A ten-year-old stray dog goes from shelter pet to best sister ever

Earlier this year, Austin Animal Center brought Jessie to Firehouse Westlake.

Jessie is a ten-year-old stray who was found on the streets of Austin and in desperate need of some healthcare. When we did a dental exam (a part of every check-up we do), we noticed her teeth and gums were in very bad condition and she was experiencing a lot of pain as a result.

After finding advanced infections in all of her teeth, we removed all of Jessie’s teeth! While this sounds drastic, it was the only option for her and she felt so much better afterward. In all other areas, Jessie was pretty healthy — a major feat considering she was found alone on the streets of Austin.

When we saw Jessie one week after her dental procedure, she was doing great!

A few days later, we asked to feature Jessie on the weekly CBS Austin “Wednesday Friendsday” segment we sponsor so she could be promoted for adoption. Happily, by that time she had already found her forever family and was happily settling into her new home.

We didn’t think we could get any happier for Jessie until we checked in earlier this month and we received this report:

“See the dark photo of Jessie and her new older brother sleeping together? He is blind and deaf and Jessie has really helped him out. She is with him all the time, tries to help guide him through the doggie door, and can be protective of him. 💙 “

We are so happy for Jessie and are grateful the Austin Animal Center brought her to us for help. In 2019, we saw 175 pets from Austin shelters through our giving back program (up from 153 in 2018).

So far, we’ve given away $700,000 in free medical care to shelter pets around Central Texas since 2012. We’ll do pretty much anything for these shelter pets, from vaccinations to heartworm meds, dental cleanings, and complex surgery. Our goal is to help these shelter pets get the care they need so it’s easier for them to find their forever home. Jessie is the perfect success story!

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