Happy Tail: Heidie
Stray Dog Makes a Perfect Sibling


macy_plane
Heidie at the end of her plane ride to her new home.
 
macy_and_rusty
With brother Rusty (left).
 
Lori Burgart loved her dog, Rusty, and he loved her. But she felt the playful 1-year-old wire-haired pointer mix needed something more.

"He really needed a permanent playmate around his size,” she said. “I loved playing with him but I could tell it wasn't enough."

She started looking at local shelters and online for a companion for Rusty. She kept her search within 100 miles but "nothing really appealed to me," she said.

One day on a whim she did a search on petfinder.com without any geographic restrictions and came across Heidie, a 2-year-old wire-haired pointer mix at Southern Comfort Animal Rescue.

"She reminded me of Rusty," Lori said. "They both have the same white chest."

Heidie had been brought to the rescue a few months earlier by a Good Samaritan who had found her as a stray.

"I could tell that she had once been someone's indoor pet and was accustomed to being a big part of a family," said Scott Bennett of SoCo Rescue. "She was exceptionally friendly. After Lori told me about her dog, I knew that Heidie would be a great match."

After several days of emails and phone calls, Lori submitted an application to adopt Heidie and was approved. There was just one small problem – Lori lived more than 350 miles away in North Carolina. Scott contacted Pilots N Paws, a group of pilots that volunteers their time to transport rescue animals, and found a pilot that would take Heidie halfway.

In January 2011, Lori picked up Heidie – who she has renamed Macy – and brought her home to meet Rusty.

"They acted like long-lost friends," Lori said. "They were really happy to see each other and started playing together right away."

The two are now inseparable – playing, sleeping, and even eating together.

"They have separate food bowls, but they usually eat out of the same bowl and then move to the other bowl," Lori said.

The dogs spend their days together both indoors and outdoors. They enjoy going for walks, playing with toys, getting lots of treats and belly rubs.

"They are both rotten to the core," Lori said. "They sleep with me every night."

She admits she was nervous adopting a dog from so far away but is glad she did.

"I took a chance adopting a dog I had never seen in person but everything has turned out great," Lori said. "Rusty and I love her."


Would you like to share your dog's Southern Comfort Animal Rescue success story? Email us at socorescue@yahoo.com.


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