Happy Tails: The Wright Dog

The death of their big dog, Chelsea, was hard to bear for the Wright family of Webster City, Ia. "It had been over a year since our dog had passed away," Kim Wright says, "and our son was still sleeping with her picture." Their search for a new pet began on Petfinder.com, the largest online database of homeless pets. "With three small children to raise," Kim says, "we weren't sure we wanted to raise a puppy as well. We decided to look for an adult dog." Adult dogs have the advantage of being more settled and often come already house trained. The Wrights spotted seven-year-old Casey at the Humane Society of North Iowa in Mason City, which had posted her at http://hsni.petfinder.com. "We fell in love with her instantly," Kim says. Casey needed a family desperately. Her former owners had become over-the-road truck drivers, and after she escaped their fence several times, they began leaving her in a crate, often for more than 20 hours a day. They realized she needed a better life and relinquished her to the shelter. "When we adopted Casey," Kim relates, "I took her to our vet because her underbelly was black with what I thought was flea dirt and bright red with irritation. The vet told us that she had a skin rash from lying on her belly too much in cramped quarters and the repeated rash has changed her pigmentation to black; it was not dirt." In her new home, the rash quickly cleared up. The Wrights changed the dog's name to Gracie. She has fit into the family beautifully and helped the children heal from the loss of Chelsea. "Puppies are very adorable and a lot of fun," Kim says, "but there is something to saving an adult dog that needs a good home. Gracie has become a great companion to our entire family and a new best friend to our son Carson."

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