A Christmas Eve Rescue Slipped Away Until Fate Refused to Let Her Go

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It all started on Christmas Eve 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. My partner and I had been looking for a new rescue after the loss of our two dogs, and I was checking the local animal foundation daily. That morning, my partner texted me a picture of the cutest little blonde dog, and my heart instantly melted. I told him to go to the foundation right away.

They were holding a Christmas adoption event with waived fees, so we knew waiting could mean losing her. My partner stood in line for two hours, only to be told the dog was on hold for a rescue and not adoptable. When he came home, I asked him to take me anyway, just in case another dog might be right for us.

We waited nearly three more hours, sharing rescue stories with other hopeful adopters. Then an employee announced they were closing and no longer processing adoptions. The couple behind us begged to hold their chosen dog until after Christmas and were told no. When I asked again about the little blonde dog, I was told she was being held — for a rescue. I knew then I might never see her again. I cried the entire way home and for days afterward.

I searched rescue sites obsessively for weeks, then finally stopped. About a week later, while planning a trip to Pahrump, Nevada, my partner suggested I check the shelters there. Just as I was about to close my laptop, I saw her — the same picture, the same name. It was her. She had been transferred to a rescue in Nye County.

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