I saw her on the Internet. A special needs dog named Makayla. Her home was a kennel at a shelter in Tamarac, Florida. I ended up driving an hour and a half to see Makayla. At the time I couldn’t understand why I was so compelled to travel this distance for a dog.

Makayla’s special needs title was factored on her having only three legs. The only background information they had on her was that Miami Animal Control had found her and her dead puppies, the victim, they assumed, of an alligator attack or a more heinous crime left untold.

A few months later I would discover why she came into my life. I found out I had stage 3 breast cancer, a shock to say the least. I was up against a year of treatments, losing my hair, fertility and the life I knew. I now realize Makayla was there to show me that she had a resilience to bounce back from her past. She proved to me that you can go through any hardship and come out happy, and you have to find the strength to face any obstacle that comes your way.

Makayla has been with us for two years now. The joy that she brings to our lives reminds us that shelter dogs need to be saved, and in return they just migh save us!

T from FL