by Erin Botelho

Created on: August 20, 2008

Sometimes walking through an animal shelter can be over whelming. The many, many faces that peer back at you, waiting for someone to open their hearts and homes to them. It can be so over whelming, you might want to leave and rethink things. But for many animals, it will be too late.

My husband adopted a German Shepherd about 10 years ago. Sadly she is no longer with us, but for 10 years of his life and 5 of mine, she was loyal, protective and brought us much joy. That would not have happened if my husband had not fought so hard to save her life.

Kita once belonged to a married couple before my husband adopted her. Like so many sad cases, the couple divorced and Kita became the victim of a bad break up. It seems that the woman had custody of Kita. For whatever reason the man dog knapped her and when he realized he was about to be caught red handed, he tied Kita to a tree and took off. He left her no food, no water and tied her to a tree that happened to be in the path of the "98" Florida fires. When animal rescue found her, it was estimated that she had been there for about a month. Only able to catch a stray mouse or raccoon that passed by and enough water from rain and dew to barely keep her alive. Her elbows and fur were burnt from falling ashes and burning branches. She went from about 98 pounds to a meere 40. Her frail body was so thin, you could make out her organs through it. Barely clinging to life, animal rescue took her to a near by shelter and rehabilitated her. Finally she was healthy enough to be adopted! But for this poor angel, it would seem that her struggle for life was just beginning.

My husband, Jeremy, had just finished police academy and was looking for a German Shepherd to train as a police K-9. He had gone to the shelter where Kita was being kept. Oddly enough, the owner of the shelter was terrified of large dogs. She ignored Kita, kept her locked up as much as she could and was determined to put her down as quickly as possible. When Jeremy had seen Kita he knew that she was the dog for him. The owner told him that she was a mean dog and was not a good choice for adoption. However after playing with her he knew she was wrong. Never had he met a more gentle creature. The owner had placed so many obstacles in front of Jeremy that it seemed impossible for him to adopt. On the night Jeremy came to pick Kita up however the owner informed him that she didn't care that he met all the qualifications, she was going to put her down. The nurses who

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