I know a lot of people, including myself, that do little things to try and help make the world a better place. I sponsor friends in charity walks, buy tickets to events, and put a little change in collection jars from time to time. That's the easy stuff, and while it's needed, it only scratches the surface of really making change happen. Then there are people like Nadine that make bigger sacrifices and do the right thing even when it's hard or inconvenient.
This holiday season, Nadine's passion for helping animals has motivated her to perform miracles for two lucky dogs. The first happened the week of Thanksgiving, when she got a call from a friend with a rescue group. Someone threw a litter of 9 Newfoundland puppies into a river and left them to drown. Another motorist saw it happen, went to a nearby vet, and an amazing vet tech ran to the river just in time to rescue the puppies. When her friend called, she was looking for foster families for the puppies.
Nadine and her husband John already have another dog, a 150 lb Pit bull-Mastiff-Great Dane mix named Bailey (photo below). He's a handsome boy, and the biggest lap dog on earth!
Bailey suffered a stroke earlier this year, shortly after their other dog Lucky passed away after 15 great years of companionship. He is finally doing much better, but Nadine and John had been starting to talk about getting another dog since Bailey's seemed kind of lonely. Fostering a dog would be a great way to see how Bailey would handle a new addition. But when they went to pick out the puppy they would foster, John fell in love. And so little Sasha became the first new addition to the Donat household.
How anyone could look in that beautiful little face and think about throwing it in a river, I have no idea! She's already almost twice the size of these photos, and driving everyone in the house crazy with the bounding and bouncing that only a puppy can provide. John has her spoiled rotten already!
About a week later, I was checking my email before heading to work in the morning, and got this message from Nadine....
6:55 AM on 12/11- and now there are 3- i was in east la @broadway and 87th- stopped 3 thugs who were kicking a puppy and throwing matches on her, I hit one of them- grabbed the dog and fled. the dog had gasoline on her- was filthy and had blood on her. i took her to a groomer after she slept in the car all day- i am her hero- she has joined our expanding brood- john named her Porsche- she appears to be 100% mini Schnauzer- bailey loves her-
I applaud her effort, but John and I read her the riot act on this one. She's in a gang-filled neighborhood grabbing a dog off the street without regard for her personal safety! But for Nadine, all that mattered was stopping that poor little creature from being tortured. Most people would have driven away thinking what a sad scene they had just witnessed, or maybe called the police. But this little dog found her guardian angel, and trust me when I say this little cutie is just as attached to Nadine as Bailey is. She's doing so well, racing around the house playing, that Nadine re-named her Ziggy. I think they were meant to find each other.
As you prepare to celebrate Christmas and your thoughts turn to angels and saviours, just remember there are a few of those angels living among us. And many thanks and blessings to my sister-friend Nadine for being one of them.
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