I got Tizsu while I was in the army. I went to the animal shelter and she was supposed to have been euthanized but the officer could not do it so he kept her. I saw her and took her. He let me have her for free. She is part shepherd and was a sweet soul. I took her back to Ohio when I got out of the army. After all she is family. She was my first rescue. She passed away in 1981 at the age of 7 years.

This is Changa and Chica at Christmas time 1985. I would always place treats in a bag and give them to them on Christmas morning. It was a blast to watch them tear into them. I originally got Chica, a puppy at the time, for my sister from the animal shelter. She got tired of her so I kept her. I originally was waiting for an older dog to be released. Chica was a happy go lucky dog, very eager to please. I was thinking about getting her a playmate since she was alone. There was a kid that was carrying around this puppy all around the neighborhood. He dropped her off in front of my place so I took her in. She was about 3 months old. Chica passed away in 1994 at the age of 13 years. Changa passed away in 1997 at the age of 13 years.

Cody was a full blood Brittany Spaniel. Me and mom volunteered at a no kill private animal shelter. The lady that ran it was diagnosed with cancer which she eventually died. The house that was used was bought by the neighboring tire place and it was disbanded. After a day of cleaning the place I went around and hugged every dog. When I got to Cody she wrapped her paws around me and did not want to let me go. Mom said that's the one and got her for me as a birthday present. She passed in 2010 at the age of 14 years. She was so sweet and was never a problem.

This is Sam. He is full blooded basset hound. I found him a mile from my home in Texas. Me and mom was always taking in strays so I went home and asked if we could take one more in. We got in the car and found him where I first saw him. His nose was all scratched up like he got into a fight with a cat. I wanted to call him Fred after the comic strip about a basset hound but mom wanted to call him Sam so that became his new name. Sam had a very strange personality. He would growl at my other dog, Cody, to move from one side of the couch to the other. Eventually Cody would give in. When I heard him growl I would tell him to knock it off. Later I found out he went from growling to an eye staring contest. He always won until I told him no. He finally realized he could not bully Cody around. He was a stubborn dog but very sweet at the same time.

I almost lost him to heat stroke. I noticed he was laying in the hot sun on a very hot day. I went to check on him and he did not respond. I got a blanket and drug him closer to the house. I poured water on him and put a fan in front of him. I gave him sugar water by dipping a rag in it and squeezing it onto his tongue. He came around thank God. I lost him in 2009 at the age of 13 years.

This little girl i named Lady. I would go down to feed my horse, mini donkey and goats when I saw their water was dirty and I cleaned it out the night before. This happened for 3 straight days. On the fourth day I went down and saw this little girl jumping into the water trough and get back out. I tried to chase her off. There were 3 dogs that were threatening my goats. I chased off the other two but she decided she wanted to stay. The next morning she was right where she was the night before. I decided if she wanted to stay I would let her. I put out a bowl of dry dog food for her. The next day I waved for her to come up to the house in which she followed me. She became part of my family that day. She passed away in 2015 at the age of 10 years. She would go down to the pond and wade in it. She loved water.

Mercy was one of my many rescues. I found her on a country road when visiting my sister in Oklahoma. She was dumped out like trash. She was pregnant and was shot with a small caliber weapon. (farmers shoot at stray dogs to keep them off their property.) Three weeks after I took her in, she had her babies. I kept her and two of her daughters which I named Angel and Gracie. I found loving homes for the rest. She was approx. 10 years old when she died of cancer in 2021. She was 95% yellow lab which are the sweetest dogs.

Here is Mercy and her two daughters, Gracie and Angel. Gracie is part yellow lab and Rottweiler while Angel is part yellow lab and Shepherd. Gracie had a strong bond with her mom. Angel was a bully until I got her spayed and she calmed down. Gracie passed away in 2021 at the age of 9 years. Angel passed away in 2023 at the age of 12 years. In 2015 we had a horrific tornado touch down on both sides of Lavon, Texas. It started in Rowlett, Texas and came to Wylie, Texas. God spared Lavon where I lived and it touched down in the next city and did a lot of damage. Gracie alerted me to the tornado. She could not get close enough to me. Dogs can sense things long before we do. I kept telling her it was going to be ok and the tornado uplifted over Lavon and hit the next town.

I got Precious and Sheba from my niece. Her boyfriend told her she had too many dogs so her mom took one and I took the other two. They are mini chihuahua mix. Precious passed away in 2022 at the age of 9 years. Sheba is still with me and is doing great. I do believe Precious thought she was a Great Dane. She would run up to my chocolate lab and act like she was going to tear him apart. The lab just gave her a funny look and Precious walked away with her head held high like she just done something huge. She sure had personality and character. Sheba was a runt of the litter and was picked on so she did not bond easily. Her half sister, Precious looked out for her. After Precious passed away Sheba came out of her shell.

Scruffy is the one on the right, a Terrier mix. The dog on the right was his companion.

