Sophie
Last year (2006) was a tough year for me, I had 2 dogs die (age's 7 and 13) and my Mother all in one year so it was a really sad year. I was ready for a sweet lovable dog. I found a Yorkie on your site and when I saw her picture I knew I just had to adopt this sweet girl. I will let Sophie tell her story now: My name is Sophie (aka FiFi) I am 2 yrs old. My Mommy saw me on-line last year and she said I just melted her heart. I was in a place in Nebraska that wanted me to have babies and didn't want any part of that!!! The WRM came and rescued me from those horrible people and took me to stay with my foster Mom until I could find a permanent home. I had surgery so I don't have to have babies. My foster Mom said I would find a wonderful home someday and she was right!!! My new Mom traveled up to Chicago to pick me up and when I was put in my Moms arms it was LOVE at first sight. I knew I found a great Mommy!! She just showered me with kisses, hugs and love. I was so exhausted from my travels through the states I just slept the whole way home to Indianapolis. I just fell in love with my new home. I sleep in a big bed with my Mom, I have run of the house, get to look out a big window all day and bark if I want. She says I am being nibby, but I tell her I am protecting my new home. I have a big fenced in back yard to run in which I love doing very much. My Mom said I will never, ever have to see the inside of a cage again. I like just hanging out with my Mom and sitting in her lap. Riding in cars and going for walks are my favorite things to do. She calls me her little best friend!!! To all the dogs in the Rescues, be patient, you will FIND A GREAT HOME SOMEDAY. I just LOVE my new Mommy so much and she loves me dearly. So this is my story. |
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Sally
Hi there! I adopted Miss Sally June 3 2006. My name is Chrissy Wetzel. I wanted to let you know that Miss Sally is doing wonderful. She is fitting right in here. Thank you so much for her. She is a very sweet and loving dog. She keeps her brothers and cousins in place. I love her dearly. I lost my little girl, Puppy in April. Jackie and I talked about it and found Miss Sally. When I saw her sweet little face on petfinder.com I knew I had to have her. She went to her first Wild Westie Weekend in June and she had so much fun. She was such a good dog. She also ate up all the attention. Thank you once again for my Westie angel. I am attaching the Christmas picture of her and he brothers. Chrissy and Miss Sally |
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Jack |
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 Iris We brought Iris home on June 12 from Missouri. She was terrified, but still ran up to give kisses before darting away-many, many times. She excels in many areas- she actually "tinkles" on command, and has mastered "down", "no" and the word for her fleece toy "baby". We are still working on potty training, and have found she has a nifty little stubborn streak when we are on our walks. If she wants to smell something, NOTHING will get in her way. It is amazing though, to see a dog go from walking without dropping her nose to the ground once- to smelling absolutely everything. She follows Clyde's lead on most things, and is very affectionate. Every morning, or when I come home from work, she takes my hand in her mouth to "love me". She also does the same thing with her own foot in the morning- she is loving herself~ She is eating well, and we hope to put a pound or two on her in the next few months. I am so glad to have Iris as a part of our family. After the trauma she has endured, she deserves a loving home and a sense of peace. I hope that all the rescue dogs can find a family to call their own. Robin, Brookfield, IL update   We just celebrated Iris' 7th week with us. She is such a joy. Her personality is really coming out- what a character! She loves to help with cleaning and laundry by bringing me anything that might be on the floor. She knows that there are 2 cabinets where things for dogs are stored, and when asked, can run to the correct cabinet for either a "greenie" or her "dinner". Happily, she has put on almost 2 pounds and is building some well needed muscle mass. She received very high marks at the vet for her introductory visit, and he was impressed at how well her hernia was repaired. Westie Rescue takes GREAT care of their charges!! Iris loves her walks, and is now becoming very friendly with the neighborhood children, who all watch out for her. They all know her story by heart, and instruct any new child EXACTLY how to approach her. I think they've all adopted her too. She also loves her big brother, Clyde, and spends most of her "downtime" by his side in the yard or in their big bed. But most amazing of all, she is by my side constantly. As I write this, she is under the computer desk snoozing. As long as she knows where I am, she is fine, but if she's not sure, she tears around the house with "baby"-her fleece toy- until she finds me. Then she has to greet me with kisses and hops for at least a few minutes, and then all is well again. Kevin and I are so happy to have Iris in our lives. She completes our little family.
