Newtown Rescue, Caring Reader Give Dog New Chance at Life

It looked like the end of the line for a boxer in a crowded North Carolina animal shelter.

Known only as "Tag 455" in the shelter, he was named Ridlin by the rescue groups who tried desperately for months to find a home for him. When Newtown-based rescue group Green Fur Kidz shared his story with Patch, he had only one day left before he was scheduled to be gassed.

Readers prayed for someone to save the dog.

"Please don't put this dog down," wrote one reader. "Give him more time. See if someone comes for him. What is another day?"

Then Brookfield resident Kristen Lebish stepped up. She saw a post on the Newtown Patch Facebook wall and announced she'd foster the dog. Fellow commenters celebrated when she posted the happy news.

"This dog will be saved," she wrote. "Green Fur Kidz has reviewed my foster application and will be in touch with me tomorrow to talk more about the fostering process. In the meantime they're calling the shelter that this precious pup is at and saving him."

More than one reader declared her an "angel." Green Fur Kidz updated their post shortly afterward with the headline: "RESCUED!"

Kristen dropped Patch a line recently to let readers know the dog — now named Chance — is happily enjoying his new lease on life, and his temporary home in Brookfield. He's been treated for heartworm disease and is back on the way to full health.

"He is the sweetest dog ever," she said.

But she gives the credit to Green Fur Kidz for their work.

"They pulled him out of the shelter when I stepped up, but they've treated him for heartworm and made sure he was in a loving environment until he came to me," she said. "They are saving animals day in and day out and I'm glad to have been a part of helping save one life."

Now the dog who stood at death's door can run around, see the sunlight and curl on the couch with a human. Chance may be free from his cage and with a loving guardian, but he's still looking for a forever home. For information on adopting Chance, contact Kristen Lebish on Facebook.