Tilly - ADOPTED 08.01.10

Little Tilly was found in the middle of a busy road in Oakland County on a stormy night in May 2010. She was wearing a red harness and having a very bad hair day. Her coat was wet and matted, and her nails badly overgrown. A search for Tilly’s family was unsuccesful so LDDR brought her into foster care. Tilly received a much needed grooming and health check, and it wasn’t long before adoption applications started coming in for her. Unfortunately, one thing after another happened with the applicants and it seemed that poor Tilly would never have a family. Finally, a family looking for a canine companion for their male mini schnauzer applied to adopt Tilly and the rest is history. Tilly, who also goes by the name Matilda, is said to be a sweet dog that enjoys hanging out at home with family and going to doggie daycare a couple times a week with her canine housemate.

Tucker ~ Hospice

A Happy Tails story supreme! Tucker’s story is one of the worst cases of neglect and abuse I've seen, says his foster mother. Tucker was picked up at a garage sale in the Akron, OH area by an older woman who overheard the owner talking about how he hated the dog and wanted to get rid of him. The woman asked for the dog and the owner gave Tucker to her. Unfortunately, the woman’s husband was not pleased she brought him home and poor Tucker was tethered in a horse stall. The woman posted an ad on Craig’s List, and good for Tucker, our volunteers often peruse Craig’s List and found the ad for Tucker. It took a little time for LDDR volunteers to locate an available foster home and coordinate transport of Tucker to Michigan. When Tucker finally came into LDDR’s care we were shocked at his condition. He was listless, non-responsive to touch, dehydrated, emaciated, had open sores and scabs on his body, his fur filthy and matted, nails overgrown, and he had a terrible smell about him. His condition so poor, we thought he would die. He was transported to an Ohio foster home, where he received immediate medical care and much needed TLC. Remarkably, Tucker slowly started to regain his strength and was soon wagging his stubby little tail for his foster mom. Once a complete medical evaluation was done we learned that Tucker is between 10 and 13 years old, is blind, hearing impaired, has roundworms, is heartworm positive, anemic, has kidney problems, and staph infection of the skin. Due to his fragile medical condition, Tucker could not have surgery or be treated aggressively for the heartworm. After a few weeks of medical care and rest, Tucker moved to a foster home in Michigan. His comeback from the brink of death seems miraculous. In his Michigan foster home, Tucker received ongoing medical care and more TLC. He spent his days just enjoying life; snoozing on a big, thick blanket, hanging out with the resident dogs, rolling around on the ground in all the interesting smells, and going for short walks. In late July 2010 a family came forward, moved by Tucker’s sad story and a desire to help, and made a commitment to provide him permanent care as a foster placement. They are also considering adopting him. The family recently lost their cocker spaniel at the age of 15 years. They were struck by the similarity in looks of their cocker spaniel and Tucker. Today, Tucker is enjoying his golden years in a loving, caring, committed family. His mom tells us that he is doing great, so well in fact that she sometimes forgets he is blind. Tucker's mom states she truly knows she made the right decision to foster him. In the words of Ty Pennington, "I guess there's just one thing left to say;" "Welcome home, Tucker, welcome home."