“Sometimes I think he doesn’t realize he’s a dog,” Jennifer says. Whatever 5-year old Gunther thinks he is, he knows he’s happy, healthy, and exceptionally well cared for. For Jennifer, it was always a part of the plan. Five-years ago, she moved from Chicago back to her hometown of Kansas City. Near the top of her new-house wish list: a …
The Just Love Project 032: Home Is Where Your Human Is
It’s not always easy to find where we truly belong. Dogs are no different. Some dogs are lucky enough to be born immediately into loving arms and lifelong bonds. Others take a little longer to find the place, or person, that feels like home. Eva first adopted Bella in 2009, while a senior at the University of Texas at San …
The Just Love Project 031: Pepper Goes for a Ride
Sometimes extraordinary dog-human relationships are formed when they aren’t planned. Someone hesitantly agrees to attend an adoption event, sure that they’re just going to say hello to a few animals. Next thing you know, you’ve abandoned all rules about pets sleeping in your bed, the matching outfits you ordered online are on their way, and you lovingly wonder how it …
The Just Love Project 030: Everyday Battles, Extraordinary Bonds
“She was always so in tune with me. It was unreal.” Michael Tellerino describes Gretta with a fondness that’s hard to replicate. Today, Michael is the CEO & Founder of K9s for Veterans, an organization dedicated to helping U.S. military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) transition back to civilian life with the help of trained service dogs. Gretta was …
The Just Love Project 029: Mahalia Takes the Reins
With a household of four cats, two dogs, & a rabbit, it’s not hard to tell how much the Hodges love animals. So when 11-year-old Mahalia first fell in love with horseback riding, her new passion wasn’t exactly out of character. Neither was the way she wanted to make sure horses could be a consistent part of her life: By …
The Just Love Project 028: Obie’s Selective Attention
Sometimes the difference between good days and bad days comes down to what you pay attention to. Some small things aren’t worth sweating. Others hold the best stuff life has to offer. Obie, a one-year-old Norwich Terrier in Chicago, has a good sense for sniffing out both – much to the delight of his humans and fellow Roscoe Village roommates, …
The Just Love Project 027: Ken’s Co-Pilot
Ken has driven a truck professionally for seven years. If you ask him about his time on the road, those years are divided into two sections, and not evenly. The first five, while certainly successful, simply don’t compare to the last two. Actually, the last 19 months to be exact. All thanks to a routine stop at a Target in …
The Just Love Project 026: Bailey’s Converts
Occasionally, people still get afraid of Bailey despite his best efforts. Bailey is a pittie rescue, and Alexandra admits that for people who don’t know him, stereotypes and ‘bully-breed’ labels create an expectation that he might be dangerous. She always wants to tell those people the same thing. “If you only knew what a baby he really is,” she says. …
The Just Love Project 025: Kona’s Claim to Fame
Dogs do lots of things on accident. They’ll mistake your shoe for their favorite chew toy. They’ll barrel through your home like a freight train, with little regard for the path of destruction trailing behind them. When they’re very young, they pee. Everywhere. On everything. All the time. Dogs doing things by accident comes with the territory. It’s sort of …
The Just Love Project 024: Feeling Right at Home
“She was convinced we were gonna leave her in the woods.” Megan adopted Sophie in 2009 and lived in Chicago ever since. This was their first camping trip. While Sophie had no logical cause for concern, she just felt a little out of her element. “She had just gotten groomed, she had bows in her hair . . . she …