Successful Tales
CCR Success Stories
GOTTI
We got a call about a dog abandoned in a car in front of an apartment building for about a week. Thankfully a concerned citizen was able to bring him in, and not a moment too soon. Due to a skin infection, he had virtually no fur left on his body as well as a bad case of MRSA. After months of medicated baths, prescription medication, topical sprays, and a special diet, we managed to get this boy’s skin back to normal. He’ll always have sensitive skin, but he now gets to live the good life with his forever family. He’s even got special booties so he can go for long walks on the beach!
MABEL
Someone tied this sweet english bulldog to the front door of a local vet clinic. The compassionate neighbors who found her brought her to us on a Saturday evening and we knew right away that she needed emergency attention. Mabel had deep lacerations on her hind leg and paw that had clearly been left untreated, and infection had set in. Thanks to the care she got from the emergency team and our own amazing CCR staff that night and over the next few weeks, we were able to save her leg! And the vet tech who supported her long recovery ended up falling in love and adopting her.
SOPHIE
Having been found stray after getting hit by a car, Sophie couldn’t catch a break. She was passed up time and time again. Ultimately, she waited three long years before her forever family found her at CCR. When she arrived, she was dog friendly and while a little nervous, grew to make a lot of friends but as time went on, she became quite reactive toward both people and other animals. Enter Tyler and Jullia, Sophie’s new parents. We received an application that said the applicants were hoping to rescue the dog who needed to get out of the shelter the most. Well, that was certainly Soph. After about 5 meet and greets with Tyler and Julia taking it really slow with our girl, we started to send her on overnights and eventually sent her for foster to adopt. They knew from the beginning that Sophie would be theirs forever! Sophie now has dog and human friends because she has the most incredible parents who take it slow and advocate for her growth!
Watch Their Testimonial
ARCHIE
Wild child Archie came to us as a young pup but as most black bully breeds experience, he was here for far too long for no good reason. He’s an athlete at his core, loves to show off his parkour skills and will make a round of fetch last hours if you’ll allow. He’s also an incredible cuddle buddy and a sucker for belly rubs. One day a young man came in with his friends and that was it – love at first sight. Archie is being treated like a prince in his forever home. He goes to physical therapy to make sure he stays lean and healthy, he gets to enjoy lake front walks regularly and most importantly of all, he gets all the love he deserves every. single. day.
FAUNA
Fauna came to us from Cicero Animal Care and Control after being dumped by a backyard breeder who was breeding collies for the double merle gene. She has merle ocular dysgenesis and is fully deaf. Because of these traits, she struggled acclimating to the layout of her foster home where she unfortunately tripped and broke her arm. Our amazing community rallied together to help her receive a fracture repair surgery along with months of physical therapy. While on the hunt for her family, Fauna won the hearts of many on WGN but between her inability to hear or see most adopters turned her away. Around four months she began developing atypical behaviors such as stargazing, fly snapping and shrieking. Fortunately for Fauna, while seeking guidance for treatment of these behaviors, one of our amazing vets we work with fell in love with her, she now has the best suited home for her needs!
APPLE CIDER
While out walking their dog, a good samaritan found Apple Cider tucked away in an ally. Terrified, shaking and very apparently had just given birth. She came to our shelter the next day and after receiving some love, a staff member quickly scooped her up and brought her back to where she was found to look for her puppies. They walked around for hours with no luck so they came back to the shelter, cut her lengthy nails, and got her squared away in a cozy bed. For weeks we would bring her into the office where she’d hide under our desks, only showing interest when fed some of our lunch scraps. She was still so terrified. About a month into her stay at CCR, we received a glowing application from two lovely gentlemen, her now adoptive parents! They were looking to help a dog who really needed out of the shelter, they were happy to take it slow and on her terms. She’s now a much more confident pup in their care and we can say with certainty, she’s living the dream with her forever family!
MORNAY
Mornay spent the first two years of her life at the shelter after having come from CACC. She waited patiently for her forever family to come along but meet after meet would take place with no luck. This dog friendly smartipants loved playgroups with dog friends, long runs with volunteers and practicing agility with staff but still, she deserved so much more. Now she resides in Bucktown with her exceptionally large hound brother and parents who adore her! We’re so happy this perfect girl finally found her happily ever after.
ROCKY
Rocky Road, our volunteer favorite, ball of energy, stuffy loving and 65 lb lap dog, spent years waiting for his forever people to arrive. While we all thought he should’ve found his home sooner, it was incredibly clear that he was waiting for Brady and Erin to come into his life. As Rocky entered the room to their meet and greet, he spotted his new mom and jumped right into her lap! Within minutes, his dad Brady said he knew he’d found the newest addition to their family. Not only were his parents immediately smitten, they came to the shelter and ran him every single day between their meet and greet and adoption because they couldn’t imagine spending another day without Rocky in their lives! He now lives his very best life with plenty of love, toys and a family to call his own.
ZEUS
Our 115lb teddy bear waited patiently for the perfect home to come around and when they did, we all knew immediately that this good boy had found his happily ever after! Amy, John and Lorin, among several other supportive family members, drove over two hours to meet our big guy. It was truly love at first sight, Zeus gently trotted over to his crowd of admirers as they entered the yard and immediately tears were pouring down everyone’s faces. It was clear that he’d be leaving the shelter in his past as he entered his dream life (rested upon a generous 45 acres) with the loveliest people he’d ever met. He’s now enjoying daily walks on the property, boiled chicken and an ever-growing stuffy collection!
TOODLE LOU
Toodle came to us from Cicero Animal Care and Control in June of 2023. While picking up our previously arranged pups from our transferring shelter, the kindhearted staff at Cicero brought us into a room with a skinny, scabbed and scarred creature. They said they weren’t sure what she’d been through, but she still had nothing but love to give. Our managers sunk to the floor and the pup who had obviously endured so much sweetly and shyly crawled over, soliciting for affection. Toodle waited patiently for someone to see past her scars and give her a chance. Eventually, our exceptional Adoptions and Foster Manager began fostering her. Amber began introducing her to dogs, cats and kids alike! Toodle THRIVED in her care and slowly but surely, her physical and emotional scars were lifted. Suddenly, this dog who hadn’t received a single application in her year and a half in our care, got an application from a family who waited a lifetime for a pup like her. After one week in foster with them, they eagerly finalized and added her as a permanent member of their family!