Winter came early to the mountains of West Virginia this year. Since our foray to McDowell County in April, we’ve been wanting to go back and do more to help. My wife has been gathering donated clothing, shoes, toys, and school supplies for the community there. Given the likelihood of a cold winter, she began focusing on coats and boots, gloves, scarves and hats. And Christmas gifts, of course. The donations were incredibly generous, with some individuals in our local community providing new items (with tags) that could be shared with the less fortunate in Appalachia. The outpouring of concern and assistance was sobering.
We had plans to take down an SUV-load of boxes and bags in October or November. Between scheduling conflicts and the poor timing of autumn storms, the goal became getting everything to the WV rescue mission before the severe winter cold set-in. And the first storms of winter were already looming in the mountains. It was now or never.
Snow and ice were forecast for last weekend and weather reports said more dangerous precipitation (with particularly cold air) was expected mid-week and into the holidays. If we wanted to go, we had a very small window (likely a day—Tuesday, December 9th) to get there and make our delivery.
HER NAME IS MELODY
As quickly as the date was set, we got another phone call from West Virginia. Our friend Sharon Sagety at the McDowell County Humane Society (where you’ll recall we adopted our dog in April) was on the other end of the line. Someone in the WV mountains had called her to say a neighbor had moved from their home, abandoning a female black labrador and nine puppies. They were left outside with only a metal doghouse to ward off the winter cold. Before anyone could assist them, one of the puppies had died. The remaining eight and their mother needed to be helped to safety immediately. And there were no facilities in that area with room to spare. The neighbor began providing food for the little family but that’s all they could do.
This is where I quickly learned the truth of the phrase, “It Takes a Village.” My wife began calling and emailing every rescue group she could. It took most of last weekend to pull together, but soon a willing rescue group stepped up, found a veterinarian to help process all of the puppies, and volunteered to find fosters while they waited to be adopted. Prayers were answered. Everything was ready.
Monday’s winter storm dumped snow and ice in WV and on the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia and we hoped all would be clear Tuesday to make the trip. Thankfully, it was. Barely. Our friend Jorja (also a volunteer for the McDowell County rescue) offered to brave the icy downhill road to the shelter, pick-up the dogs, and drive out of the mountains to meet us in Virginia. At noon on Tuesday, we met off I-81 in a snow packed parking lot to swap out our load of donations for four dog kennels carrying precious cargo back to Maryland.
The four-hour trip home was uneventful, though there were a few times when all eight little voices in the back complained in unison with the canine version of “Are we there yet?” Frankly, they were absolutely perfect for us and there were no major accidents (of the puppy kind).
As promised, when we arrived at the veterinary hospital, the staff eagerly and with great care brought the puppies into their facility. I followed with mom on a leash. Her name is Melody. While we waited for all the puppies to be brought in, I sat with Melody and talked to her softly about what was going on. I noticed that during the whole ordeal, she never whined or barked and insisted on staying where she could see the puppies. I tried to reassure her all would be OK from now on and I must have called her a "good girl" a dozen times. She was incredibly stressed, as you might expect, but somehow, you could see in her brown eyes she knew her ordeal was over and there were a whole bunch of humans now watching out for her.
As the staffer took the leash and walked Melody back to join her puppies in the exam rooms, the exhausted puppy mom stopped abruptly and turned back, paused for a few seconds to look at me as if to make sure I was still there, and to say, “thank you.” Then she went on her way. I’m convinced Melody’s calm presence helped her puppies through an entire day of travel. I know it took a toll on her. But now, as you can clearly see in this pair of photos, even one day of love and security has made a huge difference for her.
THANK YOU ALL!
Starting with my wife who directed it all, I can’t believe the lengthy cast of everyone who played an important role in this incredible story. I won’t try listing them all, but suffice it to say that there are many. They were all selfless and hardworking, sacrificing time, money, expertise, and some serious muscle (thanks, Skylar!) to the cause. None of this would have happened without them. As for me, I was just the driver who got to love on some wonderfully sweet dogs for a day. And then write about the experience.
Mom and puppies will be available for adoption soon. One of the vet techs told us he already has one picked-out for himself. They are adorable.
Sweet Melody indeed.
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Postscript: Given that mom was named “Melody,” we found eight little collars and called our daughter (now a music major in college) and asked her to pick music-themed names for all the puppies. Four boys and four girls. Here they are:
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