Forever Home Files: Cheese, Lulu, Diana, and Iceland
Possibly the best part of our work is seeing a dog who was once sick, scared, and struggling in a shelter end up living their best life in a loving forever home. When we first share our Hansel Help recipients, they’ve just been rescued and often look completely different weeks or months later after receiving the care they deserve in a foster or adopter’s home. It never ceases to amaze us how much of a difference proper care and love can make. The four pups featured here are prime examples of that — they were rescued by two of our 2024 partner organizations, who have been using their Hansel Help funding to pull more pit bull-type dogs from city shelters in California and Chicago to yield more happy tails like these. Warning: the stories below are some of the purest things you’ll ever read 🥹.
Cheese from The Pitty Committee
Dog lovers on social media fell in love with and were so worried about Cochise, a 5-year-old, 75-pound good boy who was past his euthanasia deadline at Downey shelter in California. We were touched by how much he looked like our eponymous Hansel! Thankfully, our partner rescue The Pitty Committee stepped in. TPC founder Alyssa writes: “Cochise was immediately blessed by ending up with one of the most amazing fosters ever in Los Angeles. She didn't have a dog in the home, just a cat…who Cheese was *not* the biggest fan of, but with the help of a couple baby gate purchases, she was a total pro at keeping them totally separate from each other the entire foster stay (over a month!). We love a responsible foster! YAY! We were able to deck Cheese out in some amazing Kong gear (harness/leash/collar) and I have to say that he looks AMAZING in army green. Totally his color. TBH, Cheese would have looked good in anything, but he was like...NY Fashion Week runway model status in the green. Cheese went to the vet and was *not* a fan in any way, so the vet prescribed him Trazodone to calm him down for future appointments.
“Cheese was adopted by an amazing man named Matt — who is actually a stunt double in movies! Pretty rad. Maybe he can get Cheese an acting role. LOL. From the euth list...to the big screen! Matt actually drove all the way down here from Canada to pick Cheese up in Los Angeles which was incredible. It really helped prove how serious he was about adopting Cheese. He said he knew from day one when he saw Cheese that it was meant to be. He had recently lost his dog to cancer…and was going through a separation from a partner…and he felt like it was the right time. I think that Cheese and Matt will be VERY happy together, and cannot wait to see updates to come. So far, so good. Matt is an incredible human with a perfect setup.” Alyssa has also shared amazing content about Cheese’s story on social media, which you can check out above and below ❤️.
Lulu from The Pitty Committee
Lulu also found her forever home after surviving the Downey euth list and being saved by The Pitty Committee. TPC’s Alyssa shares that Lulu is a "1-year-old, sweet-as-pie black pitty mix who found herself on the euthanasia list for NO good reason. She was transported up to the Bay Area where she had a wonderful foster home waiting for her. Meep's name soon became Lulu, and before you know it, she was so settled into her new spot — it was almost like she had been there for years. Lulu's incredible foster Jay used to have an amazing dog named Cielo who looked a ton like Lulu. Sadly Cielo passed away not long ago, and Jay's heart had a big empty spot that needed to be filled. Although we weren't quite sure from the get-go if it was the right timing to adopt, it soon became clear that Lulu was home. She became a foster fail and was adopted by Jay. The two are the best of friends and do everything together. Lulu gets to go on hikes, fun adventures to the beach (she even watched a doggy surf competition with her pitty friend from the sand!), and to doggy camp to play with friends and socialize. Her life is filled with love and hope. Your donation enabled us to send Lulu on a private transport up to the Bay Area. We were also able to fully vet her (her appointment was pretty expensive) and provide her with all the necessary meds and supplies. She is a healthy girl and she is thriving in her happily ever after, which we couldn't be more ecstatic about!” Check out the video detailing Lulu’s full happy tail below.
Lady Diana from The Pitty Committee
Like Cheese and Lulu, regal girl Diana was also saved from Downey euth list by The Pitty Committee and has also found her forever home! She was treated for a tapeworm before being transported to her primary foster. Here's what Alyssa has to say: "Diana is the sweetest girl ever. Miss Diana stayed at a temp foster down the street from me in San Diego until she made the trek with a private transporter up to her 'long-term' foster home in the Bay Area. Her 'long term' foster home was actually a rather short stay, and she was soon adopted by a friend of the foster. Diana's new family absolutely loves her! They have an adorable 5-year-old daughter who has immediately bonded with Diana. In the days leading up to Diana arriving at her forever home, the daughter was so excited that she was taking naps in the dog bed to 'prepare for her arrival.' Too cute to handle!" Watch her story unfold below.
Iceland from One Tail At A Time
Sassy eyebrow queen Iceland is one of eight dogs rescued by One Tail At A Time from Chicago Animal Care and Control whose care was supported by our Hansel Help grant. Her adoption story is so sweet, it’s legendary (see it posted on the local alderman’s Facebook here)! One Tail helped her recover from an upper respiratory infection and being underweight and placed her in an awesome foster home. Her future adopter, Doug, met Iceland and her foster parents at a local park but didn’t get their contact info. Doug knew he was the perfect family for Iceland, and so he put up signs around the neighborhood that read “Are you fostering a white pit bull?” until they could connect again! If that’s not fate, we don’t know what is. 🤩
