From Shelter to Soulmate – Nelly
Imagine just giving birth, having your babies taken from you, being tied to a porch, and left abandoned like trash? No, we can’t imagine it because it is a horrific thought. Yet, this is the beginning of Nelly’s story. She was left for dead, right after giving birth, on the streets of Elizabeth, NJ. Luckily, for Nelly, some children found her and told their parents, who went to where she was and brought her to the city shelter. She was in bad shape, but even worse, this shelter had timing, so she was time stamped. This young, beautiful, vivacious dog, whose life was already threatened, was going to be threatened again, as she was at a high kill shelter.
A contact at the shelter had just placed another young lab with Brookline Lab Rescue and called again to get Nelly evaluated. The shelter contact and Brookline volunteers met at a halfway point for Nelly to be evaluated and for the rescue to get information on her. Despite this harsh beginning, was she going to be accepted into the rescue? Was she going to show any signs of her awful beginnings? Thankfully, as the shelter contact said, she was just as sweet as could be, and she really felt that Nelly would be easily adoptable.
Brookline agreed and brought her into rescue. The next step was finding her an appropriate foster home. My dog passed away in April of last year, and I spent a few months grieving and healing. I decided to foster a few Brookline dogs for weekends that their foster parents went away and really enjoyed that. But as time went on, I started to yearn for my own dog again. I was a bit hesitant to foster a dog from a shelter. Would I be up for the opportunity? However, that thought dissipated when I saw Nelly’s picture attached to that porch; I knew she was the one for me. Her story compelled me to open my home to her as a foster mom. I would devote my time to getting her well, let her know she was safe, and if it was working out, I would adopt her.
From the moment the amazing Brookline volunteers brought her to me, it was love at first sight. I could not believe this young, exuberant, beautiful dog was close to being put down. She was a total love bug and once in my home, quickly started stealing my heart. It was only a few short weeks later that I would make it official by adopting her. She had wormed her quirky, hyperactive, hysterical little soul into my life, and I could not let her go.
Nelly was spayed, went through a training program in the new year, and started her new life at day camp twice a week. Everyone who meets her falls in love. She won dog of the month in April, at her dog camp. She is a feisty girl, and I am so happy to call her mine. Over the past few months, she has become my steadfast companion, my confidant, my comedian sidekick, my Velcro cuddle dog, walking partner and more. I simply can’t imagine life without her. From Shelter to Soulmate, we are a match made in heaven. Thank you, Brookline Lab Rescue!