Happy Tails: Peaches’ Story

Sometimes out of great tragedy, two lives touch and a new love story begins.

When Peaches was abandoned, heavily pregnant, and weak from untreated heartworms, your kindness saved her precious life not once, but twice. But the power of your love had still more work to do. This is how you helped mend not one broken heart, but two — 

The animals who come through our shelter doors can’t tell us of the horrors they’ve suffered. But the scars around Peaches’ neck speak of her lonely existence on a chain. Her mangled, infected paw tells of a life without love or care.

Abandoned with a belly full of puppies, she was so riddled with heartworms, every breath seemed to cost her a great effort. 

But as she felt the healing power of your love surround her for the very first time… she smiled. 

Your kindness found her just in time. Because only a few days later, Peaches was rushed into surgery for an emergency c-section and blood transfusion to save her life, and the puppies inside her.      

Another week on the street and Peaches and her pups wouldn’t be alive today. 

You give brave girls like Peaches a fighting chance. And because of you, a love like Peaches had never known before was waiting just around the corner. 

Across town, Kevin spotted Peaches on our website and donated to help her recover.  Unknown to him, their broken hearts would soon be healing together… 

You see, Kevin adopted a senior dog from our shelter only a year before. You might remember beautiful Melody — 

Like Peaches, she was abandoned like trash after she’d outlived her usefulness as a puppy machine. Her ears were cut to shreds and her spirit was crushed after years of abuse. 

“I saw Peaches on the HSNEGA page. Her story was so sad,” says Kevin. “I remember showing her to Melody on my phone and saying ‘Melody, do you want a sister?’”

What Kevin didn’t know then, was that he and his beloved Melody would soon be parted.

Only weeks later, Melody was diagnosed with cancer. Kevin did everything in his power to save his girl. But she passed away in front of the Christmas tree. “I adopted Mel at the start of COVID. She became my entire world. I was devastated, I cried for weeks.” 

“I want to say thank you to people who helped Peaches and Melody. I’m so happy that there are good people around here who have a tender heart for animals… Peaches almost died, the people who helped her are heroes.”

While Kevin struggled with grief, his friends wanted to do all they could to help him heal. “I’d told my friends about Peaches before Mel died,” says Kevin. “They were actually the ones who contacted HSNEGA and asked about when Peaches would be ready for adoption.” 

They thought she might be just who Kevin needed. And they were right… 

A month later, Kevin took a leap of faith by fostering Peaches who was still battling heartworms and heartbreak. And it was the pair’s instant love for one another that helped two broken hearts heal. Kevin ‘failed’ as a foster parent and adopted Peaches. 

“Peaches is never going to replace Mel, but when you lose a dog there’s an empty spot in your heart. Having Peaches here and all the love she has to give, it’s helping repair the void Mel left.”

Kevin is grateful to Peaches for helping heal his grieving heart. But more than that, he’s grateful for your kindness that brought his beloved girls into his life, and into his heart forever. 

When you give, your kindness creates ripples. For all the wonderful ways your love heals even the most broken hearts… Thank you.