That is when it comes to viewing dogs in need of a good home.
The following article, recently published on the Mother Nature Network site, is a great example of not being able to just look at a rescue dog.
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Stella the rescue dog helps a family heal
They went to the shelter ‘just to look’ and came home with the pup.
Mary Jo DiLonardo August 22, 2017.

When Jeneanne Lock was undergoing treatment for stage 4 breast cancer and stage 1 thyroid cancer, she was determined to do everything she could to help herself — and her family — deal with the disease. She regularly saw therapy dogs come through the center during her treatment and their owners often told her of the advantages of four-legged therapy.
“They spoke of all the benefits of having a pet through and after treatment, how it was helpful to the patient, as well as the caregivers and other family members,” Lock says. “That’s why I was considering adopting an animal.”
Plus, it helped that her two kids were begging to get a dog. So they took a trip to the Best Friends Animal Society in Salt Lake City “just to look,” Lock says. “Of course we saw Stella and fell in love with her.”
The year-old black-and-white boxer mix was soon jumping in the car and heading home with them.
“She’s been a wonderful addition to our family,” Lock says. “For me, just the emotional and mental aspect of being a cancer patient, it was almost more challenging emotional and mentally then physically. But my oncologist said most if not all cancer patients experience anxiety or depression or both. I was aware of my own mental health through my cancer battle and wanted to do things that would promote maintaining mental health, so things like going for a walk with Stella really helped improve my mood.”
The sweet, caring pup seems to know how to act with each member of the family, Lock says. Stella is calm and comforting around Lock, yet playful with 9-year-old Ruby and 6-year-old Andres.
When they first brought Stella home, Lock was getting daily radiation after eight months of chemotherapy and a double mastectomy and still had several more surgeries to look forward to.
“The toll of all that, the cumulative effects, were I had a lot of fatigue and a lot of soreness in different parts of my body,” she says. “What I was doing medically to recover were things like going to physical therapy but being at home and having Stella to take walks with improved my mood and it also helped me build up energy and strength.”
But she wasn’t the only one that benefited.
“My children had some pretty traumatic experiences watching me,” Lock says. “I know Stella’s helped me, but I also know she’s helped my children.”
Lock is now cancer free, with both of her cancers in remission. She credits her rescue pet with helping her get through the experience.
“Our dog is so full of love and energy, she’s just been a great companion,” she says. “We love having Stella and we look forward to spending more years with her as part of our family.”
Watch their story here:
Uploaded on Jun 30, 2017Jeneanne and her children adopted Stella from Best Friends Animal Society just as Jeneanne was completing a difficult health journey. What Stella brought to the family has been immeasurable. For more information on Best Friends and its many lifesaving programs, go to best friends.org.
Best Friends Animal Society is the only national animal welfare organization focused exclusively on ending the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters. A leader in the no-kill movement, Best Friends runs the nation’s largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals, as well as lifesaving programs in partnership with rescue groups and shelters across the country. Since its founding in 1984, Best Friends has helped reduce the number of animals killed in American shelters from 17 million per year to about 4 million. By continuing to build effective initiatives that reduce the number of animals entering shelters and increase the number who find homes, Best Friends and its nationwide network of members and partners are working to Save Them All®.
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Nothing needs to be added by me!
What a beautiful story, Paul! I am glad to hear she is cancer free. Dogs can be such a comfort when going through a dramatic event such as this one.
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Dogs are such a comfort to us on a daily basis! 🐶
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Really a beautiful story Paul, animals help us to deal with life in many ways 🙂
This organization sounds great.
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Totally agree. I want to find out much more about Best Friends. And share it here!
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That sounds like a great idea, Paul 🙂
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A lovely lady and I can’t agree more that a pet/s helps with healing. It’s a wonderful story about how love and caring for an animal, is beneficial to the human and the pet. I call it a symbiotic relationship. I pray that the lady in the story continues to remain cancer free and that the family has many years with the beautiful dog, named Stella.
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Those are beautiful thoughts and words from you! 😍
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Very touching story. Dogs really can make a difference in people lives!
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Always and always! Thank you!
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You had me at ‘rescue.’ Love these stories!
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Well then, we had better find more for you! 😍
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Lovely to hear about Stella. You have a book in your possession about another rescue dog (our Ray) awaiting your pleasure (“Who Said I was up for Adoption?”). 🙂
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Colin, you touch a sore spot, so to speak. For Jeannie read and loved your book and ages ago I said that I would record her review. Never got around to doing that, nor found the time to read it myself. I’m embarrassed to admit this but at last you now know what happened!
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Life can be like that at times. Hopefully you will have an opportunity soon. 🙂
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The quickest and easiest for me would be to record Jeannie’s reactions to your book.
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🙂
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Wonderful to hear the happy ending.. And continued good health and Happiness to all..
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Returned to you many times over!
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🙂 and returned 10 fold to you both.
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Big hugs!!
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