Braveheart came to us beaten, broken, and sick, nearly every bone in his face damaged by savage blows.  He felt so bad  upon arrival that we may have misread his agreeability. Or so we thought.  Within a few weeks his body healed, and his wonderful, forgiving heart grew larger than life.  He's miraculous and has become (along with our 950-pound hog, Gilbert, who also survived a terrible ordeal)  the crowd favorite.

Visit Braveheart but be prepared for him to climb up on you for a big hug.  Then he'll probably entice you to scratch his belly.  He seems to sigh with pleasure.  What we didn't know at first was that Braveheart had already forgiven.  It was simply in his nature, and his forgiveness inspires us every day.

Amos was abandoned in a small apartment.  But before that, he was beaten, thrown against the wall, given beer to drink, and encouraged to bite people.  When he first came to Home At Last, he tried to bite almost anyone who approached the fence.  But we soon noticed a small change in Amos.  Once he met a person and trusted him, that person was placed on Amos' permanent  "good list."  Now, as his list grows longer, we see that Amos is on the road to complete forgiveness.  He'll soon trust again.

Sammy and Lizzie are real buddies.  Lizzie was abandoned, tied to a porch.  Sammy was rescued from a shelter.  Both dogs ran from visitors at first, but now things have changed.  Look...there's Lizzie, always at your feet, hoping for a treat, and there's her buddy, Sammy, doing his little twisting dance of "glad to see you."  We're glad to see you, too Sammy! We're happy you trust again.

Little Emma was recently rescued.  Her person had to leave the state to attend to emergency family issues.  Emma had been fed by a neighbor.  But Emma, who has severe allergies and dangerous tumors, needed much more than feeding. At Home At Last, she's receiving the loving care needed to help her hair grow again and to insure that her remaining
time is  filled with the tender attention she has craved for so long.  After just one short week here, Emma's sad eyes were bright once again.

Rocky, the pig, came to us from North Carolina.  He had outgrown his home, a room where he'd spent the previous four years.  When Rocky arrived, he couldn't get around very well and didn't seem to like people.  Now he RUNS, will roll over for belly rubs, and enjoys the companionship of Saigon, who has healed from a savage attack that nearly took his life.  Friends for life, they pile up together in the straw for long, warm snoozes on cold winter nights.

These guys and the rest of the Home At Last family are why we do what we do.  They've become our teachers.