The Shadow
The Virginian Review is currently participating in a donation drive to assist the Alleghany Humane Society with everyday necessities required for caring for the dogs and pets at their shelter. As a result of the donation drive, not just one, but two pets were adopted by the Bailey family.
Jennifer Bailey and her family met and adopted a 9-month-old mixed breed named Yahtzee and an 11-month-old beagle mix named Ella.
The Bailey’s recently lost their well-loved, 11-year-old boxer named Masen last year. Currently, Masen’s mate, Mya — another boxer around the same age— is “getting up in years,” Joe Bailey said. “She’ll play a little bit, but it did seem like she aged a lot quicker after Masen passed.” That was when the Bailey’s happened upon the “Empty the Shelters” promotion. The promotion, sponsored by Bissell, was offering a lower adoption fee of $25.00 up until October 15th, so the Bailey family agreed that it was the right time to add to their family.
Jennifer, along with her daughter, Selena, and son, Jordan, visited the Alleghany Humane Society. Jennifer’s husband, Joe, and older son, Corey, were at work, so they were unable to join in the initial visit. However, the family was “committed to only adopting a dog who never felt a sense of love and family before,” said Jennifer. Then they met Yahtzee and “fell in love with him right away,” added Jennifer.
Then, they decided to meet Ella. Initially, Jennifer was drawn to the 11-month-old pup because of her photo, short bio, and the way workers described her. “They told me she was very submissive and just skin and bones when they got her,” Jennifer said. “It seemed obvious to me she had been abused by whoever had her before she came to the shelter. She threw herself on the ground and urinated when we first met her and my heart broke.” The family wanted to adopt her right away “because we didn’t think she’d ever experienced love before, and we wanted to give her that,” added Jennifer.
Since her husband, Joe, was partial to Yahtzee, the family decided to introduce Yahtzee to Ella to find out whether they would get along. The dogs got along so well the family decided to adopt them both and make them “playmates for life.”
Yahtzee, now named Jackson or Jack, and Ella, now named Rosie or Rose (from the characters in the movie, “Titanic”) are now happy members of the Bailey family. “We kinda hoped they’d play with Mya a little bit and remind her what it’s like to be a puppy, but they just play with each other,” Selena added. “They tried to at first, but Mya would just lay there. She’s a lone wolf and doesn’t care that they’re there, so long as they leave her out of playtime.” “And they do,” Corey added, as the Bailey gang laughed in unison. “Trust me, they do!” The youngest member of the Bailey family, Jordan, added, “We’re all happy with how things turned out.”
The Alleghany Humane Society (AHS) is in constant need of supplies for the many cats and dogs they shelter and are always looking for loving families willing to open their homes and hearts to a new furry family member.
The AHS is located at 9313 Rich Patch Rd., Covington and can be reached at (540) 862-2436 or their Facebook page. To begin the adoption process, one should visit alleghanyhumane.org.
