss due to COVID-19.  After being diagnosed with lymphoma and deteriorating rapidly, I made the very difficult decision to say goodbye to him on September 4, 2020. Dogs, like people, all have their own personalities and endearing qualities. I will adopt another dog one day, but my sweet little Ozzie will always hold a special place in my heart. I’m including the first picture I took of Ozzie when I brought him home in 2009 and one of the last ones taken recently. 

I write to let you know that our beloved family pet, Franklin (named Hansel when we adopted him from AFH), left us in August….I hope AFH takes this also as an overdue note of gratitude – we couldn’t have hoped for a better family pet for the last nearly 13 years…We are going to give it some time to mourn our loss, but I am sure we will be back to AFH in due course for our next rescue dog.  

Best, Carsten

Hi, I adopted Polly in 2017.  She has been an absolute joy to have as part of my family.  She had a horrible life before AFH rescued her, but in spite it,  that amazing dog didn’t have one mean bone in her body.  She loved all my dogs and was so wonderful with any foster that came thru my house.  It is with a broken heart that I have to tell you that I had to let her go to the Bridge today. Several months ago I found a mass under her arm.  We biopsied it and it turned out to be metastasized breast cancer.   It had also gotten into her lymph nodes. I was hoping to have so much more time with her, but this morning  I noticed her abdomen was enlarged and she was pale.  She also for the first time didn’t want breakfast.  She LOVED her food so that was a big thing for her.  I took her to my vet and the reality was she was only going to get worse pretty quickly.  Polly had suffered for the beginning years of her life and I had promised her when I got her that she would never suffer again, so I had to let her go.  Thank you so much for adopting this very special dog to me,  I will miss her more than I can say.    Know that she was loved very much here. I’ve attached a picture of Polly with one of her buddies.  

Thanks, Jeannie 

Hello A Forever Home, Sadly we lost our much beloved miniature poodle, Archie, early in the pandemic. Twelve years ago we adopted him at twelve weeks old from A Forever Home. In April, he suffered a sudden acute attack of pancreatitis, and despite days of round-the-clock care at the local emergency vet hospital, his heart couldn’t take the strain.  The loss has hit our small family very hard, especially since we couldn’t be with him at the end due to Coronavirus precautions. He was our only child’s best buddy and he had a large fan club of neighbors and friends, who would vie to have him visit whenever we traveled. Archie was just that special. We were lucky to be his forever home. Thank you so much for rescuing him and allowing us to adopt him.

Our hearts are simply broken! We lost our beloved Clancy this week. He came into our lives as a very small puppy 14 years ago at an adoption day for A Forever Home where we went planning on adopting another pup. My husband saw Clancy put him into my arms and we never even looked at the other pup. He adopted us and we him. As a younger dog he had daily runs with my husband and bubbled with enthusiasm about everything except a rides in a car. As an Australian Shepherd mix he needed a job;  he chose to take care of our upstairs while we were at work. Never quite figured out what that was but he wouldn’t come down until we went up, looked around and told him what a good job he had done. After retiring, he has been by our sides constantly, snuggled on the couch to watch TV or until he couldn’t jump up any longer sleeping with us in our bed. He was great with children especially our grandchildren while they  grew up.  He always insisted on greeting all guests into our house; often walking with them up to our door. After posting our loss on Facebook, our friends have streamed in with comments that he was one of the sweetest dog they had ever known. Clancy loved us unconditionally, comforted us when we needed it and has been our loyal companion. Our lives will never be the same and we are so blessed that he chose us to be his family.  Nile & Kris

We are so sad to inform you that Kara crossed Rainbow bridge 13 July.  We showed up to adopt a dog-sure that the one Rex and I would meet with the kids’ approval – but alas the pup refused to be parted from her foster mom and our kids brought over a 70+ lb bundle of ginger fur.  Our daughter proudly told us this was the one we needed to adopt and her brother was in agreement. We knew nothing of her at that moment but fell in love with her smile.  She was a soccer dog we were told.  After a home visit just to make sure it was a fit, Kara became our forever pup thanksgiving 2010.  Through the years she was our faithful companion – pulling the kids on sleds, playing soccer, showing off her Frisbee catching skills, swimming at the pool, wading in the creek and game for any adventure, helping with middle of the night work conference calls, leaning in and providing comfort when things were not going well.  We settled into a nice empty nest routine in the last few years and while she didn’t do the stairs as often and stopped playing soccer, her love of walks and spending time with her people never dimmed.  COVID was a blessing as our schedules and plans became nil and we were all home with her.  Monday, July 13^th Kara crossed rainbow bridge leaving behind a heart broken family.  Kara came into our lives at the right time and saved us.  While looking up A Forever Home’s email address we came across the adoption description we never saw before adopting.  We all agreed it described her perfectly– “My big brown eyes will melt your heart. I am playful, smart, sweet and only bark when there is danger. I just want to be loved.”  She got her wish – no dog was loved more than our sweet Kara.

