MAGGIE’S STORY
Hi, my name is Jill Sewell. This is the story of how an unexpected conversation led to the little red dog who made me whole again. I’ve had dachshunds since I was a small child. I have also been a strong advocate for adopting shelter dogs instead of buying a “puppy mill” dog. In December 2014 my dad passed away after a year long battle with cancer. My mom was lost, sad, depressed and felt she had no sense of purpose. We decided to find her an older girl to be a companion. Enter Get Along Dachshund Rescue. We filled out paperwork, had our phone interview, got set up for a home visit, and picked our sweet little Fefe. She met the requirements we had. Well, Fefe was a failed foster and we were back to finding the perfect pup. I had an unexpected lengthy conversation with Brenda, GDR’s adoption officer and one of the founders of the rescue, and over the course of that conversation, she decided she had the perfect match for ME!! I said I had 3 dogs and wasn’t looking for a 4th. My little miniature dachshund Molly had died a couple of years prior from congestive heart failure at age 15. I didn’t realize just how much she was missed.

I was told the story of Maggie. Maggie and her brother Jojo were in a home in Mississippi. The owner passed away and left them in the hands of a drug addicted son. The dogs were horribly abused and then abandoned. No food, no water, no hope. A neighbor went to check on the house and heard their cries. When they were rescued, they were found covered head to toe in fleas and badly malnourished. They were also both high heart worm positive. They went to a very loving foster home and got the attention they needed.

So, seven months after the rescue came the conversation with Brenda. When I got home that night I told my husband the story of Maggie & Jojo. No discussion of adoption, just a sad story. Brenda emailed the link to look at Maggie. Well, she is the almost identical twin of my sweet Molly. Through a bucket of tears I filled out the application for adoption. I told my husband the next morning that we would soon be a 4 dog family again. I called my vet about the heartworm issue. Not wanting to be set up for another heartbreak situation, I got great information from her. The care is very simple and no threat to the other dogs as long as they all stay on treatment.

Maggie finally came home to us. She has filled my whole heart with so much love and joy. We rescued one another. She definitely had her hurdles to cross. Trust with men, the sight of newspapers made her scream like a human, the TV remote made her cower down…basically she was scared of being seen. Now she is part of the pack, bossy, sassy and the source of endless entertainment. She makes me smile endlessly. But Jojo still needs his forever home. He needs his happily ever after. Someone reading this needs their happily ever after too. Take a look at Jojo. Don’t be discouraged by the word heartworms. Don’t be discouraged by age. My girl is 7 years old. My Molly died at age 15. These dogs are just getting started at age 7. They have so much love and companionship to offer. And by the way, my mom has found her new happily ever after in GDR’s Pippa (formerly known as Siobhan), a 6 year old beauty who steals the show.