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While Cruiser was a special needs dogs many generous people supported his care. One of the most special were the 6th and 7th grade students from Holy Cross Catholic School in Indianapolis, IN. In May 2004, Cruiser went to his forever home and it has been a perfect match! Cruiser is expected to have a wonderful life even without his sight. |
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Arnold
Andrew has taught Arnold many tricks and the two have become fast friends. Ava while still a bit shy, is all about being treated like a Princess. It takes special families to open their hearts to such neglected and many times abused animals, but Dawn and her son never once hesitated at adopting not one - but TWO Westies from WRM.
Arnold
Sad day today. Arnold was diagnosed with end-stage lymphoma. X-rays of his lungs reveal an unbelievably quick progression and without a spleen it has been hard for him to fight. Chemo at this point, or even before would have extended his life to some extent. Although I was told that the mass on his spleen was benign, I had read enough to know that the conversion to lymphoma would not be unlikely. The x-rays looked horrible and I can not believe he is as active as he is. Dr. Manwiller said maximum a month. He seems comfortable, active and happy, eating well, and has gone crazy because we have every baby animal in the world living in our yard. Definitely a terrier. But I see him wearing out more quickly and resting more frequently. We just want to keep him comfortable and spoil him. Here is is today on "squirrel alert" and of course looking for a cookie after all that work. Dawn
Sweet Arnold
Thank you to everyone who has called or written to us about our sweet Arnold. Arnold died this morning with Ava and me by his side, he was not alone. Like all dogs that have come through our house, Arnold touched our hearts and made us laugh. We will remember Mr. Arnold as a vibrant, lovable terrier with Bear by his side and one that was full of kisses. We will miss our brave boy. Dawn, Andrew and Ava |
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Adopted by the Schneiders in St. Charles, MO area, Annabelle was 8 years old when she came out of a Puppymill of over 700 dogs! Having never been socialized with humans, Annabelle has shown the true Westie spirit and has adjusted nicely to life with love and devotion showered upon her! The Schneider's sent this poem to show you the joy of adopting an older Westie and what it truly comes down to: The Gift Slowly, gently the bond it grew Faithful, loyal Loving, true
Looking back it's so unclear How we got by Without you here
Trusted companion, Devoted friend, You give and give It never ends They said we were a gift to you But now we know Who rescued who.