Scruffy and his companion was also dumped out like trash along a country road near my sister's place. I fed them for a week. I would bring hot dogs and bread, water and dry food for them. I was planning to pick them up and bring them home with me that Friday when I got paid. Well my sisters neighbors thought they would take them in. They did not know them so they would not stay with them. I looked all over my sister's land to find them but couldn't. A couple days later, I saw Scruffy, the brown one, on my sisters hill. I called to him and he remembered me. I have had him ever since. I could never find the other one but it had hip dysplasia and could not get around good. Scruffy howled for 3 nights grieving for his friend. He is now in a loving forever home and he never has to worry about being neglected again. Scruffy is approximately 9 years old now and is doing great.

My neighbors dumped baby girl on me. I was clearing the woods the first year I bought my farm in Oklahoma. I went down the next morning and there was this little cute puppy about 2 months old by my tool wagon. There is no way she got there by herself nor did her momma take her that far away from home at that age. She was placed there by human hands. I have no idea what breed she is but she became my problem child. She is a bully and always has to have the last word. She is lovable but a handful. She is like the energizer bunny on steroids and she is 5 years old and no wind down button. Maybe in another 5 years she will get it out of her system. She wants to be an only child and I keep telling her that is not going to happen. Did I tell you she doesn't listen very well nor does she retain anything. A pure bubble head, but I love her and she is here to stay. When I take an animal in it is for life. I don’t know what it is with her but she always has to lead me by the hand with her mouth.

Brody, my sweet Chocolate Lab is not really so much a rescue like the others. After I lost my Mercy, my yellow lab to cancer I noticed on the community board at the vet office there was a free chocolate lab to a good home. The owners were elderly and could not take care of him like they wanted to, so I went and picked him up and now he is part of the family. He is a little goofy but it doesn't take much to please him and he is a sweet mellow guy. He recently went to the vet and found out he has a heart condition. He is on medication and is doing great. Chocolate Labs have a shorter life span due to the fact they have to inbreed to get the chocolate coloring. He was six years old when I got him and he is now eight.  He is like my big teddy bear.

“Baby Girl” now known as Babe was in the Durant Animal Shelter for 6 months.. She is a full blood Mountain Curr. She was found starving to death in an apartment complex when animal control picked her up. She is about 4 years old. She was scared of people especially men. It took a lot to get her back up to good health. She is very loving. I took her in as of this date she has been a new member of my family for 4 months. She is happy and I have had no problems. Babe finally found her loving forever home. She is about five years old now.  She makes herself at home on the couch only when another of the dogs take the rocking chair.

Rebel is my newest family member. He came to me after people were firing off fireworks. He was so scared he was trying to get inside my fence when my dogs were barking at him. It was dark and I didn't want him to get hit by a car so I took him in. I posted about him being lost. He ran free in the front yard unless his owner was looking for him. No one responded so he belongs to me now. He is a full Rottweiler. He has a stubborn streak in him but is very sweet except when his nails need to be trimmed and then he cuts a temper tantrum that is worse than a child's. He holds his own with the others even though he is still a pup. He is very content with his new home and family. He is about 10-11 months old. He was about 2-3 months when he came to get away from the fireworks.

Precious was seized from her owner because she was being beaten, stabbed in each hip and being poisoned with antifreeze. She was also being starved to death. Her ears look like cauliflower, the kind boxers get when hit too many times in the head. It is a miracle that she survived and even more of a miracle that she can trust a human again. She was in the Durant Animal Shelter for 7 months. She is about 11 years old and is losing her hearing due to the beatings. I have only had her for a little while but she is getting better acquainted with the other family members. I have 8 rescues now. She is still leery of the others but with time, patience and love she will adopt to her new life in a loving forever home. I will not give up on her. Precious was adopted twice and twice brought back because the adopters did not want to spend the time, patience and love with her. Precious is a very sweet and loving dog. She is not "damaged goods." When God brings something into your life you do not dismiss it. She came into my life from God for a reason. People do not realize dogs are like foster children. They are bounced from one home to another. Because of this it is hard for them to bond and love back. But dogs, unlike humans can find love and trust again. They have very forgiving hearts.

I bought Jericho when he was 2 years old. The people who had him raised Quarter horses. When the mare’s went in heat Jericho was as interested in them as were the stallion horses. He would get kicked by the stallions. When I got him his stifle joints were locking up on him from all the kicks. I had the vet open up the joint and clean it out. His first back leg did good. When it healed and the vet did the second leg, she had to do it twice. She told me if that didn’t work then there was not much that could be done. Thank God it worked. He lived for 34 years before he passed January 15, 2024.

He was a stubborn cuss but I still miss him very much. I love my little long ears and he will always have a special place in my heart.He is truly my pride and joy.   He made me an expert in building fences. He was the first animal I got when I got my Texas farm. Then I got me a couple of goats and then a beautiful paint Mustang stallion. That donkey would not get along and wanted the whole pasture for himself. He did not believe in sharing. He was a registered miniature. His registered name was JP Smoke. The people called him Jericho. I either called him Jericho, Donkey or Chief Little Half Ass Fat Boy depending on what mood he put me in!