2-Year-Old Harley Gets His First-Ever Home

If you met Harley today, you’d never know this playful pup spent the first two years of his life in a shelter. The shepherd mix grew up never knowing the love of a home. Harley came to us from south central Indiana, an area that struggles with pet overpopulation. Your generous support allows Rescue Village to work with 34 rescue transport partners, including Canine Express Transport Project. They transport animals from shelters in south central Indiana to shelters in areas where there is a need for well socialized, healthy cats and dogs. As more and more shelters across America struggle with overcrowding, rescue transport is playing an increasingly critical and lifesaving role in our work. The long drive from Indiana was the start of a brand-new chapter for Harley.

Once he arrived at Rescue Village, our staff and volunteers immediately began to give him lots of love and enrichment, including extra outdoor time and cuddles. Your support also allowed Harley to go on field trips and explore the big, wide world outside of the shelter environment where he’d spent his whole life. You also made sure he had lots of toys. This fun-loving boy always likes to have a toy in his mouth! Most importantly, you ensured Harley had all the time he needed to finally find a home. It took six months, but today Harley is enjoying the life he always deserved.

Harley’s new best friend says he is adapting very well to life in a home. He sleeps in his owner’s bed, and he gets lots of trips to the local tennis court where he enjoys chasing his ball off leash in a safely fenced-in area. In addition to his new pet parent, Harley got a new set of grandparents and several human “cousins” to play with. Harley especially loves his owner’s 15-year-old nephew, who is fast, athletic, and extra good at throwing Harley’s ball for him. “Thank you for all your help,” Harley’s adopter wrote to us recently. After his dog, Dylan, passed away, his heart and his home had felt incomplete. We were so happy to read his note, which ended: “I really love Harley, and he made my home a home again.”