Written by Caroline's foster mom: Today was such a bittersweet day. Let me preface this with the fact that NO ONE believed I would EVER let Caroline go to a new home. All the members of the Pet Harbor Board of Directors love Caroline so much that we each wanted to keep her.
Charlotte and Zschack are good friends of Pet Harbor. They and Dexter, their Border Collie, adopted Traveler Joe, a Husky-Akita mix, from us several months ago. Click to read Traveler's biography before he went to his new home. Charlotte, a true animal lover herself, comes from a family of animal-loving people (our kind of folk!) and has since adopting Trav become an active Pet Harbor volunteer. Traveler & Dexter are energetic young men, and we know they will keep Caroline playful. We also know that Caroline will rule them! Charlotte & Zschack are great parents, and we know we will see Caroline frequently forever. Here is a picture of Caroline's new family.
We did have to agree not to convince them they would be perfect for any other dogs since they feel they have enough now. So, with fingers crossed behind our backs, we eagerly agreed. This is the greatest, most exciting part of rescue and also the hardest, most heartbreaking part. It is very difficult to let go, but when there is a home as great as this one and as perfect for this dog, it doesn't get better. And though I will sleep well tonight with the knowledge that Caroline has the greatest home we could ever hope to find for her, my tears may never stop. Not too long ago, I had trouble letting go of a foster dog named Storm. Caroline topped him. But I have to let go so I can save another. Although no one else believed it, I knew I would let go when The Right Home came along. It did.
This is what Charlotte had to say after Caroline's first evening at her new home, "What makes everyone think she's got a leg missing... Maybe everyone else has one too many, and she's got to show them what normal is." Yep, that's it! All is well, and Caroline has The Right Home!
Here is Caroline and her forever mommy, for whom we are so thankful:
In fact, here is a picture of Steve, one of our board members, taken as we left our last board meeting. The point is Caroline even went to the board meeting with us! We turned down great people who applied for her because they just could not provide the right home for Caroline. She would still be in foster care except we found The Right Home. I insisted she was not ready to leave yet, but my close friends kept telling me, "You mean YOU are not ready for her to leave and probably never will be." I thought (hoped) she would never find The Right Home. Well, she didn't, actually. My daughter, Brandi, did. She knew exactly what I wanted in a home for Caroline. Yesterday Charlotte came to volunteer at our adoptions. Brandi thought about it and told Charlotte she should adopt Caroline. Then I thought about it, and she was right. The more I thought about it, the happier I got (and sadder at the same time). We plotted & schemed all day about how to break the news to Charlotte's other half, who had told her not to bring home any four-legged critters. True to her word, she didn't because Caroline only has three legs now. All of our conspiring was for naught because he didn't take much convincing. He agreed, sight unseen. So today Caroline went home.
August 23, 2001. Caroline is well on her way to full recovery. Her stitches came out today. She even left the vet a nice little present in the middle of the floor to show her appreciation. Actually, it more was to show her fear. She was afraid he was going to remove another leg, we guess. Her Elizabethan collar is gone now. She is learning to walk and not really thrilled about it. She would rather just lie down and be pampered. So Caroline is ready for a new home, but it must be a home where she will get lots of attention and be pampered but not be so pampered she does not learn to walk efficiently on three legs! Remember, no matter how many legs she sports beneath her little body, Caroline is still a puppy, who will chew up a wooden desk if she thinks she can get away with it. So if you have understanding, time, patience, and want to spoil a dog a little but not too much, maybe Caroline is the dog you are seeking.
Little Caroline. No matter who meets her, you fall in love. You can't help it. She captures us all.
Her second angel is her sponsor. Linda and SHROEM, Siberian Husky Rescue of Eastern Massachusetts, sponsored Caroline and covered the majority of her veterinary expenses.
It is because of both of these angels that Caroline is alive. Pet Harbor could not have done it alone. Little Caroline is so grateful to Samantha and Linda for saving her life.
The most beautiful blue eyes and the softest fur in the world, this little girl, who weighed only 22 pounds, did not stand a great chance. This shelter euthanizes 75-80 percent of its incoming animals because there just are not enough homes for them and people would rather allow unwanted accidents and find those dogs homes than saving the dogs who are already here who don't have homes. Because this little baby had a problem that was certain to incur exorbitant medical costs, she stood even less of a chance than most. 
Through a string of events and because of the relentless Samantha, Caroline left the shelter.Caroline also has a special angel, Anne, who has given her a list of more appropriate Spanish names, which list Caroline's new family will get so they can choose, and prayers, which are much more important to her than the names.
Fate is on Caroline's side, and she is destined to live. A perfect angel, she is just as cute as she can be. She is quite unique. Most likely a congenital problem, according to two veterinarians now, her leg did not bother her in the least at first. In fact, she used it to wave at everybody. 
One of the vets initially said she was hypermetric. Caroline didn't know what that meant. To her, it meant PUPPY! 
Approximately 8 months old (The vet says 6 months to a year.), she came to us loaded with ticks and fleas. She's since thrown them away; been heartworm-tested, the results of which were negative; had vaccines; and been spayed. She also has taken over everything in her foster home: the other dogs, the cats, the toys, the food, the soda bottles, the shoes, the clothing, the desk, everything. She tries to chew it all! Stuffed animals seem to be her favorite toys, but that hairbrush over there looks mighty tasty to her, too. Her foster mom has not yet heard her say a word, but if she ever does speak, you'll hear about it here first. Deeply in love with her foster mom, when she sat on a bed, when Caroline had four paws, she stood up behind her foster mom and tapped both of her front feet on her back until her foster mom let Caroline kiss & hug her. Equally in love with her foster teen, when the teen leaves the house, Caroline stands at the sliding glass door and whimpers until she returns.
Little Caroline's leg was amputated on August 9, 2001. 
At first it was wrapped, but Caroline wanted nothing to do with that. During the night, she ate the bandage and had the drain for dessert. 
She had to undergo surgery again and have the drain site flushed and a new drain inserted. She is recovering. Now she wears an Elizabethan collar and absolutely hates it. At first she did not want to walk at all. Now she is getting much better at it and today, August 20, has hobbled around quite a bit seeking out mischief.
Of course, she can't go to a new home until she is totally recovered and her stitches are removed. She is very special and unique, and to adopt her, you're going to have to be just as special and unique because her foster mom loves her so much she is going to have a very difficult time parting with her . . . unless she chews up another of her shoes!