Hazel Grace
Hazel Grace is a 13lb dynamo of a supermutt. When TAF first took Hazel Grace into our program (2014), she had been set on fire by kids. Third degree burns covered a quarter of her body and she was heartworm positive. In critical condition, it would take over 7 weeks of hospitalization for Hazel Grace to make a full recovery.
Though she may be little, Miss Eyebrows is the leader of the therapy dog pack. Hazel Grace is confident, smart, assertive and plays an integral part in encouraging good behavior and proper dog etiquette. Teaching proper social skills is invaluable when preparing a homeless dog for adoption. Hazel Grace’s confidence makes her a great role model for all of the pups. She is a true survivor and has earned every gray hair on her face.
Bentley
When TAF found Bentley at the shelter (December 2016), he had just been given up by his owner. With his tail tucked between his legs, we found Bentley trembling in the corner of his cage.
Bentley is by far the gentlest of TAF’s therapy dogs. He wants nothing more than to make friends and is willing to be the submissive pup in the relationship. His gentle temperament quickly earns the trust of the most forlorn and cautious shelter dogs.
Bentley has saved more shelter dogs’ lives than all of our therapy dogs combined. If a shelter has a little dog that they believe to be “unadoptable” due to temperament, Bentley is asked to help. If Bentley can win them over, it is a safe bet that a dog with a similar temperament can too, thus giving them a second chance at a happily ever after. Bentey is our pint-sized hero.
Eeyore
Eeyore came to TAF as a puppy in 2018. He was a sickly “little” puppy that continually found himself in the ER. By the time he was six months old, Eeyore had already undergone shoulder surgery. His specialty doctors lovingly nicknamed Eeyore “the lemon”. With the help of his cardiologist, dermatologist, ophthalmologist, internal medicine specialist, orthopedic surgeon, ER & critical care doctors, ER grew up to be a 150lb handsome hunk with a whole lot to live for.
With his laid back demeanor and XL size, Eeyore is a natural when it comes to making pups feel safe. Eeyore is trustworthy, obedient, goofy and a team player. It is these qualities these make him a natural at temperament testing shelter dogs. Eeyore is a HUGE (pun intended) asset to TAF’s therapy dog team and we love him.
Ziggy
When Ziggy was no more than 12 weeks old (2021), he was found in a storage container in an alley. Hanging on for dear life, Ziggy was brought to Animal Control. When TAF picked him up, he was given a 10% chance to live. He was suffering from an advanced case of puppy strangles and his lymph nodes had burst. There has never been a documented case like Ziggy’s and his survival was nothing short of a miracle.
Ziggy is TAF’s official puppy wrangler. Whenever TAF has a litter of puppies, there is no greater joy in the world for Ziggy. When the mama dogs need a breather from their rambunctious puppies, Ziggy steps in and keeps them busy. He is a natural babysitter and the puppies love him. In all of our years in rescue, we have never seen anything like it. Ziggy will help to train the puppies until they are ready to find their forever homes. He is truly remarkable.
Butterfly
When TAF found Butterfly, she had been living at an open access shelter for 553 days (March of 2023). Due to her size and breed, Butterfly had been repeatedly passed over. Once it was discovered that she was 100% deaf, Butterfly’s chances to leave the shelter were slim to none. That was until TAF took Butterfly into our program.
Butterfly works hand in hand (paw) with the other therapy dogs. She watches the littles to see when she needs to bark at something or act quickly. Though Butterfly is not the alpha dog, she watches over the littles and makes sure that nothing happens to them. When a new shelter dog comes for an introduction, Butterfly always keeps a watchful eye on the littles.
When it comes to communicating with Butterfly, she follows hand signals, facial expressions and lights. Butterfly is always checking in to make sure that she is on the same page as her handler/mom. All that she wants to do is make her mom proud. Between her loyalty and eagerness to train, Butterfly has become an asset when it comes to temperament testing. We don’t know what we would do without our specially-abled girl.
Iris
Iris’ story is a special one. In August of 2023, Iris was born via emergency c-section at the ER. Less than a week later, Iris and her siblings needed to be taken away from their mother after she developed a life threatening infection and could no longer nurse. From that point on, Iris and her 3 brothers were bottle fed until they were old enough to eat on their own.
Iris’ mom, Lily, miraculously survived and the family was reunited when the puppies were 3 weeks old. At 10 weeks old, our little family found their forever homes. For Iris, that home was with TAF. Iris is now a therapy puppy in training. Though all of the therapy dogs watch over Iris, Ziggy is her #1. The two are like peas and carrots. Iris is the happiest little puppy and is on her way to becoming a great therapy dog.
Retired Team Members
Sophie
Bondi
Miller
Rylan
Quizz
Tripp
Louie
Hippo
