Chance came to Miranda's Rescue in a very unfortunate way. Some heartless soul threw him out of his car window at a gas station and drove off. Fortunately, an animal lover witnessed the act and brought him to the shelter. When he arrived, his condition was terrible; he was covered in matts, extremely overweight, and had an extreme case of flea allergy. Besides that, he had an injured leg from the fall when he was thrown.

He was an older dog, so the volunteers named him Gramps. He had to be fully shaved to take off his matts, and his appearance and age made it seem likely that he would spend the rest of his days at the Rescue.

About four months after his arrival, Gramps/Chance's future mom, Rebecca, stopped by the shelter to visit her friend, Nina, who volunteers here. Towards the end of a tour of the shelter, she asked Nina what the story was on the old Sheltie in the corner kennel. After hearing what had happened, she knew that she had to get involved.

No one really knew how much time he had left, but I knew at that moment that even if it was only one day, I would take him and give him a warm home, lots of love, and nurturing care. I ran home to get my man, David, so that he could meet him. This little dog must have known we came just for him because his spirit changed--he walked right to David, and his eyes said it all. On the way home, I asked David what his name should be. He replied, "It will be Chance because now he's getting his chance." He became part of our family that day, and I knew shortly after that he was no longer our foster dog, but we were his forever family.

Chance came to me in very poor shape,...but after about 6 months he became as beautiful outside as he is on the inside. Now, almost one and a half years later, Chance is still doing fantastic. he has maintained a healthy weight, his skin is all clear, and his coat has grown long and full.

Although his joints are a little achy sometimes and his hearing is starting to fade, he couldn't be happier! I hope that Chance's story will help encourage anyone looking to adopt that even the old guys need a chance. They have just as much love to share.