This is Gracie’s Happy Tail written by Lisa Wilson Rim

It took us 6 months before we were ready to adopt another dog after the heartbreak of losing our Jazzy to cancer in September 2012. Our other dog Bandit was so lonely; he would hide out all day in the closet. I first saw Gracie on the Pound Pals of Radford website– and I just couldn’t get her out of my mind. Gracie had been through more in her first 2 years than many dogs would in a lifetime. She was found abandoned on a lonely dirt road in Texas and put in a huge shelter. They found she was deaf, and rescue angels transported her to Virginia. She was adopted out–and returned. The rescue angels again stepped up and cared for her. So much is owed to foster mom angels Beth and Kimberly for all they had done.

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My husband and I had no experience with a deaf dog. Gracie has vision issues and food allergies also, and we didn’t know that we would be able to provide her with the care she needed. Then, at our house during the “introduction visit” she connected immediately to Bandit, they ran together all over the house, up and down the stairs, on and off beds, and I saw them both so happy!

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Gracie was very shy and scared with us at first, as we were just another scary new place along her journey. It took a while for her to develop trust. She actually made her first connection with not me, but with my husband. She loves Bandit and follows his every move and behavior (the good and the bad!). Gracie is eager to learn new commands and she’s very smart. All in all, she was really no different from the other dogs we had had. We love her so much.

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Gracie loves to go on hikes and her tail gets a’wagging furiously when my husband pulls out the hiking gear. She is a brave and strong hiker and you would never know of her limitations when you see her hit the mountains.

When Gracie looks into my eyes, my heart melts. There is such love in her face. We are so blessed to be able to provide her with her fur-ever home. There is a reason she has survived and thrived despite a very rough beginning.

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