J.M. Berry
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 AlfieAlfie was a six month old male that we rescued. He had a lot of difficulty relating to people but found a wonderful adoptive Mom, Jane, who has pampered and loved him for the last year. Although Alfie is still frightened by strangers, he is adjusting well and shows the promise of fully recovering from his horrible puppy mill experience. |
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 DarbyDarby is a two year old male that we rescued from the puppy mill auction in Hartville in March, 2001. He's a funny, goofy little Westie monster. Although he had spent his short life in the mill, he hadn't been there long enough to develop any significant physical problems. Darby was adopted by Julie, Chris, and their Westie, Duncan. Now, Darby is on his way to learning such wonderful things as playing ball, chasing Duncan, and devouring doggie biscuits! |
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 GracieGracie is a young Westie that our rescue angel - Kim - managed to save in April, 2001. As you can imagine, she is a rowdy, barky little girl, but just too precious for words. In fact, while she was with us, we called her "Precious". Gracie was adopted by Linda in Kentucky and is now terrorizing Linda's other two Westies -- Webster and Dazzlin. |
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 MollyMolly is a young female between a year and two years old who came to us in early April, 2001. We were very discouraged to hear that even though Molly was so young she had probably already had a litter of pups. And, that is not uncommon for mill dogs. They usually have to have pups every time they come into season. Molly didn't stay with us long before she was adopted by Sally in Louisville. Sally reports that, after a shy start, Molly is thriving. She loves her new Westie brother and sister; and she loves racing around in the yard. But, most of all, she loves Sally for giving her a chance to have a wonderful life outside of a puppy mill. |
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 KatyKaty is a five year old breeder release. She is friendly and affectionate and was fortunate not to suffer from many of the medical problems that plague mill dogs. Katy made her way to a wonderful home in the back bay area of Boston in April, 2001. However, Katy is a little country dog and couldn't adapt to the hustle and bustle of city life, so her owners made the difficult decision to return her to rescue for re-homing. Fortunately, Donna in Connecticut heard that Katy needed a new home and decided that that new home should be in Connecticut with Donna and her sweet Westie, Humphrey. Donna had recently lost a little female Westie (read Gwennie's story on our guardian angel page) and felt that Gwennie would want her to adopt Katy. We had promised Donna that we would help her find another Westie, when she was ready. We just never imagined that it would happen this way. It just goes to show that rescue stories always have HAPPY endings! Katy has now been renamed to "Katie". She has been accepted by her new Westie brother, Humphrey, and life is good. |
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 RexThis gorgeous young man is "T-Rex" or "Rex" for short. He came into rescue at about six months old and was adopted by Sue and her family in Des Moines, Iowa. Rex is deaf, but you would never be able to tell it from his attitude. In fact, we named him "T-Rex" because he lived to "CHOMP" his foster brother and sisters with his puppy teeth. (They were very glad to see him go to a new home!). Rex is a wonderful, happy little boy. He is learning sign language and manages nicely with his "hearing ear" dog, Honey. |
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 PrincessPrincess was a very young and pregnant westie girl when she was rescued from a puppymill in April 2001. She delivered her puppies a month after being in rescue. Three of the puppies survived. Princess was adopted in August 2001 by Carol, Herb, Angela, and westie siblings Babe and Petey. Princess has become such a silly girl. She loves to play and clown around. Princess loves to travel and is always begging to go for a ride. She is a very wonderful and much loved little girl.
"We discovered WRM and fell in love with Princess. We had never heard of adopting a puppymill rescue. We're just so happy that we did. It's been a wonderful experience and we highly recommend it. We now help rescue and foster and it's all because of a LWD named Princess and her courage and love. Thank you so much WRM for all the work that you do for the LWDs that have no one to turn to." |
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 ZoeyZoey is another little rescue dog that came to us through Kim's efforts in April, 2001. Zoey is estimated to be between two and three years old. And, like all the females in this rescue group, she had already had several litters of pups. Not only had she had several litters, she was pregnant when we got her. Unfortunately, Zoey was not healthy. She whelped seven puppies on April 29, 2001, but all of the puppies were premature and we were not able to save any of them. It was a terrible tragedy for us and for Zoey. But, this rescue story also has a very HAPPY ending! Kim, the wonderful rescue angel that saved Zoey from the mill, decided that she would adopt Zoey! Now Zoey is living the good life with Kim and Mike, their other two Westies, Louie and Mattie, and their cat, Chloe. |
