Bella

I had been volunteering for Sweet Paws Rescue for about a year, fostering dogs and caring for them during their 48-hour isolation time after arriving in Massachusetts from the south. I knew I was ready for a second dog, but I was going to let fate figure out which one.  My beloved Buster was getting older and it was clear that he enjoyed the companionship of the fosters that we had in our home.  I was so afraid of losing him without another dog to help me get through it.  

I had fallen in love with Bella when she arrived from Mississippi.  She is a Havanese and I loved the breed, but I never thought I would see a rescue Havanese.  She had been surrendered when her owner moved to an extended care facility. I volunteered as much as I could the weekend she arrived in order to spend more time with her before she went to her adoptive home.  Fate stepped in when her pending adopters changed their minds and I was lucky enough to be there at the right time, and I was chosen to foster her.  Twenty four hours later, after Buster’s approval, I adopted her. Buster loved her from the start and she loved him right back.  I lost Buster almost exactly a year later and Bella has carried his torch, nurturing the foster dogs I have had since then.  I don’t know what I would have done without her.  

-A.M.