Stevie first came into our lives when we offered to transport her from NC to NY. She had been adopted up in Vermont and needed some help getting there. I worked in dog rescue at the time and couldn’t pass up the chance to help this sweet girl get to her new home.

While she was a very nervous girl, there was something about her— could’ve been the snuggles she gave us, or the 14-inch scar she had down her back from having hot oil thrown on her, or the fact that she would only consume gas station deli meat the entire time. We’re not entirely sure, but we just knew she was special. I remember as we drove, my fiancée said to me, “If they change their minds, we’ll take her back.”

We said our goodbyes and she was whisked off for the second leg of her trip to Vermont.

It was about two months later when we got the call from her original rescuer, Katie, who owns Ruff Start Underdog Rescue in St. Croix: Stevie had redirected on a person and bit them, in response to stress from another dog present.

Stevie was in a shelter waiting to be euthanized. Waiting to die after surviving so much already in her short life. After enduring her burn, enduring care and recovery time, enduring a path towards trusting humans again, enduring flights and car rides to get to a safe place. After all that, she was going to die in a cage, terrified and alone. 

We weren’t going to let that happen. We got her back as a foster. One month later, we were officially committed, and we have never looked back.

My life would be very different if we hadn’t adopted Stevie. Maybe it’d be easier and less stressful in some ways, but I can say with certainty that I wouldn’t be who I am today without her. We both are ever-learning, progressing, and striving to be better. We may have saved her life once, but she has saved ours one hundred times over.