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 FrazierFrazier is an adorable six year old male that we rescued from a puppy mill auction in March, 2001. His body was covered with sores and his feet were in horrible shape from standing on wire all of his life. His poor little feet were so splayed, that he could no longer walk on the pads -- but had to walk on the areas in between the pads. We treated him with two different kinds of antibiotics; soaked his feet in Epson salts; covered his sores with Neosporin; and put little booties on him, just so he could walk. He endured all of his treatments like a champ and gave us nothing but love in return! He gave us so much love that we had a very hard time parting with him. But, now Frazier has found a wonderful home in Louisiana. |
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| Jellybean Jellybean is a three year old female puppy mill dog. When we received her in July, 2000, she weighed only ten pounds. In spite of the fact that she had a large hernia, she had been used as a breeding dog and had recently had a litter of puppies. Jellybean is a funny little soul, and we enjoyed having her here while she recuperated from her spay and her hernia operation. Jellybean rode the Westie Express to Wisconsin where she is living the good life with Mike, Jackie and her new brother, Reggie. Jellybean and Reggie recently went to visit Santa. Although they are Westies, they have been good little dogs and we know that Santa will bring them lots of fun things for Christmas! Jellybean is hogging Santa's lap while Reggie looks on. |
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 JackieJackie qualifies as one of our most successful rescues! We purchased her at a puppy mill auction in November of 1999. She was eight years old and just a wisp of a little thing. We brought Jackie home and discovered that she had a massive yeast infection in her ears. Conventional treatment was not possible because the ears had grown together as a result of the infection. Our only option was a complete ear resection. We were able to mend her body, but we couldn't mend her soul. Jackie wanted nothing to do with people. When we were about to lose hope of ever connecting with Jackie, Rebecca from Utah stepped forward and said that she wanted a chance to give Jackie a real life. And, that is where Jackie's Cinderella Story begins . . . . .Jackie, Rebecca and Rebecca's other Westie, Popei, have become a family. With Rebecca's love, Jackie has come out of her shell and has the life that she was meant to have! In July of 2000, as part of the March Against Puppy mills in Washington, D.C., Jackie was awarded the IMOM Award of Courage. If there was ever a dog that deserved to be recognized for giving humans a second chance, it is Rebecca's Jackie. |
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| Sadie Sadie is another one of our very special rescues from the March, 2001 puppymill auction. Sadie was deathly ill when she came in. She was completely infested with worms and barely weighed 10 pounds. She shivered uncontrollably, had horrible bloody stools, and we were afraid that she would not survive her medical treatments. Once we got her medical problems under control, she began to thrive. She put on three pounds almost overnight. Sadie found a wonderful home with a family in Smithville, Missouri. Unfortunately, four days after she was adopted, Sadie suffered a stroke. But, with emergency care, she survived and is on her way to a full recovery. She is very lucky to have found such a good home. In spite of her problems, her new family have fallen in love with her and insist that they want to keep her. Its times like this that remind us how truly special people are who adopt our little rescue dogs! |
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 ReggieThis little snuggle muffin is Reggie, a three year old female puppymill release. She came to us with horrible skin problems from flea dermatitis. She had almost no hair and her skin was cracked and bleeding all over her body. We nursed her back to health and she was adopted by Matt and David for David's mother, Joan, as a mother's day present in May, 2000. Reggie is a funny, goofy little dog who worships Joan. Unfortunately, even after a year, she has not adjusted to Matt or David. Reggie still has moments when she is frightened by Matt or David. Although we don't often see this degree of fear in a mill dog, it is not uncommon for them to have trouble adjusting to men. We believe that this is probably because most of the mills in Missouri are run by women and mill dogs may have never seen a man until they are adopted into a home. It is certainly not the fault of the male members of the adopting family. It is just one of the sad facts of rescue. Reggie is very fortunate to have a home that tolerates her phobias. We have seen mill dogs accept men, and we are praying that Reggie soon learns that Matt and David love her. |
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Casey |
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We got 
put him under for a biopsy since they thought it was cancer. More meds to prevent infection were given. When the test came back it was the blasto fungus so Casey was put on another med for 3 months. He had to have blood drawn for liver enzymes and had the test run again for liver in 2 weeks. BOTTOM LINE, if a swab had been taken of his throat back at the pneumonia stage we might have prevented a lot of visits. This is totally new to dogs and I guess the vets aren't looking for this. Iit DOES NOT show up in blood work so the vets need to do a swabbing of the throat or as we found out thru the biopsy of the nose sore.