OMG, awesome person alert!

When Good People Do Nothing

Last March, we decided to adopt a shelter dog. After weeks of searching PetFinder and Craigslist, my youngest found him. "That's the one." No matter that this dog was in a rural shelter two hours from home. He was destined to be ours and we made the trip.

Walking across the damp floors of the shelter, we searched the cages for our dog. Most dogs pawed frantically at the gates of their kennel. Every dog barked and the barks echoed through the concrete tunnel of the shelter. We finally found our dog - of course, in the last kennel.

Out in the yard, we fell in love and took him home. Only, after several weeks, we realized that this dog was not actually "our" dog. He wanted to eat our cat too much to be part of our family. We worked with behaviorists but no luck. Ultimately, we found him a wonderful new cat-free home.

With all the time that had passed, it was too late to get a dog. We'd be leaving on a trip in a month. But I couldn't forget those barking dogs, that wet floor, the echoes in the concrete. In late April, I began advertising on Craigslist for the shelter - anonymously, because I was embarrassed. After a month, the shelter director tracked me down through an ad to let me know that my ads had dramatically increased adoptions and to beg me not to stop. My heart swelled with pride, happiness and something more.

This person's story totally made me cry. She's amazing.