Support Roxie's Second Chance at Life and Overcoming Trauma

Help Us Heal Roxie and Build a Loving Pack

Roxie’s story is one of resilience. Alone, freezing, starved, terrified, and emaciated, she wandered our neighborhood for weeks in the bitter cold. No one could catch her. When I saw her sleeping on a patio night after night, I knew we had to act. With the help of the homeowner where she was resting and a local humane trapping organization, we finally caught her at 1:30 a.m. on a frigid night in mid-January. I brought her home at 3 a.m., straight from the cold.

Roxie was exhausted and scared, but you could see the relief in her eyes (her rescue photos say it all). She quickly showed us her sweet and loving nature. Since then, she has been blossoming learning to trust, cuddling with us, and finding comfort in the warmth of a family. But her unknown past trauma has left her with big struggles. She has kennel reactivity and is entirely fear-reactive, particularly with our senior dog, Sandy. Despite this, she has formed a strong bond with us and our puppy, Lily Bean.

We are working to integrate her fully into our pack alongside Sandy and our newest rescue, Gigi, who is joining us this weekend. However, it has been a challenge, and we need professional support to ensure Roxie can thrive.

We never planned to take on a fourth rescue dog, but when we saw Roxie’s desperation, we could not turn away. We are committed to giving her the best chance at a happy life through rehabilitation—but we cannot do it alone.

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Our Rescue Journey & How Roxie Changed Everything

Our journey began when Sandy, our senior dog, was left grieving after the loss of three of our beloved dogs. We wanted to help Sandy heal while also giving another dog in need a second chance. That is when Lily Bean came into our lives—a spunky puppy who had been destined for a kill shelter. Sandy and Lily bonded beautifully, bringing joy back into our home.

As Lily grew, we realized she needed a high-energy playmate, so we started the process of adopting Gigi—a sweet rescue who had survived unimaginable conditions in a hoarding situation. Gigi was locked in a shed, forced to live in filth, surviving off feces and trash. Her recovery would require patience, medical care, and training, but we were committed to giving her the life she deserved.

Just as we were finalizing Gigi’s adoption, Roxie appeared, alone and starving in the freezing cold.

We paused everything to focus on her. She had similar needs—fear, trauma, starvation, and medical concerns. While we were fully prepared for Gigi’s rehabilitation, adding Roxie to our home meant doubling the resources, time, and care needed. We never expected to take on two high-needs rescues at once, but we couldn’t let Roxie suffer.

Now, as we prepare to welcome Gigi and continue Roxie’s rehabilitation, we need help to give Roxie the care she requires.

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Why We Need Your Help

While Roxie has made remarkable progress, she still needs extensive care to overcome her anxiety and heal both physically and emotionally. Gigi’s arrival only adds to the challenge, making it even more critical that Roxie gets the behavioral support she needs to integrate safely.

Your support will help cover:

• Behaviorist training to address Roxie’s fear reactivity, occasional feral/survival behaviors, and help her integrate successfully with our pack.

• Medical care, including pain management from her spay surgery, treatment for gut issues, a double ear infection, deworming, and heartworm testing.

• Specialized diets and supplements, including probiotics, prescription microbiome food, training treats, and joint support.

• Nail trims, Roxie, is too fearful to allow us to trim her nails or bathe her.

• General care needs, such as bedding, toys, and enrichment items to keep all of our dogs happy and healthy.

We are also grateful for any donated supplies (an additional crate, training tools, or enrichment toys). Sharing Roxie’s story will go a long way in helping us provide for her. Every little bit makes a difference!

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What We’ve Done So Far

Our family is fully committed to giving Roxie the care she needs, whether that means keeping her as a permanent member of our rescue pack or finding her the perfect home without other dogs.

Here’s what we’ve already done:

• Reporting to Animal Services – We reported Roxie as a stray with hopes that an owner might be looking for her. Since she needed time to decompress, we offered to foster her through the required stray hold and after her spay surgery to ensure she had a safe place to recover.

• Crate Training & Safe Integration – We worked with a trainer to safely introduce Roxie to our pack, considering her reactivity and feral tendencies however she more training with a behaviorist. We also purchased crates, harnesses, and training tools to support her transition. The crates allow us to rotate the dogs when needed—during meals, when we leave the house, and for safety during integration.

• Veterinary Care – Roxie has received initial vet care, but she still needs additional medical treatments, including vaccinations, heartworm testing, and ongoing treatment for a double ear infection.

• Specialized Diets –We’ve been providing her high fiber prescription food, probiotics and calming powder and treats to support her recovery.

We are fully dedicated to Roxie’s well-being, but with three other rescue dogs also needing food, medical care, and training, the financial burden is growing.

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How You Can Help

Every donation, no matter the amount, helps us provide Roxie with the training, medical care, and daily essentials she needs to thrive. If you are unable to donate, sharing her story is another great way to help!

We also welcome donated supplies (training tools, crates, and enrichment items).

Your support means the world to us and to Roxie. Thank you for helping us give her the second chance she so deserves.