Last November, my family lost a vital piece to our home-life: Madison, the 11 year old (give or take a few years) mutt that was deathly afraid of noises and large objects. It all happened so quickly. She went from playing to lying on the ground, stomach inflating, and was stone cold within five hours. She passed away the same way as Marley from the novel Marley and Me; the stomach flipped, therefore causing a series of reactions that ultimately ended in her death.

We were devastated. We buried her under our willow trees in our back yard, along with any thought of introducing a new canine to the family, at least for a few months. Those months soon began passing, and there just never seemed to be enough time that had passed since Madison. That all changed Labor Day Weekend.

When I found out that my family planned on acquiring a puppy, I was ecstatic. We began our search around a month ago, peering into all crevices of the Internet. Craigslist, eBay, PetFinder, I could go on and on.

After a week and a half of searching and almost falling for a scam, we began losing hope that we would ever find a new canine to add to the family. It seemed as though we had found the perfect puppy, just to find out that the adoption process was comparable to that of joining the CIA. Some places required that you allow them to walk into your house whenever they choose for a “surprise visit.” Others asked for the contact information for six different individuals that you know. All-in-all, things looked fairly disheartening.

And then there was a posting on the website of Rescue Village. They had six Labrador Retriever/ Australian Sheppard mixes, were twelve weeks old. We decided to capitalize on the opportunity.

The facilities were amazing. The folks who run it were even greater. I came home from school to find my mother holding Barley, the new addition to the family.

Not only is Barley a great dog, but I soon learned some of the details about Rescue Village. We learned that Barley’s litter was from a kill shelter in Tennessee; one that Rescue Village makes sure to go to approximately once a month. Their mission is to save as many of the puppies from being euthanized as possible, simply for the reason of being able to give these puppies a chance at life.

Barley also was neutered and up to date with all of his shots. After spending a week or so with him we found that he was essentially potty trained. Never have I experienced such a finer facility than Rescue Village.

Sophomore Jill Whetsel put it bluntly when describing her experience with Rescue Village. “It was great,” she stated. Jill Whetsel adopted Sully, her five-year-old cat, from Rescue Village.  She also went on to say that Sully was being taken care of well at Rescue Village, and would absolutely adopt another pet from their care.

So I now ask you, the reader, for a favor. If you are ever looking for a new addition to your home life, look no further than right down the road in Novelty, Ohio. Rescue Village is an amazing place that is filled with passionate people. We were given such a high rate of attention when looking for a new slice of the family, and they assisted us in choosing the right one. While a purebred may satisfy one’s goals to walk in an AKC dog show, rescuing an animal is so much more . rewarding.

You can contact Rescue Village at (440) 338-4819 or visit their website at http://www.geaugahumane.org/. They are located at 15463 Chillicothe Rd in Novelty, Ohio