Success Stories

Thank You, For bringing Mel in to my life!! I’ve been visiting different adoption agencies in the area and Ace of Hearts is the best organization I’ve come across. It’s evident all of you care very much for animals and are mainly concerned about finding loving homes for your dogs. Eric listened to my “wish list” for a dog and instantly knew Mel would be the right one for me. I feel so lucky and fortunate to become his new parent. I didn’t think it was possible to satisfy every wish on my list! Mel is super mellow and gets many compliments every time we go for a walk. He is all Eric said he would be. I haven’t heard him bark yet or be the aggressor to people, dogs or cats! Mel is the perfect companion and loves to be loved. You can see Mel lounged here on one of his soft beds.. Mel, loves to spread out on something smooshy! I think what all of you are doing is very admirable and I hope you will continue to get the support you need to revive dogs and pairing them with deserving families.

We just wanted to drop you a line and let you know that Molson is awesome and we love him so much. He's super smart and a great dog and we've have taken him everywhere already.

Just a quick note to let you know that Dixie (formerly Pat / Paddy) is doing fine and we couldn't be happier to have her in our family! She and Boomer play together and get along well now. We discovered that Dixie likes to chew and play so she now has a big box of toys to help her expend her chewing energy on. Dixie is the sweetest, most loving dog we could imagine having and we are so happy to have her with us. It is terrible to think that this sweet, beautiful little girl might not be with us now had you not rescued her. It was well worth the drive to Los Angeles from Las Vegas to make her a part of our lives! I would strongly recommend anyone consider adopting an adult rescue dog. Dixie is our third rescue dog and all have been wonderful, loving members of our family. We immediately had a personalized tag made for her collar which she wears with the Ace Of Hearts tag and the blue micro-chip tag.

Eleven years ago, when I was 27 years old, I was diagnosed with stage 4 Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. The cancer was everywhere and my chances of survival were not great. With the help of my husband and family, I was able to make it through eight grueling rounds of chemo and radiation and went into remission. One morning, after my husband left for work, I found myself on my computer doing a google search for rescue dogs in Los Angeles. Ace of Hearts popped up and, after reading your story and your mission, I decided to click on the search our dogs tab. A few pages in, I found myself staring at a picture of a large, goofy looking yellow-lab. His name was Riley and he was around 11 months old. Without thinking, I picked up the phone and called. I had to meet Riley. Four hours later, I found myself in the car, driving to meet Riley at his foster home off of La Brea. This was so out of character for me. I am normally a very organized and planned out type of person. I don't tend to be spontaneous and normal would have researched and carefully planned a dog adoption. But something deep inside of me knew Riley was special. I had been contemplating going back to work but was having a hard time finding something meaningful. After going through cancer and staring death in the face, I craved doing something truly life-changing with my time. After only a few days with my new buddy, I knew I wanted my job and focus to be rehabilitating Riley. I wanted to show this dog love, I wanted to earn his trust and I wanted to help him through his physical challenges and try to bring him back to life. I quickly realized that Riley loved tennis balls. I mean, really, really loved tennis balls. We started waking up at 5:00 in the morning and going to the ocean to watch the sun rise. He loved trying to run on the sand and would chase balls into the ocean until we had to pry ourselves away from the surf to avoid getting a ticket. The Brentwood dog park became my office. As Riley's muscles strengthened, so did my new friendships I was making with other dog park dog lovers. To this day, these people are still some of my closest friends. Riley and I became best friends. In our ten years together, Ri and I have been through three rounds of my cancer, two bone marrow transplants, he has put his large head on my stomach for five pregnancies and of the five has met two live babies. He has licked away my tears, danced with me in times of joy, laid with me when I need companionship, guarded my children and kept all of us safe. Riley is affectionately known in our family as goof-ball. He came to us with the name Riley and since our last name is Rose, Riley Rose started to naturally roll off our tongues. We currently live in Pasadena and Riley is famous in our town. He loves the car and is often seen hanging out in the back of my Suburban with the back window raised. The younger children have developed a habit of coming up to my car and rubbing Riley's head for good-luck before school. Riley goes absolutely everywhere with us. Because of my medical history, I was able to get a service dog vest for Riley which is really just his ticket to freedom. Riley has flown back and forth to Texas with us more times than I could count, he has gone to Disneyland, every hotel in Southern California, he played with Mathew McConahey�s dog on a Barbara Walters special as we were walking Runyon Canyon one day a while back, he made it onto several commercials being filmed on our street, he has lived with me at our lake house in Texas when I needed a secluded place to recover from the chemo and has run free at our ranch in South Texas. Riley has run, swam, chased literally thousands of tennis balls, traveled, barked with joy, played so hard he could not take another step, and he has loved. This big goofy puppy that came to us has learned to trust and has learned that he will never, ever be hurt or abandoned ever again. But let me be clear, it was me that was rescued. Yes, we have given Riley a great life but Riley has literally saved me. This dog is my everything. I cannot imagine a day without him. Kari, I wanted to tell you this story because I know I am one of hundreds, maybe even thousands, that have benefited because of you. So much is said about the dogs being saved and their lives changing forever which is absolutely the truth. You have saved so many precious, defenseless animals. There must be a special place for you in Heaven.

I just wanted to share with you some of the photos we took of Rowdy's birthday party that we had for him back in April (along with his canine friends). We made him his very own birthday cake and he had all kinds of party favors! He had a great time! It's been over a year since we adopted him and we cannot imagine our lives without him. We take him with us almost everywhere we go. He is the smartest dog either one of us has ever had. Sometimes we think he is human! We are waiting for him to start talking any day now! He is so gentle, loving, and well-behaved. We can't imagine why anyone would want to get rid of him. All of our neighbors love him. He is a huge part of the family. Thank you so much for what you do!

