In August, 2005, my dog of 9 years passed away suddenly. I had another dog who was already a little anxious and decided right away that I wanted to get another dog to be her companion. I do a lot of volunteer work at the local shelter here in Northern California so on my next visit I filled out the adoption application and started looking. That September, after Hurricane Katrina devistated the Gulf Coast area, I followed many news reports, mostly focusing on the helpless animals, and wanted badly to go help but I knew that was not possible. Then I heard that my local shelter was going to be getting ten K-9 Katrina Survivors! They would be fostered out for 90 days to allow for owners to still claim them. I called the director and told him this was a way I could help and wanted to foster one of these dogs! After they arrived, I went and met the dogs and chose my handsome Barkley! He is an English Pointer mix (what I'm told!) and has the most beatiful coat! After 90 days, he was mine and he has been a joy! It took some time for him to come out of his shell but he was grateful from day one! He has become a great companion for my other dog, Roxy, a lab chow mix, not to mention MY best friend! He also gave me the satisfaction of knowing that I helped save at least one life from Katrina!

Leslie Cameron
Vallejo, CA