JULIANNA...NC

Julianna is wonderful. She is the sweetest little dog. We are so glad she has become a part of our family and I love her dearly. She only wants to please and be loved. With me, a person would never be able to tell she ever lived in a puppy mill. She acts like a normal, sweet trusting little dog. With other folks, she is still skittish but is becoming more and more trusting. For some reason she is still skittish with my husband -- we think it might be because he is very tall. He has never been able to pet her, but she does get excited when he comes home. She spends her days with him, lounging on the sofa in his office watching him -- but never has she let him pet her. Last weekend, when he was taking a nap on the sofa, she jumped up on the sofa and took a nap along with him while resting against his leg. I guess he doesn't look so tall when he is lying down :). Also, just a few days ago, she took a few pieces of popcorn from his fingers--another break through. I know it hurts my husband's feelings, but he is very patient and I know eventually she will trust him completely. She has come a long way since this past February when she came to our home when she was timid and stoic. She gets along great with other dogs and seems to want to be protective of my other three dachshunds. If one of them whimpers (as when having to take a bath) or barks when he needs help climbing the stairs ( one of my dogs is 15 and becoming elderly), Julianna always runs to check on her sibling. She occasionally acts like a puppy and will enjoying playing with a toy or wrestling with a stick in the backyard. It makes me happy to see her act like a happy little dog. I try not to think about her life at the puppy mill -- it makes me nauseated to think how she must have lived. We are so very happy to have her as part of our family. I have attached a photo made of her a few weeks ago. You can see she is very pretty. We have worked on improving her coat through her diet and I think she is looking healthier and healthier every day. Thanks for asking about Julianna. I appreciate all of the wonderful things you folks do to help the dachshunds. Your group was so wonderful to me and Julianna when we going through the adoption process. Thank you so much for everything. Sincerely, Kay Hilty

Julie...NY

Julie has been renamed Sofie Nevaeh (pronounced Na-vay-ah, which is Heaven spelled backwards because she is heavenly). When we seen a picture of Sofie it was love at first sight just like it was with her brother Kenny, who we also adopted from AADR. Sofie looks so much like Kenny, we call them the twins. Sofie is an amazing little girl who has adapted to our family quickly. When she came to us almost a month ago she still exhibited typical puppy mill traits. Even though she still has some issues everyday is a milestone for her. Sofie is learning how to play with other dogs and with people. She is initiating the play herself and the other day started pulling many of her toys out of her toy box to play with them. People she doesn’t know well she will allow to hold her and she will also walk up to strangers to say hello. This is a huge step for our little girl. She goes to doggie daycare 3 times a week with her best friend, her brother Kenny. She loves all of her fur siblings but Kenny and her have formed an amazing bond and can be found snuggling when they are sleepy. When Sofie first came to us she had to be with Kenny at all times but now she is finding independence and does not need him as her security blanket. Sofie has become our spoiled little princess. She has a full wardrobe of clothes, a stroller, a papoose so we can carry her close to us, a big princess bed shaped like a slipper, many toys and a family that loves her immensely. She loves to sleep in between us at night or in the crook of one of our arms. Sofie gives everyone in the family kisses every day, her little tail seems to wag most of the time and the corners of her mouth turn up into a smile. We cannot wait until Christmas because we are sure that her stocking will be overflowing with gifts from Santa because she has been such a good girl. We want to thank AADR for rescuing Sofie and giving her a second chance at life. Also a special thank you to Sofie’s foster mother, she is a true angel, she taught Sofie that it was okay to trust a person and without that I don’t think Sofie would have been able to bond and adjust so quickly with us. Princess Sofie is forever grateful for all that the rescue has done for her and I know she will never forget it, I know we won’t.