Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/annas-story/

Anna’s Story by Oana Stratman

I’ve been fostering for a couple of years now. To date, I’ve fostered five dogs, but Anna was my first. As a registered nurse, I had changed to a non-bedside/non-hospital job just as the pandemic was ramping up. I felt extremely guilty about not being able to contribute to the community by taking care of patients, so I wanted to find a different way of giving back. Enter Anna.

Fostering Saves Lives

Anna had been found in the parking lot of a grocery store after being hit by a car. She had multiple injuries, including a broken pelvis and femur. When I picked her up, she could not walk and was in tremendous pain. Little by little, her road rash healed, we worked on walking again with a belly band, and eventually she received an operation to fix the broken femur so she could walk without pain. Anna was a very loving dog with a zest for life who got a second chance at being a normal, happy dog again. I happily fostered her for three months while she healed from her injuries.

California Dreamin’

After that, she went to another loving foster home for two more weeks before finding her perfect family in California. An elderly woman had lost her dog and was interested in dear, sweet Anna. The woman and her close friend contacted me, and we had multiple emails and video calls over the course of a week. Finally, the decision was made that Anna would be adopted by her and go to live in California. The best part is that she went to her new forever home by private plane! A friend of Anna’s new adoptive mother heard about the adoption and wanted to help get Anna to her forever home faster and with less travel stress.

Encouraging Fostering

Anna lived one year with her new mom before passing suddenly and unexpectedly. Her memory will remain in my heart forever, and it is in her honor that I continue to foster animals. They help me to be a better human by impacting my overall conscience in such a deep way. Ultimately, I learn a great deal from my foster dogs. They teach me patience, resilience, resourcefulness, and fuel my creativity in ways that no human can. By my way of thinking, fostering is a selfless and very important commitment, and I wish more people would do it.

Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog