Penny was found first. She was one of 4 in the litter that was born after Katrina, but before we got the Mom. At least, that was all that was rescued. I fell in love with Penny and found out that the Mom and pups were getting a new place to go. I quickly spoke up and asked for her. She was a doll at the beginning. She is now a handful as she has gotten comfortable here at our home and is very much the close buddy of Daisy, another puppy not too much younger than Penny and who has just as much un-tiring energy and curiosity.

    Penny's name came from a time when my daughter and I first got to New Orleans and got lost trying to find Muttshack. We ended up in a part of town that was devestated and deserted. It hit us hard and at one point I had to pull over and try to gather my senses before going on. When we did stop, we looked outside of the car at all the items that were left behind from the flood waters. There was dried up mud everywhere and in that mud were things like cards, toys, lp's, papers, ruined photos and more. One of the oddest things at the time I saw was a penny. It still looked shiney and new. Very strange in all this chaos. When this little puppy came along I realized that the Mom dog had been pregnant during Katrina. I couldn't imagine how she made it and what she went through. But to me, this little puppy represents new life, new hope - "a shiney new penny in all this devestation", thus her name Penny.

    Daisy came from a Kill shelter and was one of 14 animals that were to be euthanized the very next day. Some of our rescuers heard about this and couldn't let it happen. When they got there, there were also cats and kittens and other Mom dogs with their litters and a volunteer was leaving the next morning and took them with her to a local No-Kill shelter. Daisy ended up in the main office to keep her away from the Kennel Cough that was going around at the time. She was too small to be put in the cattery at night as the temperatures were getting into the 30's at night at this time. I only had room for one pup, so the office was a good place for her. She also received a lot of attention there. Can you believe this little life almost wasn't here on earth anymore? Who couldn't love this little girl? She is now my eldest daughter's dog and she knows it.

    Daisy does have one issue - food aggression. But if you think about what she had to do to survive the time outside after Katrina, I think you could understand. It will be hard for her to learn that no one is going to take her food anymore. She may not learn this lesson until she is away from Penny as they each try to steal one another's food.

    Penny was been in a 7 week session of board and train at the Academy of Canine Behavior. They have done an awesome job with her. She came home for a week to rest and give the training a break. She had gotten too comfortable at the school. She did very well at home considering the obstacles she had - Luke, Buster and Daisy. Daisy has now moved into her new home.