Krystle Alekson and her family are no strangers to adopting. After having adopted Frank from another organization, they came across Penny.
“Sofie (formally Penny) is the sweetest senior gal you’ll ever meet,” Krystle said. “When we saw her picture posted online, we just knew we had to meet her! Sofie came to stay with us for a weekend home trial and never left.”
That was back in February 2021. Krystle and family picked Sofie up from her first vet visit since arriving from California. It was then that they learned that she had numerous mammary growths, a few miscellaneous lumps, and arthritis. When Sofie went for surgery to remove her growths, her biopsy results unfortunately showed that Sofie had a form of skin cancer that is considered terminal. The vets estimated she had 7-9 months left.
“M2BL asked if we wanted to continue to care for her and be her hospice home. Of course, we said yes! We could not imagine ever having said no. She has added so much joy to our home. She has the cutest squishy face, a big goofy smile, licks for days and loves her little walks about the block. She exudes a calm, mellow energy. Good vibes only with this lady,” Krystle added.
Being a hospice home to a foster dog means Krystle and family give Sofie a loving home to live out her days and M2BL continues to ensure she receives her medications, vet visits, and food.
“We cannot say enough good things about M2BL. Anytime we have a concern regarding Sofie they immediately get her into the vet and ensure her health and well-being is at the forefront. We feel so lucky to have this lovely little lady in our home to live out her days. We went into this knowing her time with us could be short, and we are amazed that she has been with us for 2.5 years at this point and still going strong!”
Having two senior dogs in their home, Krystle’s family decided 2023 was the year to add a puppy into the mix.
“Crazy, I know! But we wanted to get a puppy before Sofie passed so that she could ideally rub some of her calm energy off on the pup and teach her how to dog. This is when we adopted Fiona from M2BL. Fiona is a labradoodle who is full of spunk and is also the sweetest little girl. She plays hard and she chills hard. She brings energy into this home and lots of laughs. The seniors get annoyed with her puppy antics at times, but she is teaching our other rescue, Frank how to play with toys; something he never seemed interested in, during the 8 years that he has been with us. Both Fiona and Sofie have taught Frank to relax a little and to have a bit of fun.”
Krystle and family believe life wouldn’t be the same without their dogs; they bring such a loving and fun energy to the household. Each dog has their own unique personality that helps keeps their home full of happiness, laughter, and love.
So, with two senior dogs, including one with terminal skin cancer, and a puppy full of energy, would Krystle and her family recommend fostering or adopting to others?
“We would definitely recommend fostering to anyone thinking about it! We have fostered three dogs through M2BL and one from another organization. M2BL is an amazing organization who cares so much about the animals they take into their care. Fostering is an amazing way to do a bit of a test run with an animal and see if they are the right fit for you and/or your family. It’s a great way to see if having a dog or cat is something that works with your lifestyle. Pets are a lot of work but SO worth it! Fostering is also a great way to volunteer your time and offer a loving, caring home to an animal in need. We 100% say give it a try! And if you are looking for a pet to add to your family, in our opinion adoption is the way to go! There are so many animals that need a loving home.”
