Written by Erma Voigt for CSI (Camdeboo Sterilisation Initiative)
Professional photography by elysian
“All her puppies keep dying.” – this was the reason Miss Willow, previously called Meisie, was surrendered by her owners in Graaff-Reinet, Eastern Cape. How terribly sad!
Camdeboo Sterilisation Initiative (CSI) swiftly sent a plea out for this precious little girl in order to find her a foster or forever home.
Animal rescuer Lorraine Rabie, from Cape Town, responded to the plea and offered her a foster home. Normally we don’t place dogs in foster homes out of town, simply due to logistics. But since Lorraine has been involved with and supported CSI for many years in the capacity of having fostered for us, adopted from us, and performed home checks for us for potential adoptions, we were very grateful for the offer and sent Meisie off with peace of mind, knowing that she’d be in excellent hands.
We continued networking her for many months and couldn’t understand how no offers came in for such a pretty, sweet and well-natured girl. Well, it seems that Miss Willow, as renamed by her foster mom, was patiently waiting for JUST the right home. And the wait was worth it!
Lorraine Rabie, Miss Willow’s foster mommy, shares...
The journey all started on the 16th of September 2021, when Erma from CSI asked me if I could foster a dog, recently homed to Cape Town, whose adoption didn’t seem to be working out.
Fortunately, the owners managed to sort out the hiccups and the doggie stayed – but this got me thinking that I was indeed ready to take another poor orphan into foster care in order to save its life and give it a second chance at a happy home.
So the “search” began for a suitable foster candidate. This resulted in me ending up with no less than three doggies! The first two arrivals were Meisie, renamed Miss Willow, and a male named Mr Pepper. (I decided to name them after trees, since a tree was to be planted by “Green Pop” in memory of my beloved German Shepherd, Sasha, who sadly passed away after a short illness, on the day of their arrival.)
They weren’t used to the comforts of a home, a dog bed, good food or treats, had no idea how to walk on a leash, and hated travelling in a car, so I needed to accustom them to all of these. Poor Miss Willow would run around crying, as if looking for something – sadly, I’m sure she was looking for her puppies, as she seemed really depressed. Fortunately, she had Mr Pepper to cheer her up, and they became best buds.
About a month later, the third doggie, Mr Bougard, arrived. This sadly resulted in Miss Willow losing her friendship with Mr Pepper as now suddenly Mr Bougard was the new flavour of the month, so I knew the time had come for her to find her own forever Happy Home.
CSI had been networking Miss Willow for many months, without success, so I started networking her myself, expecting lots of interest; however, nothing… until a few days later, when the De Beer Family reached out, saying they’d love to meet Miss Willow. It was love at first sight, and the rest is history!
I’m truly grateful for having been able to play a part, together with CSI, in the rescue, rehabilitation and rehoming of dear little Miss Willow to such a wonderful home and loving family as the De Beers.
Christa and John De Beer, Miss Willow’s new guardians, share...
When our Dachshund, Penelope, tragically passed away from cardiac failure on the 5th of July 2022, our hearts were shattered. Our family made a decision not to get another pet soon, as the pain of losing a fur child is just too much.
Penny’s passing had a very depressing effect on our family; the house was far too empty and quiet.
One day, while surfing Facebook, a pet adoption page popped up. The thought of “just looking around in our area for possible dogs available” came up – for whenever we “might feel ready” – but we didn’t make any commitments to ourselves, until...
We saw Miss Willow’s little face and it was love at first sight! We were delighted to know that foster mom Lorraine lives in the same suburb as us, literally two kilometres away! We made contact on Tuesday the 26th of July, and the very next day, Lorraine and Miss Willow came over for tea. This visit turned into a home inspection to see if she’d possibly fit into our family, followed by arrangements for a sleepover until Friday the 29th of July. This was extended to Monday. Needless to say, Miss Willow never left.
We signed the adoption papers on the 1st of August 2022 and Miss Willow officially became a De Beer!
This kind-natured girl brought so much healing in our lives. She filled a gap that no other creature could. Tears from loss turned into laughter, with her clumsy, funny zoomies!
We haven’t heard her bark since she arrived and was wondering if she had a voice; we only heard a high-pitched wheezing sound sometimes. The mat at the front gate became Little Missy’s favourite place to sit and look at all the passersby. On the 23rd of August 2022, suddenly, she uttered the most beautiful girly bark!
She’s become a faithful running buddy, and absolutely loves her walks and doing the school run with Megz and Momzie!
We love our “Bokstertjie” and are so glad to have her in our lives. She has so much love to give, and in return, has become a cherished part of the De Beer Pack.