Back in 2007 we adopted I believe “Taser”…but his litter was American Gladiator themed for sure. They were found in an abandoned trailer in West Virginia by a mine. Unfortunately his mom didn’t make it, but the whole litter did. We renamed him “Riggins,” which over time got shortened to Riggo then eventually just Rig. He was the best. After 13 years, health problems started to pile-up, especially on his back legs, and at the end of June our vet…recommended we put him down. He was simply in too much pain with little chance for recovery, so we did…. I also wanted to thank you for him; like I said he was the best, always, even as our family grew and got bigger. I attached a picture of him “keeping an eye” on my youngest in our back yard, it’s the last picture we have of him. Thanks again for him and all the great work you do.

Thanks again, RJ

We are saddened by the recent loss of our beloved Samson (formerly known as “Will” in 2006). Samson loved our family well for 14 years! He was our first baby back in 2006. He then became a “big brother” to our 3 children over the years. Samson loved going for hikes, eating peanut butter from a spoon, and belly rubs. He was a loyal friend to each one of us. He always wanted to be with us no matter where we were. I can remember when he was a puppy and on our balcony of our 2nd floor apartment. We were outside down below talking to family, and Samson had to be with us! So, to all of our surprise, he took a flying leap off the balcony and happily and eagerly ran right up to us just to be near. It was so funny! A few years ago, Samson developed a few lumps and bumps as older dogs sometimes do. Sadly though, he had liver cancer. For so long, it didn’t slow him down and we were able to help manage it! Only in his last week or so, did things rapidly change and we knew the most loving thing to do was to put him down. He will forever be loved and missed, and always in our hearts. Thank you AFH for bringing this furry rambunctious ray of sunshine into our lives 14 years ago. ♥️ Warmly, the McDonald family

My Parents and I had to say goodbye to our 16 year old Beagle mix, Kelsey this morning. So very difficult because in my eyes she was/is the best dog we had.

We were introduced to her (not sure of her name before she came to us) in May 2004. I was 24 out the time still living at home and that February we had to say goodbye to my childhood Beagle Mandy. My Mom and I were headed to Giant in Greenbriar and we noticed Puppy Adoptions next door at Petco were going on, so we decided to go over and look. The first pen we came to were the Beagle mixes. We looked at each other and went over to pick one up. Kelsey at the time growled (we later found out she doesn’t like to be picked up). Well we were instantly hooked and I know I needed to fill the void of a dog. We put in an application and she was ours. It didn’t take long for my Dad to be on board. My parents we’re leaving the next day for Italy for 2 weeks so it was my job to potty train her. I think I did a fabulous job.

Thank you A Forever Home Rescue for my best dog yet, Kelsey. She helped me to get over my childhood dog and we made so many other memories. I have since moved out of my parents house and wanted a dog but didn’t want to remove Kelsey from the home she knows, so I decided to go back to A Forever Home in 2011 and adopt my 2nd Beagle mix, Josie. Kelsey idolized and followed Josie wherever she went. They (Josie rather) got into several fights and had many times being together. I will miss the love Kelsey has for Josie. Kelsey is and will be extremely missed in our family.

Stephanie

Comment:

Angela Downie says:August 31, 2020 at 4:29 am

What a lovely heart warming story. Since 1975 we have “adopted” Caesar, Bonnie, Zara, Zena and Sasha since 2012. We have loved and adored them all. Caesar was 5 years when he fell asleep in our hall at such an early age. We have buried him in our garden. 6ft deep was the instructions from our vet. So that’s what we did, and he still lies there under a slab. Then came Bonnie she lived to 15 years., and then Zara and she also left us when she was 15 years. We took her to France for 6 months in 2001 and again later when she met up with her previous “doggy” friends, who she had met on our first visit, as we rented the same house again. Then heartbreak again when we lost her at 15 years old too. Then came our Zena, she was also a German Shepherd, black and tan this time. Sasha our present “baby” is now 8 years and is a Canadian Shepherd, and is Cream in colour. We rescued her from a Dog Rescue Home in Liverpool, and as we live in Edinburgh it was quite a journey. We discovered by her behaviour that she had not been leash trained, although was Toilet trained.She was weiry of most people, so this needed a lot of working on. Zena loved her at first sight and they would lick each others faces, and lie together.In 2016 Zena had to leave us, she had been failing for a while and we literally nursed her along, until sadly her back legs “went” . Our Vet came to the house and Bill and I cried buckets when she was taken away in her blanket. I decided to have her cremated at a private facility locally, and have her ashes in an Urn, which is where she would lie. Her collar in on top and our favourite photo of her in a silver Frame beside the Urn. Even after 4 years we are still missing her. She was a “laid back” dog and never required a lead when out. With regards to Sasha, she was born on 1st January 2012 and we” adopted” her July, and so we think she may have lived in a yard and not socialised at all. It did take quite a while to see her as she is now, a confident girl although doesn’t like men approaching her, but if they ignore her she will go forward and allow them to stroke her. Rescue dogs give so much back.