I just wanted to say Thank You for connecting me with my baby Mina (previously Milla). She is one of the best decisions I have ever made and I cannot imagine life without her! She LOVES cuddling, knows no enemies (unless it a dangerous possum threatening our backyard), and lives to please. My husband is a self-proclaimed "cat person" and can't leave the house without giving her a good ear waggle and sometimes greets her before me when he gets home from work! I have included some pictures below - when I first brought her home, she weighed only 55 lbs, but now is about 105 lbs and ALL MUSCLE! Thank you again and again and again! Much Love, Andrea, Cornel, and Mina

I have been meaning to send this email for some time now, as I thought you all might be interested in how Tyson (since renamed to Moose) has been doing. To put it generically, Moose has been a dream. He really has brought a great new dimension to our daily lives. It is hard to remember what life was like before him. In terms of training, once he got used to his new name, he learned all of his commands very quickly. Clearly, the smartest dog in the world. In terms of health, he has also been great. As you can see from the attached pictures, his face has really cleared up. When we first got Moose, we took him to a vet dermatologist who recommended a course of antibiotics to clear up the infection from the allergies. We also changed Moose to a dry raw food diet to which we add cut fresh vegetables. If nothing else, this guy is food driven. The infection has not come back since that one course of antibiotics and the patches of peachiness have gone away. In terms of demeanor, this guy gets along with everyone. Everyone wants to hang out and get kissed by Moose! Anyway, thought you all might want to know what happened to Tyson/Moose.

Panda is so adorable and we have completely fallen in love with her. She's just such a sweet dog. We are currently in Mammoth and she loves the snow. She even made a new friend! Thank you so much for giving us the opportunity to adopt such a wonderful and beautiful dog!!

We just loooooove Rocco (Huggies)– he can be found hanging out with his Grandma and Fan Fan (miniature black poodle) during the day – she cooks all day…..or sleeping on the couch. My house is full of white hair – I have come to love it - I can’t imagine my life without him. Thanks for the opportunity. Love – Carol and family

Roxy is doing awesome! She's my baby girl. We've been taking her everywhere this summer. She loves the lake! She is the best wake eater ever! She pounces up and down like a puppy trying to get the little waves. We went swimming in a creek and she got to chase fish around. My boys love her to pieces and she just melts when they lay on her. We love our Roxy. We wouldn't be the same without her. We can't thank you enough for our furry family member.

Just wanted to let you know how well Molly is doing with us. It's coming up on two years and I can't remember life without her! She is without a doubt the best dog and the best thing I have ever done. I can't thank you enough for putting us together :)

Just wanted to drop you guys a line and let you know that Muffy is doing amazing. We adopted her in February of 2004 from you guys and now we couldn't imagine our lives without her. She is the most loving, cuddliest dog we've ever met. Muffy's favorite things to do are nap on the couch, lay on top of people, go to the park and, of course, eat! She still gets along with Gabby great (our other rescue) and they now are inseparable. Thanks so much. Hallie and Adam

Just a follow up on Wallace AKA Quincy... He's the perfect dog! We no longer worry about strangers approaching him to give him a hug. Ever since we got his little buddy Stempel, Quincy has completely stopped all aggressive behavior! We enrolled both dogs into a basic dog obedience school...Quincy is a fast learner and the most well behaved dog in the class. I wish I could say the same for his little brother Stempel...oy! Quincy snuggles and sleeps with a few of our cats - believe it or not! He only barks when someone has approached our house - great watch dog. He seems to be training Stempel to do the same. Every time we say the word "walk" both dogs start running to the front door and back to us as excited as can be. My husband and I have to say "W" instead of walk so we don't get them hyper! We can talk to him and he moves his head as if he understands...actually, I know he understands everything we say - so we are careful about teasing him. Sounds crazy - huh?!! I have attached a picture of Quincy and Stempel wrestling - they love to wrestle!! I hope all is well with you and your rescue group. Quincy has been a beautiful addition to our family!

I just wanted to send an update on the amazing Rosebud, who now lives in our new home in Olympia, Washington. We fostered her for two months (back in the fall of 2005), then fell in love and decided to adopt her.. she is the cutest, funniest, clowniest dog around! We have figured out that she is part Ibizan hound (which accounts for her huge ears and sighthound ways) and part bull terrier. Justin and I are completely attached to her, and she loves her stepbrother Otis the dog, and tries to love her cat cousins Olive and Ringo, though they still swat at her from time to time! Last year, when we were still living in Los Angeles, she came down with a terrible bacterial infection in her chest known as 'pyothorax'.. the vets think it was caused by inhailing a foxtail or thorn on one of our many hikes. She received top-notch care in the i.c.u. at A.S.G. in Glendale for 9 days on chest tubes, with only a 50/50 chance of survival.. by day three she had that Rosebud spark back in her eyes, and by day 6 she was ready to run around! She has such a intense drive for life, and optomistic attitude, that she actually helped ME get through that terribly difficult time. I just wanted to let you know that she is such a wonderful, funny, happy dog that gets to go for long walks everyday, and run around as much as she wants in the yard with her neighbor dog friends. We live on the beach, and she has finally learned to swim-- she loves it! At night she sleeps cozy and snug on our couch. She is simply the cutest little Rose-bug. Thank you for all of the work you do for dogs-- Sarah U.

Just wanted to give you guys an update on Sadie (Missy) and let you know what a great girl she is! She is the sweetest dog ever! She loves to hold hands and will nose poke you the moment you stop giving her attention. She is constantly at my side! She is very social and loves meeting new people, however is a bit unsure about other dogs. She definitely knows how to use her big, sad eyes to get love from people! I've attached a couple photos for you guys! Thanks. Beth